Waller Hall - Willamette University - Salem, Oregon
Posted by: 
ddtfamily
N 44° 56.236 W 123° 01.860
10T E 497554 N 4975982
Oldest building on the campus of Willamette University in Salem, Oregon
Waymark Code: WMH5RQ
Location: Oregon, United States
Date Posted: 05/27/2013
Views: 3
The Place: Willamette University is the oldest in the west, and Waller Hall is the oldest university building still in use, west of the Mississippi River. The building is across the street from the
Oregon State Capitol.
As described in Oregon and its Institutions (1868): "The plan of the building is that of a Greek cross, and was recommended to the agent by Bishop Janets when he last visited the Oregon Conference. The two parts of the cross are each eighty-four feet long and forty-four feet wide. These cross each other exactly in the center, so that the building presents about the same appearance from whichever side you take your observation. The height of the building from the base to the top of the dome is one hundred feet, and from the base to the eaves fifty feet."
According to the National Register of Historic Places Inventory Nomination Form (1975): "Waller Hall has suffered two major fires in its long and active history. Rebuilding after the 1891 fire resulted in a mansard roof, a large Romanesque Revival tower, and shifts in room sizes and stair locations. The 1919 fire did far more damage and the floor plan was altered to a greater extent in the repair. Although the interior was significantly altered in the process, it is important to note that the building was not demolished. The Willamette University Board of Directors instead, reconstructed the roof to appear as it did in 1867."
Waller Hall currently houses administration offices. It underwent renovations in the late 1980s and again in 2005.
The Person: The building is named for Reverend Alvin F. Waller, a Methodist missionary who was instrumental in the development of Willamette University. Waller was born in Pennsylvania but sailed to Oregon in 1839 when he was recruited by Oregon missionary Jason Lee. Waller was charged with founding a new branch of Lee's Willamette Mission near the Willamette Falls. Ultimately, Waller founded the first Protestant church west of the Rocky Mountains in 1843 in Oregon City.
Waller moved to Salem in 1847 and served as a pastor for the next ten years. He became involved with transitioning the Oregon Institute, a Methodist school founded by Lee, into Willamette University. It soon became necessary to construct a new building and Waller helped raise the funds to erect this building, completed in 1867 and renamed for Waller in 1912. Waller died in Salem in 1872 at age 64.
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