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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMontana Hall (24GA1879)_Final MONTANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD For the Montana National Register of Historic Places Program and State Antiquities Database Montana State Historic Preservation Office Montana Historical Society PO Box 201202, 1410 8 th Ave Helena, MT 59620-1202 Property Address: Montana State University Campus North Side of Centennial Mall Historic Address (if applicable): NA City/Town: Bozeman Site Number: 24GA1879 (An historic district number may also apply.) County: Gallatin Historic Name: Main Hall / Montana Hall Original Owner(s): Montana State College of Agriculture & Mechanical Arts Current Ownership Private Public Current Property Name: Montana Hall Owner(s): Montana State University-Administration Owner Address: 201 Main Hall / PO Box 172440 Bozeman, MT 59717-2440 Phone: 406-994-2001 Legal Location PM: Montana Township: 2S Range: 5E NW ¼ NE ¼ NE ¼ of Section: 13 Lot(s): 1-24 Block(s): 27 Addition: Capital Hill Year of Addition: 1890 USGS Quad Name: Bozeman Year: 1987 Historic Use: Classrooms, Office Spaces Current Use: Administration Construction Date: 1896 Estimated Actual Original Location Moved Date Moved: UTM Reference www.nris.mt.gov/topofinder2 NAD 27 or NAD 83(preferred ) Zone: 12 Easting: 496159 Northing: 5057105 National Register of Historic Places NRHP Listing Date: Historic District: Montana State University-Bozeman HD NRHP Eligible: Yes No Date of this document: December 31, 2012 Form Prepared by: Jessie Nunn / Consultant Address: 600 Meadowlark Lane, Livingston, MT Daytime Phone: 406-208-8727 MT SHPO USE ONLY Eligible for NRHP: yes no Criteria: A B C D Date: Evaluator: Comments: MONTANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD PAGE 2 Architectural Description Property Name: Main Hall / Montana Hall Site Number: 24GA1879 ARCHITECTURAL DESCRIPTION Architectural Style: Collegiate Gothic If Other, specify: Property Type: Education Specific Property Type: Architect: J. C. Paulsen / Helena, MT Architectural Firm/City/State: Builder/Contractor: Charles Suiter Company/City/State: Source of Information: University Records Introduction Facing north to the city of Bozeman, this four-and-one-half story Collegiate Gothic style building has smooth red brick- bearing walls laid in a common bond and a full-daylight basement with a stone rubble course foundation. The building measures 90’ x 100'. The floor plan is arranged in a double-cross shape, with two large cross gables flanking a gable- roofed dormer on the north and south elevations and single, centered cross gables on the east and west elevations, all projecting from steeply-pitched hipped roof. The roof’s slate covering was replaced in about 1943. Montana Hall’s iconic central cupola (removed in 1911) was reconstructed in 1993. The cupola has a steeply-pitched pyramidal-hipped copper- clad roof with cross gables. Cross timbering decorates the gable ends above decorative screens protecting a chime and bell mechanism. A brick base and frame railing complete the cupola. Main Hall exhibits the Collegiate Gothic style's characteristic multi-gable massing, vertical orientation, tall one-over-one double hung windows and a textured, polychrome surface. Belt courses of tooled sandstone and corbelled and decorative pressed bricks encircle the entire building, dividing the exterior at regular intervals. A tooled sandstone block watertable divides the rubble stone basement and first floor. The second and third belt courses divide the first and second stories and are created with corbelled and curved brick. The second course is located immediately above the lintels of the first story windows, while the third course creates a continuous sill for the second story windows. This pattern is repeated between the second and third stories, with the upper course located directly under the overhanging eave of building’s main walls and serving as sill to third-story windows in the gables. Within each cross gable is a fifth corbelled and fancy brick belt course, serving as a continuous sill for the attic story windows found there. Basement windows have sandstone block lintels, fourth-story attic widows have flat segmental arch brick lintels and the rest of Montana Hall’s windows have flat arch brick lintels. Each projecting cross gable on the north and south elevation has the same fenestration, consisting of three large windows in the basement, three large one- over-one double hung windows on the first story, four narrower one-over-one windows on the second story, shorter versions directly above on the third story and paired one-over-one windows in the attic story. North Façade The center of the symmetrical north façade is a four-story bay capped by a gable-roofed dormer and dominated on the first story by a pedimented projection containing a recessed entrance within a compound brick