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Virtual Historical Tour 33. Vulgamore Hall
Formerly known as North Hall, the renovated building is one of Albion's oldest. North Hall was ready for students in the fall of 1852. The building contained three recitation rooms and a laboratory on the lower floor; an expanded science center; a new art department on the second floor, as well as quarters for students and faculty and two music rooms; the third floor provided most of the student rooms and three music practice rooms with pianos. The living quarters were heated with wood stoves, which eventually caused disaster to strike a year later when a fire broke out and the Hall burned to the ground. (Fennimore, p.123) Thanks to the insurance settlement, the College was able to rebuild North Hall. The new building looked like the old North Hall from the outside and within housed a science lab and clasrooms on the ground level, an enlarged art department on the second floor, and the third floor was a large hall that extended the full length of the building, led to by a spiral stair in the middle of the building. This space was used as for chapel and public town meetings. Later, after 1870, the third floor was split into two rooms: the north room was headquarters for the Eclectic and Atheniades Societies (aka, Ticks), while the south room was used by the Clever Girls and Clever Boys (aka, Erosophian Society). (Fennimore, p.125) In February of 1923, North Hall was struck again by fire; and this time it was believed to be arson. No one was ever indicted for the incident, though the pool of suspects was small. The cost of the damage done totalled $10,000. (Fennimore, p.472) Click on thumbnail for larger view In 1949, the College used monies from a capital campaigns drive to remodel North Hall. The entire interior was to be rebuilt and a wing added to the east end for an auditorium and two floors of faculty office and classrooms. New windows were also installed and the exterior was refurbished to keep it more in line with other campus buildings. (Fennimore 570-71) Note that the columns on the ground floor all have different capitals. |
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Albion College ◦ Albion, Michigan ◦ 517/629-10000
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