| Additional Information: | A 'site file' exists for this property. It contains additional information such as correspondence, newspaper clippings, or historical information. It is a public record and may be viewed in person at the Wisconsin Historical Society, State Historic Preservation Office.
SEE JMD DESK FILE FOR ADDITIONAL PHOTOS. BUILDING IS AN EARLY EXAMPLE OF STEEL BEAM CONSTRUCTION. ORIGINAL COST OF CONSTRUCTION WAS $285,000. NHL.
Another of Koch’s designs, the massive, red-brick Science Hall squats at the base of the hill. Completed in 1887, it reflects the Romanesque Revival style, with its round-arched windows, rectangular turrets, and broad entrance arch. Notice the mix of textures: a rock-faced stone foundation, lively polychromy, ornamental brickwork, and glazed terracotta trim with flower and leaf patterns. Koch’s design called for load-bearing walls, but during construction Allan D. Conover, then a professor of civil engineering, revised the plans to make Science Hall only the second building in the nation (and the oldest surviving one) built with a steel skeleton. Here, Professor Charles Van Hise transformed the field of geology from a descriptive discipline to a science that incorporated physics and chemistry. Science Hall is also a contributing building in the Bascom Hill Historic District (listed 9-12-1974).
Madison Historic Landmark:9/18/2007; National Historic Landmark: 11/4/1933
Science Hall is contributing to the Bascom Hill Historic District, NR listed 1974, NRIS #: 74000065
"As you walk through the building, note the wide stone-and-iron grillwork staircase and the elaborate stained-glass front entrance. Science Hall, which originally housed all the sciences, now includes Geography, Geography Library, Cartographic Lab, Map Library, State Cartographer, and the Institute for Environmental Studies instruction program and reference collection. Science Hall was the original home of the University radio station (now WHA), the "oldest station in the nation" in terms of continuous broadcasting. The station, known as 9XM, first transmitted voice and music in 1917 and began scheduled program transmission in 1919." University of Wisconsin-Madison, University of Wisconsin-Madison Tour Guide, 1988. |
|---|
