Image of the Week

Our series examining an Image of the Week from the photographic files, by Kevin Warstadt, Edward Connery Lathem ’51 Digital Library Fellow.

Dartmouth Hall Fire of 1904

Pictured above is the aftermath of the Dartmouth Hall fire of 1904. The fire occurred in February, and is believed to be the result of faulty wiring. Reconstruction began in October of that year and was completed in 1906. The destruction of Dartmouth Hall was particularly devastating at the time, because the building acted as dormitory, classroom, library, and museum.

The hall caught fire again in 1935, after which renovations were performed to fireproof the building. More photos of the 1904 fire and reconstruction and the fire of 1935 can be found in the Dartmouth College Photo Files.