arch. A belt course of decorative brick squares detailed in a crosshatch pattern runs along the base of the projection above the sandstone water table. The projection is framed by squared brick pilasters that sit on the sandstone kneewall of the concrete steps leading to the elevated entrance. A red sandstone pediment sits atop the rectangle portion of the projection and is embellished with foliage and a shield with “96” in raised letters. The pediment has a rounded finial, while the pilasters, which extend slightly above the rectangular portion of the projection, have flat finials that mimic the building’s belt courses. A line of dark red, curved brick outlines the pediment, and continues the line of the side diagonal down through the rectangular projection. Dark red decorative brick also outlines the outer ach of the entrance, which contains large oak-paneled double doors with uppers lights under an arched, two-light transom. The entrance projection is decorated with a belt course that is even with the top of the doors and the two courses that divide the first and second stories. The sandstone watertable is slightly lower in the central entrance bay than it is on the rest of the north façade. Two small one-over-one windows are found in the basement on either side of the entrance. The first story of the entrance bay is divided into two sections by a corbelled brick belt course at the point where the projection’s diagonal extensions of the triangular pediment meets its pilasters. A single one-over-one window is located in the lower section and a pair of small, one-over-one windows is located in the upper section. The second story has four elongated one-over-one windows. A balcony with a low parapet wall railing is on the top of the bay. It originally had a much higher brick wall pierced by a MONTANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD PAGE 3 Architectural Description Property Name: Main Hall / Montana Hall Site Number: 24GA1879 series of small arches. A small gable-roofed dormer with paired one-over-one windows is set behind the balcony. The fenestration of the projecting cross gables is described above. The north façade has a number of dates inscribed in its sandstone watertable. From east to west are they are: 1919, 1917, 1918 and 1920. A small sandstone block below the watertable at the northeast corner of the cross gable is inscribed with the construction date, "1896." A cornerstone at the northeast corner of the east cross gable is inscribed "Class 1911.” East and West Side Elevations The east and west elevations were originally identical, although the east entrance was infilled in 1926 and a small brick, two-story brick addition is located on the south side of the west elevation. A three-story panel accentuates the first story entrance within the cross gable of the west elevation. The panel is capped by a compound arch that springs from stacked pilasters and has a large keystone. The entrance contains a wood and glass door, sidelights and transom and is accessed by a series of concrete steps. Rubble course stone retaining walls flank the stairs, and are coped with weathered sandstone. The entrance is slightly recessed behind two compound rectangles decorated with alternating dark red and light red brick which creates dentils or small quoins. Two corbelled brick belt courses separated by six courses of brick are located above the door surround within the arched panel. The upper of these serves as a sill for three tall, fixed windows with transoms. Corbelled brick belt courses, which here extend across the entire cross gable, are found at the top of the fixed panes (below the transom) and between these windows and a series of three half-circle windows located directly above them. Yet another corbeled brick belt course, which is contained within the arched panel, is found above the half- circle windows. The tympanum of the arched entrance panel is embellished with decorative brick squares laid in a checkerboard pattern. Capitals for the stacked pilasters are located at each belt course. On either side of the arch, and within the cross gable, are two small one-over-one windows on the first and second story. The third and attic story windows are the same as found on the north and south cross gables. The north and south sides of the west cross gable have two small one-over-one windows with continuous sills on the first and second floors and two basement windows. On either side of cross gable are three of the usual windows on the basement, first, and second stories. A small, two-story brick veneer addition to the south of the cross gable has no detailing except for a single soldier brick belt course between its first and second stories. The addition covers all but the outermost windows of the basement and first stories of the main building. The east elevation is similar, but the entrance and tall narrow windows within the arch were removed and infilled in 1926. At that