A BRIEF HISTORY OF WASHINGTON AND LEE - Society for ...

CHAPTER TWOA BRIEF HISTORYOF WASHINGTON AND LEE

PRESERVATION MASTER PLANOCTOBER 2005C H A P T E R TWOA BRIEF HISTORY OF WASHINGTON AND LEEINTRODUCTIONWashington and Lee University Campus is recognized as anurban collegiate environment with rich historic architecture,campus planning elements, and landscape features that form acoherent whole. The school began in a single building set in a ruralenvironment with its roots steeped in a classical curriculum andreverence for traditional values. Incorporated into these traditionalvalues was the notion that the scenic beauty of the surroundinglandscape provided an inspiring setting for serious study. Thishistorical narrative describes the University’s evolution from a smallrural educational institution to a modern urban campus in whicharchitecture and landscape played a significant role in testing andsustaining traditional values. This historic narrative is intended toserve as a tool for understanding the significance of the university’sphysical landscape and to guide appropriate decision-making thatwill ensure the protection and preservation of its legacy.LIBERTY HALL AND WASHINGTON ACADEMY:1793-1803The educational precursor to today’s Washington and LeeUniversity, the Augusta Academy, began in 1749 as a mathematicaland classical school under the stewardship of Hanover Presbytery,located in Greensville, approximately 15 miles south of Stauntonand 20 miles north of present-day Lexington. After being movedfirst to the vicinity of Old Providence in Augusta County and thenfarther south to Mt. Pleasant, an eminence one mile west of thevillage of Fairfield in Rockbridge County, the school was renamedLiberty Hall in 1776, and in 1782 moved again to Mulberry Hill, aridge just outside the village of Lexington, Virginia. 11Calder Conrad Loth, “The Antebellum Architecture of Washington andLee University,” (masters thesis, University of Virginia, 1967), 1-2.2-1

WASHINGTON AND LEE UNIVERSITYLEXINGTON, VIRGINIAIn 1782, shortly after moving to Lexington, William Graham, rectorof the school, and two neighbors, donated contiguous tracts of ten,three, and six acres, to establish a permanent home. This acreagewas situated just west of Lexington and was described as follows:There was a fountain of pure limestone water in aravine, and an eminence covered with trees, fromthe shades of which a spectator might view thepleasant scenery of fields and woodlands around,and at a distance the high mountains on either sideof the valley. 2Figure 1: Liberty Hall (Source: Lyle & Simpson,The Architecture of Historic Lexington.)The first schoolhouse constructed on the campus of Liberty HallAcademy was a small wood frame building. A second wood framebuilding was constructed in the vicinity of the site in 1783. Finally,in 1793, William Cravens, a local stonemason from RockinghamCounty, constructed a more permanent building located well tothe west of the first structure. It was 38 feet long by 30 feet wideand three stories in height, with a square roof, belfry, and cornerchimneys. Its twelve rooms constituted approximately fifteensquare feet and provided both academic and residential space forattending students (see fi gure 1). A stewards house, containing akitchen dining room, and cellar was also built at this time, as wasa smokehouse. Additional buildings were constructed between1793 and 1800 when leadership of the school changed hands in1796 and the Board of Trustees opened a subscription fund for theconstruction of a rector’s house. This was a two-story brick building25 by 20 feet built on a stone foundation. Other buildings includeda springhouse, a stable, and a brick kiln. A pathway appears to havesurrounded the rector’s house. 3Although the first structure appears to have been a simplevernacular building, evidence indicates that professionals fromoutside the area executed subsequent structures associated withthe 1793 stone building. Evidence also suggests a small number oflivestock were kept on the property, giving the college a degree ofself-sufficiency. 42Washington and Lee Historical Papers vol.1, 30-31, quoted in JohnM. McDaniel, Kurt C. Russ et al, (Lexington, VA: Liberty Hall Press,University of Washington and Lee, 1994), 40.3John M. McDaniel, Kurt C. Russ et al, An Archeological and HistoricalAssessment of the Liberty Hall Academy Complex, 1782-1803, 42.4John M. McDaniel, Kurt C. Russ et al, An Archeological and HistoricalAssessment of the Liberty Hall Academy Complex, 1782-1803, 135.2-2

PRESERVATION MASTER PLANOCTOBER 2005At this time, the Academy appears to have had little connection withthe small, but growing town of Lexington. Similar buildings to theAcademy’s stone hall also existed in town; there were also a fewdistinctive brick Georgian-style houses. The majority of buildings,however, were of log construction. This situation changed after adisastrous fire of 1796 destroyed much of the built fabric south ofWashington Street and west of Randolph Streets. Lexington wasthen rebuilt with a “better class of buildings, mostly in the Federalstyle with tall proportions, regular façades and fine detailing both inthe brickwork and interiors.” 5A donation from George Washington provided the means forexpansion at the college and, as the college grew, so too the townof Lexington benefited with a new building campaign that includedchurches, residences, and commercial enterprises. Much of thearchitecture constructed at this time in town was in the Federalstyle. As a result of Washington’s large financial donation, theschool was renamed “Washington Academy” in 1798.In 1802, the roof of the stone building known as Liberty Hall caughtfire and as the only source of water was a spring located one hundredyards distant; the building was soon reduced to a ruin. Considerationwas given to repairing the ruin or building anew. Local townsmeninterested in having the school contribute a greater economicpresence to the town influenced the decision to house the collegein a new building located closer to town. Some faculty memberswere unsure of the advantages of such a move, as they feared thedistractions such a location might bring to students. Financialconsiderations likely influenced the final decision when AndrewAlexander offered his land on a ridge bordering the western edgeof town in exchange for the Liberty Hall land. This land exchangeprovided the final incentive for a new building to be constructedcloser to town.Once the Academy had been relocated, Liberty Hall campus sitewas used consistently for domestic and agricultural purposesfrom the early 19th century on. Some evidence indicates that bothNorthern and Southern forces were attracted to the site during theCivil War. However, there is no indication of a military engagementor occupation. The stable that had been part of the original settingon Mulberry Hill continued in use as a barn until it was demolishedat some point in the 20th century. The springhouse appears to havebeen renovated at some time in the 1920s, but dismantled in the1950s. 65Royster Lyle Jr. and Pamela Simpson, The Architecture of HistoricLexington (Charlottesville, VA: University of Virginia Press, 1977), 15-17.6John M. McDaniel, Kurt C. Russ et al, An Archeological and HistoricalAssessment of the Liberty Hall Academy Complex, 1782-1803, 131.2-3

