Wilmington College - Wilmingtonian Yearbook (Wilmington, OH)

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wher e pictures and bronze tablets of our benefactors can be displayed. In Wilmington College’s hall of fame, the name of Teacher Ellen Wright should be placed first and highest. The Campus The Campus was originally the fair grounds for Clinton County and vicinity. The original site, seventeen and one-fourth acres, was pur- chased in 1866 by the Garvin brothers, and a short time later sixteen acres more were purchased from Thomas C. Morris. Unfortunately the early trustees sold off a considerable part of the campus for building lots, many of which have been repurchased by succeeding trustees. The campus has always been a grove with many trees. Only a few of the original trees remain. There were many oaks, beech, elm, and walnuts, most of which have fallen. The two oaks, one east of the library and the other in front of the president’s home on College Street, belong to the original flora. A major portion of the trees are soft maple, which have been set out from time to time. The double row of maples on the south side of the campus were planted by the students and faculty. Un- fortunately, in the beginning, there was not an overall plan for the loca- tion of buildings. Such a prospectus is now made but it will take many years to carry it to completion. The earlier campus had a fence built in front with a turnstile at the northwest walk leading to College Hall. The turnstile remained there for a time unused, serving as a relic of the past. There were fences on the southern half of the campus so that cows could be pastured. A group of indignant students once tore the fences down so that their campus could not be used as a cow pasture! The athletic field was located on the southwest section of the campus for many years. The field was rolling, with a gully through the middle, until the field was graded in 1910. There were many trees which were in the way of football and baseball. Occasionally a tree would be mys- teriously cut down, causing protest by the faculty and trustees. Wide gravel walks leading from Fife Avenue to College Hall and from the east door of College Hall to Twin Ash Hall served the pedestrians up to 1906, when cement walks were made. The college oval was surrounded by a narrow, muddy, gravel drive for many years, until it was widened and hard surfaced only a few years ago. The campus has a natural topog- raphy and flora which makes it one of the beauty spots in Ohio. College Hall The first and most important structure on the campus is the College Hall, which was erected by the founders in the period of 1866-1871. It was an incompleted building in the period of Franklin College, only the first floor being finished. In 1870-71, after the purchase by the Society of Friends, it was completed and remains much the same as the original structure with rearrangement of some rooms. The original building had a large auditorium on the third floor with a large stage, provided with dressing rooms on the west side and with a seating capacity of 750 people. This auditorium was used for special college chapels, college commence- ments, college plays, lecture courses and other public gatherings. It was pa,» He

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bottom center is the Holbrook Memorial, a building which never passed out of the proposal stages. Along College Street (extreme right) is the old grand- stand ond football field. In the back campus view, there is a track. Main Building has a bannister around the tower. The old tennis courts (near the grandstand) have since been removed. South Hall has no front porch. in the first class, that of 1875, and began service as a teacher of Latin, Greek, and English grammar. She was secretary of the faculty for many years and served under eight presidents. She taught her classes in the room which is now the office of Miss Sarah Castle, dean and registrar. Her chapel talks were always a source of inspiration and delight to col- lege students. She and her brother, J onathan, who taught science, together with President James Unthank, were the backbone of the college for many critical years. She served the college for over forty years, giving her life to its upbuilding. Teacher Ellen lived in the home at the corner of Fife Avenue and John Street, recently purchased by the College. There is no tangible memorial erected to the memory and service of this noble character. She gave substantially of her possessions to the college in that the two cottages near Denver Hall were her gifts. It is time that a memorial room be included in some of our new buildings, ney, aes.

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sometimes used aS a gymnasium for basketball games. This large room was partitioned in 1920 during the administration of J. Edwin Jay for the use of Home Economics and Art Departments. The southwest room now occupied by the Commercial Department, was once a gymnasium for physical education, later used as a shop, and later as a practice room for the Music Department. The southeast room of the Commercial Depart- ment was once the Dorian room, being fitted with a roster and stage for literary activity and debate. The third floor rooms were used as a dorm- itory for students and faculty in the earlier days, before the erection of. Twin Ash and South Halls. The heat for the College Hall was supplied by stoves, until furnaces were installed in 1898. The science laboratories were once located on the second floor of College Hall. The chemistry laboratory was in the present language room; the stock room was in the location of the present ladies’ rest room; Room 25 was the location of the science lecture room in which were physics and biology tables and desks. Biology tables were once built around the north and west walls of this room. The College Library was located in a large room directly above the old chapel. When the chemistry laboratory was moved to Bailey Hall, the present language room was made into a stock room for the growing library. When the library building was erected in 1941, and put in use, the old library room was partitioned into the present class rooms. Room 28 was the Dorian Room during an early period and was later Bertha Peelle Arthur’s language room for many years, the Dorian Room being moved to the third floor. Room 26 was one large room for his- tory and Bible. President Brown’s office, in 1906, was the small room at the east end of the hall on the second floor of College Hall, now occupied by the pub- licity office. This was the only office on the campus at that time. Each professor had a given room for his or her use, both as an office and classroom. On the first floor, the room now the Registrar’s office, was the Latin room of Teacher Ellen Wright, later becoming Professor Galliett’s French room, and still later Dr. Hall’s history room. Teacher Ellen’s Latin room was once the scene of a tragic accident. During the early days, the long smooth bannisters on the stairways lead- ing to the second floors tempted the students to slide down them. In 1899, Ethel Sparks, sliding down the bannister of the east stairway with her arms full of books, fell off the rail and struck her head on the floor below. She was conscious for a time and was taken to Teacher Ellen’s Latin room, where she died the same afternoon from concussion of the brain. This was one of the saddest occasions in the history of the college. Room 14, now occupied by Dr. Hall, was the mathematics room with all the available wall space covered with blackboard. The room now occupied by the business office was the office and class room of President Unthank before 1903. The room now occupied by President Marble as his office was the College Parlor, and was used for receptions and other social activities. It was later used by the Kiu Kiun Kia, a girls’ debating society, and seats were built all around the wall for their use. During President Brown’s administration, the president’s of- fice was moved from the second floor of College Hall to the Physics room