University Hall (Northwestern University)
Encyclopedia
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
campus. University Hall was actually the second building constructed on the Northwestern University campus. The building known as "Old College" was constructed as a temporary building in 1855, though it stood on campus until the 1970s.
History
University Hall was designed in Victorian Gothic style by G. P. Randall, and is composed of Joliet limestoneLimestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
- the same kind used to build the Chicago Water Tower
Chicago Water Tower
The Chicago Water Tower is a contributing property in the Old Chicago Water Tower District landmark district. It is located at 806 North Michigan Avenue along the Magnificent Mile shopping district in the Near North Side community area of Chicago, Illinois...
. The construction materials were transported to the Evanston
Evanston, Illinois
Evanston is a suburban municipality in Cook County, Illinois 12 miles north of downtown Chicago, bordering Chicago to the south, Skokie to the west, and Wilmette to the north, with an estimated population of 74,360 as of 2003. It is one of the North Shore communities that adjoin Lake Michigan...
campus by lake boat and rail.
The cornerstone of the building was laid in 1868, and the structure was completed in 1869, at a total cost of $125,000. University Hall officially opened on September 8, 1869 and coincided with the inauguration of University President Erastus Otis Haven
Erastus Otis Haven
Erastus Otis Haven was an American bishop of the Methodist Episcopal Church, elected in 1880, and the president of several universities.-Biography:...
. Speakers at the opening ceremony included Illinois Governor John M. Palmer
John M. Palmer (politician)
John McAuley Palmer , was an Illinois resident, an American Civil War General who fought for the Union, the 15th Governor of Illinois, and presidential candidate of the National Democratic Party in the 1896 election on a platform to defend the gold standard, free trade, and limited...
, and the new University President Haven, who called the structure, "the new and elegant University Building". The clock in the tower of University Hall was the gift of the Class of 1879; its movement was built by clockmaker Seth Thomas
Seth Thomas (clockmaker)
Seth Thomas was an American clock maker and a pioneer of mass production at his Seth Thomas Clock Company.-Biography:Thomas was born in Wolcott, Connecticut, in 1785. He started in the clock business in 1807, working for clockmaker Eli Terry...
. In 1966, a new electrified clock replaced the old works, which are now located in the Smithsonian National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
.
Upon its completion, University Hall took over most university functions from Old College. University Hall originally contained classrooms housing all Northwestern University classes, the main campus library, a chemical lab, a chapel, two society rooms and a fourth-floor natural history museum. University Hall contained Northwestern's primary library until the construction of Lunt Library (now known as Lunt Hall) in the 1890s. Lunt Library was the first dedicated library building built on the campus of Northwestern University. Though University Hall was succeeded by Fayerweather Hall as the university's main building in 1887, throughout its history, University Hall served a variety of functions. Over the years University Hall has been the home of the central administration, the engineering school, a cafeteria, and faculty offices. University Hall underwent a $5.2 million renovation and was rededicated in 1993. The building is currently home to Northwestern's English department.