Emerson College - Emersonian Yearbook (Boston, MA)

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25 a elocated to an office building at 30 Huntington Avenue. The institution ' s new home, the Hun- ington Chambers was located above p Fannie Farmer Cooking School. The advantage was that it was still in the city and it proved to be the last build- ng the college would have to rent, ' he disadvantages were greater. However, students made the best of he circumstaces. They began each day with a morn- ng devotion and an oral interpretation 3f a piece of literature presented by a acuity member, usually South wick. Allowing the interpretation, students erformed Emerson ' s physical cul- ural exercises ' ' accompanied by mu- ;ic. President Southwick ' s wife, Jessie Eldridge) Southwick then led the stu- dent body in song. The one-time offices proved to be nadequate classrooms. Students sat pn folding chairs with their books on he floor, in a bare small room, lit by a single light bulb. Often times the feacher was forced to teach without p podium. It was a matter of getting jsed to until their surroundings im- proved. Teachers, like Mrs. Southwick would inspire her students by reminding fhem to Grow with me, the best is yet T|to be. ” The stage, located inside the former office building had no scenery, but the ighting and costumes detracted from fhe ugliness and generally, the perfor- mances were successful. Productions ncluded Dicken ' s A Christmas Carol, Shakespeare ' s Hamlet and selections from Kipling. Male roles were often played by women. The offices” on the third floor con- sisted of a large room occupied by the president, the dean, faculty, their sec- retaries and registrar ' s. The confer- ence room was also a part of this di- mension. As described in A Century of Eloquence, the huge room was like a wire cage, where the president and the dean may retire for conferences.” In the hall outside the office was an- other wire cage,” the conference room. This one was for the treasurer, Issachar Floopes Eldridge. Tuition was $300.00, expensive for the 1930$. Space, or the lack of it has always been an obstacle for Emerson. In the past, the campus was moved all over the Back Bay. We will soon be moving out of the city. All in the name of space. Emerson solved the problem tempo- rarily in the early 1960s by purchasing their nineth building on Beacon Street, The Fuller House, the school ' s present library. The house was originally built at the turn of the century by Gov. Eben Drap- er, at a cost of $150,000. When he died. Gov. Alan T. Fuller moved in and named the mansion after himself. After Lack Of Space Always A Problem Fuller ' s death in 1958, the house was occupied by his widow until her death the following year, at which time, Nor- man Rabb, Stop 8c Shop supermarket chain vice president moved in. He then sold it to Emerson in 1961. Rabb ' s sister- in-law was an Emerson alumna, how- ever, it is unknown if this influenced him into selling it to the college for what was then considered a bargain, $345,000. By that time the need for space was increasing. That year, enrollment went up by 20 percent. Rumors were float- ing around Emerson that administrators were interested in buying the Hamp- shire House, the home of the Bull 8c Finch Pub (a.k.a. Cheers”) as part of the campus. Bids were made, but ne- gotiations fell through. The Fuller House was on the open market and Emerson took advantage. On February 3, 1961, the Board of Trustees voted and authorized the purchase of the four-story whitestone mansion. The process was conluded on April 4, after school officials signed the final papers. As a dormitory, the Fuller House of- fered elegant living quarters to some 30 women. Male students were al- lowed to reside there later. The man- sion provided students with class- rooms, a place for entertainment and study halls. The building also served as the institution ' s main dining room, ini- tially with a seating for those select, but eventually expanded to serve 100. At that time, enrollment was up to 670 students. As with many historial buildings in the Back Bay, conversions and renovations must be made in order to update. However, in the case of the 150 Bea- con Street building, administrators The Fuller Mansion, once the Governor’s home now houses books for Emerson. have gone too far. In A Century of Eloquence Coffee wrote, A number of cupids adorned a gloriously painted ceiling in 150 Beacon Street. Those were painted over deliberately, be- cause apparently their nudity was found offensive by someone in authority. Emerson is currently facing a move from the city because of similar condi- tions which plagued the Hunting ton Chambers campus and the other lo- cations. Let ' s hope that today ' s ad- ministrators will look at the past and learn from it. History repeats itself, time has shown us this. Possibly, Lawrence will be another Chickering Hall, too ex- pensive to handle. In any case, time has shown us that Emerson ' s adminis- trators are not most insightful real es- tate buyers. On The Move 29

