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University Hall (Brown University)
Encyclopedia
The University Hall at Brown University
is the first and oldest building on campus.
.
On February 17, 1770 the building committee in charge of the construction of the building placed a notice in the Providence Gazette asking for donations of timber and other materials. Prominent Newport merchant Aaron Lopez
donated timber to the effort.
On March 27, 1770, Solomon Drowne
of Brown's class of 1773 wrote in his diary: “This day they began to dig the Cellar for the College.” Nicholas Brown, Sr. and Company led the construction of the building. Morgan Edwards
, described the location as “Commanding a prospect of ... an extensive country, variegated with hills and dales, woods, and plains,” and was further inspired to write, “Surely, this spot was made for a seat for the Muses.”
Under the presidency of the Reverend James Manning, the building was used to house French and other revolutionary troops led by General George Washington
and the Comte de Rochambeau during the wait to commence the celebrated march of 1781
that led to the Siege of Yorktown
and the Battle of the Chesapeake
.
Following the departure of the French troops, President Manning petitioned the Rhode Island General Assembly as follows:
On May 11, 1927, a tablet placed on University Hall was dedicated to the memory of General Nathanael Greene
, who had received an honorary degree from Brown in 1776, by the First Light Infantry Regiment of Rhode Island.
During early 20th century renovations, when the modern cupola was removed, remnants of the eight-sided original cupola were revealed, with the names of two former students and their classes, “Amos Hopkins 1792” and “Henry D’Wolfe 1803,” carved on one of its uprights.
At the rededication of University Hall on May 4, 1940, French ambassador Comte René Doynel de Saint-Quentin
and Princeton president Harold W. Dodds
took part in the ceremonies recalling the University’s early associations with France
and Princeton
.
The building has been used for many different purposes at the University over the years. It currently houses the office for the president of Brown on the first floor, facing the middle campus in space first occupied by the Commons, along with other administrative offices. The building became a National Historic Landmark
in 1962.
Brown University
Brown University is a private, Ivy League university located in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Founded in 1764 prior to American independence from the British Empire as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations early in the reign of King George III ,...
is the first and oldest building on campus.
History
Built in 1770, it was originally known as the College Edifice. The building was constructed on a piece of land belonging to the original Brown family ancestor and co-founder of Providence, Chad BrownChad Brown (minister)
Reverend Chad Brown I was one of the first ministers of the First Baptist Church in America and a co-founder of Providence, Rhode Island...
.
On February 17, 1770 the building committee in charge of the construction of the building placed a notice in the Providence Gazette asking for donations of timber and other materials. Prominent Newport merchant Aaron Lopez
Aaron Lopez
Aaron Lopez , born Duarte Lopez, was a Jewish merchant and philanthropist. He became the wealthiest person in Newport, Rhode Island, in British America. In 1761 and 1762, Lopez unsuccessfully sued the Colony of Rhode Island for citizenship....
donated timber to the effort.
On March 27, 1770, Solomon Drowne
Solomon Drowne
Dr. Solomon Drowne was a prominent American physician, academic and surgeon during the American Revolution and in the history of the fledgling United States.- Early life :...
of Brown's class of 1773 wrote in his diary: “This day they began to dig the Cellar for the College.” Nicholas Brown, Sr. and Company led the construction of the building. Morgan Edwards
Morgan Edwards
Morgan Edwards was a Welsh historian of religion, Baptist pastor, and notable for his teaching on the 'rapture' before its popularization by John Nelson Darby ....
, described the location as “Commanding a prospect of ... an extensive country, variegated with hills and dales, woods, and plains,” and was further inspired to write, “Surely, this spot was made for a seat for the Muses.”
