Long-forgotten histories of Homewood buildings

It's already January, so by now the freshmen have gotten the hang of wandering around campus, and the seniors are screaming to be let out. But how many of the newbies and seasoned soon to be "old-bies" know the history behind the buildings they dash to each morning? Chances are, relatively few. Thankfully, News-Letter's got your back. Here are the histories of some prominent buildings and the more obscure; perhaps the next race to class will contain thoughts other than "I hope I'm not late" and praying you don't fall.

While the Gilman basement radiators answer the TA's questions, eyes seem to wander toward the windows. For those classrooms in the south of Gilman Hall, students can see the lovely Decker Gardens. Surrounded by the Greenhouse, Nichols House (where President and Mrs. Brody live) and the Johns Hopkins Club, the Decker Gardens were originally used by the biology department for botanical research. In 1958 the Botanical Gardens, as they were then called, were then re-landscaped as the Nichols House was constructed. A final redecoration was performed in 1976 when the garden received its current name after Alonzo G. Decker Jr. who raised over $109 million for the Johns Hopkins Hospital and University through the Hopkins Hundred Fundraising Drive.

The current garden's most prominent structure is the statue in the middle of its wishing pool. Entitled the Sea Urchin, it was created by the artist Edward Berge and had stood for 34 years in Mount Vernon near the Washington Monument; it was replaced by a replica that was more to scale with the majority of its surroundings and the original was given to Paul M. Higinbotharn who later donated the piece to Hopkins. The Decker Gardens remain a popular location on the Homewood Campus; it is the sight of Spring Fair's "Beer Garden" as well as a serene location to study in the warmer months.

At one point in time -- 1902, in fact -- Hopkins had its very own White House. Hopkins' original campus was in downtown Baltimore, between North Howard and North Eutaw Streets. In the mid-1900s, the University had grown in size and could no longer be contained upon the downtown campus, so the current Homewood campus was constructed on Charles Carroll Jr.'s former estate. At the time of the land's purchase there stood an old farmhouse called "The White House." It was originally located at the current Remsen Hall but was moved in 1908 to the Botanical Gardens as a place for the gardener to live. Not merely content to let the building be, the Psychology Department moved to Homewood from what is now Homewood Hospital North in 1931, and the Child's Institute then occupied the building. After the institute closed in the late 1930s, the building was used by currently occupied by the Office of Counseling and Psychiatric Services.

The domicile of the infamous Barnstormers and lectures by Professor Astin, the Merrick Barn was also an original structure on the Homewood property. Initially a barn for dairy cows, it became the student center during the move from downtown to Homewood. Serving as a dining hall and barbershop, the Barn was the original headquarters of the News-Letter and the YMCA. The loft, however, was the domain of a very specific type of Hopkins student group, originally known as the Dramatic Club, who promptly changed their moniker to the Barnstormers. It became the full time theatre for Theatre Hopkins when their original residence was torn down.

The Gatehouse, located on the corner of Art Museum Drive and North Charles Street, was originally known as the Homewood Lodge and marked the entrance to William Wyman's (of Wyman Park fame) large estate. The Department of Gas Engineering (who knew we had one!) used the building in the 1920s and 1930s. Left alone for a number of years, it was renovated and occupied for a short time by Hopkins' very own Camera Club. Chemical Engineering Department used the building in 1939 for graduate lab space, during which time two students from that department moved into the second floor as their apartment. In October 1965 (here's the cool part, trust us) the News-Letter moved its headquarters into the building, and we remain there today. Feel free to drop in and say hi!

Imagine going to Goucher College or Loyola College and seeing Shriver Hall. It could have happened, had Hopkins' trustees said no to the conditions under which it had to be constructed. Alfred Jenkins Shriver left the remainder of his estate to Hopkins with instructions to build a lecture hall; in his will, he demanded that the walls of his hall be painted with the Hopkins class of 1891 (his own class), 10 philanthropists of Baltimore, 10 famous beauties of Baltimore (whom Shriver handpicked!), the original Hopkins faculties of both philosophy and medicine, the Board of Trustees of the University and Hospital at the date of its founding and Baltimore clipper ships (go figure). They also placed statues of Gilman and William H. Welch, the first dean of the School of Medicine, at the entrance to the building (so that's who those people are). Next time you stop by Shriver, check out those 10 Baltimore beauties on the walls c9 if you can find them!

Just as if you had a date in Constantinople, he would be waiting for you in Istanbul, so would your class in Kreiger be held in Rowland Hall. Originally, the Physics department was housed in the attic of Maryland Hall. Eventually, Hopkins realized that this wasn't the best and in 1929, they were upgraded to their very own building: Rowland Hall, named for Herny A. Rowland, the first physics professor at Hopkins. Rowland was directly connected to Maryland Hall in 1964, and was renamed in 1990 for Hopkins alumnus Zanvyl Krieger, who donated a hefty sum to renovate the building to be used by the Krieger Mind/Bain Institute after the physics department upgraded again, this time to the Bloomberg Center. So, next time you're wandering around campus and someone asks where Kreiger Hall is, you can say, "You mean Rowland Hall?" Just kidding.

There is a surprising amount of information about the buildings here on Homewood. Even more impressive is how much of it is cool trivia to wow your parents with when they come to visit. For more information, refer to the Web site http://www.library.jhu.edu/collections/specialcollections/archives/buildinghist.html.