This building with its deep red brick and gray stone wrapping around its outer wall like ivy is a unique structure found at the center quad of campus. It features a bell tower, town clock and a beautiful, ornate date carved in relief out of a massive gray stone/building block. The building takes its name after Philip J. Glatfelter, a local philanthropist and successful businessman. In a forty year period, P.H. Glatfelter, his son William L. Glatfelter, and their immediate family gave $225,000 to Gettysburg College. At the time of his death in 1907, he was considered one of the best friends, if not the best, that Gettysburg College ever had.
About the Building
Glatfelter Hall was completed in 1889 at a cost of $92,000. Designed by John A. Dempwolf (1848-1926), a prominent regional architect of York, PA, it was known for over twenty years as the New Recitation Building. It received its current name in 1912 to honor the memory of Philip H. Glatfelter of Spring Grove, PA, a trustee and generous benefactor of the college. A thorough renovation of the interior in 1929 provided some additional windows in the north and west facades. Between 1989 and 1991 further renovations added a tower for an elevator and stairwell on the south facade and opened the building's large attic for academic use.
Built in the Romanesque Revival style, the building's various renovations have left its exterior largely unchanged. Constructed of red brick on a stone foundation, Glatfelter Hall is richly trimmed in Hummelstown brownstone and has a slate roof. When new, the building housed virtually all the college's classrooms and offices, the college library, elegant quarters for two student literary societies, and a natural history museum. Five academic departments now occupy the building. A tall structure with a soaring tower 143 feet high, Glatfelter Hall continues to be one of the dominant features on the Gettysburg campus.
The Romanesque Revival style, popular in the U.S. from the 1870s to about 1900, drew upon the forms of the Romanesque, a style that dominated European architecture in the early medieval period. H.H. Richardson (1838-1886), a Boston architect and the most influential designer in this style, produced buildings marked by massive towers, turrets, and great rounded arches, normally executed in rough-cut stone. In its massing and in much of the decorative detail that emphasizes rich color contrasts, Glatfelter Hall reflects well the influence of Richardson's work
About the Person
P.H. Glatfelter was born on August 29, 1837 in Spring Forge, Spring Grove, Pennsylvania and was christened as a Lutheran, which makes sense as this is a Lutheran rooted college. Although he started life as a farmer, in 1857, P.H. Glatfelter left the family farm to work at the Loucks & Hoffman paper mill on the Gunpowder River in Maryland. Thereafter, he learned of a mill for sale in his home town.
P.H. Glatfelter used the money from his sale of interest in the Loucks & Hoffman paper mill, other savings, and eventually a mortgage on December 14, 1865 to buy the Spring Grove mill on July 2, 1864 for $14,000. He also bought twenty-four extra acres of land for $2,607.50. This was the beginning of his business adventures and was eventually how he amassed his fortune and was able to be so generous.
The success of the Borough of Spring Grove, which was incorporated in 1882, is often attributed to the success of P.H. Glatfelter and his paper mill. P.H. Glatfelter was elected one of the first councilmen and was known for his generous giving to various sectors of the town. He gave half of the total money ($600) to build a new brick school house in Spring Grove. He also donated $10,200 to construct a new building for St. Paul’s Lutheran Church which was finished in 1880. The Glatfelter Company’s electric plant also provided electricity and running water for the town at a nominal fee—making Spring Grove one of the most advanced towns in the area at that time. In 1902 when the First National Band of Spring Grove was organized, P.H. Glatfelter served as one of the first directors while his son, William L. Glatfelter, was the first President. This is just a small biography of this remarkable man.
SOURCE