Williston Hall, 1876-1917

Abstract

This short illustrated essay tells the story of Williston Hall, the first building constructed wholly outside the walls of the gigantic Seminary Hall. Opened in 1876, it housed art and the natural sciences. A gallery of original art and copies was accompanied by rooms devoted to collections of ornithology, zoology, mineralogy and geometry. A large annex was added in 1889. When the first Shattuck Hall was built in 1892, physics and chemistry moved there, leaving more room in Williston for the other sciences and art. However, the sciences were burgeoning and space sorely lacked, so a final beneficial change came in 1902 when art moved to the newly built Dwight Art Memorial. In Williston the sciences gained national prominence in following years but in 1917 a disaster struck. Fire consumed the entire building and with it the once famous collections