College Hall

Wilmington College’s lone original structure stands as a monument to the institution’s 150-year history. The unfinished building purchased for $11,334 at the Aug. 11, 1870, auction was made ready for the start of classes on April 11, 1871. During its first years as the only campus building, it housed faculty and students, in addition to academic classrooms and offices related to the business of the College. The building originally was heated by coal stoves in each room, as hot air furnaces were not installed until 1899. In the fall of 1908, a roof fire threatened to destroy the facility, but was extinguished before major damage occurred. The senior class of 1909 raised funds for the purchase of a fireproof tile roof. Originally, the third floor featured a large auditorium fitted with a stage and dressing rooms, also with a small gymnasium equipped merely for calisthenics. In 1920, the auditorium was partitioned for academic departments. The second floor originally housed the library, four classrooms and two offices, one of which was for the president. The south end of the first floor had a large room fitted with desks and used by the Preparatory Dept. In 1915, this space was converted for use for chapel services and other campus convocations. The balance of the main floor had classrooms and offices. Since its renovation in the 1970s, which included an elevator, College Hall houses administrative and faculty offices and several classrooms. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1973 and rededicated Nov. 19, 1974.