Old Main (Washington & Jefferson College)

Old Main
Old Main in its current configuration
Former names	"New College" "Main Hall" "College Hall"
General information
Architectural style	Romanesque Revival, Victorian
Coordinates	40°10′14.7″N 80°14′29.5″W / 40.170750°N 80.241528°W / 40.170750; -80.241528
Construction started	1834
Completed	ca. 1836

Old Main is the main academic building at Washington & Jefferson College. It is the predominant building on campus and has served virtually every student since its construction. Its two identical towers, added in 1875, symbolize the union of Washington College and Jefferson College to form Washington & Jefferson College. The towers appear on the College seal, in a stylized version. The College fundraising operation founded "The Old Main Society" in 1996 to recognize individuals who utilize planned giving.

The building currently houses the academic departments of mathematics, history, religious studies, and political science. The office of the College Chaplain, called the "Pastor's Study," is on the ground floor and was used as a main setting for the 1993 George A. Romero film, The Dark Half. Room E contains one of the College's computer labs. The campus' Office of Campus and Public Safety are headquartered in Old Main.

The trustees of Washington College approved the initial construction of the "New College" in 1834, with the plan calling for a three-story academic building. From 1847 to 1850, an additional phase of construction added a dome, two new wings, and a new facade. In 1865, Washington College merged with Jefferson College in nearby Canonsburg, with the unified college being situated in Washington. To commemorate the union of these two formerly competing colleges, a new front building, a fourth floor, and two towers were added to the building in 1875. During the 20th century, various construction projects refurbished the building or re-purposed older rooms for new purposes.

Plans for the construction of Old Main began on March 13, 1834, when the Board of Trustees of Washington College approved a motion to build a building, with a maximum budget of $6,500. Since only $5,000 of the construction cost was to come from general College funds, a fundraising committee was appointed on March 26, 1835 to solicit donations. The specific dates of groundbreaking and completion are unknown, but it was used for commencement ceremonies in 1836. Upon its completion, the building stood three stories high and had facilities for large gatherings on the first floor and classrooms on the second and third. This initial phase of construction survives in the original building as the center-rear portion. The new building was called "the New College," to distinguish it from the College's original building, McMillan Hall. A second early phase of construction took place between 1847 and 1850, when the building received two additional wings, a dome, and a colonial facade to match that of McMillan Hall.