The Council of Independent Colleges: Historic Campus Architecture Project

Taylor Hall

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Taylor Hall (rear view), Wesleyan College

Taylor Hall (front facade), Wesleyan College

Taylor Hall (entrance, rear facade), Wesleyan College

Institution Name: Wesleyan College
Original/Historic Place Name: Taylor Hall
Location on Campus: 4760 Forsyth Rd.
Date(s) of Construction:

1928	original construction Walker & Weeks

Designer: Walker & Weeks (Cleveland, OH)
Type of Place: Individual building
Style: Other (Glossary)
Significance: culture, education
Narrative: see below
References: see below

Materials:

Foundation: poured concrete

Walls: brick

Roof: shingle, gable roof

Function:

1928-present (2006)	other (laboratories and offices)
1928-present (2006)	classrooms

Narrative:
Taylor Hall is one of nine original buildings built in 1928 on the Wesleyan Rivoli Campus. It is situated on the southeast corner of the central campus quadrangle. The Rivoli campus was constructed as a unified design according to a master plan created specifically for this site by the Cleveland, Ohio architectural firm of Walker & Weeks.

Named for Robert Jenks Taylor, a trustee and benefactor of the college, Taylor Hall is a red brick, two-story Georgian building with a gable roof. The central portion of the main façade is recessed five feet from the side wings. The side wings have five wood multi-light windows on each floor and there are seven wood multi-light windows on each floor in the central portion of the building. The center of the gable is pierced by a half-lunette. A double wood multi-light entry door with multi-light transom is located in the center of the building. The steps and window and door surrounds are marble. Keystone details over the windows provide ornamentation.

References:

Akers, Samuel L. The First Hundred Years of Wesleyan College, 1836-1936. Macon, GA: Wesleyan College, 1976.

Miller, Margaret. "The Founding and Early History of Wesleyan College." M. A. thesis, University of Georgia, 1935.

Quillian, William Fletcher. A New Day for Historic Wesleyan. Nashville, TN: Printed for Wesleyan College, Publishing House Methodist Episcopal Church, [1928?].

Rees, Frances. "A History of Wesleyan Female College from 1836 to 1874." M. A. thesis, Emory University, 1935.

Thomas, Kenneth H., Bamby Ray, and Lynn Speno. Wesleyan College Historic District. National Register of Historic Places designation report. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of the Interior/National Park Service, 2004.