Cedar House

Creator

D. X. Murphy

Preview

Creation Date

1920

Description

Architectural rendering of the Cedar House by D.X. Murphy.

Other Names - Faculty House, Senior House

Built - 1920-1921

Corner stone - July 9, 1920 by Billy Craig

Cost of Construction - $6,000 from student fees and the alumni fund

Architects - D.X. Murphy & Brothers

At the September 30, 1919 meeting of the Board of Regents the question of erecting a senior building from the cedars on Normal Heights was discussed & approved. President Henry Cherry and Regents J. Whitt Potter & J.P. Haswell were authorized to take the matter in hand and consult with an architect. They were empowered to proceed with the building, if they decide it is proper and to report to the Regents at the next meeting.

Articles about the Hill before Western Kentucky State Normal School moved to its new campus in 1911, or ever before Potter College opened its doors in 1889, describe the luxuriant vegetation, almost jungle-like, on the limestone enriched soil. Always mentioned are the magnificent cedar trees.

When it was discovered the trees were dying from a blight, the problem of what to do was resolved by the students. The construction of the building was sponsored and undertaken by the Senior classes of 1920 and 1921. The logs used in its construction were harvested from a campus hillside in the area now occupied by the old stadium. These cedar trees were dying of blight. The students were helped by faculty members L.Y. Lancaster, George Page, Billy Craig and H.M. Yarbrough. It has been used as a social center (1921-1923), the library (1923-1928) and student center (1928-1959). It was remodeled in 1959 and became the known as the Faculty House. Elizabeth Walz, former faculty member was named hostess and had an apartment on the second floor between 1959 and 1960. The building was the home of the College Heights Foundation between 1959 and 1967 and the Credit Union 1974-1983. It was also used by the Faculty Senate and retired faculty.

A Faculty House Renovation Committee was appointed consisting of Gretchen Niva, Linda Allan, Sheila Conway, Ann Fields, Charles Eison, Lowell Harrison, Carl Kell and Glenn Lohr in 1986. They proposed several changes in the building layout and repairs. President Kern Alexander provided a new roof while the committee raised money for the remodel. In May 1987 the remodeling was approved.

A bronze plaque measuring 10" x 12" in the vestibule tells the story of the building and renovation:

The erection of this building, completed in 1921, was sponsored by the senior classes of 1920 and 1921. The logs used in its construction were harvested from a campus hillside in the area now occupied by the Western stadium. Named the Cedar House, it has been used during the intervening years as a student social center, a library, and a classroom building. In the summer of 1959, it was remodeled and made into the Faculty House. The remodeling and renovation were made possible through the support and cooperation of the College Heights Foundation Board of Directors:

• Kelly Thompson, chairman
• Mrs. H.R. Mathews
• Charles R. Bell
• Dr. C.C. Howard
• James M. Hill
• Gaston Coke
• J.P. Masters
• Charles L. Taylor
• Sam H. Allen
• Charles A. Keown
• Robert G. Cochran
• Billy S. Smith

Additions: 1959 - remodeled, Frank Cain architect, $25,000 1986 - remodeled 2007 - renovated

Articles:

Cherry, Henry. Remarks at Laying of Cornerstone:

The spirit of service is bringing the Senior Building into existence, and the spirit of service must vitalize its present and its future, or else it will become material deadness, a decaying building without a soul. We lay this corner stone fully realizing that the length of its life and its enduring usefulness to society depends largely upon making this building the home of free ideals.

Western Alumnus - 1978

Louisville Courier Journal Creason, Joe. Western State's Faculty Gets a Building All Its Own, 4/16/1960

Park City Daily News Gaines, Ray. Park Row Paragraphs, 2/7/1959, 10/12/1959, 3/29/1962