Old Campus
Encyclopedia
The Old Campus is a complex of buildings at Yale University
on the block at the northwest end of the green
in New Haven, Connecticut
, consisting of dormitories, classrooms, chapels and offices. Old Campus includes Yale's oldest building, Connecticut Hall
, and a grand entrance from the green at Phelps Gate.
(Old College) in New Haven was built here in 1718 where Bingham Hall now stands. Falling into disrepair, this building was ultimately destroyed by students in 1782. Beginning with Connecticut Hall in 1750, the buildings of Old Brick Row were built here. The campus plan for Old Brick Row was developed by John Trumbull
and James Hillhouse
. It was the first planned college campus in the United States and served as a model for other campuses. Old Brick Row included four dormitories: Union Hall (South College), Connecticut Hall (South Middle), Berkeley Hall (North Middle) and North College. In between, there was Atheneum (First Chapel), Connecticut Lyceum, and Second Chapel.
The Yale Fence, which ran along on College in front of Old Brick Row, was a favorite of many generations of students. Plans for new buildings led to its demise in 1888. The Yale Fence Club was named in its memory. The fence currently lining Old Campus also evokes the old fence.
Many other buildings stood on the Old Campus which were removed to make way for the current configuration of structures, including The Old Laboratory (1782-1888), The Cabinet (1819-1890), Trumbull Gallery (1832-1901), Alumni Hall (1853-1911, Alexander Jackson Davis
; the towers from this building were rescued and rebuilt behind the tomb of Skull and Bones
), Old Dwight Hall (1885-1926, J. Cleaveland Cady
) and Osborn Hall (1888-1926, Bruce Price).
(1752), the only survivor of the Old Brick Row, still stands after plans for its destruction, along with the rest of the row, were dropped. Lanman-Wright Hall (1912, William Adams Delano
), Durfee Hall
(1871, Russell Sturgis
), Farnam Hall (1870, Russell Sturgis), Lawrance Hall (1886, Russell Sturgis), Welch Hall (1891, Bruce Price
), Bingham Hall (1928, Walter B. Chambers
), and Vanderbilt Hall (1894, Charles C. Haight
) are used as dormitories for Freshmen. McClellan Hall (1925, Walter B. Chambers
) was built as a partner for Connecticut Hall; it was derided by students in a "Pageant of Symmetry" with the slogan "For God, for Country and for Symmetry".
Upperclassmen live in McClellan. Chittenden Hall (1889-90, J. Cleaveland Cady
) was connected to Dwight by Linsly (1906-06, Charles C. Haight) to form Linsly-Chittenden Hall.
The stained glass window "Education
" by Louis Tiffany is in Chittenden. Phelps Hall (1924, Charles Haight), Dwight Chapel (The Old Library, 1846, Henry Austin
), Battell Chapel
(1876, Russell Sturgis) and Street Hall (1866, Peter Bonnett Wight
) are also located on the Old Campus.
There are bronze statues on Old Campus of Nathan Hale
(1913, Bela Pratt
), Theodore Dwight Woolsey
(1896, John Ferguson Weir
) and Abraham Pierson
(1874, Launt Thompson
).
's 12 residential colleges. These students are assigned a residential college before starting their studies at Yale, live in Old Campus dormitories during their freshman year, and move into their colleges at the beginning of sophomore year. Students assigned to Silliman College
and Timothy Dwight College
live in their colleges for all four years.
Old Campus is host to several activities during the school year, including Freshman Olympics, Spring Fling and Commencement in May. It also houses the Exploration Senior Program for six weeks during the summer.
In the fourth season of Gilmore Girls
, Durfee Hall was the residence for Rory Gilmore and Paris Geller in their freshman year.
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
on the block at the northwest end of the green
New Haven Green
The New Haven Green is a privately owned park and recreation area located in the downtown district of the city of New Haven, Connecticut. It comprises the central square of the nine-square settlement plan of the original Puritan colonists in New Haven, and was designed and surveyed by colonist...
in New Haven, Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
, consisting of dormitories, classrooms, chapels and offices. Old Campus includes Yale's oldest building, Connecticut Hall
Connecticut Hall
Connecticut Hall is a Georgian-style building on the Old Campus of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. Built in 1752, it is the oldest building on the Yale campus and one of the oldest buildings in Connecticut...
, and a grand entrance from the green at Phelps Gate.
History
The first building of Yale CollegeYale College
Yale College was the official name of Yale University from 1718 to 1887. The name now refers to the undergraduate part of the university. Each undergraduate student is assigned to one of 12 residential colleges.-Residential colleges:...
