Gilman Hall, Berkeley

Gilman Hall is a building on the campus of the University of California. Room 307 was where Glenn T. Seaborg and his coworkers identified plutonium as a new element on February 23, 1941. Today Room 307 is designated a National Historic Landmark and the building itself is designated a National Historic Chemical Landmark, recognizing the two Nobel Prizes in Chemistry that have resulted from research done in the building.

Gilman Hall has been used continuously by the College of Chemistry for 80 years; today it is occupied by the Department of Chemical Engineering. However, its laboratory equipment is no longer suitable for modern chemical research and as such, the University has renovated and converted some of the rooms into offices, classrooms, and small research laboratories.