Ruskin Hall
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| Ruskin Hall | |
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| (U.S. Registered Historic District Contributing Property) |
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| Coordinates: | Coordinates: |
| Area: | Schenley Farms Historic District |
| Built/Founded: | 1923 |
| Added to NRHP: | July 22, 1983[1] |
| NRHP Reference#: | 83002213 |
| Governing body: | University of Pittsburgh |
Ruskin Hall is a residence hall at the University of Pittsburgh and a contributing property to the Schenley Farms National Historic District.[1][2]. Completed in 1923[3], it is an eight story building which is located between the Music Building and Information Sciences Building between Ruskin and Bellefield Avenues near Fifth Avenue on Pitt's main campus in the Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. [4] Ruskin Hall is currently undergoing a $19.4 million conversion and renovation from medical student housing into undergraduate apartment-style housing set to open for the fall of 2008.
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[edit] History
Originating in 1923 as the Ruskin Apartments, the building has long seen usage by Pitt students, including use as the meeting place of the Omega Delta fraternity until the fall of 1926.[5] Pitt purchased the Ruskin Apartments in February of 1958 for $2.24 million as an investment, with the intention of using it eventually for faculty residences. Following the purchase, Pitt Chancellor Edward Litchfield held a tea for the 189 remaining tenants, many of whom were elderly, well-to-do widows, to ensure them that their leases and the staff and management would be maintained as long as they wished to stay. [6] With time, the apartments were relinquished giving Pitt full control of the building.
In 1966, Richard King Mellon donated $1,075,475 to the University to refinance and retain possession of the Ruskin Apartments so they could be used for members of the house staffs of the University-affiliated hospitals and their families.[7]
Ruskin Hall has also served as the home for University offices including those of the University of Pittsburgh Press.[8] Through 2007, Ruskin Hall served as the primary residence for medical students and PhD candidates in the basic sciences of medicine, although students of other medical-related schools (including dental, nursing, and pharmacy) could be wait-listed for apartments.[9] Beginning in the summer of 2007, medical student housing was replaced by the Darragh Street Medical Student Housing complex, and a $19.4 million renovation was begun to convert Ruskin Hall into undergraduate apartment-style housing set to open for the fall of 2008.
[edit] Facilities
Previously serving as a primary residence for medical students, Ruskin Hall contained 176 studio, efficiency, or one- to two-bedroom apartments each containing a living room, one to two bathrooms, and a kitchen. A ground floor study area, central courtyard, and laundry facilities were available and the building was outfitted with central air conditioning.[10][11]
A $19.4 million renovation to convert the Hall into undergraduate usage with 178 apartment-style units with 416 beds.[12] A University of Pittsburgh Police mini-station in Ruskin Hall will be part of the renovation.[13]
[edit] External links
[edit] References
- ^ National Register Information System. National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service (2007-01-09). Retrieved on 2008-03-12.
- Alberts, Robert C. (1987). Pitt: The Story of the University of Pittsburgh 1787-1987. Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press. ISBN 0-8229-1150-7.
| Preceded by Eberly Hall |
University of Pittsburgh Buildings Ruskin Hall Constructed: 1923 |
Succeeded by University Club |
