I-K Buildings

Independence Hall
Jennings Hall
John A. Prior Health Sciences Library
Jones Tower
Journalism Building
Kennedy Commons
Knowlton Hall
Kuhn Honors and Scholars House

Independence Hall

Independence Hall opened Jan. 1, 1975, and it was dedicated Oct. 23, 1976. Its construction was part of the rebuilding project of University Hall. In fact, its 746-seat auditorium was intended to replace University Chapel in the old University Hall. The building was named to commemorate the bicentennial of the United States.

more information:
John H. Herrick Archives: Independence Hall

Jennings Hall

Completed in September 1914, the Botany and Zoology Building served as the home of the biological sciences, complete with several greenhouses. It is an example of the Jacobethan Revival style, marked by its parapet wall and projecting gables, its classical entry surround and duel copper domes.

Three additions were built, in 1939, 1948 and 1961, respectively. In 1991 its greenhouses were demolished, although another greenhouse briefly sat on top of the 12th Avenue parking garage.

In 2002 the building was renamed to honor former Ohio State President Edward H. Jennings (1981-1990), who oversaw the restructuring and updating of the undergraduate curriculum, as well as projects such construction of the Wexner Center for the Arts and the James Cancer Hospital. A renovation in 2005 preserved its architectural style while updating classroom spaces.

more information:
John H. Herrick Archives: Jennings Hall

John A. Prior Health Sciences Library

In the late 1960s when space was becoming especially tight at Thompson Library – then known as the Main Library – a number of fixes were planned, such as finding library space elsewhere for specific disciplines. One plan proposed a health sciences library dedicated to medicine and dentistry, as well as graduate studies in microbiology, biochemistry and biophysics. The result: the Health Sciences Library, which was built in 1972 and opened on May 14, 1973. On September 1, 1988, the Board of Trustees resolved that the building should be named the “John A. Prior Health Sciences Library.”

Dr. Prior received both degrees from Ohio State: first his bachelor’s in 1935, then his MD in 1938. After graduation, he was awarded the Eli Alcorn Prize in Ophthalmology. He worked in Cincinnati for several years before returning to Ohio State in 1944 as an instructor. He became professor in 1952 and assistant dean of the College of Medicine in 1961, with the associate deanship following in 1963. In 1972 he asked to be released from his administrative duties to return to teaching. Upon his retirement in 1981 he was named Professor Emeritus.

Dr. Prior was recognized for his contributions through a number of awards. He received the Distinguished Service Alumni Award from the medical college in 1963. The following year, he was awarded the University’s Distinguished Teaching Award, and in 1981, he was given the University’s Distinguished Service Award. Dr. Prior was a gifted teacher, and he pushed for the establishment of a medical library at Ohio State. The University honored these contributions by naming the library he worked to found in his honor. Dr. Prior died in October 1992 at the age of 79.

more information:
John H. Herrick Archives: John A. Prior Health Sciences Library

Jones Tower

After graduating from North High School in Columbus, Lawrence Donald Jones enrolled in 1919 in the College of Engineering at Ohio State. In 1923, he earned a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering. And in 1924 he joined the faculty, a position he held for 37 years. He was made a full professor in 1943, and served as the Secretary for the College of Engineering from 1929 to 1958.

During World War II he served as Coordinator of the Army Specialized Training Program at Ohio State. In 1954, Professor Jones was appointed Associate Dean of the College of Engineering, and held that position for five years, later serving in the Office of the President. He was characterized as a man who exemplified quiet leadership: doing what needed be done without thought to personal gain or recognition. He died in 1961. A year later, on Sept. 7, 1962, the Board of Trustees approved a plan to build a new dorm on the north side of the campus and agreed that it should be named Jones Tower in his honor.

