The Van Wickle Gates form the ornamental entrance to

Brown University Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...

's main campus in Providence,

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the List of U.S. states by area, smallest U.S. state by area and the List of states and territories of the United States ...

. The gates stand at the intersection of College Street and Prospect Street at the crest of College Hill. Dedicated on June 18, 1901, they stand as a symbol for the campus and its -year history.Mitchell, Martha. (1993).
Van Wickle Gates
" ''Encyclopedia Brunoniana''

History

The gates were built with the bequest of Augustus Stout Van Wickle (Class of 1876, d. 1898), who was the president of a bank and several coal corporations. Van Wickle also provided for the construction of a set of gates at

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial Colleges, fourth-oldest ins ...

: the 1905

FitzRandolph Gate FitzRandolph Gate is a wrought-iron structure that serves as the official entrance of Princeton University, standing in front of Nassau Hall on Nassau Street (Princeton), Nassau Street in Princeton, New Jersey. The gate was funded by a bequest of ...

. Designed by architects Hoppin & Ely and Hoppin & Koen, the gates are constructed of wrought iron, with brick and stone piers. The larger main gate is flanked by two smaller side gates. The top of the gate is crowned with the Brown University coat of arms while the two piers are decorated with the seals of Rhode Island and Providence. The sides of the gates feature inscriptions by

Cicero Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, and academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises that led to the estab ...

. The gates, along with an adjacent building financed by Van Wickle, were dedicated on Tuesday June 18, 1901. At the dedication ceremony, Chancellor William Goddard stated, Van_Wickle_Gates_from_Views_of_Providence_(1900)

Van_Wickle_Gates_from_Views_of_Providence_(1900)

Like many structures on Brown's campus, the gates are a contributing property to the College Hill Historic District.

Tradition

The smaller two side gates remain open throughout the year, while the larger center gates usually remain closed. These gates are opened for three annual occasions. At the beginning of the academic year and the beginning of the Spring semester, the center gates open inward to admit students during Convocation and Mid-Year Convocation. At the end of the second semester, the gates open outward for the Commencement Day procession. Campus superstition holds that students who pass through the center gate more than twice will not graduate. Members of groups like the

Brown University Band The Brown University Band is the official band of Brown University. Like all Ivy League bands except Cornell's, it is a scatter band. The Brown Band began performing on ice skates in 1970, and claims to be the world's best (and, actually, only) ...

, who regularly pass through the gates avoid the purported curse by hopping on one foot and entering the gates backwards.

Significance

The Van Wickle Gates are the namesake of Van Wickle Ventures, a student-run venture fund. They are featured in ''

Family Guy ''Family Guy'' is an American animated sitcom originally conceived and created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The show centers around the Griffin family, Griffins, a dysfunctional family consisting of parents Peter Griff ...

'' and

Jeffrey Eugenides Jeffrey Kent Eugenides (born March 8, 1960) is an American novelist and short story writer. He has written numerous short stories and essays, as well as three novels: ''The Virgin Suicides'' (1993), ''Middlesex'' (2002), and'' The Marriage Plot'' ...

' novel ''

The Marriage Plot ''The Marriage Plot'' is a 2011 novel by the American writer, Jeffrey Eugenides. The novel grew out of a manuscript that Eugenides began after the publication of his sophomore Pulitizer Prize-winning novel, ''Middlesex.'' Eugenides has stated tha ...

''.

Fritz Pollard Frederick Douglass "Fritz" Pollard (January 27, 1894 – May 11, 1986) was an American football player and coach. In 1921, he became the first African-American head coach in the National Football League (NFL). Pollard and Bobby Marshall were the ...

first saw the Van Wickle Gates on a 1912 visit to Brown; the sight of them purportedly helped convince the young athlete to attend the university. An undated photograph of H.P. Lovecraft published in ''Selected Letters of H. P. Lovecraft III'' (1929–1931) shows the author sitting at the gates. The location is misidentified as Brooklyn.

Gallery

File:Van Wickle Gates night view.jpg, The southern pier at night File:Van Wickle Gates, coat of arms 2.jpg, Brown's coat of arms decorates the gate File:Brown University Van Wickle Gates aerial.png, The gates frame University Hall File:H. P. Lovecraft at the Van Wickle Gates.jpg, H. P. Lovecraft sitting at the gates

References

{{Brown University Brown University Gates in the United States 1901 establishments in Rhode Island Buildings and structures completed in 1901

History

Tradition

Significance

Gallery

See also

References