Ira Allen Chapel
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Ira Allen Chapel
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Front entrance of the Ira Allen Chapel
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| Location | Burlington, Vermont |
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| Coordinates | 44°28′47″N 73°11′57″W / 44.47972°N 73.19917°WCoordinates: 44°28′47″N 73°11′57″W / 44.47972°N 73.19917°W |
| Built | 1925–26 |
| Architect | McKim, Mead & White (William Mitchell Kendall, Supervising Architect) |
| Architectural style | Colonial Revival |
| Part of | University Green Historic District (#75000139) |
| Added to NRHP | April 14, 1975 |
Ira Allen Chapel is a building on the campus of the University of Vermont (UVM), which is located on the northwest corner of the "University Green" in Burlington, Vermont (on the corner of Colchester Avenue and University Place). The building was constructed during 1925–26, and dedicated on January 14, 1927. It was added to National Register of Historic Places as part of University Green Historic District on April 14, 1975.
Ira Allen Chapel was named after the University of Vermont's founder, Ira Allen. Construction of the building was made possible by a $200,000 endowment from James Benjamin Wilbur, LL. D (1856–1929) of Manchester, VT in 1924.
The cornerstone of the Ira Allen Chapel was installed on June 22, 1925 as part of the commencement activities that year. An inscription which was carved into the granite reads; "Dedicated to the service of God erected in memory of the founder of this university Ira Allen - 1925".
The building was designed by the architect William Mitchell Kendall of McKim, Mead, and White of New York; the same architectural firm which designed the university's Waterman Building (built in 1941), Fleming Museum (1931), Southwick Building (1934), Slade Hall (1928), as well as Burlington City Hall (1928). The building was erected under the supervision of builder, O.S. Nichols (of Essex Junction, VT).
Angell Hall (or the Angell House), originally built in 1869 to serve as the President's house (and later converted into a Women's dormitory in 1917) was demolished to make way for construction of the chapel.
In May 1926, the chapel's 2,063 lb (936 kg) bell, manufactured by the McShane Bell Foundry Company, Inc. of Baltimore, Maryland was installed in the belfry (for the total cost of $1,685).
During the construction of the chapel's tower, rumors had been circulated that it was unstable. After some investigation engineers reported that the tower's structure was more than sufficient, explaining that the tower's interior corner wooden columns and their connecting castings over the top of the open arches were filled with reinforced concrete.
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