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For Emerson, New Move Is Old Hat BY JOHN NICHOLSON Emerson College ' s anticipated move to Lawrence before the turn of the century, 1989, won ' t be the first relocation in the institution ' s history as a similar plan was carried out by other school administrators just six years af- ter it was established. The school, which was designed to teach the essentials of public reading and speaking was originally called the Boston Conservatory of Elocution and Dramatic Art. It was founded by Charles Wesley Emerson in 1880. Emer- son, a man of some wealth, decided to institute a college based on the things in life he found to be important, such as the power of thought and faith in the infinite possibilities of hu- man soul. The college ' s first home was on Bea- con Hill, on the Pemberton Square area where the Suffolk County Court is now. The building was as simple as Emerson ' s founding ideology. It attracted dedi- cated faculty as well as students, all women at the time. Courses covered such topics as articulation, Bible and Hymm reading, gesture, drama and defects os speech. Classes were origi- nally taught by six teachers including Emerson himself. The two-year pro- gram consisted of 18 subjects. Upon completion, a diploma was awarded. Tuition was $100.00 per year, with room and board between $2.50-7 a week. A total of 62 students were enrolled. Unique School On The Move The college is a unique school for it has been involved in a series of reloca- tions throughout its existence. Its cam- pus was moved for the first time in 1886. The new site was Wesleyan Hall, 36 Bromfield Street, which still stands today. The Bromfield Street campus was larger, with adjoining rooms, which offered greater classroom space. The larger campus and greater dimensions provoked Emerson to take on addi- tional faculty. Ninety-seven students were enrolled at the time of this move. Along with a new location came a new name. As of September 1886, the Boston Conservatory of Elocution and Dramatic Art became known as the Emerson College of Oratory. As stated in A Century of Eloquence, a book de- tailing the first 100 years of Emerson College ' s history written by Associate Professor of History Rev. John Coffee, under the public Statutes 1882, Chap- Emerson College’s original location in Boston’s Pemberton Square. ter 115, the name change was For the purposes of giving a general edu- cation to both sexes such as is ob- tained in colleges with special refer- ence to the perfection in oratory . . . with the powers, rights and priveleges . . . which by law apper tain thereto. The foundations of greatness were set. In 1901, Dean of the college, Henry Lawrence Southwick, who was named president of the school when Emerson retired moved the college to a new location in Boston. The school ' s previ- ous location had been the Odd Fel- low ' s Building in the South End, where it had been since 1881 . The new campus was Chickering Hall, located about eight minutes from Copley Square, near the Christian Science Mother Church. A high crime rate in the area was one of the reasons for the institution ' s relocation. Southwick claimed the move was In the best interest of the students, adding the college in gen- eral was in favor of the change. In A Century of Eloquence, Southwick said the institution at that time was in, An undesirable quarter of Boston. He added even though the school ' s loca- tion (South End) was held dear by the students, a new and more desirable campus was needed. Chickering Hall was rented by the college as were its previous locations. Emerson occupied the first two floors. The second floor housed nine class- rooms, two of them lecture halls. On the first floor were a spacious hall, a library and administrative offices. Chickering Hall illustrated a sence of elegance, giving the new location a regal look. Unfortunately, the elegance of Chickering Hall was short lived. The high rent, coupled with Southwick ' s ambitious and expensive plans for the Institution caused Emerson to relo- cate 10 years later. The reasons for the move in 1901 were basically financial. The school had raised the standards for admission, therefore, many prospective students sought their education elsewhere. At this time, the school was also prohibit- ed by law from granting degrees. Graduates were not getting jobs. There was no cash flow. The rent at Chickering Hall was $3,000 more than the institution had been paying at the Odd Fellow ' s Building. A new home was greatly needed and the plush walls of Chickering Hall were left behind. When Emerson was forced to move from Chickering Hall in 1911, adminis- trators were forced to find a new loca- tion as well. This time the school was tie ! Ml (. ncl . line Chickering Hall near the Christian Science Mother Church. 28 On The Move

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