WASHINGTON AND LEE UNIVERSITYLEXINGTON, VIRGINIAThe setting for this new building, to be located closer to town, wasdescribed as follows:The original site was admirably adapted forthe purpose for which it was intended. It is thehandsomest and most convenient section of one ofthe three low ridges on which the town of Lexingtonrests. Its crest line having at the South end a rightangle, gives a frontage in four directions, and beingsufficiently elevated, insures pure air and a wideoutlook. The observer may look from any part ofthe grounds upon such a scene as might naturallyexcite envy in the mind of a man from Harvard,Yale, or Johns Hopkins: but if he will ascend tothe top of one of the University buildings he willbehold a wider landscape which called forth fromthe lips of the accomplished Professor Farnum theexclamation: “If this scene were set down in themiddle of Europe the whole Continent would flockto see it.” 7Once again, the college was sited on an eminence with impressiveviews of the surrounding landscape and in full view of the town, aswell as those passing through (see fi gure 2).Figure 2: Rural view (Source: Lyle & Simpson, The Architecture of Historic Lexington.)7William Henry Ruffner, “Continuation of the History of WashingtonCollege,” in Washington and Lee University Historical Papers, No. 4(Baltimore, 1893), 7, quote in Loth “The Antebellum Architecture ofWashington and Lee University,” 6.2-4

PRESERVATION MASTER PLANOCTOBER 2005ESTABLISHMENT OF WASHINGTON COLLEGE:1804-1870The first two buildings in the development of Washington College,Graham and Union Halls, were constructed in 1804 on the ridge ofthe hill, facing the town of Lexington and at such a distance fromeach other to permit a center building to fit between. At the time ofconstruction, the buildings were situated approximately sixty yardsapart and this space was laid out as a bowling green. A steward’shouse, also completed in 1804, was located towards the base of thehill at the front entrance to the grounds. 8In 1807, minutes of the Board of Trustees indicated that a sum “not inexcess of thirty dollars be appropriated for the purpose of improvingthe Academy lot, planting necessary trees and filling up gullies andthat the same committee which was appointed by a former order torent the steward’s house, carry this into effect.” 9In 1813, an act of the Virginia legislature gave the Academy a newname and status, changing it to Washington College. Soon after, aperiod of prosperity brought greater transportation and commercialopportunities to Lexington, as well as an increase in population.In 1822, architect John Jordan of the firm Jordan and Darst wasawarded the contract for a building to be placed between Grahamand Union Halls. In the process of preparing for construction, brickmaking was undertaken on site, causing the ridge to be flattenedand terraced. 10 The “Center Building,” as it was first known, wascompleted in 1824, (and later known as Washington Hall); howeverits final form departed radically from the original plan offered tothe board of trustees in 1803. The final design was a three-storyClassical temple form with a large Tuscan portico. The lower storyof the portico was left open in contrast to the original plan, andrather than being placed on a podium, columns were built threestories high. Jordan had reportedly worked with James Dinsmoreat Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello, and brought his knowledge of theClassical Revival to Lexington.8Loth, “The Antebellum Architecture of Washington and Lee University,”11.9Minutes of Washington and Lee Board of Trustees, November 7, 1807.[Folder 13 of 7. Leyburn Library, Special Collections, Washington and LeeUniversity.]10Ruffner, “Continuation of the History of Washington College,” 92,quoted in Loth, “The Antebellum Architecture of Washington and LeeUniversity,” 11.2-5

WASHINGTON AND LEE UNIVERSITYLEXINGTON, VIRGINIABy 1830, various departments at Washington College had grown,producing the need for new buildings. Consideration was given toexpanding Union Hall for use as a chemical laboratory, library andcabinet. But it was found that both Union and Graham Halls hadbeen poorly constructed and in constant need of repair; they wereconsidered better suited to their original intention as dormitories.Consequently, a new building, the Lyceum, (later known as PayneHall) was constructed in 1831, paid for by the Robinson fund, andwas located west of Washington Hall. This building was a threestorybrick structure with a hipped roof incorporating a flat deckand a balustrade for the observatory. Little architectural merit wasaccorded it until a new square pier portico was added in 1842. Avisitor to Lexington described the building and its site as “pretty butformal looking pleasure grounds…it stands on an eminence backfrom the road and forms the first object of attention on entering thevillage.” 11 The reference to pleasure grounds emphasizes the terracedrise, which was not dissimilar to large estates where gardens weredesigned with terracing to accommodate the placement of propertyon an eminence with a view over landholdings and to be seen from adistance. Terracing also allowed visitors to experience the landscapeas a place to stroll and enjoy outdoor pursuits.In 1834, the college site was highly praised but the style andcondition of the buildings were considered in poor taste. 12 Pressurewas applied to instigate improvements. A letter written to the Unionin 1834 observed the situation as follows:The masterly manner in which Hampden hasportrayed the deplorable condition of the Collegeedifices, supersede the necessity of my noticing(as intended) that part of the subject. I suppose thesame pen would have delineated the broken featuresof that once lovely hill, had not the rude appearanceof the buildings cast a dark shade athwart the lineof contrast. Why are those gullies, mortar holes andbrick piles not leveled over? And why are thosemutilated buildings not removed in order to giveplace to others more worthy of the name of theinstitution and the honor of the state? 1311Charles F. Hoffman, A Winter in the West (New York: Harper, 1835), vol.2, 311-12.12Loth, “The Antebellum Architecture of Washington and Lee University,”33-34.13Loth, “The Antebellum Architecture of Washington and Lee University,”34.2-6

