HISTORIC PROJECT SPOTLIGHT: The University of the South

All Saints’ Chapel – University of the South

With the mercury rising to consistent highs of 100 degrees last week, we at Kirby Stone Company, LLC are taking meteorology into our own hands by assuming summer in Texas is officially upon us! While the summer typically means students don’t have to think about school anymore until August or September, Kirby Stone Company’s article this week focuses on a natural sandstone stone project that has been recognized by organizations as one of America’s Most Beautiful Campuses. Today we will delve into some of the details surrounding Tennessee’s very own University of the South.

Walsh Ellet Hall – University of the South

The Project

Originally founded in 1857, the University of the South, which is fondly referred to as simply “Sewanee” to many of the school’s current enrollees, the opening of the school was delayed until 1868 due to the Civil War. However, the University of the South was strongly supported by several benefactors in the United States as well as England noting the Southern United States needed an Episcopal presence.

McClurg Dining Hall – University of the South

The first class of the University of the South began with nine students and four faculty members. However, the deeply embedded history of Sewanee in intercollegiate sports, the numerous additions and improvements to campus and the university’s dedication to education and its Episcopal belief system has helped Sewanee grow to the over 1,500 students and become one of the top liberal arts colleges in the United States.

The Stone

All of the natural sandstone used for the University of the South’s gothic architecture is inherently Tennessee. While many of the notable natural sandstone projects around the campus date back to the early 20th century, there are also several newer projects that boast many of the same ideas in design, including the McClurg Dining Hall.

McClurg Dining Hall – University of the South

The natural sandstone product used for the University of the South’s McClurg Dining Hall was all quarried in Tennessee. With over 2,000 tons of stone, much of the sandstone was quarried right on the Domain, the area’s common name for the 13,000 forested acres of campus. Additional sandstone product was quarried from surrounding Tennessee areas.

The meticulous nature with which the natural sandstone has been applied to the University of the South, even with their newer buildings, gives the campus an old world, Cambridge feel without ever having to leave their own backyard. Now that is GREEN! It is no wonder that the campus’ unique appearance through the use of indigenous natural sandstone consistently lands the University of the South near the top of “Most Beautiful Campus” surveys!

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