The Tank Scrap has to be one of the oddest and certainly the most violent of Purdue University traditions. It began 1894 with members of the Class of '97 first painting the tank that had been built the summer and fall of that year. The event was a freshmen-sophomore rivalry. It continued until 1913 when the students, faculty, and administration unanimously voted to end the event. The Tank in the tank scrap was built in 1894 on the southern edge of the Grand View Cemetery on North Salisbury Street. The tank still stands there today next to the caretaker's house seen on the lower left of the photograph. Today it is surrounded by a security fence topped with barbed wire undoubtedly to prevent vandalism or climbing accidents. No such precautions existed in the days of the Tank Scrap.
The Tank in 2009 where the Tank Scrap tradition began.
