Victoria - A Mystery at Bancroft Hall. by M.W. Russell

The roof has a center gable over the front entrance. Large dentil blocks under the boxed cornice of the roof give the appearance of exposed rafter ends, a cosmetic adaptation of the Indian bungalow style popular in the early 1900s.Ī plain stone belt course that separates the second and third floor levels is the only decorative feature to break the uniformity of the red brick façade. The three story masonry building has a “U” shaped plan, with a low pitched overhanging hipped roof. The excess was covered by donations from the Peabody Board and other charities.

Opened in 1909, the building cost $66,000. Elliott Construction Company of Hickory, N. Architects were Edwards and Sayward of Atlanta, and the general contractor was the J. A $50,000 appropriation was squeezed from the State Legislature for a building to house 200 girls. Plans were begun for a new dormitory in 1908 after student enrollment exceeded the 300 spaces provided by the first two mirror-image dormitories, Margaret Nance and McLaurin. In the mid 1990s, the building once again became office and classroom space. The building was made into offices in 1974 but became dormitory space once again in 1979. In 1961, an annex was added to the south wing making the the building's shape a symmetrical 'U'. The 1909 building was renamed Bancroft Hall, using Johnson's middle name.

When the YMCA Student Building was completed in 1920, the students wanted to name that building Johnson Hall in honor of their beloved president. It was originally named Johnson Hall after founder and first President David Bancroft Johnson. In addition to the midshipmen rooms, Bancroft Hall houses offices for the Commandant of Midshipmen, six battalion officers, six battalion chaplains, thirty company officers and their senior enlisted leaders, a barbershop, bank, travel office, a small restaurant known as “Steerage,” textbook store, general store (“The Midshipmen Store”), laundromat, uniform store, cobbler shop, the USNA Band, the USNA branch of the United States Postal Service, a gymnasium, spaces for extracurricular activities, and full medical & dental clinics as well as small optometry and orthopedics clinics.ĭo you have a fun fact to share about your county? If so, please send it to Kaley Schultze to be featured in MACo’s weekly Fun Fact on Conduit Street.Bancroft Hall was opened as a dormitory in 1909. All the basic facilities that midshipmen need for daily living are found in the hall. Secretary of the Navy, and famous historian/author George Bancroft, is home for the entire brigade of 4,000+ midshipmen, and contains some 1,700 rooms, 4.8 miles of corridors, and 33 acres of floor space. It’s true! Bancroft Hall at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, is the largest single dormitory in the world. Question: Did you know that the largest single dormitory in the world is at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis?

Victoria - A Mystery at Bancroft Hall. by M.W. Russell