PRESERVATION MASTER PLANOCTOBER 2005Figure 3: The early colonnade with one-story domitories and fencing separating college and agricultural fi elds in foreground, ca. 1855.(Source: Washington and Lee University, Come Cheer for Washington and Lee: The University at 250 Years. 1998.)In 1835, the inauguration of a new president, Henry Vethake, a wellknowneducation reformer, prompted repairs and improvements tothe college buildings and grounds. At this time a decision was madeto replace Union and Graham Halls as well as to construct a buildingsimilar in appearance to Lyceum Hall and situated to the east ofthe Center Building, thus balancing the classical idiom. However,construction was delayed another four years. Meanwhile, Unionand Graham Halls were demolished in 1835 with their materialssalvaged for the construction of new dormitories.After only two years President Vethake left Washington Collegeand a new president was promoted from within the faculty, HenryRuffner, whose presidency heralded a period of new prosperity andexpansion. During Ruffner’s presidency, a new dormitory building,Robinson Hall, was constructed to the east of the Center Buildingin 1842. Within the following year, Washington Hall of 1824,the Lyceum of 1831, and Robinson Hall of 1842, were connectedwith two-story wings, creating what would become known as theColonnade.Little documentation exists regarding the landscape at this time;however a certain impression may be gained from visitors’descriptions as well as from Henry Howe’s 1845 woodcut that showsthe campus after the 1841-42 additions to the main buildings on thefront lawn forming the colonnade. The area to the east and west ofthe buildings on the eminence appears to be wooded with the area infront left free to provide open views both of and from the buildings.Towards the base of the hill, two rows of fences divide the collegelands from the town of Lexington (see fi gure 3).2-7

WASHINGTON AND LEE UNIVERSITYLEXINGTON, VIRGINIAFigure 4: View of the rural landscape surrounding Washington and Lee University, ca. 1845. (Source: Lyle & Simpson, The Architecture ofHistoric Lexington.)During the period in which Henry Ruffner was president (1836-1848), the natural beauty of the surrounding mountainous landscapewas clearly valued by the students who lived at the college (seefi gure 4). Ruffner himself wrote of the natural setting of WashingtonCollege in a novel titled Judith Bensaddi. About six miles west ofLexington is House Mountain consisting of “two parallel oblongmountains connected about midway of their height and risingupwards of 1500 feet above the surrounding country.” Ruffnerwrote:…the students of our college make parties everysummer to visit this mountain for the sake of theprospect. They set out in clear weather and spendthe night on the mountain that they may enjoy themorning beauties of the scene, which are by far themost interesting. 14The rural beauty of the setting came at a price however asinfrastructure such as roads and pathways were still somewhatlacking. During his presidency, Ruffner lived in a brick building thatfaced the college. There was apparently no walk or street in front ofhis house so Ruffner had to walk down an alley (now Preston Street)14Michael P. Branch and Daniel J. Philippon, eds. The Height of OurMountains: Nature Writing from Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains andShenandoah Valley (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1998),166.2-8

PRESERVATION MASTER PLANOCTOBER 2005to Jefferson Street then work his way back to College Hill to get tothe school. It was an inconvenient arrangement and construction of aPresident’s House on campus in 1841 gave him the excuse to sell theproperty to Dr. Alfred Layburn who then sold it in 1844 to ColonelJ.T.L. Preston, professor of languages at VMI. Descriptions of thishouse from the Preston residency still give the impression of a ruralplantation setting with ten to twelve acres of land surrounding theproperty, an orchard and a lot in front for horses and cows. 15Later, Lee Avenue was opened in front of the former Ruffner Houseand in 1842 the owners of five houses on the west side of Lee Avenueagreed to close a small lane behind them and open a 20-foot sidestreet in front of the properties to join Nelson Street to the alley infront of the Ruffner House. The new lane was named Clay Street. 16Improvements continued on the campus when four faculty houseswere constructed in 1841 and 1842; three for professors and onefor the president. These buildings were two-story temple formswith Tuscan porticoes and one-story wings. The two outer housesboasted hipped roofs; the inner houses had gable roofs turned towardthe front forming pediments. In order to harmonize the stylisticexpression of the colonnade, alterations were made to the Lyceumand Robinson Hall with the addition of porticoes. The front ofWashington Hall was remodeled and a cupola was added to a squarebase on the ridge of the roof to house the school bell. Beneath thecornice of the cupola a frieze was added with Greek fret molding.In 1844, a wooden statue of Washington was placed on the Cupola.Two further wings were intended but never added to the ends of themain complex. John Jockey Robinson bequeathed a large tract ofland to the college and, as a tribute to this generosity a committeewas tasked in 1850 with exhuming Robinson’s remains in order toplace them in a monument. The monument was constructed “thirtyfeet from the fence and two and a half feet from the lowest side.” 17In 1854, minutes of the Board of Trustees indicated a year ofprosperity. The campus was clearly still part of a rural landscape asthe president suggested a solution to problems the college had beenhaving with cattle intruding on to the campus. The reference to “ourpasturage” is interesting as it reinforces the image of the college setin a rural environment, likely lying more to the rear of the colonnade15Lyle Jr., and Pamela Simpson, The Architecture of Historic Lexington,81.16Lyle Jr., and Pamela Simpson, The Architecture of Historic Lexington,86-87.17Report of a Committee appointed to procure the erection of a monumentto the Memory of John Robinson, ca.1853, Washington and Lee Trustees’Papers, Folder 144.2-9

WASHINGTON AND LEE UNIVERSITYLEXINGTON, VIRGINIAFigure 5: The Colonade, ca. 1867. (Source: Lyle & Simpson, The Architecture of Historic Lexington.)buildings. The colonnade created a critical juncture between pastoralideals of the beautiful rural landscape and the civilizing construct ofthe classical city on a hill:I suggest an improvement that would secure ourpasturage and the college buildings themselves fromthe intrusion of cattle not a trifling annoyance, Viz.the construction of a strong three-railed post and railfence in a straight line between the extreme backcorner of the gardens next to the college building;and the erection of a self-shutting twelve-foot widegate for wagons at the eastern corner of the campuson the avenue. The fence can be erected for $30and the posts and boards between the buildings bethrown first to make repairs elsewhere. The expenseof keeping up styles would be saved. 18A lithograph of the campus in ca. 1855-1867 indicates a farm in theforeground of the front lawn area, with a fence that encloses a wideexpanse of lawn in front of the colonnade and encompassing thesingle-story dormitories (see fi gure 5).In 1855, considerations were again given to the improvement of18Minutes of the Board of Trustees, 1854. Washington and Lee UniversityTrustees Papers, Folder 142.2-10

PRESERVATION MASTER PLANOCTOBER 2005the landscape and tree planting was referred to as: “The proprietyof ornamenting by trees, shrubs etc. the front of the campus issuggested as a matter of considerable importance in the machineryof education, external neatness and beauty, has a very happy andnot a trifling influence in generating good taste in the inner man.” A“rough fence had been ordered to be erected on the rear side of thebuildings” but had not yet been undertaken. 19With the onslaught of the Civil War normal operations at the collegewere brought to a standstill and most of its students and part of itsfaculty served in the Fourth Virginia Volunteers. During the war,the college continued to run as a preparatory school, taking in boystoo young to fight and those not able to serve due to disabilities. Nodamage was done to the college buildings, although General DavidHunter’s troops occupied Lexington during Hunter’s Raid of June1864 and the college was looted.In 1865, General Robert E. Lee was elected president of the college.On assuming his new post, Lee found that many structures werein terrible condition, with some undergoing repair but all of themneeding attention. The grounds were so torn up and neglected thatthere were more patches of bare soil and weeds than there wasgrass. Under Lee’s supervision a superintendent of grounds, EdwardClifford Gordon, was hired. In addition, Washington College offeredloans to townspeople willing to erect new structures to accommodatestudents or faculty.Figure 6: Lee Chapel, ca. 1930. (Source: Lyle& Simpson, The Architecture of HistoricLexington.)During Lee’s tenure as President, the college was transformed froma Presbyterian-based, classical academy into a practical and modernuniversity, although the Christian faith was still a vital part of collegelife. Lee suggested the idea of an independent chapel, particularlyin light of an increasing student body. Until this time a chapel andbeen housed in one room in the Robinson building. The Board agreedwith Lee that it should have its own building. This building wasconstructed in a style that conformed to an ideal that had begun to bepopular during the 1860s, in which buildings were intended to fit intothe landscape rather than stand in sharp contrast to it (see figure 6).The picturesque was a sensibility that infused both landscapearchitectural and architectural design. It was dominated by irregularoutlines, colors, and textures, intending to be more at one withnature. The chapel stands apart from the classical dominance ofthe colonnade, fitting snugly into a low point at the base of the hill,designed in the Romanesque tradition, possibly inspired by JohnRenwick’s 1847 Smithsonian Institution in Washington. It is alsonot clear how much Lee himself was involved with the design, but19Source: Arthur Bartenstein – President’s notes – George Junkin.2-11

WASHINGTON AND LEE UNIVERSITYLEXINGTON, VIRGINIAFigure 7: The President’s House, ca. 1880. (Source: Lyle & Simpson, The Architecture of Historic Lexington.)Figure 8: Lee Chapel, ca. 1870. (Source:Miley Photo Collection, Washington and LeeUniversity Library)his ideas about nature clearly influenced its final form as is madeclear in another building constructed during his tenure, the newpresident’s house, designed by architect C.W. Oltmanns and built in1869, and in Lee’s improvements to the landscape (see fi gure 7).20These landscape improvements included the planting of severaltrees, in particular on the front lawn, where it is said Lee remarkedthat this should be done “not in rows: Nature never plants trees inrows. As far as possible to imitate nature.” 21Lee also influenced the placing of fences on campus grounds. Hecommented that: “A fence is a blot on any lawn. We must havea fence but select a color [of paint], which will render the fenceas inconspicuous as possible: one that will harmonize with thesurrounding colors (see fi gure 8).” 22Two further buildings constructed during Lee’s tenure included agymnasium and hotel built on the college property in 1867 althoughit is not clear if the college added to the already extant Old BlueHotel or if a new hotel was constructed at a different location. Thegymnasium according to Gray’s 1877 Atlas, was located north of theChapel and the hotel was located close to Jefferson Street to the westof the gymnasium, it is not certain if these are the same buildings asthose constructed in 1867.20Lyle Jr., and Pamela Simpson, The Architecture of Historic Lexington,162.21Franklin L. Riley, General Robert E. Lee After Appomattox (New York:Macmillan, 1930), 88.22Riley, General Robert E. Lee After Appomattox, 88.2-12

PRESERVATION MASTER PLANOCTOBER 2005Figure 9: Newcombe Hall and Colonnade, ca. 1880s. (Source: Lyle & Simpson, The Architecture of Historic Lexington.)Lee died in October 1870, and was buried in the floor of the libraryin the lower level of the Chapel. The Lee Memorial Associationcommissioned sculptor Edward V. Valentine to create a memorialin 1870. In 1883 a statue chamber and family crypt were added anda marble statue of Lee lying on his camp bed was delivered to theschool and placed in the chapel. Lee’s tenure as President had savedthe institution from financial and moral destitution and infused itwith a new vitality and pride. In recognition of this, the name of thecollege was changed in 1871 to Washington and Lee University.ECONOMIC PROSPERITY: 1871-1900During a brief period of economic recession, very little occurred atWashington and Lee, except the remodeling of Robinson Hall into amuseum (later Brooks museum), for the display of a large donationof biological and geological specimens made to the school in 1876.Things brightened in the late 1880s and early 1890s prompting abuilding campaign. This came to fruition under Baltimore architectJames Crawford Neilson, who was hired to design a new librarybuilding, Newcomb Hall, built in 1882 (see fi gure 9). John Champe,a local brick mason, laid distinctively patterned bricks forming awalkway along the Colonnade. Although shipped from Lynchburgand used in many communities in the area, they became known asLexington bricks and were used throughout the town. 2323Mame Warren, Ed. Come Cheer for Washington And Lee (Lexington, VA:Washington And Lee University, 1998).2-13

WASHINGTON AND LEE UNIVERSITYLEXINGTON, VIRGINIAFigure 10: Tucker Hall, ca. 1900. (Source:Lyle & Simpson, The Architecture of HistoricLexington.)Figure 11: The Colonnade with Tucker Hall, ca. 1900. (Source: Lyle & Simpson, TheArchitecture of Historic Lexington.)In 1883, Neilson completed an addition to the rear of Lee Chapel,containing the Lee memorial statue. A “Professor’s House,” later tobecome known as Alumni House, was built in 1887 in a vernacularVictorian style, and a new gymnasium was constructed in 1890serving the university until it was destroyed by fire in 1913. In 1891, aone-story brick building with a high stone basement was constructedbehind Washington Hall, as an engineering and chemistry laboratorywith a heating plant in the basement.Development also occurred in the town of Lexington at this timewhen, in 1891, the town council of Lexington also decided tocontinue Jackson Avenue from McDowell Street “through thePreston property.” This formed a dogleg connection to the presentdayLee Avenue and Preston Street and allowed for the opening ofseveral large lots, which were soon filled by grand houses. 24William G. McDowell, a prominent local builder who received hiscivil engineering degree from the school in 1872, and T.J. Collins,an architect from Staunton, Virginia, began plans for Tucker Hallin 1897. The limestone Richardsonian Romanesque style buildingdisplaced the old north dormitory, which was destroyed to makeway for Tucker Hall, completed in 1900 and housing the law school.This massive picturesque Victorian structure contrasted sharply withthe harmonized Classical red brick buildings on the front lawn (seefi gures 10 and 11). However, the college’s new president, WilliamL. Wilson, successor to Custis Lee, admired the building for itsbeauty, solidity of construction, and ability to adapt. Despite the24Roster Lyle Jr., and Pamela Simpson, The Architecture of HistoricLexington, 92.2-14

PRESERVATION MASTER PLANOCTOBER 2005Figure 12: Washington and Lee University, ca. 1900. (Source: Miley Collection, Washingtonand Lee University Library.)four-columned porch that attempted to pay homage to the classicalidiom of the colonnade, the massing and textured materials ofTucker Hall formed a stark contrast to the elegant brick buildingslined neatly along the crest of the hill. However, it reflected trendsoccurring in the town that expressed a confident Victorian period ofdevelopment.EMULATING THE BEAUX-ARTS TRADITION:1901-1950By the turn-of-the-century, Americans studying at France’s École desBeaux-Arts, the era’s premier school of architecture, were influencedby a new classical style based on Renaissance inspiration. Eclectic,elaborate, and formal, the popularity of these design aestheticswere prominently displayed at the 1893 Columbian Expositionand soon came to dominate urban planning. The stately Beaux-Artsarchitecture and emphasis on beauty, order, system, and harmonywas intended to create order among citizens and improve societyas a whole. Grounded in an allegiance to geometric principles oforder, this design aesthetic was regarded as an ideal tool for campusplanners, as they provided organized physical and visual connectionsbetween buildings and landscape, which it was hoped would in turninfluence student behavior.Soon, many college campuses had adopted the Beaux-Arts Traditionfor their formal plans. Such plans arranged buildings and landscapefeatures around primary and secondary axes and boasted a uniformarchitectural style. Often referred to as the University BeautifulMovement, this trend echoed urban planning’s City BeautifulMovement. At Washington and Lee this new sensibility coincidedwith a prosperous period under President Wilson and later PresidentGeorge H. Denny (see fi gure 12).2-15

WASHINGTON AND LEE UNIVERSITYLEXINGTON, VIRGINIAFigure 13: J.C. Link plan for a mall behind the Colonnade. (Source: Lyle & Simpson, The Architecture of Historic Lexington.)In 1904, St. Louis architect, Theodore C. Link, created acomprehensive master plan for future development of the campus(see fi gure 13). A major component of Link’s plan was an interiormall behind the original Colonnade formed by Washington, Payneand Robinson Halls. Two new buildings emphasized the classicaltradition once again at Washington and Lee: Reid Hall (1904),designed by Theodore C. Link, and oriented westward, away from theinterior mall, and Lees Dormitory (1904), designed by Washington,D.C. architect B.C. Flournoy and located on Washington Streetadjacent to the President’s House. The idea was to create a secondColonnade separated from the original by the Mall with prominentbuildings terminating at each end. Although not entirely executed,the interior Mall plan with substantial buildings at each end waspartially realized. Lees Dormitory and Reid Hall were also of alarger scale and greater massing than the classical buildings on thecolonnade and were more influenced by English Palladianism thanthe nineteenth-century classical revival. 2525Royster Lyle Jr., and Pamela Simpson, The Architecture of HistoricLexington, 171.2-16

PRESERVATION MASTER PLANOCTOBER 2005Figure 14: J.C. Aerial view showing interior mall, ca. 1950s. (Source: Washington and LeeUniversity.)In 1907, a $50,000 contribution from Andrew Carnegie allowed forthe construction of a new library, located at the south end of the Mallon axis with a proposed new art school and gallery. The buildinghad a low Roman dome over a large circular reading room (seefi gure 14). It was named Carnegie Library. B.C. Flournoy designedthe library. Flournoy, and his partner Parke P. Flournoy, became theUniversity’s chief architects for the next twelve years.The Flournoy partners also designed a new Dining Hall in 1910(now the Supply Store) and the Doremus Gymnasium in 1914.Newcomb Hall was altered in 1909 to include a six-columned,pedimented portico so that it would better blend in with the originalcampus buildings.2-17

WASHINGTON AND LEE UNIVERSITYLEXINGTON, VIRGINIAFigure 15: Commemorative Gates. (Source: JohnMilner Associates.)Figure 16: Howe Hall, ca. 1930. (Source:Lyle & Simpson, The Architecture of HistoricLexington. )Enrollments dipped during World War I and development plans wereput on hold. Military training at Washington and Lee Universitywas mandatory at this time, but was discontinued shortly afterthe armistice. Washington and Lee University campus buildings,including Doremus Gymnasium, were used as barracks during thetwo World Wars. In 1916, Clara Davidson Estill deeded a five-acreresidential tract between Nelson and Washington Streets to theUniversity in return for an annuity. Later, five fraternity houseswere built in what is known as Davidson Park.Circulation at this time included a primary road to Washington andLee known as Lee Highway and later renamed Route 11. As thehighway turned into Jefferson Street it passed behind Lee Chapel. In1920, the school erected a memorial gate to honor its alumni killedin World War I (see fi gure 15). By 1920, enrollment doubled its pre-World War I numbers and stood at 900 students.From 1923-24 campus architects Flournoy and Flournoy constructeda chemistry building (later known as Howe Hall), (see fi gure 16), butalso were involved in a plan for the enlargement of Lee Chapel. Twosuccessive proposals had been made with respect to ‘modernizing’Lee Chapel as part of the centennial celebrations of Lee’s birth.The first one was to demolish and replace Lee Chapel with a largerchapel building that would also house an auditorium for the college;a second was to enlarge the existing chapel, encasing the originalbuilding within a new one. Both proposals were strongly opposedby the local chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy andwere abandoned. A museum was established in the lower level of theChapel in 1920. 262-18

PRESERVATION MASTER PLANOCTOBER 2005In 1933, the Blue Ridge Garden Club of Lexington petitioned theGarden Club of Virginia to “consider the building of a BoxwoodMemorial Garden to Robert E. Lee at his tomb.” Charles Gillette,a landscape architect from the north, who had recently settled inRichmond, and was well-known among large property ownersin the area, was engaged to devise a plan. He studied the terrainand decided that a boxwood maze or walk was not an appropriatesolution. Instead his plan was very simple, yet very traditional. Helaid brick over an existing concrete walk and entrance to the Chapel.Brick coping formalized the grass plots before the entrance and anew brick walk was laid leading from the side entrance to the mainwalk. Yews thickly underplanted with periwinkle (a traditional plantused in churchyards and cemeteries), were placed at the entrance andrear of the building. On either side of the Chapel, yews were plantedalong the old brick walks. Gillette then turned his attention to theentrance gates, which he felt were lacking in symbolic meaning.Gillette expressed this sentiment to a representative of the Universityin January 1935 as follows:Here we have very large entrance gates that leadto nothing but a parking space…and I don’t seeany chance of ever carrying a roadway throughthese gates to the campus. The thought has finallycome to me to make this parking space a memorialcourt. If it is enclosed with a planting of tree boxand the paving is cleverly done, it will look like acool, green court. To make a final terminus to thiscourt opposite the main gates, I am suggestingthat a statue of either Washington or Lee be placedwithin a brick enclosure that will fit into the hillside.This paving I am suggesting to be of brick and oldcobblestones, the brick to be a panel through thecenter that would be uninterrupted by automobiles,and the cobblestones would pave the two sides thatwould be the parking area, as indicated for cars.The elm trees would be retained, and protectedby a coping of cobblestones, and a planting ofperiwinkle around their base. The whole thingwould be enclosed as indicated, with tree box. 27Sadly, Gillette’s plan did not meet the financial constraints of eitherthe University or the Garden Club and a modified version of theplan was settled on. This modified version encircled the parking26Royster Lyle Jr., and Pamela Simpson, The Architecture of HistoricLexington (Charlottesville, VA: University of Virginia Press, 1977), 174.27Dorothy Hunt Williams, Historic Virginia Gardens ( Charlottesville, VA:University Press of Virginia, 1975), 39-40.2-19

WASHINGTON AND LEE UNIVERSITYLEXINGTON, VIRGINIAcourt with a hedge of tree boxwood and the three existing elm treeswere pruned and left to provide shade within the court. In place ofthe suggested statue of Washington or Lee a flagpole was installedopposite the gates. On the hillside between the parking court and theChapel a few trees, including American holly, magnolia beech andmaple were planted. All planting work was completed by 1935.Athletics became an important issue during this period of expansionat Washington and Lee and a 432-foot long stadium with a seatingcapacity of three thousand people was completed at Wilson Fieldin 1924. Plans for a footbridge to be designed by architect HoracePeaslee were announced and in 1927 a concrete footbridge wasconstructed, connecting the core of the campus to Wilson Field. Thebridge was intended as a response to two needs: to allow studentsand visitors better access to the sports fields, and to serve as amemorial. Initially, it ended at the center gridiron of Wilson fieldproviding an alternative route to that formerly taken by spectatorsand participants alike, which included sliding down the hill, throughthe woods, across the creek, and then up the hill on the other side. 28The Romanesque Tucker Hall was destroyed by fire in 1934 and in1935 and 1936 a new building designed by architects Small, Smithand Reed, in a similar style to Newcomb Hall, replaced it. Also in1936, a structure serving as the student union building was erected atthe corner of Lee Avenue and West Washington Street. Recognitionwas given to the significance of Washington and Lee University atthis time, when the Conservation and Development Commissioninstalled a Highway Marker south of Lee Avenue near the corner ofLetcher and North Jefferson Street.During the Depression, enrollment fell, endowments dwindled, andfaculty salaries were cut. However, by 1940, substantial alterationsto the Carnegie Library were underway, these involved enclosing theroof dome and Ionic portico, and adding a pedimented porch. Thefinancial support for this work came from the Cyrus McCormickfamily leading to the renaming of the library as the Cyrus HallMcCormick Library. By 1942, many members of the faculty andstudent body were called to serve in World War II. During the War, amess hall known as the Beanery was erected and later converted intoa dining hall. In order to keep the school viable during World War II,University President Dr. Gaines brought in the government’s Schoolfor Special and Morale Services. By 1944, some twelve hundredofficer-trainees were moved through a month-long curriculum wherethey were taught morale services to be provided to front line troops.By the time the program left WLU, almost twenty-two thousandstudents had graduated from the program.28Louisa Fève, “Campus Connectors,” term paper, Vernacular Architecture,Simpson, W&L April 2003.2-20

PRESERVATION MASTER PLANOCTOBER 2005In 1942, the University conducted an experimental summer schoolprogram including twenty-four women. As with many cities,Lexington experienced a post-World War II housing shortage,including that for Washington and Lee University faculty. Thisprompted the University to have its housing administrator andprofessor of engineering, Henry Ravenhorst, design a utilitarianapartment building for faculty. This building was completed in 1947and was located at Washington and Estill Streets. The new chemistrybuilding, Howe Hall was altered in 1949 by Small, Smith and Reeb,and included replacement of the Egyptian style columns with Doricpilasters, and wooden steps at the Doremus building were replacedby concrete. In 1949, an arts program was established at Washingtonand Lee University and in 1952, a fine arts and academic buildingwas constructed. Named DuPont Hall, after Jessie DuPont whomade financial contributions to the University, the building formedthe northern terminal to the interior mall and occupied the spacealready suggested for it by Theodore Link in 1904. It was designedby Small, Smith and Reeb.DESIGNING FOR A MODERN CAMPUS: 1956-2004This final period of Washington and Lee University campus historybridges the post-World War II period and the present. Many of thechanges implemented during this time, included construction ofacademic, fraternity, and sorority houses. Limited demolition ofexisting campus buildings occurred, thus perpetuating a sense ofhistoric continuity while simultaneously providing for modern needs.A 1958 master plan for campus development prepared by Clark,Nexsen and Owen, was executed in two phases. Phase I wasconducted between 1958 and 1960 and provided for new facilitiesin the sciences and the remodeling of Reid Hall to accommodatethe Department of Journalism as well as university communications,after being vacated by the Department of Physics.In 1958, the Evans Dining Hall and Baker Dormitory were completed.A new science building (later called Parmly Hall) was constructed toaccommodate Physics and Biology in 1961, and two new dormitories,the Gilliam and Davis Dormitories, were added to the campus in1962. The Delta Tau Delta house on Lee Avenue was damaged by firein 1964 and subsequently repaired. Washington and Lee Universityinstalled its first computer in 1966, the same year it desegregated.In 1968, plans for further development and master planning includedthe firm of Griswold, Winters and Swain, landscape architects,that had been originally engaged under President Cole to preparerecommendations and plans for beautification of the campus,relocation of walkways, and future plantings. Phase II of the2-21

