Estufa
Encyclopedia
The Estufa is a historic structure on the University of New Mexico
campus in Albuquerque, New Mexico
. It was built between 1906 and 1908 as a meeting room for the local social fraternity
Alpha Alpha Alpha, which in 1915 became the Beta Delta chapter of Pi Kappa Alpha
. The project received support from university president William G. Tight
, who was seeking to establish Pueblo architecture as a campus-wide style. The Estufa was one of the first buildings in the country to employ the Pueblo Style.
The building was loosely modeled after a kiva
at Santo Domingo Pueblo. It is roughly circular, with adobe
walls 14 inches (36 cm) thick. The interior of the Estufa has been described as a pit with seating around the edge.
The Estufa continues to serve in its original role as a fraternity meeting place, with the Pi Kappa Alphas holding their weekly chapter meetings there. The building is veiled in secrecy: non-members are not allowed inside, and according to legend no woman
has ever seen its interior.
The Estufa was added to the National Register of Historic Places
in 1988.
An estufa [Sp., a stove, a warm room. Cf. Stove] is an assembly room in a dwelling of the Pueblo Indians [ie, a kiva], per Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, 1998.
University of New Mexico
The University of New Mexico at Albuquerque is a public research university located in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in the United States. It is the state's flagship research institution...
campus in Albuquerque, New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
. It was built between 1906 and 1908 as a meeting room for the local social fraternity
Fraternities and sororities
Fraternities and sororities are fraternal social organizations for undergraduate students. In Latin, the term refers mainly to such organizations at colleges and universities in the United States, although it is also applied to analogous European groups also known as corporations...
Alpha Alpha Alpha, which in 1915 became the Beta Delta chapter of Pi Kappa Alpha
Pi Kappa Alpha
Pi Kappa Alpha is a Greek social fraternity with over 230 chapters and colonies and over 250,000 lifetime initiates in the United States and Canada.-History:...
. The project received support from university president William G. Tight
William G. Tight
William G. Tight was an American geomorphologist who became president of the University of New Mexico .Tight was one of the first to decipher the glacial drainage histories of the Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Virginia and West Virginia area, specifically the long gone Teays River system and...
, who was seeking to establish Pueblo architecture as a campus-wide style. The Estufa was one of the first buildings in the country to employ the Pueblo Style.
The building was loosely modeled after a kiva
Kiva
A kiva is a room used by modern Puebloans for religious rituals, many of them associated with the kachina belief system. Among the modern Hopi and most other Pueblo peoples, kivas are square-walled and underground, and are used for spiritual ceremonies....
at Santo Domingo Pueblo. It is roughly circular, with adobe
Adobe
Adobe is a natural building material made from sand, clay, water, and some kind of fibrous or organic material , which the builders shape into bricks using frames and dry in the sun. Adobe buildings are similar to cob and mudbrick buildings. Adobe structures are extremely durable, and account for...
walls 14 inches (36 cm) thick. The interior of the Estufa has been described as a pit with seating around the edge.
The Estufa continues to serve in its original role as a fraternity meeting place, with the Pi Kappa Alphas holding their weekly chapter meetings there. The building is veiled in secrecy: non-members are not allowed inside, and according to legend no woman
Woman
A woman , pl: women is a female human. The term woman is usually reserved for an adult, with the term girl being the usual term for a female child or adolescent...
has ever seen its interior.
The Estufa was added to the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1988.
An estufa [Sp., a stove, a warm room. Cf. Stove] is an assembly room in a dwelling of the Pueblo Indians [ie, a kiva], per Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, 1998.