Jean Park, the Ohio State Dean of Men, noticed that Ohio high school students were not attending college in the post-Depression era due to the cost of room and board. He sought out vacant areas on campus to house students at a low cost.
In 1933, 75 men moved into the southwest tower of Ohio Stadium through the Stadium Scholarship Program.
The barrack-style dorms in the southwest tower of the stadium became known as the Tower Club and could sleep 20 men per room. Another location in the basement of Larkins Hall, dubbed Buckeye Club, housed students as well.