West side of Appleton Hall (ca. 1956)

Item Information

Title:
West side of Appleton Hall (ca. 1956)
Description:
A photograph of the west side of Appleton Hall of the Abbey-Appleton residence hall complex on the campus of Springfield College. There are batches of snow on the ground. At the time Appleton Hall went by the name "West Hall", thus the notes on the back of the photograph. The photograph was taken by Matthew Grimaldi. On June 10th, 1950, Springfield College voted to inaugurate a regular undergraduate program for women, ending its status as an all men's school since its founding in 1885. On July 20th, 1950 the ground breaking ceremony was held for a new women’s dormitory. Emily F. Abbey Gill, who donated the funds for the dormitory project, served as a member of the college corporation, but died on April 24th, 1950. After her death, the college suggested that the new dormitory be named Abbey Hall in honor of her dream of a women’s program at Springfield. The corner stone was laid on January 18th 1951 and in September of that year Abbey Hall was ready for occupancy. The formal dedication took place on May 9th, 1952, after the building was fully furnished and the interior decoration was completed. Only a year after the first women’s dormitory was completed, the college estimated that by 1953 there would be more women than would fit in Abbey Hall. Springfield College was concerned with the safety of their women students and, along with parents, objected to them living in private homes, remote from campus, as was the custom for the men to do. In June of 1953, a proposal was made to build an extension to Abbey Hall. The extension was referred to as West Hall. The final cost of the West Hall was $255,000 and it housed 108 women. The building was completed in March of 1956, but was not dedicated and named Appleton Hall until June 12th, 1965. On this date the building was named after its main benefactor Leirion H. Appleton, who donated to the building’s construction in memory of her husband Edward A. Appleton, former President of the Corporation of Springfield. Mrs. Appleton had remained an anonymous benefactress to Springfield College for over a decade and because of her modesty and desire for anonymity, the building was known only as West Hall until, when in 1965, Mrs. Appleton prevailed to allow the dormitory to be named in honor of her husband.
Creator:
Grimaldi, Matthew F.
Date:
[1956?]
Format:
Photographs
Location:
Springfield College Archives and Special Collections
Collection (local):
College Archives Digital Collections
Subjects:
Abbey-Appleton Halls
Appleton Hall
Springfield College
Springfield College--Buildings
Springfield (Mass.)
Dormitories
Buildings
Snow
Winter
Places:
Massachusetts > Hampden (county) > Springfield
Extent:
2 pages
Link to Item:
http://cdm16122.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/p15370coll2/id/30192
Terms of Use:
Text and images are owned, held, or licensed by Springfield College and are available for personal, non-commercial, and educational use, provided that ownership is properly cited. A credit line is required and should read: Courtesy of Springfield College, Archives and Special Collections. Any commercial use without written permission from Springfield College is strictly prohibited. Other individuals or entities other than, and in addition to, Springfield College may also own copyrights and other propriety rights. The publishing, exhibiting, or broadcasting party assumes all responsibility for clearing reproduction rights and for any infringement of United States copyright law.
Contact host institution for more information.
Publisher:
Springfield College
Language:
English
Identifier:
rg112-01-12-008