The Dawes house was constructed in 1931 and acquired by Oregon State University in 1959.  The home is named after Mrs. Melissa Martine Dawes, former chairwomen of The Department of Modern Language at OSU from 1933-1956. If you are interested in reserving the Dawes House for an event please log in to Skedda. If you have not previously used Skedda, you will need to request access from Vikki Pointer (Vikki.Pointer@oregonstate.edu). Please note that this space is specifically reserved for grad student use. See the location of Dawes House on the campus map.

Community Rules for Dawes House

  • LAST ONE TO LEAVE THE FACILITY MUST LOCK THE DOOR.
  • This is a shared graduate student space, which means the number one expectation is respect for the space and the people occupying the space.
  • The use of Dawes House must abide by university policies and community standards.
  • Only currently enrolled OSU CEOAS students may make reservations to use the space.
  • Problems with the technology should be reported to CEOAS Research Computing Support (support@ceoas.oregonstate.edu).
  • Issues with the facility should be reported to Jason Balderston (jason.balderston@oregonstate.edu).
  • Dispose of waste properly.
  • Leave what is found upon arrival, and if anything is used, make sure it is returned to where it was found.
  • For further questions, please contact Robert Allan (Robert.allan@oregonstate.edu)

Melissa Martine Dawes

b. 16 June, 1890; d. 7 July, 1977

The daughter of James Prater Martine and Sarah Wilson Martine, she was born June 16th, 1890 in Michigan City, N.D.  The family moved to California in 1900 to Albany in 1903 and to Corvallis in 1913.

She received a Bachelor of Arts Degree from the University of Oregon in 1912 and a Bachelor of Science Degree from Oregon State University in 1915.  In 1920 she earned a Master’s Degree from Columbia University.  In the following years, Mrs. Dawes studied at the University of California at Berkeley, University of Madrid, Spain, University of Mexico and at Middlebury College summer foreign language school in Vermont.

In 1953 she married to C. Marshall Dawes, a building contractor now deceased.  Mrs. Dawes joined the OSU faculty in 1915 and from 1933 to 1956 she was chairwomen of the Department of Modern Language.  She taught Spanish, German, French, and Portuguese at OSU and did student practice teaching of Latin and Greek at the University of Oregon.  From 1960 until late in her years, Mrs. Dawes gave language examinations to graduate students at OSU.

She was an editorial consultant of World Language Dictionary and a member of a national committee of modern languages.  Mrs. Dawes was a past state president of the American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese.  She was a past president of the American Association of University Women, Corvallis Chapter.