Photos from October-December 2024.
Hayes Hall is currently the oldest standing building on Ohio State’s campus. I think it is one of the finer works of campus architecture, although much of the original interior has been lost. Its history is also convoluted and required much effort to organize in chronological order. Hayes Hall is located on the north side of the Oval, bordered by Hopkins Hall to the north and west, the Oval’s green space to the south, and Hughes Hall to the east.
History
Hayes Hall as it appeared in 1895. (University Archives)
Hayes Hall was designed in 1891 by Frank Packard, partner of the famous Gilded Age Columbus architecture firm Yost & Packard. (John Herrick emphasizes that though Yost & Packard are commonly attributed as the architect, all drawings are labeled under Packard’s name only, and close readings of Board of Trustees minutes corroborate this.) While much of their work is now lost, you may know them from the other iconic standing building they designed on campus--Orton Hall. Hayes Hall was designed in the Richardsonian Romanesque style, and its exterior is of brick and stone framed in wood. Construction work began in October 1891 and was completed by Nichol and Carr. It was first occupied by then-professor Joseph N. Bradford in February 1893, who moved the Drawing Department there from University Hall. When it was first built, Hayes Hall housed “manual training, domestic science, and drawing.”
The portion of Hayes Hall that stands today is most of the original building, and subsequent additions have since been demolished. However, two wings originally extended eastward and westward from the northernmost portion of the building, and these are now lost.
Hayes Hall’s original footprint.
Hayes Hall in 1896, showing the original northern wings. (University Archives)
In 1911, university architect Joseph N. Bradford designed two tiny wooden sheds that were added onto the north faces of the foundry and forge shop, which were located in the one-story north wings. The date of construction is hazy, but the additions were completed between July 1911 and early 1913. I couldn’t find any exterior photos of these sheds, and oddly they were demolished at different times--the northeast addition was approved for demolition in 1936, and the same happened for the northwest addition almost three decades later in 1961.
Hayes Hall’s footprint after Bradford’s first addition.
Hayes’ metalworking classroom c. 1906. (University Archives)
During World War I, Hayes Hall was turned into a bunkhouse for the ROTC cadets. Ohio State was one of six universities across the United States that worked with the Department of War to build schools of military and aeronautics training.
Hayes Hall during its use as a bunkroom, 1917-1918. (University Archives)
Interestingly, like Orton Hall, Hayes Hall also had a few small outbuildings next to it during its lifetime. The first was a small art studio north of the building, which was designed by university architect Joseph N. Bradford in 1923. It was finished in 1924 and used for sculpture and painting studios before its demolition in 1957, concurrent with the construction of Hopkins Hall.
The groundbreaking ceremony for Hughes Hall in 1947. Hayes Hall’s studio annex can be seen at the top left of the image. (University Archives)
The second housed a kiln. This structure was located between the northwest and southwest wings. The only known information is its construction being approved on March 16, 1929, and a small addition likewise being approved on July 8, 1940. It was probably designed and built by university employees or the manufacturer. It was demolished on July 11, 1977.
Hayes’ kiln shed after 1947. (University Archives)
A second addition to the main structure of Hayes Hall was commissioned in 1947 and designed by university architect Howard Dwight Smith. It was a small extension of the northwest wing. I couldn’t find any photos of this addition in its entirety, but you can see a tiny sliver of it in the above image.
Hayes Hall’s footprint in 1947, after Smith’s second addition.
A year later, the northeast wing was demolished for the construction of Hughes Hall. Early plans considered having a “common wall” between Hayes and Hughes, but these did not come to fruition.
Hopkins Hall, which was built north of Hayes Hall in 1959, was originally intended to serve as the latter’s replacement. Original drawings were ominously labeled “Replace Hayes Hall.” Seems like it was pretty typical of the Modernists on campus to demolish beautiful and historically significant structures (although I’m well aware that they were viewed as dated wrecks at that time), just to replace them with garbage that everyone hates today. If you ask most people what their favorite building on campus is, they’re probably going to say Orton Hall, Thompson Library, University Hall, etc., not the crap that Ohio State was churning out in the 1950s and 60s. I know a place you can shove those “towers in the park” ...
Hayes Hall in 1918. (Buckeye Stroll)
In 1970, Hayes Hall was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Even though it was extensively altered, the front facade remains identical to how it was first constructed, discounting wear and tear from the elements. It is one of five such buildings on campus (the others are Hale Hall, Orton Hall, Ohio Stadium, and old University Hall).
