| Additional Information: | A 'site file' (Bascom Hill Historic District) exists for this property. It contains additional information such as correspondence, newspaper clippings, or historical information. It is a public record and may be viewed in person at the Wisconsin Historical Society, Division of Historic Preservation-Public History.
Assembly Hall and Library is contributing to the Bascom Hill Historic District, NR listed 1974, NRIS #: 74000065
"A church-like edifice, Music Hall, was designed by D. R. Jones, a Madison architect. Originally known as Assembly Hall, it was built in 1879 for $40,000. It was used for all departments and housed the University Library. Its auditorium housed lectures, plays, recitals, operas, and concerts. It was here that the celebrated "Wild Bill" Kiekhofer introduced many generations of sophomores to the mysteries of economics. Music Hall once was home for the School of Music, established in 1894, which has now moved to larger quarters in the Humanities Building. Opera productions, including many new and rarely-staged old operas, have been performed in the hall since the early 1960s. Renovation of the auditorium, with a grant from the Oscar Rennebohm Foundation through the UW Foundation, was completed in October 1985. Music Hall also houses Urban and Regional Planning.
The two-story Victorian Gothic structure, with its steep roof, incorporated detail by inlay-ed red stone on sandstone over doors and windows rather than the traditional carved tracery. Though only two remain, all of the large arched windows were once stained glass with "secular interpretations." The clock tower, with its four outside dials, keeps accurate time (originally through an elaborate system utilizing a telegraph line linking it to Washburn Observatory) and chimes on the hour." University of Wisconsin-Madison, University of Wisconsin-Madison Tour Guide, 1988. |
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