Cole Memorial Chapel

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The Primary façade of the Cole Memorial Chapel is to serve as a community building for Wheaton College. It is used to host different events, including religious services, concerts, and school assemblies. Notably it is where first year students go to sign the Honor Code, and where fourth year students go for closing convocation. This makes the Chapel a symbol as a place to begin and end their college careers, in addition to a community center. It can hold nine hundred people at max capacity for big events, and houses smaller offices in its basement for cultural organizations. Cram, Goodhue, and Ferguson constructed it for the college in in 1917. The Chapel is on the elongated side of what is referred to as a “Court of Honor”, a symmetrical shape…show more content…
The tallest point of the structure is the tower, which extends one hundred and forty feet off the ground. The design of the Chapel is made up of both historical themes that include round, and blocky, and pointy shapes. The front of the building demonstrates this mix-match of shapes that harmonize symmetrically across the face. On the elevated sketch one can see the ionic pillars and rounded windows above them. These refer back to roman architecture, yet they collide with the blocky windows above and too the side of the door. The windows flanking the door are completely square, yet they have a keystone set at the top of each, as seen on the elevation sketch. This creates a contrast between the Romanesque and modern architecture. Furthermore there is gothic architecture along the spire. The points along the railing, and the pointiness of the spire itself throw the building back in time to the Gothic era. A last detail about the spire is the structure right underneath the point that resembles a French gazebo from a Folly, giving the spire a whimsical image on top of its majestic height. The combination of Romanesque, Gothic, and modern architecture collide to show that while the Chapel is a building of traditional faith, it is also one of education and forward thinking. The sides and back of the Chapel have similar features, the main difference being that the windows to the basement are indented,…show more content…
The ceiling is shorter and the designs are uniform. Each doorframe is rectangular and indents the door, giving the basement a more modern feel. There is a community meeting room that sits directly below the chapel, although it is neither as wide nor long. The space around the meeting room has been made into hallway that lead to the back and smaller rooms for storage and office space. Like the rest of the chapel the walls and ceiling are completely white. Most of the walls and doors are made of plaster and wood. The only abnormal parts of the basement are the outside walls. They are made of brick, like the exterior. However they are painted over and there is a part of the wall where inexplicably the bricks form a keystone arch over a plastered bit of wall near the floor. The purpose of this design must have been to create an older feel. Perhaps that space once served the Chapel in some way before it was renovated. The stairs that lead to the upper and lower levels are located at each corner of the Chapel. This symmetry is not accidental, although it also serves the need of fire escapes. The stairs themselves are white with rounded wooden handrails that match every door in the

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