#TBT in the Archives 4/13/17: CVSNS Historic District

Shippensburg University is fortunate to retain its five original academic buildings, which are still used today by students, administrators and faculty as offices and classrooms and in the case of one building, a residence.

Built between 1873 and 1915, Old Main, Stewart Hall, Horton Hall, Martin House, and Gilbert Hall comprise the Cumberland Valley State Normal School Historic District. The district was officially added to the National Register of Historic Places on January 11, 1985.

Old Main renovations in 1983. The university began work to include the building in the Cumberland Valley State Normal School Historic District during the project.

Finished in 1873, Old Main is the original college building and originally hosted all school facilities until the 1890s. Designed by Samuel Sloan, the Classical Revival building was renovated in 1983-1984. The university nominated Old Main and the other four buildings for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places based on their architectural styles and preservation.

Stewart Hall in the late 1930s.

Stewart Hall, designed by Arthur P. Rosser, was constructed between 1893 and 1895 in the Romanesque Revival style. Originally the school gymnasium, Stewart Hall was later home to the Communications Journalism Department before its current role hosting Theatre Department labs and art studios.

Horton Hall in the 1970s.

Also built in the 1890s, Horton Hall was the second building constructed in the Romanesque Revival style. The building, connected to Old Main by a second-floor bridge, was the CVSNS women's dorm before being converted to offices and the Women's Center.

Martin House in the early 1990s, when it was the home of President Anthony Ceddia.

Martin House was completed in 1908. Designed by Maurice R. Rhoads, the classical-style house is named after its first resident, Principal Samuel Martin and is today the university president's house.

A 1920s postcard showing Gilbert Hall when it was the model school at CVSNS.

Gilbert Hall was the last building to be completed in the historic district. Constructed as the model school in the second decade of the 1900s, it was also designed by Rhoads in the Renaissance Revival style. Today the building is home to classrooms and Multicultural Student Affairs.

The university's application to establish the historic district was signed by the state historic preservation officer on April 19, 1984. This officer, from the Pennsylvania Historic and Museum Commission, certified the five buildings were important architectural remnants from their period and confirmed the historic district has state significance because of its history as a state normal school. The National Register, a component of the National Park Service, approved the district eight months later.

SU Archives & Special Collections has a copy of the original application to the National Register of Historic Preservation as well as historic photos of these and many other buildings on campus at various times throughout the university's history. To learn more, email specialcollections@ship.edu


Sources:
National Register of Historic Places Inventory - Nomination Form, Record Group 24, Subgroup 24.8, Box 1, Folder 15. Shippensburg University Archives & Special Collections, Shippensburg, PA.
Photographs: Buildings and Structures on Campus, Record Group 30, Box 1 and Box 1a. Shippensburg University Archives & Special Collections, Shippensburg, PA.

#TBT in the Archives 2/23/17: Old Main facelift

When Old Main was constructed in 1871, it was the only building of the newly-chartered Cumberland Valley State Normal School. During the next century, it consistently contained dorms and offices as well as classrooms, dining facilities, and after a renovation around 1902, a chapel.

The reception hall in Old Main in 1923-1924.

The chapel as it appeared in the 1920s.

By 1976, Old Main had been in service for more than a century, and it was in need of a renovation. In early December 1975, state officials decreed students move out of Old Main and Horton Hall immediately because they "violate(d) state regulations for fire protection." The buildings were wooden structures, and didn't have sprinkler systems. Shippensburg State College appealed and in January 1976 got permission to continue using both buildings for dorms until June. Safety measures were put in place to ensure student safety.

According to The Slate, student fire guards patrolled the halls of Old Main every night from 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. and reported to campus safety officers every half hour. Additional fire extinguishers were installed.

When students moved out of Old Main for the last time in June 1976, college officials planned to renovate the building and move administrative offices there. By the early 1980s, the university launched a capital campaign to get the project off the ground. Pennsylvania allocated $3.7 million for renovations, and officials estimated that $1.9 million more was needed.

Scaffolding covers the side of Old Main in the spring of 1984.

The campaign was a success and work began in 1983. Exterior updates included a new slate roof, repointing and re-mortaring the bricks, and a new paint scheme - beige and brown. Additionally, a new weather vane featuring "1871" was placed on the tower.

A crane is used to repaint the tower in September 1983. The new weather vane was installed Nov. 19, 1984.

Inside the building, the first three floors were completely updated - new wiring and plumbing, new heating and air conditioning, updated telephone system, and an elevator. Plus the chapel was restored to its 1920s appearance including stained-glass windows. The whole thing was completed with new paint and reproduction furniture.

The chapel was restored to its 1920s appearance.

Administrative offices re-located to Old Main, including the President and Vice Presidents, Provost, Registrar and Admissions. The campus celebrated Old Main's next century of service with a rededication ceremony on October 13, 1985.

Want to learn more about Ship's history? Contact Archives & Special Collections via email at specialcollections@ship.edu or phone, (717) 477-1123, ext. 3357.


Sources:
Cumberland, 1986.
Old Main, capital campaign book, Shippensburg University Archives & Special Collections, Ezra Lehman Memorial Library, Shippensburg University, Shippensburg, PA.
Old Main, rededication book, Shippensburg University Archives & Special Collections, Ezra Lehman Memorial Library, Shippensburg University, Shippensburg, PA.
The Slate, December 9, 1975.
The Slate, January 27, 1976.

Old Main's Original Weather Vane

Karen Daniel (Ship Archivist)
In 2006 I got an email asking about Old Main’s original weather vane. The SU Foundation was thinking about developing some materials based on it. I discovered that the original weather vane was replaced during the renovation of Old Main in the early 1980s. A booklet requesting gifts, published by the Old Main Advisory Council states, “The present four-foot weather vane will be replaced with a beautiful 16-foot copper and brass weather vane including 12-inch diameter copper ball and a brass weather vane with 1871 stamped onto it.” In the booklet, Old Main, published in 1985 to celebrate the renovation, Charles Loucks writes, “A new brass and copper weather vane now tops off the tower… In keeping with the Classical Revival style…they [the Venturi architects] also gave the cupola its high-flying ‘1871’ weathervane.”

No one knew what had happened to the original weather vane. Then one day in 2009 Lance Bryson showed me a weather vane in the basement of Horton Hall. He thought it was the original Old Main weather vane, and I set out to determine if it was. And, indeed, it was, according to old photographs. The weather vane Lance found is four feet tall, with block letters N S E W. It was apparently hand-made of welded metal, which may be copper. There is a bullet hole in the fletch of the arrow. The weather vane shows the wear-and tear of 90 years out in all weather, since it was probably mounted on the cupola of Old Main when the building was first remodeled in 1895.

Now the weather vane is here in the Library and Learning Center where it will eventually be on display. People have always needed to know which way the wind blows to help make their plans. Our institution’s original weather vane will remind us that Shippensburg University continues to help us chart our course into the future.



For more information contact Karen Daniel at KADANI at ship.edu