Benedictine Hall (Shawnee, Oklahoma)
Encyclopedia
Benedictine Hall at St. Gregory's University
, also known as St. Gregory's Abbey and College, is the central feature of the university, housing its administration, library and most of its classes. Designed by St. Louis architect Victor Klutho, the facility opened in the fall of 1915 in Shawnee, Oklahoma
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St. Gregory's College grew from the Sacred Heart Mission in Sacred Heart, Oklahoma
. Established in 1876 in what was then called Indian Territory, the mission school considered moving to a more populated area in the 1890s. After a 1901 fire that destroyed much of what was then called the "Catholic University of Oklahoma", the decision was made to move the high school and college to Shawnee, 35 miles (56.3 km) to the south. VIctor Klutho was hired to design the new facility. A specialist in Tudor revival architecture, Klutho designed a massive five-story brick building to combine church, school and abbey in a single edifice, opening to 40 boys in the fall term of 1915. This served until the 1940s when a new church was built nearby, and in the 1950s the abbey
moved to a new campus adjoining the school. In the 1960s the school discontinued high school education and admitted women to the college.
bays. The top of the wing is accentuated by a segmental balustrade.
The main level contained administrative offices and the main entry. The second floor was occupied by the library. The third floor was classroom space and the fourth floor was reserved for science laboratories and classrooms. The large space within the fifth floor tower was originally a gymnasium, now a lecture hall. The basement housed support facilities. In 1967, a proposal to demolish the building was rejected due to the potential costs to raze such a solid structure. It was renovated, adding a T-section concrete stair tower to the exterior of the west side. The building continues to house most of what is now St. Gregory University's classes.
, destroying one of the tower's turrets and damaging the other three.
St. Gregory's University
St. Gregory's University is a private, co-educational Catholic liberal arts university. It is one of the oldest institutions of higher learning in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. It has its main campus in Shawnee, and an additional campus in Tulsa.-History:St...
, also known as St. Gregory's Abbey and College, is the central feature of the university, housing its administration, library and most of its classes. Designed by St. Louis architect Victor Klutho, the facility opened in the fall of 1915 in Shawnee, Oklahoma
Shawnee, Oklahoma
Shawnee is a city in Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 29,857 at the 2010 census. The city is part of the Oklahoma City-Shawnee Combined Statistical Area; it is also the county seat of Pottawatomie County and the principal city of the Shawnee Micropolitan Statistical...
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St. Gregory's College grew from the Sacred Heart Mission in Sacred Heart, Oklahoma
Sacred Heart, Oklahoma
Sacred Heart is a small unincorporated community in Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma, United States. Established in 1879 by Father Isidore Robot as a Catholic mission on the old Pottawatomie reserve, it was originally named Sacred Heart Mission. The name was changed to Sacred Heart in 1888 shortly...
. Established in 1876 in what was then called Indian Territory, the mission school considered moving to a more populated area in the 1890s. After a 1901 fire that destroyed much of what was then called the "Catholic University of Oklahoma", the decision was made to move the high school and college to Shawnee, 35 miles (56.3 km) to the south. VIctor Klutho was hired to design the new facility. A specialist in Tudor revival architecture, Klutho designed a massive five-story brick building to combine church, school and abbey in a single edifice, opening to 40 boys in the fall term of 1915. This served until the 1940s when a new church was built nearby, and in the 1950s the abbey
St. Gregory's Abbey (Oklahoma)
St. Gregory's Abbey is a Roman Catholic monastery of the American-Cassinese Congregation of the Benedictine Confederation. The monastery, founded by monks of the French monastery of Notre Dame de la Pierre-qui-Vire in 1876, was originally located in present day Konawa, Oklahoma and called Sacred...
moved to a new campus adjoining the school. In the 1960s the school discontinued high school education and admitted women to the college.
Description
The college required a fireproof structure, so the new school was built of reinforced concrete, and surplus railroad rails from the Rock Island Railroad used in the foundation. The concrete walls were faced with brick, with stone accents. The building is a solid rectangle with a footprint of 260 feet (79.2 m) by 90 feet (27.4 m). The central portion of the building is expressed as a battlemented tower, four stories high over a raised basement, with slender corner turrets. From the main mass on either side extend four-story wings on raised basements, accented by projecting three-story orielOriel
An oriel window is a type of bay window which projects from a wall.Oriel may also refer to:Places in the United Kingdom:*Oriel College, Oxford*Oriel Street, Oxford*Oriel Square, Oxford*Oriel Chambers, LiverpoolPlaces in Ireland:...
bays. The top of the wing is accentuated by a segmental balustrade.
The main level contained administrative offices and the main entry. The second floor was occupied by the library. The third floor was classroom space and the fourth floor was reserved for science laboratories and classrooms. The large space within the fifth floor tower was originally a gymnasium, now a lecture hall. The basement housed support facilities. In 1967, a proposal to demolish the building was rejected due to the potential costs to raze such a solid structure. It was renovated, adding a T-section concrete stair tower to the exterior of the west side. The building continues to house most of what is now St. Gregory University's classes.
2011 Oklahoma earthquake
Benedictine Hall was damaged by the 2011 Oklahoma earthquake2011 Oklahoma earthquake
The 2011 Oklahoma earthquake was a 5.6 magnitude intraplate earthquake which occurred on November 5, 2011, at 10:53 pm CDT in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. According to the U.S. Geological Survey , it was the most powerful earthquake ever recorded in Oklahoma...
, destroying one of the tower's turrets and damaging the other three.