The T-Room is a

campus A campus is traditionally the land on which a college or university and related institutional buildings are situated. Usually a college campus includes libraries, lecture halls, residence halls, student centers or dining halls, and park-like se ...

bar located in downtown

Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and largest municipality of the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the largest municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of the 2021 Census, the municipal population was 439,819, with 348,634 people in its urban area. The ...

Barrington Street View southward on Barrington StreetBarrington Street is a major street in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, running from the MacKay Bridge in the North End approximately 7 km south, through Downtown Halifax to Inglis Street in the South End. Its ...

between

Spring Garden Road The Spring Garden Road area, along with Barrington Street (which it adjoins) is a major commercial and cultural district in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. It acquired its name from the fresh water spring that flows directly beneath it. It comprise ...

and Morris Street. It was opened in 1937 by Fredrick H. Sexton on the campus of the Nova Scotia Technical College, which is today the Sexton Campus of

Dalhousie University Dalhousie University (commonly known as Dal) is a large public research university in Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the fou ...

. Dr. Sexton served as the first principal, and later president, of NSTC from 1907 to 1947.

History

From its inception the T-Room was a popular hang out for Engineering students, as well as those attending neighbouring Dalhousie University. Trivia nights, or

Pub Quiz A pub quiz is a quiz held in a pub or bar. These events are also called quiz nights, trivia nights, or bar trivia and may be held in other settings. Pub quizzes may attract customers to a pub who are not found there on other days. The pub quiz is ...

nights as they were then known, were a local favorite and still take place at the venue every Friday night to this day. Circa 1980, NSTC became the Technical University of Nova Scotia (TUNS). The provincial government forced TUNS to

amalgamate Amalgamation is the process of combining or uniting multiple entities into one form. Amalgamation, amalgam, and other derivatives may refer to: Mathematics and science * Amalgam (chemistry), the combination of mercury with another metal **Pan am ...

with

in April 1997. For several years the former TUNS faculties formed a college called Dalhousie University Polytechnic (nicknamed DalTech) but in 2001 the college structure was dissolved and the faculties simply became part of Dalhousie University. Today, the TUNS campus is known as the Sexton Campus of Dalhousie University. It includes the T-Room, the Faculty of

Engineering Engineering is the use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...

and the Faculty of

Architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing building ...

and

Planning Planning is the process of thinking regarding the activities required to achieve a desired goal. Planning is based on foresight, the fundamental capacity for mental time travel. The evolution of forethought, the capacity to think ahead, is consi ...

. The TUNS School of Computer Science was merged with Dalhousie's after the 1997 amalgamation to become the Faculty of

Computer Science Computer science is the study of computation, automation, and information. Computer science spans theoretical disciplines (such as algorithms, theory of computation, information theory, and automation) to Applied science, practical discipli ...

. Computer Science moved into a new building on the Studley Campus in 1999. It is commonly believed that the bar is named for its shape, but this is unlikely as it is actually closer in shape to a letter "L". It is more likely that the T-Room name came from students abbreviating the name Nova Scotia Technical College to "Tech" in conversation.

Trivia Nights

Trivia at the T-Room originated every Friday starting in 2002. A student from PEI, where pub quizzes are very popular, spoke with the T-Room management and they agreed to start trivia to aid in Friday night sales. In 2004, due to the graduation of long-time trivia host Brent Desroches, trivia was handed off to a 3rd year student who had expressed interest. Brennan McVeigh hosted trivia during his time on campus. Because of the alternating schedule of co-op students a new host was required every four months. McVeigh would always return to host during his academic terms. In 2009, fans of trivia caused a public outcry when the weekly event was left off of a "Top Quiz and Trivia Nights" list published by local newspaper '' The Coast''. Following this, The Coast published a second article mentioning the "renowned T-Room trivia" as well as its "die-hard fans", the T-Room Nation. The outcry also resulted in a brand new category for "Best Trivia Night" being added to the publication's annual "Best of Halifax Reader's Poll." This category has been won by the T-Room each year since its creation.

The Rev-Bomb

In September 2009, in an effort to deplete their stock of Rev and harness the popularity of the

Jägerbomb The Jägerbomb is a bomb mixed drink made by dropping a shot of Jägermeister into an energy drink, typically Red Bull. Sometimes, this drink is incorrectly identified as a traditional "shot". A Jägerbomb is typically served with a can of Red ...

, the bar's liquor manager introduced the

Rev-Bomb Rev is a 7% ABV vodka-based cola beverage ( alcopop), infused with guarana. Malt beverage versions are also available in cans instead of plastic bottles. Rev was originally manufactured by FBM Distilleries in Brampton, Ontario, Canada, but is cur ...

. This drink combines Rev and

Jägermeister ( , ; stylized Jägermeiſter) is a German digestif made with 56 herbs and spices. Developed in 1934 by Wilhelm and Curt Mast, it has an alcohol by volume of 35% ( 61 degrees proof, or US 70 proof). The recipe has not changed since its creation ...

and quickly gained popularity. The drink soon earned the nickname the "

Halifax Explosion On the morning of 6 December 1917, the French cargo ship collided with the Norwegian vessel in the waters of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. The ''Mont-Blanc'', laden with high explosives, caught fire and exploded, devastating the Richmond ...

" for its explosive rise in popularity and devastating taste.

References

{{Dalhousie University Music venues in Halifax, Nova Scotia Dalhousie University campus