McDaniel College, Lewis Hall Renovation

Westminster, Maryland

Firm

Marshall Craft Associates, Inc.

Client

McDaniel College

Area

63,208 sq.ft.

Total Cost

$6,750,000

Completion Date

09/2001

As the first building constructed following the Olmsted Brothers’ campus plan for McDaniel College, Lewis Recitation Hall (c. 1914) is a campus treasure. The challenge in renovating it was to preserve the integrity of this Maryland Historical Trust building and the contiguous New Lewis Hall (c. 1965) while adapting them as 21st-century learning spaces.
Old and New Lewis halls have 63,000 square feet of space redesigned for a variety of modern learning experiences: multimedia and computer classrooms; an auditorium; biology, chemistry, physics, electronic and laser labs; a greenhouse and potting room; a television studio; and traditional seminar rooms, offices and commons. Modern mechanical and data systems were integrated into the historic structures.
Interior designers preserved wood paneling, moldings, doors, transoms and decorative tin ceilings and complemented original trim with salvaged materials, new finishes, and cork and tile flooring. A new limestone, open-spaced two-story north entrance uses glass and multiple light sources to balance the original wood paneling. One classroom recalls campus history with slate blackboards and circa-1865 wrought-iron desk supports for wooden benches, updated with new writing tables and seat spacing for the comfort of modern students.