Chittenden Hall: Renewing a Historic Building

September is a wonderful time at Michigan State University. Students have just returned to campus, the football season has just begun, and there is a hint of color change in the trees. Most of the construction from the summer has ended, and the concrete is back in place over the massive pits we spent the summer investigating. This Fall is the first in over a century that students will not be returning to Morrill Hall. Over a few weeks this summer, the building was torn down. In its place is now a series of sidewalks and the beginnings of a memorial garden to the building. It is amazing how quickly the space was changed from a building to an open area. Change like this isn’t uncommon on university grounds, especially historic ones. However, it is also nice to see the preservation and rejuvenation of buildings, such as the recent plan to save Chittenden Hall.

Chittenden Hall was originally built in 1901 to be the primary building for dairy operations. The evidence for this can be seen with the large door at the back of the building which used to have a ramp allowing for cows to get inside. However, the purpose was quickly changed when a larger dairy building was opened in 1912. The building then became the home for Forestry, a name that still is engraved on the lintel across the main doorway. Forestry remained there until the late 1960’s, and then it moved to the Natural Resources Building. During this period, it was also renamed from “Forestry” to “Chittenden Hall” after Alfred K. Chittenden, a former professor of forestry. From the 1960’s until the 1990’s it held a number of offices, but in the past decade or so it has been vacant.

Over the past few years, there has been a push from the Council of Graduate Students and the Graduate School to renovate the building to house graduate studies and provide a space for graduate students. The campaign was known as ‘Get Chitt Done’, and has been something graduate students have been very passionate about. In June 2013, at the Board of Trustees meeting, the renovations were finally approved. Since then, plans, schematics and designs have been quickly created, and the revamp is scheduled to start up this fall. The renovations are going to be a little complicated due to the fact that the building is on a historic register and cannot be substantially altered on the exterior, but this means that the overall heritage of the building will be preserved.

I had the opportunity to tour the building late this summer with members of COGS and the Graduate School to learn about the new layout and how the renovations will proceed. The building currently isn’t in the best shape- there is trash in the corners, signs up from the late 1990’s, and some of the wood features aren’t in the best condition. However, there is great potential, and it is wonderful to see that we will be saving a historic building. As a graduate student, I’m also excited that there will be a home for graduate studies, a place for us to gather and one primary location for our resources. As a previous campus archaeologist, I’m excited to watch the historic building get a new life. It is going to be an interesting renovation- since the building is on the historic register, it will have to be revamped in keeping with the historical feel of the building, but also needs modern touches like an elevator for access. The combination of maintaining heritage and contemporary updates will be fascinating to watch!

Author: Katy Meyers Emery

Works Cited

Abdila 2013. COGS looks forward to Chittenden Hall revamp. State News. http://statenews.com/article/2013/07/cogs-looks-forward-to-chittenden-hall-revamp

MSU Facts. Tumblr.  http://msufacts.tumblr.com/post/6471206735/chittenden