What Is the University Hall, Brown University?
This was the first, and for 61 years, the only building at Brown University!
What Makes It Historical?
Originally called the College Edifice, this building was another work by amateur architect, Joseph Brown, with the support of his brother, John Brown, on land that had been owned by their great-great-grandfather, Chad Brown! The building design was based on Nassau Hall at Princeton, the alma mater of first president, James Manning, and it opened in winter of 1771 as Rhode Island College with a class of 20!
This was only a college for five years before the outbreak of the Revolutionary War, and the College Edifice became a barracks for the defense of Newport for four years, then a hospital serving Rochambeau’s French soldiers until 1782! When it was finally vacated, every window, door hinge, and usable piece of lumber had been stripped to be sold, and the government compensated the college for a fraction of the expense after about ten years! The building got a major makeover in 1795, rebooted itself as Brown University in 1804, and became University Hall in 1823 with the construction of the second campus building, Hope College!
Some notable alumni of this Ivy League school include James Mitchell Varnum (1769), Continental Army general and leader of America’s first Black battalion; Horace Mann (1819), the father of American public education; William Keen (1859), America’s first brain surgeon; John Wesley Gilbert (1888), America’s first Black archaeologist; John Heisman (1891), namesake of the Heisman Trophy; Martha Sharp (1926), Holocaust hero; John Aiso (1931), the first Japanese-American judge in the contiguous United States; John Tukey (1936), creator of the words “bit,” “byte,” and “software;” George Forsythe (1941), creator of Computer Science; Aaron Beck (1942), father of cognitive behavioral therapy; Ted Turner (1960), founder of CNN; Stanley Falkow (1961), father of microbiology; John Seely Brown (1962), inventor of the spell check; Janet Yellen (1967), first female Secretary of the Treasure and Chair of the Federal Reserve; Susan Bennett (1971), the original voice of “Siri;” and award-winning actress, Laura Linney (1986), among many others!
How Can I #HelpTheHelpers?
- Become a member of the Providence Preservation Society!
- Donate to Brown University!
- Be a responsible visitor! Please respect the signs and pathways, and treat all structures and artifacts with respect. They’ve endured a lot to survive into the present. They’ll need our help to make it into the future!
How Do I Get There?
1 Prospect St
Providence, RI 02912
(Take Me There!)
When Should I Visit?
University Hall houses private offices today, so no tours are available!