Built in 1910, Guggenheim Hall is on the campus of Colorado State University (CSU) in Fort Collins. It is on the northeast side of the campus’s Oval. The hall was the headquarters of the school’s home economics program in the early twentieth century. It is significant for its role in the history of women’s education at CSU. Today Guggenheim Hall is home to the Department of Construction Management, which restored the building’s interior in 2003.

The Building

Guggenheim Hall was made possible by a gift from US Senator and philanthropist Simon Guggenheim. Guggenheim also made large donations to the University of Colorado–Boulder and Colorado School of Mines. Architect James Murdock designed the building. Built of buff-colored brick, it is two-and-a-half-stories. The building has a symmetrical neoclassical exterior. The north façade faced West Laurel Street, linking the campus with the city. It featured a large entry portico with four Corinthian columns. The south façade had an arcade and patio. Today the building remains one of the best examples of the neoclassical style in Fort Collins.

Home Economics Program

The building was originally called the Simon Guggenheim Hall of Household Arts and housed the school’s home economics program. Essentially, home economics functioned as the women’s section of the college. At the time, many people believed that women’s education should assist them in their roles as wives and mothers.

While the building was being constructed, the department had new leadership. Inga M.K. Allison became acting program head of Household Arts in 1910 and took over permanently in 1911. Allison gave the department a new orientation. She focused on research projects such as determining the effect of altitude on cooking recipes. By doing so, she grounded home economics in the sciences. This shift made it possible to extend women’s education beyond domestic concerns. Home economics became an independent department in 1917. It started to train women for careers beyond housewifery. By the early 1930s, the department offered women training in art, nutrition, teaching, and textiles.

Changes

A variety of changes altered Guggenheim Hall’s appearance during the twentieth century. In 1948 the south façade arcade and patio were enclosed to provide extra office space. In 1977 the building became home to CSU’s Department of Construction Management. Five years later, a brick elevator and stairwell enclosure was added to the east side of the building. A skyway was extended from the elevator enclosure to the adjacent Industrial Sciences Building. The skyway was later removed, but the elevator and stairwell enclosure remains.

Today

In 1995 Guggenheim Hall was listed in the State Register of Historic Properties. Two years later it narrowly escaped damage when a massive flood swept through Fort Collins on July 28, 1997, wreaking havoc on buildings across CSU’s campus. The flood waters stopped just south of Guggenheim Hall at a spot that is now recorded with a plaque.

In the summer of 2003 the Department of Construction Management led a renovation of Guggenheim Hall. This renovation corrected decades of ad hoc remodeling. Students in the department analyzed the building using archival records and photographs to figure out what the building looked like in 1910. Then they used donations from construction companies to restore the interior. They also upgraded the building’s lighting and plumbing to modern standards. In 2006 the renovated building received the US Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Silver Certification for sustainability. This made Guggenheim Hall the first university building in the country with that designation.

Built in 1910, Guggenheim Hall is on the campus of Colorado State University (CSU) in Fort Collins. The hall is on the northeast side of the Oval, the lawn at the heart of the campus. The hall was headquarters of the home economics program. It played a major role in women’s education at CSU. Today the building is home to the Department of Construction Management. In 2003 the department restored the building’s interior.

The Building

The money for the hall was a gift from US Senator and philanthropist Simon Guggenheim. Architect James Murdock designed the building. Built of buff-colored brick, it is two-and-a-half-stories with a symmetrical neoclassical exterior. The north façade faces West Laurel Street, linking campus with the city. Four Corinthian columns graced the entry portico. The south façade had an arcade and patio. The building is one of the best examples of the neoclassical style in the city.

Home Economics Program

The building was originally called the Simon Guggenheim Hall of Household Arts. It was intended for the home economics program. Home economics was thought of as the women’s section of the college. At the time, many people believed that education should help women as wives and mothers.

Inga M.K. Allison became acting program head of Household Arts in 1910. She took over permanently in 1911. The department had both a new building and a new orientation. Allison focused on research. She studied the effects of altitude on cooking. By doing so, she grounded home economics in science. This extended women’s education beyond household duties. Home economics became an independent department in 1917. It started training women for other careers. By the early 1930s, the department offered classes in art, nutrition, teaching, and textiles.

Changes

Guggenheim Hall’s appearance changed over time. In 1948 the south façade arcade and patio were enclosed. This provided extra office space. In 1977 the building became home to CSU’s Department of Construction Management. Five years later, a brick elevator and stairwell enclosure was added to the east side of the building. A skyway was extended from the enclosure to the adjacent Industrial Sciences Building. The skyway was later removed, but the elevator and stairwell enclosure remain.

Today

In 1995 Guggenheim Hall was listed in the State Register of Historic Properties. Two years later a massive flood swept through Fort Collins. The flood wreaked havoc on buildings across CSU’s campus, but the waters stopped just south of Guggenheim Hall. The spot is now recorded with a plaque.

In the summer of 2003 the Department of Construction Management led a renovation of Guggenheim Hall. Students analyzed the building, using old records and photographs to determine what it looked like in 1910. Donations from construction companies helped restore the interior. The students corrected decades of poor remodeling. The building’s lighting and plumbing were brought up to modern standards. In 2005 the renovated building received a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Silver Certification for Commercial Interiors from the US Green Building Council. Guggenheim Hall was the first university building in the country with this designation.

Guggenheim Hall is on the campus of Colorado State University (CSU) in Fort Collins. It was built in 1910. The hall is on CSU’s Oval lawn. It housed the home economics program. Most women’s education took place there in the early 1900s. Now the building is home to the Department of Construction Management. In 2003 the department restored the interior.

The Building

US Senator Simon Guggenheim provided money for the hall. Architect James Murdock designed it. He used buff-colored brick. The building is two-and-a-half-stories and faces West. Laurel Street is to the north. This linked the campus with the city. The style is neoclassical. The entry has four tall columns. The south side had a passage with arches, known as an arcade. The hall is one of the best examples of the neoclassical style in Fort Collins.

Home Economics Program

At first, the building was called the Simon Guggenheim Hall of Household Arts. Women studied there. Many people thought that education should help women as wives and mothers. Inga M.K. Allison became department head in 1910. Household Arts had a new building. Now it had a new focus. Allison did research. She studied how altitude affects cooking. This allowed women to learn science. Now they could study things besides housework. They learned other careers. By the early 1930s, there were classes in food and teaching. There were also classes in art and textiles.

Changes

The hall’s appearance changed over time. In 1948 the arcade and patio were closed in. This provided more office space. In 1977 the Department of Construction Management moved in. An elevator and enclosed stairs were added to the east side of the building.

Today

Guggenheim Hall is historic. In 1995 it was listed in the State Register of Historic Properties. Two years later, a flood swept through Fort Collins. The flood destroyed many buildings. But flood waters stopped just south of the hall. The spot now has a plaque.

In 2003 the Department of Construction Management renovated the hall. Students used old records and photographs. They found out what it looked like in 1910. They fixed years of bad remodeling. Lighting and plumbing were modernized. In 2005 the building got an award. It was the LEED Silver Certification. LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. This is given by the US Green Building Council. Guggenheim Hall was the first university building in the country with this award.