time the tall windows were placed one story lower in the first story wall. The infill's raised mortar joints of the random rubble course stone foundation do not match the smooth joints of the rest of the building's mortar. A metal fire escape is located on the north side of the cross gable and the innermost second story window of the main north wall has been converted into a door. A basement entrance to the south of cross gable replaces a window and is sheltered by a shed roof canopy with metal tube posts. South (Rear Elevation) The south elevation has two cross gables with the same fenestration as found on the north façade. On the central main wall of the building are four one-over-one windows on the basement, first and second stories. A wall dormer has a one- over-one window with a door and transom to the east. A metal fire escape leading from this dormer door extends down the middle of the building. Small, paired one-over-one windows are located in the attic story of the wall dormer. Interior The interior has been remodeled numerous times, although the main entrance on the north retains its smooth and fancy brick. Wooden steps lead up from the double doors, and the walls are decorated with curved brick rectangles in the appearance of frames in varying sizes. A large plaque on the east wall lists the architect and builder. When the east entrance was infilled in 1926, the interior staircase was removed to create more space. The west oak staircase, however, survives and fills the width of the west cross gable. MONTANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD PAGE 4 History of Property Property Name: Main Hall / Montana Hall Site Number: 24GA1879 HISTORY OF PROPERTY Main Hall (Montana Hall) was built between 1896 and 1898 at a cost of $65,000 and designed in the Colligate Gothic style by German-born architect J. C. Paulsen of Helena, Montana. It was the third major brick clad building constructed on campus and originally anchored the extreme east end of campus. The building occupies a site originally intended for the State Capital. According to historian Cortland L. Freeman, local citizens hoped to convince the state to locate the capitol in Bozeman and in an effort to improve their chances, "extended [the town's] boundaries and platted farm land to make the city appear larger than its actual size." A Capitol Hill Addition was platted with 8th Avenue extending as a boulevard to the proposed capitol site. Although the legislature decided to place the capital in Helena, the site was a natural choice for the elaborate new college building. Main Hall’s façade was designed to face Bozeman to the north, then a mile distant. The building immediately became the heart of the campus, a role that continues to this day. Besides classrooms and offices, the building contained the campus library, and was the scene of many school activities. "Old Main" also hosted its share of pranks, including the time a cow was found in the cupola and a cannon from the abandoned Fort Ellis appeared in the building's library. [Burlingame, 40]. Main Hall was the focal point of two early campus landscaping plans. The first was an informal arrangement by college horticulturist Roy Fisher in 1906. The design used the building's siting on an axis with the first Chemistry Building (burned 1916) and the 1894 Experiment Station Building (Taylor Hall). Curving dirt roads to the north and south led to Main Hall. Open areas were seeded with grass and planted with cottonwood trees. The landscaping was redesigned by Montana architect George Carsley and New York landscape architect Cass Gilbert in 1917. Their plan called for a formal appearance with wide sweeping lawns and a curving entrance to the building. Both 8th and 10th Avenues were to be part of a continuous boulevard that connected in front of Main Hall. Gilbert's contribution to the appearance of Montana State University began in 1917 when the State Board of Education contracted with him to create building programs for all four of the Montana’s institutions of higher learning. According to historian Paul McLeod, Gilbert was renowned for his designs of state capitols, world's fairs, courthouses, libraries and skyscrapers. He previously created campus plans for the University of Texas and University of Minnesota. Gilbert's plan for the Montana College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts re-oriented the campus, creating a classical axial arrangement which retained Montana Hall as its center, but expanded the property to the south. Behind Montana Hall was a second open lawn, with the Gymnasium serving as the south anchor to the campus proper. The gym, along with five other Italian Renaissance style academic buildings built between 1919 and 1926 resulted in a balanced and near-symmetrical campus. In 1918, a description of Main Hall listed the physics department and mechanical drawing classes in the basement. Offices for the President, Registrar