The Council of Independent Colleges: Historic Campus Architecture Project

Rollow Avenue of the Oaks

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Institution Name: Rhodes College
Original/Historic Place Name: Oak Alley
Location on Campus: North Parkway to Phillips Ln.
Date(s) of Construction:

1924	original construction Rollow, John

Designer: John Rollow
Type of Place: Landscape site
Style: (Glossary)
Significance: history, landscape
Narrative: see below
References: see below

Function:

ca. 1924-present (2006)

outdoor space

Narrative:
When the college now known as Rhodes moved to Memphis from Clarksville, Tenn., in 1925, President Charles E. Diehl and his engineer, John Rollow, had the unusual opportunity to design and build a campus from the ground up. Leaving the college's roots was difficult, and Mr. Rollow showed vision in planting the beautiful avenue to anchor the new campus and connect it to its past.

The function of the space has always been aesthetic and symbolic. The towering trees provide shade and a welcoming aspect and they remind the current generation of the college's deep roots and long history.

References:

Cooper, Raymond W. Southwestern at Memphis 1848-1948. Richmond, VA: John Knox Press, 1949.

Hanbury, Evans, Wright, and Vlattas, and Company, Architects. Rhodes Master Plan 2010. [Norfolk, VA: Hanbury, Evans, Wright, and Vlattas, and Company, Architects, n.d.].

Morgan, William. Collegiate Gothic, The Architecture of Rhodes College. Columbia, MO: University of Missouri Press, 1989.

Rhodes 150, 1848-1998: a Sesquicentennial Yearbook. Little Rock, AR: August House Publishers, 1998.

Roper, James E. Southwestern at Memphis 1948-1975. Memphis, TN: Southwestern at Memphis, 1975.

Strode, William. Rhodes College. Louisville, KY: Harmony House Publishers, 1985.