Financially independent from the University of Oregon since 1933, The Duck Store has been dedicated to the members of the community since it's beginning. Being a non-profit, giving back to the University of Oregon and the local community was instilled in our DNA over 100 years ago when the first bookstore of the U of O was organized.
Financed by the Associated Students of the University of Oregon (ASUO), the first store in 1916 on the corner of 13th Avenue and Kincaid Street. At the end of World War I in 1918, the ASUO found themselves in financial straits and were forced to sell the bookstore to druggist Sidney Allen with a stipulation that they would not operate another bookstore for two years.
By 1920, the store model wasn’t meeting the needs of the university community. That was when a Portland University supporter, J.K. Gill, set up the University of Oregon Cooperative Store. The University Supply Company was established to raise funds for the project and stock was sold to UO faculty.
The bookstore moved a few times before settling in the current location. In 1923, the University of Oregon Co-Op moved into the lower third of the College Side Inn building where the original bookstore location stood. Here, the Co-Op grew its merchandise offerings. In 1939, the store signed a twenty-year lease for a 7000 square feet space in Chapman Hall.
After WWII, the GI Bill allowed many veterans to attend college and as a result enrollment increased. As a consequence, the Co-Op outgrew their space. The Board of Directors voted to purchase the College Side Inn located on the lot where the original store once occupied. Known then as the "Co-Op Annex," the two-story building was completed in 1961. That building housed the course book and general book departments while separate small branches sold school and art supplies as well as general Oregon merchandise.
When enrollment increased again as baby boomers went off to college, what was once a spacious 36,000 square foot space now seemed cramped. So, in 1984 the Bookstore began a major store-wide remodel to increase retail space and improve operational efficiency. An expansion of the Annex completed in March of 1966 which gave the store three floors and 36,000 square feet.
It was in 2007 when the University of Oregon Bookstore officially changed its name to more effectively support the students, faculty, staff and the mission of the University. “Bookstore” no longer accurately described the organization. The new name combined two established brands, the Duck Shop and the UO Bookstore, into one organization: The Duck Store.
Since 1920 the University of Oregon Cooperative Store and its successor, The Duck Store, has been serving the book and supply needs of the University of Oregon and our community. Our 100 years of history with the University, Eugene, Springfield and the rest of Oregon has shaped The Duck Store into a highly respected model among college bookstores nationwide.