and a secretary, a room for the Young Women's Christian Association, a class room and the library were housed on the first floor. Sliding doors on the second floor were designed for the art department, while the math and secretarial studies departments occupied the south end of the second floor. An assembly hall, music room and classrooms filled the third floor. [26th Annual Catalogue, 20] By 1923, the English and History departments were also located in the building. Four thousand dollars in alterations to the interior occurred in 1926. The school newspaper described the alterations in detail, which left only a "ghost" of the former building. The work was done under the supervision of University Architect William R. Plew. Both the assembly room and auditorium were cut in half to accommodate more classrooms and office space. The second floor interior partitions were removed to create increased library space from the original classrooms. The first floor remained the administrative center, although it, too, was extensively remodeled. The Physics Department moved into the full daylight basement. The exterior stairs were removed from the east entrance and the opening infilled with brick and stone. A staircase leading from the east opening to the upper floors, no longer needed, was removed to create increased office space. The building also received an entirely new heating and wiring system. [Exponent , 12/2/1926, 1]. In 1947, a one-story frame annex was built to the east, which was demolished in the 1970s. Today, Main Hall (now Montana Hall) continues to serve as the heart of campus and as the University’s administrative center. The Office of the President, the Office of the Registrar and Students Accounts, along with a myriad of other offices, are all housed in Montana Hall. MONTANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD PAGE 5 Information Sources/Bibliography Property Name: Main Hall / Montana Hall Site Number: 24GA1879 INFORMATION SOURCES/BIBLIOGRAPHY Building Master List. Physical Plant Records, Montana State University. "Bulletin No.2, Montana Agricultural Experiment Station: Organization, Announcement, FY 1895-1896," Vol. 2. Bozeman, MT: Bozeman Chronicle Book & Job Printers. Burlingame, Merrill. A History: Montana State University, Bozeman, Montana , Bozeman, MT: Office of Information Publication, February 1968. Catlin, Martha Claire, Ed. "Historic Bozeman and Gallatin County, Montana." map. n. p., n. d. Exponent, 15 September 1911; Exponent, 2 November 1926. "Folder A6. l/Buildings, History of." Montana State University Archives. Freeman, Cortlandt L. "The Growing up Years—The First 100 Years of Bozeman as an Incorporated City From 1883 to 1983" Bozeman: Gallatin County Historical Society, December 1988. McLeod, Paul J. "Campus Architecture Reflects Changing Tastes and Styles," Montanan, Missoula, MT: Spring, 1987. Nepper, Carl J. "1939 Building Appraisal." Montana State University Archives. Photos: PA6.2.MH NE Folder 12, no. 3; PA6.1.MH No. Entrance Folder 19, no. 1. Montana State University Archives. "Quick Facts Notebook." Montana State University Archives. University of Montana Bulletin, Montana State College. "26th Annual Catalogue 1918-1919," no. 14. n. p. May, 1919. MONTANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD PAGE 6 Statement of Significance Property Name: Main Hall / Montana Hall Site Number: 24GA1879 NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES NRHP Listing Date: NA NRHP Eligibility: Yes No Individually Contributing to Historic District Noncontributing to Historic District NRHP Criteria: A B C D Area of Significance: Education Period of Significance: 1896-1968 STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE Montana Hall is contributing building within the Montana State University-Bozeman Historic District, which is eligible for listing under National Register Criteria A and C. It is significant for its associations with the foundation and growth of the university, and for its architectural style and architect. Montana State University began in 1893 in rented buildings and high school classrooms. The first year was described by an enrolled student as: only an idea, a disembodied one, without house to dwell in, without teacher or student, and worst of all, without a dollar. To get its ensuing appropriations it had to be a going concern. It needed money to get started and couldn't get money until it did start." [Burlingame, 12]. The appropriation of 200 acres and some small farm buildings south of town on "a low hill, [and] a sightly place," was the result of contributions by Bozeman citizens. Only six years later, the college had transformed into a respectable collection of frame and three story brick buildings anchoring the south boundary of Bozeman. The university's evolution from an uncertain 1893 agricultural school with eight students to its present status a leading engineering and technical school of over 14,000 is