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Moravian College • Preservation Master Plan
Payne Art Gallery – 1890
Historical Development
Payne Art Gallery was constructed in 1890 as the
gymnasium of the Moravian Seminary for Women.
Athletics and organized physical exercise were
becoming more important to academic institutions
nationorthwestide in this period, making exercise
facilities a priority in campus planning. The new
building, known as the Gymnasium throughout
much of the next century, had an open beamed
interior and was host to athletics and sporting
events for the Seminary and College for Women.
A covered passageway connected the Gymnasium
to South Hall, continuing the tradition of attached
buildings at the campus. After the merger of 1954,
better athletic facilities were available at the Main
Street campus, and a new use was needed for the
Gymnasium. In 1963, the college began using it as an
art classroom and studio. As with the neighboring
buildings, its exterior was rehabilitated in 1978.
In 1982, the Gymnasium was renovated and
converted into the College’s art gallery. The
passageway to South Hall was removed and Foy
Hall was built as a concert hall and connector to
South Hall, retaining the Gymnasium’s physical
connection with the series of buildings nearby.
The renovation was funded by Priscilla Payne
Hurd and the Gymnasium was renamed Payne
Gallery in honor of Mrs. Hurd’s parents, Frank E.
and Seba B. Payne. Architects for the project were
William Watson (exterior work) and Spillman
Farmer Shoemaker Pell (interior). The original
front entrance was closed off and entrance to Payne
Gallery is now through the lobby of Foy Hall. In
2001, the gallery was renovated to bring its curation
environment up to Smithsonian standards.
Signifi cance
Payne Gallery is significant as an excellent example
of a Classical Revival gymnasium of the turn of the
century period. This style was nationally popular
for gymnasiums of this era. Payne Gallery is also
associated with a nationorthwestide trend toward
physical education and organized sports which
took hold in this era.
Integrity
Figure 8-97. Payne Gallery, view to southeast (JMA 2008).
Payne Gallery retains a high degree of integrity on
the exterior, although the disuse of the original main
entrance, thus altering its historic main entry point,
is a notable exception. On the interior, the building
has been modified extensively through installation
of partitions, gallery lighting, and reconfiguring of
the original second-floor spectator gallery. Natural
light has been eliminated through covering or
painting over the original windows. Other historic
elements are either missing or no longer visible,
except for the wooden ceiling trusswork.
Figure 8-98. Payne Gallery, view to northeast (JMA 2008).
Figure 8-99. Payne Gallery, historic view to east (Moravian
College Archives).
John Milner Associates • October 2009 • Chapter 8 • Historic Buildings • 203