Alphin-Stuart Livestock Teaching Arena (LARNA)

History of the Alphin Stuart Arena

Col. Horace E. Alphin and Patricia Bonsall Stuart

The Alphin-Stuart Livestock Teaching Arena is named for benefactors Col. and Mrs. Horace E. Alphin and the late Patricia Bonsall Stuart.

Colonel Horace E. Alphin (DASC '34) is a native of Botetourt County and enjoyed several successful careers. After receiving a commission in the Army reserve and a bachelor's degree in dairy husbandry from Virginia Tech, he earned a master's degree in dairy bacteriology from Tech and spent five years as a North Carolina Extension agent. In 1941, he was called to active duty and began a long, distinguished military career in personnel services. Alphin retired as a full colonel in 1967 and began another career in personnel administration with the Columbia Hospital for Women in Washington, D.C., until his second retirement in 1979. He became a successful land developer in Northern Virginia.

Mrs. Stuart and her husband, Herb, were Arabian horse breeders from Afton, VA. When she was 14, Mrs. Stuart began a lifelong career of showing and judging horses. Her husband was a founding director of the Virginia Horse Council, and she served as secretary and president of the council. In 1991, she was named the council's "Horsewoman of the Year."

Established

The Alphin-Stuart Livestock Teaching Arena was dedicated on April 24, 2004.

Building information from: https://www.vt.edu/about/locations/buildings/alphin-stuart_livestock_teaching_arena.html