Hayes Hall’s third addition was a small trash room designed and built by the maintenance staff in 1973. It was a tiny projection from the north end of the building.
In 1976, an extensive renovation was approved for Hayes Hall. This included the demolition of the original northwest wing, Smith’s addition, and the trash room; as well as the construction of a new stair tower on the northwest side. The lobby also used to house a large staircase to the upper levels, which was removed. I believe this renovation brought the building to its current state, as the footprint is identical and the interior today is all gross drop ceilings and asbestos floor tile. Hale Hall housed the Department of Art while this renovation was happening. The remodeled Hayes Hall was first occupied in December 1978. The Department of Design website claims the building has since been renovated twice, but much of the 1970s work is visible today. Most recently, it received a new roof and waterproofing in 2014-2015, and new furniture in 2020.
Hayes Hall’s current footprint.
Hayes Hall is named after Rutherford B. Hayes, who was a member of the Board of Trustees, the governor of Ohio, and eventually the president of the United States. He was governor when the Morrill Act was accepted by the state. Hayes believed in the importance of mechanical education, and the building was named in his honor since it housed the industrial arts. Though he knew of its naming, he died in January 1893, before it was occupied.
Photos
Hayes Hall is near the top of my list of favorite buildings on campus, so strap in for a long one, because it is filled with plenty of exquisite details. I was anxiously waiting for the leaves to fall enough so I could get good pictures of the facade. Even here it’s pretty hidden away, but it’s much harder to see when the trees have their leaves.
It’s awful pretty in the snow, too.
Getting closer…here’s a closer look at the central chunk of the tripartite facade:
Again, in the snow:
The middle portion:
Hayes Hall is gorgeous when the sun shines on it just right:
Now for the requisite “loop around…” I’ll start with an interesting detail I noticed fairly recently. The arched windows of the ground floor have a brick vault, which they are required to, but the masonry does not protrude from the facade or take on a different material, so the arch itself is barely visible unless you know what to look for. From a distance, all you see is the recessed window and inner brickwork.
Another look in better lighting:
Around back, the middle section of the “T” juts out:
The stair tower fits the style adequately--an architect could probably tell it’s not original, but for the most part it blends in appropriately enough.
An unusual detail I noticed was the odd painted brick where the original north wings of the “I” were chopped off over the years. Was it where the peak of their roofs used to cover? No source mentions it.
Old electrical equipment? It looks like these might have held power lines at one time.
At the extreme north end, even the loading dock is vaulted:
More of that painted brick on the east side:
It had sort of an Egyptian step-pyramid look on the other side…here it’s rather schizophrenic and sloppy. How confusing.
At the rear of the building, the bordering bricks are extruded from the arches, unlike the earlier first-floor vaults:
Now for my favorite part--documenting the fine detail of the Richardsonian Romanesque architecture. Starting up top with the cornice and its carving:
Back when we carved the names of buildings into things…you can’t exactly set “K-MART” in a limestone lintel, because architecture now is more transient and impermanent than ever. There’s also something about the Victorian tendency to end signage in a full stop--it just scratches a nice itch inside my brain. “HAYES HALL.” just feels more satisfying than “HAYES HALL” without the period.
Although they aren’t prominently featured, each column between the window panes has a uniquely carved capital. The middle one bears obvious Corinthian influence, but the others feature interesting pattern work. Here’s a look at the central one by itself: (I would do more, but that would run the risk of this post being an hour read.)
The same columns stand on the wings, but the capitals are unhewn. It was probably a cost-saving measure, as even when the trade existed during the 1890s, it wasn’t cheap then, either. You can also see the weeps bored into the masonry for drainage, and some efflorescence at the far left corner.
Bet you didn’t expect a lecture on masonry today. Now for my very favorite, which I saved for last before heading inside…the gorgeous arched entrance:
I just love that entrance. I had an art class in Hayes as a freshman, and even then I always enjoyed going through the arch. Look, I understand the philosophy behind Modernism and appreciate that style of architecture when it’s executed well, but I personally would much rather enter a building through a highly decorated and massive stone arch instead of a glass revolving door.
This next shot is meant to highlight the many types of masonry used at the base of Hayes Hall:
At the very bottom, almost out of view, is the smooth, dark ashlar that forms the base of the building. Above are the lighter rusticated stone blocks, laid in a disordered manner to recall the oddly-shaped stones used to construct medieval Romanesque architecture. Third is a very thick string course that uses the same stone as the base ashlar, but rusticated in the manner of the smaller blocks below. A penultimate, highly exact checkerboard pattern of tan and adobe-colored stone lies above that. Finally, the base ashlar is repeated in the sills for the windows of the second floor, which continues as a course across the entire front facade and serves as a transition between stone and brick.
