Lathrop Hall

UAF photos by Sierra Coley

Austin E. Lathrop Residence Hall opened in 1962 as on-campus housing for 134 male students. It subsequently became a coed hall.

Since 2007, Lathrop has alternated between use as a residence hall, administrative offices and visitor housing. Most recently, Lathrop returned to service as a coed residence hall for undergraduates in fall 2024.

Austin E. "Cap" Lathrop was born in 1865 in Michigan. Lathrop, a businessman with interests in freighting, coal mining, banking, theaters, real estate, newspapers and radio, was for a time the territory’s wealthiest resident. In 1924, his Alaska Moving Picture Corp. produced "The Chechahcos," the first feature-length film shot entirely in Alaska.

He was named to the Alaska Agricultural College and School of Mines Board of Trustees in 1933. In 1935, when the college was renamed, the trustees board became the University of Alaska Board of Regents. Lathrop served until his death in 1950.