(Old College) in New Haven was built here in 1718 where Bingham Hall now stands. Falling into disrepair, this building was ultimately destroyed by students in 1782. Beginning with Connecticut Hall in 1750, the buildings of Old Brick Row were built here. The campus plan for Old Brick Row was developed by John Trumbull
John Trumbull
John Trumbull was an American artist during the period of the American Revolutionary War and was notable for his historical paintings...
and James Hillhouse
James Hillhouse
James Hillhouse was an American lawyer, real estate developer, and politician from New Haven, Connecticut. He represented Connecticut in both the U.S. House and Senate...
. It was the first planned college campus in the United States and served as a model for other campuses. Old Brick Row included four dormitories: Union Hall (South College), Connecticut Hall (South Middle), Berkeley Hall (North Middle) and North College. In between, there was Atheneum (First Chapel), Connecticut Lyceum, and Second Chapel.
The Yale Fence, which ran along on College in front of Old Brick Row, was a favorite of many generations of students. Plans for new buildings led to its demise in 1888. The Yale Fence Club was named in its memory. The fence currently lining Old Campus also evokes the old fence.
Many other buildings stood on the Old Campus which were removed to make way for the current configuration of structures, including The Old Laboratory (1782-1888), The Cabinet (1819-1890), Trumbull Gallery (1832-1901), Alumni Hall (1853-1911, Alexander Jackson Davis
Alexander Jackson Davis
Alexander Jackson Davis, or A. J. Davis , was one of the most successful and influential American architects of his generation, in particular his association with the Gothic Revival style....
; the towers from this building were rescued and rebuilt behind the tomb of Skull and Bones
Skull and Bones
Skull and Bones is an undergraduate senior or secret society at Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut. It is a traditional peer society to Scroll and Key and Wolf's Head, as the three senior class 'landed societies' at Yale....
), Old Dwight Hall (1885-1926, J. Cleaveland Cady
J. Cleaveland Cady
J Cleaveland Cady was a New York-based architect whose most familiar surviving building is the south range of the American Museum of Natural History on New York's Upper West Side...
) and Osborn Hall (1888-1926, Bruce Price).
Current buildings
Connecticut HallConnecticut Hall
Connecticut Hall is a Georgian-style building on the Old Campus of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. Built in 1752, it is the oldest building on the Yale campus and one of the oldest buildings in Connecticut...
(1752), the only survivor of the Old Brick Row, still stands after plans for its destruction, along with the rest of the row, were dropped. Lanman-Wright Hall (1912, William Adams Delano
William Adams Delano
William Adams Delano , an American architect, was a partner with Chester Holmes Aldrich in the firm of Delano & Aldrich. The firm worked in the Beaux-Arts tradition for elite clients in New York City, Long Island and elsewhere, building townhouses, country houses, clubs, banks and buildings for...
), Durfee Hall
Durfee Hall
Durfee Hall is a freshman residential dormitory on the Old Campus of Yale University. Built in 1871, it is the second oldest residential building at Yale, only after Farnam Hall...
(1871, Russell Sturgis
Russell Sturgis
Russell Sturgis was an American architect and art criticof the 19th and early 20th centuries. He was one of the founders of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1870.-Early life and marriage:...
), Farnam Hall (1870, Russell Sturgis), Lawrance Hall (1886, Russell Sturgis), Welch Hall (1891, Bruce Price
Bruce Price
Bruce Price was the American architect of many of the Canadian Pacific Railway's Château-type stations and hotels...
), Bingham Hall (1928, Walter B. Chambers
Walter B. Chambers
Walter Boughton Chambers was a successful New York architect whose buildings continue to be landmarks in the city’s skyline and whose contributions to architectural education were far-reaching....
), and Vanderbilt Hall (1894, Charles C. Haight
Charles C. Haight
Charles Coolidge Haight was an American architect who practiced in New York City. A number of his buildings survive including at Yale University and Trinity College . He also designed most of the campus of the Episcopal General Theological Seminary in Chelsea Square, New York...
) are used as dormitories for Freshmen. McClellan Hall (1925, Walter B. Chambers
Walter B. Chambers
Walter Boughton Chambers was a successful New York architect whose buildings continue to be landmarks in the city’s skyline and whose contributions to architectural education were far-reaching....
) was built as a partner for Connecticut Hall; it was derided by students in a "Pageant of Symmetry" with the slogan "For God, for Country and for Symmetry".
Upperclassmen live in McClellan. Chittenden Hall (1889-90, J. Cleaveland Cady
J. Cleaveland Cady
J Cleaveland Cady was a New York-based architect whose most familiar surviving building is the south range of the American Museum of Natural History on New York's Upper West Side...
