The Council of Independent Colleges: Historic Campus Architecture Project

Muller Chapel

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Muller Chapel (view from the west), Ithaca College

Muller Chapel (view from the southwest), Ithaca College

Institution Name: Ithaca College
Original/Historic Place Name: Muller Chapel
Location on Campus:
Date(s) of Construction:

1975	original construction Eigner & Associates

Designer: Eigner & Associates
Type of Place: Individual building
Style: Modern/post-WWII, Other (Glossary)
Significance: culture, education
Narrative: see below
References: see below

Materials:

Foundation: concrete

Walls: brick and wood frame

Roof: wood shakes

Function:

ca. 1975-present (2006)	other (chaplain's offices, meeting rooms)
ca. 1975-present (2006)	chapel

Narrative:
Muller Chapel is one of the most beloved buildings on campus; it is the center of spiritual life and houses not only offices for the campus chaplains but also the headquarters for student religious organizations. It contains a sanctuary, meeting rooms, and a reception area.

The Chapel was built as a memorial to Herman Muller, Sr., chairman of the Board of Trustees, who was tragically killed in an automobile accident in the 1970s.

The designers of this building were inspired by the later ecclesiastical designs of Frank Lloyd Wright, in particular his Shorewood Hills (WI) Unitarian Church. The Chapel's siting, on the brow of a small hill overlooking a tranquil pond, also reflects Wrightian thought. The structure and its setting draw small discussion groups, lunch-time gatherings, and gaggles of geese and ducks during much of the year.

References:

Harcourt, John B. The Ithaca College Story. Ithaca, NY: Ithaca College, 1983.

Hodne, Scott. The History of Ithaca College. Ithaca, NY: Ithaca College, 1991.

Sasaki Associates Inc. Ithaca College Master Plan Report. [Watertown, MA: Sasaki Associates Inc.], 2002.