Location
West Virginia University’s School of Journalism, has been located in Martin Hall since 1954. Although the School of Journalism only began its stay at Martin Hall fifty four years ago, Martin Hall has been part of Woodburn Circle for decades longer.
On June 16, 1869, an assembly of people gathered on the property that would ultimately be used to build West Virginia University’s first new building. It took only $16,000 that was raised through the sale of the Monongalia Academy building, to build Martin Hall.
In 1870, Martin Hall was erected by West Virginia University specifically for the use of students and faculty. It holds the distinction of being the oldest academic building on the West Virginia University campus.
Martin was modeled after French architecture. The roof slopes down at the sides and is flattened at the top which comes from the idea of a “Mansard roof” which is a style that originated in Paris, France.
The original hall built in 1870 looks much like it does today with only minor rehabilitation to improve the inside. In 1911, the clock that was located in a tower at the top of Martin was removed and placed on top of Woodburn hall, where it has remained the focal point of Woodburn Circle for almost one hundred years.
Throughout 1977-1978, Martin Hall underwent rehabilitation and a large addition was built onto the side of the building. Recently though, Martin Hall has been with going cleaning and has been revamped to make it more modern. Thanks to the school of Journalism Facilities Management and the Office of the Provost, Martin has undergone almost $1.5 million in repairs and upgrades.
Read more about this topic: Perley Isaac Reed School Of Journalism