In Present-Day Old Main

When Ruth Haas became president, the college was in desperate need for better facilities. Nearly 50 years of use had taken its toll on Old Main as an all-purpose academic building and a visit in 1947 by the Connecticut Education Committee cited that serious renovations would be needed. The gymnasium, assembly hall, science laboratories and lecture hall were judged to be inadequate for the number of students that were at that time attending WestConn.

While much of the building has been repurposed and reconstructed, exploring Old Main today with WCSU Buildings Services staff, one can see details of the original structure hidden within the walls, ceilings, and in some cases in between floors.

Portions of the original gym floor still exists between Old Main's modern day basement and first floor.

Part of the basement ceilings reveal the underside of Old Main's gym floor.

This metal access door on one of Old Main's chimneys is imprinted with the Chelmford Foundry Company's address in Boston, Massachusetts.

Under the insulation in the attic reveals the curved plaster ceiling of the old assembly hall.

Modern equipment, such as this elevator motor, has been integrated into Old Main.