Kirkland Hall

Kirkland Hall, designed by William Crawford Smith, was built in 1874 as the first teaching building at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee. Located on the then 74-acre Vanderbilt's Main Campus, it burned down in 1905 due to a large fire and was rebuilt in 1906. In the following years, many renovations and reconstructions took place on a variety of scales. In 2015, the FUTURE VU Initiative was proposed, with one of the projects being the Kirkland Hall renovation. Initially projected to be completed in October 2023, the project was only finalized in the early months of 2024.

The original Kirkland Hall - also named Main Building, Old Main, University Hall, and College Hall - was built originally in Victorian Gothic style, with two towers flanking the centered gable, here protruding out, much like a pediment. After the 1905 fire, Kirkland Hall was rebuilt in Italianate style, with only one tower reconstructed. A new bell was funded to replace the previous old bell with donations from alumni, Vanderbilt students, and across Nashville. In 1937, chancellor James Hampton Kirkland ended his leadership and he died on August 5, 1939. The board, out of respect for his contributions to the University, renamed the building from Old Main (called College Hall in recent years) to Kirkland Hall.

Until March 2024, the Kirkland Hall renovation has still remained closed, allegedly due to construction. Protests took place inside and outside of the building, leading to several students suspended.