Bartlett Gymnasium
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Bartlett Gymnasium is a former athletic facility on the campus of the
University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...
in
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,
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, United States, that has been converted into a campus dining hall.


Construction

Construction of the building took place between November, 1901 and January, 1904 on land owned by the university. The cost of construction, however, was covered by Hibbard, Spencer, Bartlett & Company owner
Adolphus C. Bartlett Adolphus Clay Bartlett (June 22, 1844 – June 1, 1922) was an American industrialist, the president of the Hibbard Spencer Bartlett & Company, the company that originated the label ''True Value''. Bartlett was a pioneer hardware merchant and ...
. The gymnasium was built as a memorial for A.C. Bartlett's son, Frank Dickinson Bartlett, who died of appendicitis while traveling in
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,
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, July 15, 1900, at the age of twenty. Upon completion, the Gothic style building was 200 feet by 80 feet with 2 stories and a basement. The top floor contains the main gymnasium measuring 75 feet by 195 feet, that could be utilized for men's physical education courses as well as being the facility for the Chicago Maroons men's basketball team to compete. This gym also includes a 12 foot wide, 1/13 of a mile, running track which is suspended from the roof girders. Additionally, the ground floor contained locker rooms, faculty exercising room, a 60 foot long by 28 foot wide swimming pool, bathrooms and offices. The basement was focused on specialized rooms for athletic teams. In 1932, the team moved into the newly built
Henry Crown Field House Henry Crown Field House is an athletic facility on the campus of the University of Chicago in Chicago, Illinois. Construction of the building took place in 1931 on land owned by the university. The cost of construction, however; was covered by ...
, and the building became underutilized and fell into disrepair. In 2002, the gymnasium was remodeled to become a full-time dining hall.


Mural and stained-glass

Upon its completion, the gymnasium contained a mural within the front entrance hall created by
Frederic Clay Bartlett Frederic Clay Bartlett (June 1, 1873 – June 25, 1953) was an American artist and art collector known for his collection of French Post-Impressionist and modernist art. Bartlett was committed to promoting the work of fellow contemporary artists ...
, brother of Frank. The mural depicts ''Athletic Games in the Middle Ages'' with the participants dressed in appropriate attire. The gym also included the ''Bartlett Memorial Window'', presented to the university by William Gold Hibbard. The
stained-glass Stained glass is coloured glass as a material or works created from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant religious buildings. Although tradition ...
was taken from
Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet, playwright and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European and Scottish literature, notably the novels ''Ivanhoe'', ''Rob Roy (n ...
's ''
Ivanhoe ''Ivanhoe: A Romance'' () by Walter Scott is a historical novel published in three volumes, in 1819, as one of the Waverley novels. Set in England in the Middle Ages, this novel marked a shift away from Scott’s prior practice of setting st ...
'' and represents
Rowena Rowena in the Matter of Britain was the daughter of the purported Anglo-Saxon chief Hengist and wife of Vortigern, "King of the Britons". Presented as a beautiful ''femme fatale'', she won her people the Kingdom of Kent through her treacherous ...
crowning Ivanhoe at the close of the second day's tournament at Ashby de la Zouch. The window was designed and drawn by Edward P. Sperry, a close friend of Frederic Bartlett as well an associate of Louis Comfort Tiffany. Over 15,000 pieces of glass were used in the construction of the window. The window was placed above the main entrance of the gymnasium, facing Lexington Avenue. In 2001, during the renovation of the gymnasium, the university removed the stained-glass with a promise to restore and reinstall it. Through an architectural firm, Brunner/Cott Associates, Inc., an art glass conservator deemed the window was in need of extensive conservation work and required its removal in order to complete the task.


Opening ceremonies

On Friday, January 29, 1904, the formal opening of the Frank Dickinson Bartlett Gymnasium took place in front of 1,000 friends of the university, which included members of the faculty, alumni, student body, and university trustees. The dedication ceremony took place immediately following the annual football dinner hosted by President Harper. Addresses to the attendees included: The Presentation Address by Adolphus C. Bartlett; The Acceptance of the Gymnasium on Behalf of the University by William Rainey Harper, President of the University; A Young Man's Memorial by Frank Wakeley Gunsaulus, President of the Armour Institute of Technology; Address on Behalf of the Division of Physical Culture and Athletics by Amos Alonzo Stagg, Director of the Division of Physical Culture; Address on Behalf of the Administrative Board of Physical Culture and Athletics by
Eri Baker Hulbert Eri may refer to: People * Eri (biblical figure) * Eri (given name), a Japanese feminine given name, including lists of people and fictional characters * Eri (king), the progenitor of the Umu-Eri and Umu-Nri-Igbo ancient Nigerian city-states * ...
, Dean of the Divinity School; and Address on Behalf of the Alumni and Students by
William Scott Bond William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Eng ...
, Class of 1897. The presentations took place on the second floor of the new gymnasium, with the University of Chicago Military Band located on the running track above the audience. The invocation was given by Reverend Professor
Edward Judson Edward Judson (1844–1914) was an American Baptist clergyman, born in Moulmein, British Burma, a son of the missionary Adoniram Judson and his second wife, Sarah Hall Boardman. He graduated from Brown University in 1863. In 1868, he was appoint ...
D.D., of the Divinity School followed by the previously mentioned speeches. Following the addresses, a reception, hosted by President and Mrs. Harper, was held within the gym.University Record; Volume VIII No. 10, February, 1904; pp. 307-319


References


External links


Historic images of Bartlett Gymnasium

Remodel of Bartlett Gymnasium
* {{Chicago Maroons men's basketball navbox Basketball venues in Chicago Chicago Maroons basketball Defunct college basketball venues in the United States Indoor track and field venues in Illinois Swimming venues in Chicago 1904 establishments in Illinois