College Hall History

Completed in 1909, College Hall originally housed the College of Pharmacy and part of the English Department. College Hall was first known as the “Recitation Hall.” The new Recitation building gave much needed classroom space for liberal arts studies.

Built in the same year as Bryan Hall, this building further demonstrates President Enoch Bryan’s contribution to the university. Both buildings were designed by J. K. Dow, one of the more distinguished of the architects who worked at the college. However, College Hall is more restrained than Bryan. It adopts the style used at Morrill Hall five years earlier, but with more assurance and sophistication. It is a fine example of Georgian Revival in which good proportions and simple lines dominate. Interest is added to the facade by the alternation of arched and square headed windows on the three floors and by the decorative use of Flemish bond in contrasting bricks under the eaves. It has a fine classical cornice and a flat roof.

The two classical entrance porticos are located on the northern facade facing what at one time was the major quadrangle on campus. In 1983, College Hall was rehabilitated with great care for the Anthropology Department. The original double hung windows were duplicated, retaining the integrity of the exterior. In the interiors, the original oak detailing was replicated in a manner that evokes the traditional feeling. College Hall is a significant structure within the core forming the southern edge of a highly significant open space.

This building was rehabilitated for the Anthropology Department in the early to mid-1980s. Today, College Hall still houses the Anthropology Department.

<gallery> image: Collegehall1911.jpg|College Hall in 1911. Photo courtesy of WSU Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections. image: Collegehall1912.jpg|College Hall in 1912. Photo courtesy of WSU Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections. image: Collegehall(3).jpg|College Hall. Photo courtesy of WSU Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections. image: Collegehall2003.jpg|College Hall in 2003. Photo courtesy of WSU Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections.