Taconic Hall
Despite being torn down in 1978, Taconic Hall made history as the first dormitory on the MCLA campus.
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Taconic Hall was one of the three original buildings of North Adams Normal School and served as the only dormitory until the building of Hoosac Hall in 1968. Designed by Pittsfield-based architect J. McArthur Vance, with a budget of $75,000, Taconic Hall opened as a women’s dormitory in 1904, with “accommodations [being] provided for sixty students” as well as faculty (although this stopped in 1956). The basement featured a laundry room, four servants’ bedrooms, a large gymnasium, locker room, and storage. The entrance to the subterranean tunnel which connected the dorm to the main college building, was also in the basement.
The first floor was designed primarily for entertainment and feeding the students, featuring a kitchen and dining room, as well as music, assembly, and social rooms. Floors two and three were student housing with “each room [being] supplied with chairs, study-table, book-case, bureau, commode, screen, two couches (three feet wide), mattresses, pillows, coverlets, and rugs.” In addition to standard bedrooms, the third floor also featured two hospital rooms. The cost for students to live on campus was “$4 per week or $160 for the school year,” roughly $130 a week or $5,400 a year. While living in Taconic Hall the students of the Normal School participated in dances and gatherings, including a highly anticipated “series of ‘men dances.’”
However, as the years went by and the college transitioned into North Adams State Teacher’s College, the dormitory was beginning to show signs of damage. As early as 1949, the College began to make adjustments to the dormitory. In the 1950s the school endeavored to renovate and modernize the dormitory. This plan would see to the replacement of the old locker room, renovating the kitchen, updating the fire/emergency infrastructure, and fixing plumbing and wiring issues. It was during this time as well that the old gymnasium was turned into a new dining hall for all students.
As early as 1968, both the State Building Authority and college presidents, Andrew S. Flagg and James T. Amsler, concerned with the safety of students and the cost of maintenance of Taconic Hall, considered the matter of demolishing the building. From the late 1960s, the college enrollment was surging, and with that came a shortage of housing. Following a housing study conducted in 1972, the college was advised to build a" satellite campus [that] would consist of accommodations for 1200 students.” Ultimately the college decided to once again consider renovating and rearranging Taconic Hall. Following a feasibility study in 1976, it was determined that the cost of renovation to expand the capacity to 190 would cost approximately $440,000, while demolition of the building would cost only $25,000. Most likely, due to costs and the practicality of maintaining the already 78-old-building, Taconic Hall was demolished in 1978.
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Front of Taconic Hall
Taconic Hall was both an all-women’s dormitory and the only dormitory on campus until 1968. So where did male residential students stay? There is no precise answer, although according to a 1962 Dormitory Report from President Eugene L. Freel, men were not on campus at all, but loose in town without specific housing or meal plans. Courtesy of Freel Library Archive, Untitled, 1938, NASTC Photography Box 19.
The original three campus building of the North Adams Normal School.
Pictured here are the original three campus buildings of North Adams Normal School. Taconic Hall is on the left, with Smith House, also known as the President’s Residence to the right. Today Smith House is home to the MCLA admissions office. The building in the background is Murdock Hall, formerly College Hall, where almost all classes at NANS took place. Courtesy of Freel Library Archive, Taconic Hall, n.d., NANS Photographs Box 1.
Interior of Taconic Hall, circa 1919
During the 1918 Influenza Pandemic, the NANS campus was shut down for three-weeks. However, six students remained in the dormitory, “to make a mighty attempt at work—” the work which had been assigned to them during the break. It was noted however that the women ended up having “the merriest of times” and engaged in “pillow fights with the janitor.” Featured here is an image of the first-floor lounges. Image Courtesy of Freel Library Archives, Social…, n.d., NANS Photographs Box 1; Quotes Courtesy of Freel Library Archives, "The Normalogue," 1919.
Students playing pool at Taconic Hall, 1976
As it became known that Taconic Hall was to be torn down, an apathy regarding cleaning swept the building. The dormitory inspection from Spring Semester, May 1978, commented on the build up of trash stating that, ”there is a lot of litter on the entrance roof known as ‘pebble beach.’” Image Courtesy of Freel Library Archive, Taconic Hall, 1976, MCLA Photographs Buildings Box 2; Quote Courtesy of Freel Library Archive, Dormitory Inspection Report, Anothony F. Ceddia, 1978, p. 2.
Playing tennis on the Taconic Lawn
Many activities were enjoyed on the Taconic Lawn, including games of croquet or tennis, as featured here. Courtesy of Freel Library Archives, "Playing tennis," n.d., NANS Photographs Box 1.
Residential life in Taconic Hall.
Mealtimes, bedtimes, and waking hours were strictly enforced in Taconic Hall during the NANS and NASTC days, very unlike the modern situation of residential students. What is especially interesting in this compiled schedule from 1951, is the mention of a fire drill; for an unknown reason– most likely the time of day at which they occurred– fire drills were mentioned four separate times in yearbooks of the NANS and NASTC eras. Courtesy of Freel Library Archive, The Terraces (Yearbook), 1951,
Side view of Taconic Hall
Taconic Hall was located in what is today the Hoosac Lawn and the outdoor volleyball court. In the warmer months, students play volleyball, complete homework, picnic, and host events on the lawn, not unlike what used to happen on the Taconic Lawn. Courtesy of Freel Library Archives, Center – Hoosac Hall…, n.d., MCLA Photographs Buildings Box 1.
Construction of Taconic Hall
Pictured on the left is Smith House, during the construction of Taconic Hall. The large pit to the right of the house was to become the location for Taconic Hall. The land that Taconic ultimately rested on was purchased in 1899. Courtesy of Freel Library Archives, View from Murdock Hall SE up Church St…, circa. 1896-1902, NANS Photographs Box 1.