Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute report to the Getty (PDF) 1.6MB

Established in 1824, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute is the oldest engineering school in the United States. The campus buildings failed to match the preeminence of the institution during the 1800s. When the institute relocated after two fires destroyed the existing campus in 1904, a frenzy of fundraising and building followed. Grant aid will support an historic structures report for the collection of stately buildings, largely developed between 1906 and 1935, which form the core of the campus.

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute received a Getty grant in 2003 for $150,000 to support campus heritage planning.

Report Summary

Purpose: Grant aid will support an historic structures report for the collection of stately buildings forming the core of the campus, largely developed between 1906 and 1935 after two fires destroyed the existing campus in 1904.

Historic Designation: West Hall listed on National Register since 1973?

Established in 1824 for the application of science to everyday life, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute is the oldest engineering school in the United States. When the preeminent institute relocated after two fires destroyed the 1904 campus, a frenzy of fundraising and building followed. Purchase of the 10-acre Walter Phelps Warren Estate expanded the grounds.

Site list:

Louis Rubin Memorial Approach (1907; renovated 1999)
[Original] Troy Hospital (incorporated 1851 to share building with school/orphanage; repurposed for the Institute alone, 1853; fires 1856 and 1858)
West Hall aka [New] Troy Hospital—8th Street (1871, Brick/sandstone Mansard/Second Empire “Grant” Style with staircase/terrace approach, perhaps designed by Marcus F. Cummings; repairs 1877-81; 1890 chapel renovation, designed by Sampson Murdoch & Co.; 1896 West Wing “Annex;” 1898 electrification; 1914-23 closed; 1923 chapel replaced by 4-story building, designed by Frank J. Morgan and Louis H. Morgan Architects; 1925 reopened as Catholic Central High School; 1953 sale/renovation for Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute; façade structure reinforced, 1948)
[Wager Estate] Troy Hospital—Oakwood Ave. (1914)

Planning Process

Review previous campus plans

Master Plan (1960, designed by Voorhees, Walker, Smith and Smith)
Campus Plan (1968, designed by Dioxiadis Associates)
Core Campus Academic Facilities Plan (designed by Prof. David Haviland, School of Architecture)
Topsoil/foundation study (1984)
Structural Report (1991, designed by Ryan-Biggs Associates) and façade/roof renovation (designed by Mesick, Cohen, and Waite)
Rehabilitation/renovation begun 2004—first of 4 phases

Outcomes: Products