Austin Hall
- Architect
- Henry Hobson Richardson
- City
- Boston, MA
- Collection
- richardson romanesque
Austin Hall was designed by H. H. Richardson as the first building purpose-built for an American law school and the first dedicated home of Harvard Law School. Built 1882-1884 in Romanesque Revival style, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1972.
the building
Polychrome stonework. The building is faced in Longmeadow sandstone laid in checkerboard patterns of light stone against dark, reddish walls, with arches carved in pale Ohio sandstone and a thick cornice band incised with a lengthy motto.
Triple-arched entry. A central entryway framed by a Romanesque triple arch sits deep within the flat front facade, with an asymmetric stairway tower projecting forward at its right.
T-shaped plan. Single-story wings flank a heavy two-story central mass, while the reading room extends rearward, giving the building its overall T-shaped footprint.
Classrooms for a new curriculum. The first floor holds three large classrooms, designed to complement the law school's new curriculum that was being implemented at the time.
the style
Richardson worked in the Romanesque Revival idiom he made his signature, using polychrome stone patterning and a deep triple-arched entry to give a law-school classroom building the weight of a public monument.
the architect
H. H. Richardson designed Austin Hall in 1882-1884, giving Harvard Law School its first purpose-built home and the first building constructed anywhere for an American law school.
More on Henry Hobson Richardsonsignificance
Austin Hall was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1972.
more by Henry Hobson Richardson
nearby
- Harvard-Epworth United Methodist Church
- Christ Church
- Massachusetts Hall
- Building at 10 Follen Street
- University Hall
- Memorial Hall