Altgeld Hall

The Good Ole Days
In 1897, Bram Stoker published Dracula, Bayer invented Aspirin, beer drinkers got their first sip of Dos Equis, drillers discovered oil in Oklahoma, and Altgeld Hall opened its doors.

John Peter Altgeld, the building's namesake, was born in Germany in the town of Selters, a small hamlet dating back to the 1100s. Selters lay near the homeland of the Hessians, Britain's mercenary troops during the Revolutionary War.

Altgeld's parents moved him to America when he was a year old. That year, after an economic collapse stemming from crop failures, the German people broke into armed revolution against the ruling aristocratic class. The German princes stomped the revolution with military force and many of the middle class supporters fled to the United States. Altgeld's parents were likely part of that exodus.

The Altgeld family settled in Ohio and when the Civil War erupted, John Peter Altgeld ran away from home to join, lying about his age. He was only 16. His regiment, the 163rd Ohio attached to the Army of the James (the river in Virginia) and saw action at Petersburg.

This picture is everywhere, so I'm assuming it's Public Domain

After the war, Altgeld worked his way from lawyer to Governor and was sworn into office in 1893, just in time for the Panic of 1893, the worst depression in US history, up to that point. It was even worse than the Panic of 1873, known then as the Great Depression, but not as bad as Great Great Depression of the 1930s. Back then, people thought an unregulated, laissez-faire economy was a pretty good idea, so depressions were deep and often.

Altgeld is most known for his pardon of the Haymarket Bombers and his negotiation of the 1894 Pullman Strike. As you'll remember from a previous post, we celebrate the Pullman Strike every first Monday of September.

The Un-Castle
John Peter Altgeld, in the middle of the worst depression in history, managed to fund architectural projects across the state of Illinois. More specifically the five buildings known as Altgeld's Castles, Gothic Tudor mixes built on five different campuses in Illinois. Altgeld secured prominent Illinois architect Daniel Burnham to design the castle planned for the campus in Urbana. The University Big Wigs had other plans. They pretty much hated the Gothic Tudor style Altgeld had in mind. They said, it's Richardsonian Romanesque or nothing.

Burnham hit the road in disgust. Altgeld caved and brought in our old buddy Nathan Ricker, architect of Harker Hall, who designed the only Altgeld castle built in the Romanesque rather than Tudor style.

In case you need a quick refresher, here's what we look for in Richardsonian Romanesque:

• Belt Courses (prominent horizontal bands)
• Rounded (Roman) Arches
• Pyramidal Spires
• Asymmetrical Plan

Altgeld Hall served as the University library until the construction of the Georgian Revival Main Library across the quad in 1926. Then it housed the Law School until 1955. Since then, math nerds call the building home.

Inside
The central dome inside the building has four Classically-inspired murals representing the four schools within the University. When we went inside, the dome was dark and the murals faded, so I couldn't get decent pictures. I found these (public domain) on the University website.

The Sacred Wood of the Muses - College of Literature and Arts

Arcadia - College of Agriculture

The Laboratory of Minerva - College of Sciences

The Forge of Vulcan - College of Engineering

And Out
Altgeld may not have gotten the crenellated battlements and square windows he envisioned, but he did get his Gothic Gargoyle. Tucked in a hidden corner on the west side of the building, you can find this little guy, the only gargoyle on the U of I campus.

The other Altgeld Castles have more gargoyles and they play a larger role in campus life. At Northern Illinois, the most popular of eleven gargoyles is named Olive Goyle. Olive survived being struck by lightening three times only to be mysteriously decapitated in 1996. Students have since tried to find appropriate replacements, including the occasional Halloween pumpkin.

In 1920, the University installed the Official University Chimes, 15 bells which weigh almost 8 tons together. They sound every quarter hour and play a ten minute concert every day at 12:50 pm.

Parting Shot
Ok, I've got two. Several of our favorite cancer fighting tree, the Canadian Yew, are planted around Altgeld Hall. This time of year they still have their cones, which are itty bitty and adorable.

Also, if you're leaving Altgeld and get the feeling you're being watched, it's probably one of these guys. Satyrs. Part of a bizarre fountain installation across the courtyard from Altgeld.