Under the presidency of the Reverend James Manning, the building was used to house French and other revolutionary troops led by General George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
and the Comte de Rochambeau during the wait to commence the celebrated march of 1781
Washington-Rochambeau Revolutionary Route
The Washington–Rochambeau Revolutionary Route is a 680-mile -long series of encampments and roads used by U.S. Continental Army troops under George Washington and French troops under Jean-Baptiste de Rochambeau during their march from Newport, Rhode Island to Yorktown, Virginia in 1781. The route...
that led to the Siege of Yorktown
Siege of Yorktown
The Siege of Yorktown, Battle of Yorktown, or Surrender of Yorktown in 1781 was a decisive victory by a combined assault of American forces led by General George Washington and French forces led by the Comte de Rochambeau over a British Army commanded by Lieutenant General Lord Cornwallis...
and the Battle of the Chesapeake
Battle of the Chesapeake
The Battle of the Chesapeake, also known as the Battle of the Virginia Capes or simply the Battle of the Capes, was a crucial naval battle in the American War of Independence that took place near the mouth of Chesapeake Bay on 5 September 1781, between a British fleet led by Rear Admiral Sir Thomas...
.
Following the departure of the French troops, President Manning petitioned the Rhode Island General Assembly as follows:
- “That the College edifice was first taken in December, 1776, for the use of barracks and an hospital for the American troops, and retained for that use until the Fall before the arrival of his most Christian Majesty’s fleets and armies in this State; – that, by our direction, the President resumed the course of education in said College, and took possession of the edifice on the 10th of May, 1780; and continued so to occupy it until the authority of this State, in a short time after, granted it to the French army as an hospital, who continued to hold and use it for said purpose until the last week, when the Commissary of War of the French army delivered it up, with the keys, to his Honor the Deputy Governor; they having previously permitted the officers of the French ships in this State to place their sick in it, who still continue there; – that the building was in good repair, and occupied by upwards of thirty students when first taken for the public service; – that great injury hath been done to every part of it since taken out of the hands of the Corporation; especially by two buildings adjoining it, one an house of offal at the north end, with a vault fifteen feet deep under it, having broken down the wall of the College to facilitate the passage of the invalids from the edifice into it; from which addition the intolerable stench renders all the northern part uninhabitable; and the other an horse stable, built from the east projection to the north end, by which the house is greatly weakened; many of the windows are also taken entirely out of the house, and others so broken, as well as the slate on the roof, that the storms naturally beat into it. ... “
On May 11, 1927, a tablet placed on University Hall was dedicated to the memory of General Nathanael Greene
Nathanael Greene
Nathanael Greene was a major general of the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War. When the war began, Greene was a militia private, the lowest rank possible; he emerged from the war with a reputation as George Washington's most gifted and dependable officer. Many places in the United...
, who had received an honorary degree from Brown in 1776, by the First Light Infantry Regiment of Rhode Island.
During early 20th century renovations, when the modern cupola was removed, remnants of the eight-sided original cupola were revealed, with the names of two former students and their classes, “Amos Hopkins 1792” and “Henry D’Wolfe 1803,” carved on one of its uprights.
At the rededication of University Hall on May 4, 1940, French ambassador Comte René Doynel de Saint-Quentin
René Doynel de Saint-Quentin
René Doynel de Saint-Quentin was a French diplomat, and French ambassador to the United States from 1938 to 1940.- Life :...
and Princeton president Harold W. Dodds
Harold W. Dodds
Harold Willis Dodds was the fifteenth President of Princeton University.-Early life and education:Dodds was born on June 28, 1889 in Utica, Pennsylvania, the son of a professor of Bible Studies at Grove City College...
took part in the ceremonies recalling the University’s early associations with France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and Princeton
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
.
The building has been used for many different purposes at the University over the years. It currently houses the office for the president of Brown on the first floor, facing the middle campus in space first occupied by the Commons, along with other administrative offices. The building became a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
in 1962.
External Sources
- Encyclopedia Brunoniana
- Rhode Island Historical Society
- Society of the Cincinnati - library
- John Carter Brown Library
- French Naval Leaders and the French Navy in the American War for Independence
- Degrees of Latitude: Mapping Colonial America by Margaret Pritchard
- The Long March to Yorktown by Donald N. Moran
- Biography of Princeton University president Harold W. Dodds
See also
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Providence, Rhode Island