If you were in Jackman Hall at lunch time yesterday, we hope you stopped by our first Pop Up Archives booth of the month. We are celebrating American Archives Month by taking our collections to the streets and demonstrating that history is everywhere!
The new Jackman Hall under construction, ca. 1965
The theme of our first Pop Up Archives was the history of Jackman Hall and the early years of Norwich University. We featured photographs of Jackman and its neighboring buildings throughout their evolution, as well as old documents like the first printed catalog from 1821 and a document recording monetary pledges from the citizens of Northfield to support the university’s move.
Pledges from the citizens of Northfield to support the university’s move, 1866
The original Jackman Hall, completed in 1868, was the first structure built on the Northfield campus after we moved here from Norwich, VT in 1866. For nearly 25 years, it was the only building on campus, functioning as barracks, mess hall, chapel, offices, classrooms, and more. At the beginning, the building was oriented away from the current Upper Parade Ground and toward the town of Northfield, with drills and parades taking place on a “lower” parade ground approximately where Sabine Field is now located.
First printed catalog of Partridge’s academy, August 1821
Jackman was joined by the old Dodge Hall in 1892 and Dewey Hall in 1902, at which point the current Upper Parade Ground was leveled and the buildings modified to face their current direction. After falling into disrepair, Jackman and Dodge Halls were taken down and replaced with the new Jackman Hall in 1965. It remains an icon of our campus.
Because history really is everywhere, we are asking our Pop Up Archives visitors to answer a question on a slip of paper so that the University Archives can document life on campus in 2015. This week’s question was: What is in your pockets right now? We got some fabulous answers that we look forward to sharing with future generations to show them a glimpse of our daily life!
We’ll be “popping up” next on October 21st. Where do you think we’ll be??
–Mary Margaret
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