The Gallaudet College Historic District is a
National Historic Landmark District
National may refer to:
Common uses
* Nation or country
** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen
Places in the United States
* National, Maryland, ce ...
encompassing the historic early campus of
Gallaudet University
Gallaudet University ( ) is a private federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C. for the education of the deaf and hard of hearing. It was founded in 1864 as a grammar school for both deaf and blind children. It was the first sc ...
in
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
Gallaudet is the first school of higher education to be devoted to the education of the
deaf
Deafness has varying definitions in cultural and medical contexts. In medical contexts, the meaning of deafness is hearing loss that precludes a person from understanding spoken language, an Audiology, audiological condition. In this context it ...
and
hard of hearing
Hearing loss is a partial or total inability to hear. Hearing loss may be present at birth or acquired at any time afterwards. Hearing loss may occur in one or both ears. In children, hearing problems can affect the ability to acquire spoken l ...
. Its campus was planned by
Frederick Law Olmsted
Frederick Law Olmsted (April 26, 1822August 28, 1903) was an American landscape architect, journalist, social critic, and public administrator. He is considered to be the father of landscape architecture in the USA. Olmsted was famous for co- ...
and
Calvert Vaux
Calvert Vaux (; December 20, 1824 – November 19, 1895) was an English-American architect and landscape designer, best known as the co-designer, along with his protégé and junior partner Frederick Law Olmsted, of what would become New York Ci ...
, and its Gothic buildings were designed by Frederick Withers. The main Gallaudet College building was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
in 1966 and designated a National Historic Landmark in 1965. The landmarked area was increased to cover the southern part of the campus, and was renamed as a
historic district
A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal protection from c ...
in 1974.
Description and history
An early school for the deaf was founded in 1857 by Amos Kendall, and was located on 8th Street NE.
Edward Gallaudet, a superintendent of that school, envisioned a larger federally chartered institution, and in 1864 founded the Columbia Institution for the Deaf and Dumb, which was renamed in honor of
his father in 1894. The master plan for the school's Washington campus was developed by the Olmsted, Vaux & Co. in 1866, and its first three buildings were designed by Vaux & Withers. Most of the master plan was carried out by 1878; a significant portion of that area has retained historic integrity and looks much as it did at its completion. The main exception is areas to the north and east, where the college (later university) has expanded.
The historic district covers about of the Gallaudet campus, which is now about in size. It is roughly L-shaped, bounded on the south by Florida Avenue and the east by Fowler and Kendall Halls. From Kendall Hall the boundary runs west, between Edward Miner Gallaudet and College Hall, north to the Old Gymnasium, and then west and south to include Faculty Row. The district includes Chapel Hall, a major example of Collegiate Gothic architecture and the
President's House, an elaborate example of High Victorian Gothic design, both designed by Frederick Withers as part of the original master plan.
See also
*
List of National Historic Landmarks in Washington, D.C.
The District of Columbia, capital of the United States, is home to 75 National Historic Landmarks. The National Historic Landmark program is operated under the auspices of the National Park Service, and recognizes structures, districts, objects, a ...
*
References
{{National Register of Historic Places
Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Washington, D.C.
Gothic Revival architecture in Washington, D.C.
National Historic Landmarks in Washington, D.C.
Gallaudet University