due in part to the construction of this building. Without it, overcrowding would have limited enrollment and available teaching and research space. Since its construction in 1896, Main/Montana Hall has been the focal point of the university. Beginning life as a combination of classroom, lecture hall, office and laboratory space, the building’s changing uses attest to its continued importance. It has served as administrative, educational and social center during its 116 years. It is physically the most dominant building on campus, situated atop of college hill, and bordered by large expanses of lawn and trees. It was the central building in the first two landscaping plans developed for the campus, the first in 1906, and the second in 1917. George Carsley and Cass Gilbert realized the importance of Montana Hall in their 1917 campus plan, and designed a program that would continue to focus on the building. That recognition continues to the present. Main/Montana Hall is the only Collegiate Gothic style buildings on campus, and one of only two surviving Victorian-era structures. The Collegiate Gothic style was popular on university campuses across the nation. Its associations with eclectic individualism and nature served the promotional aspect of the young agricultural school in the last years of the 19th century. The German-born architect, J. C. Paulsen, was European trained and designed several important brick buildings in 19th century Montana. He designed the original Montana Club in Helena, and numerous government buildings under the administration of Governor John E. Rickards. ["Historic Bozeman ... "]. MONTANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD PAGE 7 Integrity Property Name: Main Hall / Montana Hall Site Number: 24GA1879 INTEGRITY (location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling, association) Although the original cupola and chimneys on Main Hall have been removed, and several major interior alterations have occurred, the Collegiate Gothic building retains its massing and most of its exterior detailing. The north entrance is in superb condition. Moreover, many of these alterations, while not always advisable from a preservation standpoint, occurred during the building’s period of significance and reflect the evolving needs of the university. The cupola was accurately reconstructed in 1993. Appropriate to its function, the building occupies a prominent location on campus, surrounded by open grassy spaces and mature trees. Montana Hall is arguably the most important historic structure on campus, and easily conveys associations with the early years and development of Montana State University. MONTANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD PAGE 8 Photographs Property Name: Main Hall / Montana Hall Site Number: 24GA1879 Montana Hall North Façade, Facing: S Montana State University Jessie Nunn, November 3, 2012 MONTANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD PAGE 9 Photographs Property Name: Main Hall / Montana Hall Site Number: 24GA1879 Montana Hall North Façade, Facing: SE Montana State University Jessie Nunn, November 3, 2012 MONTANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD PAGE 10 Photographs Property Name: Main Hall / Montana Hall Site Number: 24GA1879 Montana Hall North Façade Entrance, Facing: S Montana State University Jessie Nunn, November 3, 2012 MONTANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD PAGE 11 Photographs Property Name: Main Hall / Montana Hall Site Number: 24GA1879 Montana Hall West Elevation, Facing: E Montana State University Jessie Nunn, November 3, 2012 MONTANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD PAGE 12 Photographs Property Name: Main Hall / Montana Hall Site Number: 24GA1879 Montana Hall South (Rear) Elevation, Facing: N Montana State University Jessie Nunn, November 3, 2012 MONTANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD PAGE 13 Photographs Property Name: Main Hall / Montana Hall Site Number: 24GA1879 Montana Hall East Elevation, Facing: W Montana State University Jessie Nunn, November 3, 2012 MONTANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD PAGE 14 Photographs Property Name: Main Hall / Montana Hall Site Number: 24GA1879 Montana Hall with Lewis Hall in foreground, c. 1940, Miscellaneous Photos (University Records) Montana Hall with Chemistry Building, undated (before 1916). Digital Historic Photograph Collection, MSU Library, Photo ID: parc-000427. MONTANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD PAGE 15 Photographs Property Name: Main Hall / Montana Hall Site Number: 24GA1879 Montana Hall, undated, Miscellaneous Photos (University Archives) MONTANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD PAGE 16 Site Map Property Name: Main Hall / Montana Hall Site Number: 24GA1879 MONTANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD PAGE 17 Topographic Map Property Name: Main Hall / Montana Hall Site Number: 24GA1879