The Trustees changed the name to “Jones Graduate Tower” on May 12, 1966. Construction ended in August 1969, and graduate students, both men and women, moved into the tower that autumn. A swimming pool was added in 1970, and opened that December. The building underwent renovations from June 2009 to September 2010. Currently, the dorm houses undergraduate students, so in February 2011 the Board of Trustees changed the name back to Jones Tower to reflect its current purpose.

more information:
John H. Herrick Archives: Jones Tower

Journalism Building

Never officially named by the university, the building was completed by July 17, 1924. Offices of the student newspaper, The Lantern, opened there in August of that year. The building has always housed the School of Journalism (now the School of Communication), and at one time housed the university’s print shop.

In 1938 a new wing was added to house the campus post office. Small additions made in 1939 and 1940 connected the building to Caldwell Labs, and an addition in 1947 increased space for the WOSU radio studios.  In 1973 a $3 million expansion project was completed.

more information:
John H. Herrick Archives: Journalism Building

Kennedy Commons

For nearly 40 years, June F. Kennedy dedicated her career to food science, particularly the feeding of Ohio State students. Kennedy, who received a bachelor’s and master’s degree in Food Science and Nutrition from Missouri State University, was hired in 1920 as an assistant professor in the Department of Home Economics. She also was appointed head of the Institution Management and Dietetics program at that time.

When Pomerene Hall was built in 1922, it included the Refectory, a campus restaurant also dedicated as a laboratory for institution management students. Kennedy took charge of the lab in 1934. She is credited with opening food service facilities to students in Campbell, Brown, Page and Arps Halls.

In 1946, Kennedy was appointed as the University’s first food-services director. At the same time, until her retirement in 1959, she also taught upper-level courses in institutional management. She died in 1991 at the age of 100.

On April 1, 1983, in recognition of her long years of service, the Board of Trustees renamed the Women’s Commons to the June F. Kennedy Commons. The commons was built in various stages between 1939 and 1940 to serve the women’s dorms of Bradley and Canfield halls. A final addition connected it to Mack Hall. In autumn 2011, the building re-opened after a year-long renovation.

In March 2012 it received a Silver rating in the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Kennedy Commons, 1963 Environmental Design) program administered by the U.S. Green Building Council.

more information:
John H. Herrick Archives: Kennedy Commons

Knowlton Hall

Five decorative marble columns –representing classical orders of architecture – stood for several years as a placeholder for the future site of the Architecture building. The 23-foot stand-alone columns were later incorporated into the newly built Knowlton Hall, which was dedicated in 2004.

Knowlton Hall is home to the School of Architecture, which includes the disciplines of architecture, landscape architecture and city and regional planning. The building was named after Ohio State alumnus Austin E. Knowlton, who donated $16 million to the school in 1994. The 165,000-square-foot facility includes classrooms, auditorium, studio and gallery spaces, a library and a rooftop garden.

Knowlton Hall has received several design awards, including the Architecture Honor Award from the American Institute of Architects, which is the profession’s highest recognition of works that “exemplify excellence in architecture, interior architecture and urban design.”

Knowlton Hall was built on the site of the old Ives Hall (demolished in 2002), which housed the Department of Food, Agricultural and Biological Engineering, and had also been the home to Architecture’s student design studios.

Kuhn Honors and Scholars House

This house was the second president’s house on campus. It was built on the site of the university astronomer’s residence and adjacent to Emerson McMillan Observatory, which was built in the 1890s.

The first University Architect, Joseph Bradford, designed the English Tudor style home, with three stories and 5,170 square feet. Bradford had also designed the Ohio State Oval. President William Oxley Thompson turned the first shovel for the house, but his successor, George Washington Rightmire (1925-1938), was the first to live there.

Rightmire’s successors, Presidents Howard Bevis and Novice Fawcett, also lived in the home. By the end of the 1960s, the house was beginning to show its age. It was also difficult to maintain as a private residence due to its busy location. A fire in 1971 caused significant damage; presidents also felt they needed a larger house for entertaining. After President Fawcett left office, and the president’s residence moved off campus, the house was used in many different ways.

It finally became the Albert Kuhn Honors and Scholars House in 1987. Kuhn filled many roles at the university during his 34-year career, including serving as the first director of the Honors and Scholars Program.

more information:
John H. Herrick Archives: Kuhn Honors and Scholars House