Bachelor Hall is a three-story brick academic building on the

Miami University Miami University (informally Miami of Ohio or simply Miami) is a public research university in Oxford, Ohio. The university was founded in 1809, making it the second-oldest university in Ohio (behind Ohio University, founded in 1804) and the 10 ...

campus in

Oxford, Ohio Oxford is a city in Butler County, Ohio, United States. The population was 23,035 at the 2020 census. A college town, Oxford was founded as a home for Miami University and lies in the southwestern portion of the state approximately northwest ...

, United States. It was built in 1978 and named after Miami University and Harvard University graduate

Joseph M. Bachelor Joseph Morris Bachelor also known as Joseph Morris (May 17, 1887 near Sharonville, Ohio – December 5, 1947 in Hamilton, Ohio) was an American author, poet, editor and educator. Bachelor was educated at Miami University (A.B., 1911) and Harvard ...

(1889—1947). It houses the Math and English departments, the Speech and Hearing Clinic and the Chair of Communications and Theatre.Bachelor Hall. 2005.

History

Planning and Construction

In April 1977, the

Board of Trustees A board of directors (commonly referred simply as the board) is an executive committee that jointly supervises the activities of an organization, which can be either a for-profit or a nonprofit organization such as a business, nonprofit organiz ...

voted to construct a $6 million communications building to be located at the southwest corner of Patterson Avenue and Route 73. During construction, the building at that time was called the Communications Building.Glos, R.E. (1983). The Buildings of Miami University.

Post-opening

On November 4, 1979, Miami University held a dedication ceremony for Joseph M. Bachelor. The new communications building would be called Bachelor Hall in his honor and contributions to Miami. Students, staff and faculty came to the ceremony.

Joseph M. Bachelor

Joseph M. Bachelor was born in

Sharonville, Ohio Sharonville is a city largely in Hamilton County, Ohio, Hamilton county in the U.S. state of Ohio. The population was 13,560 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. Of this, 11,197 lived in Hamilton County and 2,363 lived in the southeast co ...

, on May 17, 1889. He graduated from

in 1911, where he edited ''The Miami Student'' as an undergraduate. Bachelor earned a Master’s and a Doctor’s degree at

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

. After teaching English at

Cornell College Cornell College is a private college in Mount Vernon, Iowa. Originally the Iowa Conference Seminary, the school was founded in 1853 by George Bryant Bowman. Four years later, in 1857, the name was changed to Cornell College, in honor of iron ty ...

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

, he returned to Miami University in 1927 as associate professor of English and head of Fisher Hall dormitory. In 1944, he was promoted to Professor of English, a title he earned by developing an innovative course titled Words and by his outstanding presentation of a

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

course. Bachelor retired from Miami University in 1946 and died on December 12, 1947, at a

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

hospital. He left his farm, approximately 400 acres, to Miami University to be used for the Joseph M. Bachelor Wild Life and Game Preserve.

Complications

After Bachelor Hall was built in 1978, the university had to address some issues about traffic and

pedestrian crossing A pedestrian crossing (or crosswalk in American English) is a place designated for pedestrians to cross a road, street or avenue. The term "pedestrian crossing" is also used in the Vienna and Geneva Conventions, both of which pertain to road sig ...

. Bachelor Hall could alter traffic patterns. The university and the City of Oxford approved of two pedestrian cross walks at the intersection of Patterson Avenue and Spring Street. At the same time, they approved pedestrian traffic controllers to regulate

traffic signals Traffic lights, traffic signals, or stoplights – known also as robots in South Africa are signalling devices positioned at road intersections, pedestrian crossings, and other locations in order to control flows of traffic. Traffic lights ...

at the intersections.

Today

Bachelor Hall functions as classrooms, computer labs and offices for the disciplines of

Journalism Journalism is the production and distribution of reports on the interaction of events, facts, ideas, and people that are the "news of the day" and that informs society to at least some degree. The word, a noun, applies to the occupation (profes ...

Communication Communication (from la, communicare, meaning "to share" or "to be in relation with") is usually defined as the transmission of information. The term may also refer to the message communicated through such transmissions or the field of inquir ...

, English, speech pathology, audiology, and

Mathematics Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...

References

{{Miami University Buildings and structures completed in 1978 Buildings and structures of Miami University