The vaulting is also very typical of Richardsonian Romanesque architecture, with its massive voussoirs and huge span. Unlike Orton Hall, it is a perfect semicircle. The arch sets back once to reveal this beautiful applied ornament:
On a campus where much of this quality of architecture was demolished decades ago, you have to appreciate the remaining buildings where this level of detail was considered. This is pretty typical ornament for Richardsonian Romanesque architecture--foliate patterns were very popular on the arches and capitals. The Greek cross hearkens back to the Romanesque style’s beginnings as ecclesiastical architecture. I think the bird-looking thing at the bottom is a griffin, since the others across the archway look similar and more obviously appear that way. Each large medallion has a different carving on it. I cropped the picture of the arch from two photos earlier so you can see them better:
Right click → “Open image in new tab” → zoom in
One last stop before heading inside…gotta love that three-dimensionality:
Hayes Hall’s front doors feature gorgeous era-appropriate woodwork:
The doorway is flanked by two Doric columns with egg-and-dart molding and a denticulated Ionic cornice above. In the architrave above the doorway, a carving reading: “THE CVLTVRED MIND THE SKILLFVL HAND” is present. I am extremely surprised that the doors exist to this day, and not hacked out by some angry Modernist during the 1950s or after the building’s renovation in the 1970s.
Just gotta love that fine dark wood. Some of the interior offices look out into the vestibule between the arch and the front door, and their windows are vaulted in a unique way:
One last camera photo before we get to the phone ones…the artwork inside the coffered arch and the wall’s beautiful crown molding:
Painting the wood brown instead of staining it is a travesty. I didn’t get any more photos of that artwork, which I’m just now kicking myself for because I only noticed the little text reading “APPRECIATE HISTORIC ARCHITECTURE” beneath. The art/design majors know what’s up. You can sort of see it in the above image, but there’s a second set of glass doors after the first arch, which is an odd design choice.
The beautiful ceiling plasterwork, which has since been painted white:
Another interior vault, which remains bare:
Faculty offices, with their lovely arched doorways:
Never heard of a “framery pod” before:
I believe this is the area where the original grand stairway was, but lately it’s packed with junk:
The east stairs have these faces in them. If I recall correctly from class, they’re drawn without lifting the writing implement for 30 seconds.
The second-floor hallway--any trace of original decor (if there was any) is long gone, probably trapped above the dropped ceiling.
I guess Hayes is being remodeled to this day…a new “student space” is coming soon:
Here’s an empty classroom on the third floor. It appears identical to the one I took ART 2100 in as a freshman, which is still the most difficult and infuriating class I’ve taken at Ohio State. You’re supposed to prop up your drawing board onto the wood slats/ridges of the medieval torture device-looking things. That class was three hours, and sitting on the hard wood seat and drawing that entire time was the worst.
It’s also odd to me how the ceiling was dropped at one point but now all the tiles are gone, leaving the lights.
Heading back down in the stair tower, some of the original exterior vaulting is still visible:
The basement is pretty bland, save for the brightly colored chairs that liven up the monotony a bit.
Some weirdo’s ARG…I’ve been seeing these a lot around campus lately.
I also heard from a female friend that the basement women’s bathroom doesn’t have stall doors, only shower curtains. She sent me a photo to corroborate this, so I checked the men’s, but that one has doors. How unusual.
Hayes Hall is not scheduled for renovation, according to Framework 3.0, which is a damn shame. The building desperately needs an interior restoration. The many layers of crappy white paint inside are beginning to look like a landlord-special apartment off campus, and much of the existing decor is dated and cheap. As the oldest building on campus, Hayes Hall deserves to look as opulent as it did when it was built.
Sources:
https://kb.osu.edu/handle/1811/24059
https://kb.osu.edu/handle/1811/37314
https://library.osu.edu/site/buckeyestroll/
https://library.osu.edu/site/archives/university-archives/
https://design.osu.edu/about/history-hayes-hall
https://hgcconstruction.com/our-work/osu-hayes-and-hale-hall/
https://mhernandezdesign.myportfolio.com/ohio-state-x-continental-office-hayes-hall-redesign [dead link, the source for Hayes’ new furniture]
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