) was connected to Dwight by Linsly (1906-06, Charles C. Haight) to form Linsly-Chittenden Hall.
The stained glass window "Education
Education (Chittenden Memorial Window)
Education is a stained-glass window commissioned from Louis Comfort Tiffany's Tiffany Glass Company during the building of Yale University's Chittenden Hall , funded by Simeon Baldwin Chittenden. Personifications of Art, Science, Religion, and Music are represented in the work, as angels...
" by Louis Tiffany is in Chittenden. Phelps Hall (1924, Charles Haight), Dwight Chapel (The Old Library, 1846, Henry Austin
Henry Austin (architect)
Henry Austin was a prominent and prolific American architect based in New Haven, Connecticut. He practiced for more than fifty years and designed many public buildings and homes primarily in the New Haven area...
), Battell Chapel
Battell Chapel
Battell Chapel at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut was built in 1874-76 as a Civil War memorial, with funds donated by Joseph Battell and others of his family. The chapel was designed by Russell Sturgis, Jr. in High Victorian Gothic style of rough brown sandstone. It was the third of...
(1876, Russell Sturgis) and Street Hall (1866, Peter Bonnett Wight
Peter Bonnett Wight
Peter B. Wight was a 19th century architect from New York City who worked there and in Chicago.-Biography:Wight's career "flourished in the 1860s and 1870s in New York, where he developed a decorative, historicist style that showed affinities to the work of European designers John Ruskin and...
) are also located on the Old Campus.
There are bronze statues on Old Campus of Nathan Hale
Nathan Hale
Nathan Hale was a soldier for the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. He volunteered for an intelligence-gathering mission in New York City but was captured by the British...
(1913, Bela Pratt
Bela Pratt
Bela Lyon Pratt was an American sculptor.-Life:Pratt was born in Norwich, Connecticut to Sarah and George Pratt, a Yale-educated lawyer. His maternal grandfather, Oramel Whittlesey, was a pianoforte maker and founder in 1835 of the first music school in the country authorized to confer degrees to...
), Theodore Dwight Woolsey
Theodore Dwight Woolsey
Theodore Dwight Woolsey was an American academic, author and president of Yale College from 1846 through 1871.-Biography:Theodore Dwight Woolsey was born October 31, 1801 in New York City...
(1896, John Ferguson Weir
John Ferguson Weir
John F. Weir was an American painter and sculptor. He was the son of painter Robert Walter Weir, a professor of drawing at the Military Academy at West Point. His younger brother, J...
) and Abraham Pierson
Abraham Pierson
Reverend Abraham Pierson was the first rector, from 1701 to 1707, and one of the founders of the Collegiate School — which later became Yale University. He was born in Southampton, Long Island, where his father, the Rev. Abraham Pierson , was the pastor of the Puritan church...
(1874, Launt Thompson
Launt Thompson
Launt Thompson , American sculptor, born in Abbeyleix, Ireland. Due to the potato famine occurring in Ireland at the time, he emigrated to the United States in 1847 with his widowed mother, and they settled in Albany, New York. There, he found work as a handyman.-Biography:After studying anatomy...
).
Student life
Old Campus houses freshmen from 10 of Yale CollegeYale College
Yale College was the official name of Yale University from 1718 to 1887. The name now refers to the undergraduate part of the university. Each undergraduate student is assigned to one of 12 residential colleges.-Residential colleges:...
's 12 residential colleges. These students are assigned a residential college before starting their studies at Yale, live in Old Campus dormitories during their freshman year, and move into their colleges at the beginning of sophomore year. Students assigned to Silliman College
Silliman College
Silliman College is a residential college at Yale University. It opened in September 1940 as the last of the original ten residential colleges, and includes buildings that were constructed as early as 1901...
and Timothy Dwight College
Timothy Dwight College
Timothy Dwight College, commonly abbreviated and referred to as "TD", is a residential college at Yale University named after two university presidents, Timothy Dwight IV and Timothy Dwight V. The college was designed in 1935 by James Gamble Rogers in the Federal-style architecture popular during...
live in their colleges for all four years.
Old Campus is host to several activities during the school year, including Freshman Olympics, Spring Fling and Commencement in May. It also houses the Exploration Senior Program for six weeks during the summer.
In the fourth season of Gilmore Girls
Gilmore Girls
Gilmore Girls is an American family comedy-drama series created by Amy Sherman-Palladino, starring Lauren Graham and Alexis Bledel. On October 5, 2000, the series debuted on The WB and was cancelled in its seventh season, ending on May 15, 2007 on The CW...
, Durfee Hall was the residence for Rory Gilmore and Paris Geller in their freshman year.