WASHINGTON AND LEE UNIVERSITYLEXINGTON, VIRGINIAmaster plan provided for new athletic fields and a new auditorium;remodeling of the major academic buildings, a faculty alumni club, anamphitheater and arboretum, restoration of the Memorial Entrance, anew perimeter road and parking, and facilities for expanded utilitiesserving the campus. As part of this plan, the Student Union buildingof 1936 was renovated by Clark, Nexsen and Owen of Lynchburgand became known as the Early-Fielding University Center. 29In 1961 Lee Chapel was designated a National Historic Landmarkand underwent an extensive restoration, funded by Ford MotorCompany; at the same time, the museum was renovated. In1970 the campus at Washington and Lee was listed as a HistoricDistrict and in 1973 the campus received recognition as a NationalHistoric Landmark as part of the Lexington Historic District, whichincorporates the towns major historic areas and includes the campusof Virginia Military Institute. Building types range from the earlyShenandoah Valley vernacular forms through sophisticated examplesof Romantic Revivalism constructed after a fire destroyed much ofthe wood and log fabric of the town. The buildings at Washingtonand Lee recognized as part of the National Register Historic Districtinclude the core of the Washington and Lee campus: the Colonnade,Lee Chapel, Lee House, Lee-Jackson House, Morris House, GilliamAdmissions House, Reeves Center, and Alumni House. 30In 1972 the most ambitious plan for Washington and Lee campusdevelopment was undertaken. A ten-year, two-phase developmentprogram saw the expansion of the 1904 plan across the WoodsCreek Valley back to Liberty Hall. In 1972, the School of Law beganaccepting women students. It is possible that at this time lights wereadded to the bridge across Woods Creek. Further work completedunder the 1972 plan included the construction of Lewis Hall,the new Law building, renovation of Newcomb Hall and TuckerHall, the conversion of the old library to the School of Commerce,the Woods Creek Apartments (1975) built along the ridgeoverlooking Woods Creek, an access road, a maintenance complexand additional athletic fields (see fi gure 17). Lewis Hall was the firstmodern building constructed at Washington and Lee Universitycampus. As forecasted, Marcellus, Cox, and Smith completed thismaster plan in 1982.29Physical Planning at Washington and Lee University Status Report,July 1968 [W&L Archives]; Come Cheer for Washington and Lee: TheUniversity at 250 years, Washington and Lee University, Lexington, VA,1998.30Calder Loth, Ed. The Virginia Landmarks Register, Charlottesville, VA1987.2-22

PRESERVATION MASTER PLANOCTOBER 2005Figure 17: Aerial of Washington and Lee University, 1974. (Source: Washington and LeeUniversity Library.)In 1976, the Chemistry and Engineering building, first constructedin 1891, was destroyed to make way for the new James G. LeyburnLibrary, which was eventually completed in 1979. The library wasmoved out of the former Carnegie Library (1907) and that buildingbecame home to the Williams School of Commerce.2-23

WASHINGTON AND LEE UNIVERSITYLEXINGTON, VIRGINIAFigure 18: Ralph Griswold 1973 Landscape plan based on Charles Gillette plan of 1934. (Source: Dorothy Hunt Williams, Historic VirginiaGardens: Preservations by the Garden Club of Virginia.)In 1977, the Warner Center was added to the rear of the DoremusGymnasium. Landscape changes made during this time included asemi-circular entrance court and plantings in front of the Chapel,designed by Ralph E. Griswold, and installed in 1977 (see fi gure18).In 1983, one of the faculty houses adjacent to the Colonnade tothe north was converted into the Reeves Center for Research andExhibition of Porcelain and Paintings. In 1984 a fraternity house, PhiGamma Delta, at Preston Street and Jackson Avenue, was damagedby fire and became the catalyst for a renaissance in fraternityhousing. After more than two years of construction, the Gaines HallResidence was opened in 1988. In 1990, fraternity houses at RedSquare were renovated under the Fraternity Renaissance Program.The Lenfest Center for the Performing Arts was opened in 1991. In1994, a second landscaping project of the Garden Club of Virginiawas a Colonial Revival garden designed as a public garden by RudyJ. Favretti and installed around the Lee House—residence of thepresident of the University.2-24

PRESERVATION MASTER PLANOCTOBER 2005Figure 19: Aerial of Washington and Lee University, post 1979. (Source: Washington andLee University Library.)In 1995, William T. Borellis designed a garden at Lee Chapel aroundthe grave of Traveller, General Lee’s beloved horse. The garden wasa gift of the 1995 Washington and Lee Alumni Board of Directors andthe Virginia Division of the United Daughters of the Confederacy.As part of that project, the Memorial parking lot was reconfiguredand one of the rows of boxwood plants was removed. 31In 1996, a new science building was constructed. At the northwestcorner of the campus, the Douchossois Tennis Center was completed in1997. In 1998 the origins of Washington and Lee were recognized withthe installation of an historic marker paying tribute to Liberty Hall. In1998, the Museum in the lower level of Lee Chapel was extensivelyrenovated, becoming a focal point for the University’s history.With the early 21 stcentury establishment of sororities at Washingtonand Lee in 2001/2002, five sorority houses were constructed.They were located on the west side of the Woods Creek ravine,near Washington Street on Frank Parsons Way. Further provisionfor student gatherings was created with the construction of ElrodCommons, known as ‘the Commons’ (see fi gure 19).31Online at http://physicalplant.wlu.edu/services.html (Accessed January,24, 2005).2-25

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