Carnegie Mellon University Traditions - The Fence

The Fence

The first great tradition at Carnegie Mellon is the fence, which is the most painted object on campus, and lies in the middle of the Cut. The fence frequently displays witty or poignant messages, but is just as often used to advertise upcoming events or recent accomplishments. Because of its highly visible location on campus, it is an ideal place to proclaim one's message to as much of the student body as possible. The original wooden fence was replaced in 1993 when it collapsed under its own weight. Today, a concrete and steel reinforced fence stands where the original one stood, imitating the size it would be today. Students still paint the fence in an effort to break the record held by the original as the world's most painted upon object.

The Fence's origins date back to the early days of Carnegie Institute of Technology when The Cut was still a valley that separated the Carnegie Tech buildings from the Margaret Morrison women's school. Over the valley spanned a bridge which the men of Carnegie Tech realized was a strategic spot for meeting the women of Maggie Mo as they crossed the cut. However, when The Cut was filled in to form the current-day grassy field, the bottleneck disappeared. In its stead, the administration erected a fence to stand in as a meeting spot. However, the university's students took a negative view of the structure not understanding the point of it. Administration was just about to give up and tear it down when the night before a fraternity painted The Fence in the middle of the night advertising a party on campus. The party turned out to be a huge success, as has the tradition of painting the fence. The administration relented on their plans for removing the fence.

Tradition dictates that the Fence only be painted after midnight and before sunrise, and only in its entirety. It must be painted by hand using brushes. If it is painted with spray paint or rollers, the painters would be cited for vandalism. A group wishing to paint the Fence must station two representatives on the small gravel region surrounding it; so long as two guards remain within the boundary, no other group may "take" the Fence. This sometimes leads to fraternities or other groups setting up a tent or campsite just inside the boundary so that they may keep control of the Fence for extended periods of time.

In August 2008, the graduating class of 2008 at the Carnegie Mellon Silicon Valley Campus brought the tradition to California by installing their own version of the fence, and dedicating it to Randy Pausch who died in that year.

On March 21st, 2011, six freshman Carnegie Mellon students defaced the fence. They were stopped by fellow students, CMU Police Officers, and representatives from the Office of Student Affairs. A hacksaw was used to cut away over two years' worth of layers of paint. The following night, hundreds of CMU students helped paint the fence in an effort to "heal" it. Facilities Management Services has taken the responsibility of repairing the fence, instead of gluing it back together the chunks were removed on March 23 leaving dozens of different layers visible. The fence was once again vandalized on June 22, again with a saw.