In many ways, Packard Hall is a reflection of the university itself. As the second- oldest building on campus, it began rather modestly, but over the last century-and-a-half it has experienced numerous renovations and additions. Today, it is a diverse mix of architectural styles and will house the political science department when current renovations are completed.
Built in 1856, Packard Hall has served as a dormitory, a library, a dining facility, a theological school, the site of the only known uphill birth, the location of the president's horse and carriage and the home of the English department. It has also been known by many names over the course of its history, including "Building A," "West Hall," "Middle Hall," "Library" and, since 1910, Packard Hall.
Because of its prominent location and history, Packard Hall, along with Ballou Hall, is one of the two historic and symbolic anchors of the Academic Quad. As such, Tufts officials and architects respected its historical importance and tried to preserve its unique aesthetics when drawing up renovation plans.
"When the project was first conceived, there was an intent to restore rather than just renovate," Vice President of Operations John Roberto said. He added that a great emphasis was placed on achieving a "balance [between] ... complying with current codes and accessibility requirements while trying to preserve the architecture of the building."
To that end, the architecture firm in charge of the project, William Rawn Associates, Architects, Inc. of Boston, went to great lengths to ensure that the renovation would reflect the aesthetic history of the structure.
"In its first life, it was very much a simple Georgian Colonial Utility Building," said Douglas Johnston, a principal at the firm and a project architect. "It was basically a brick box with simple rectangular punched windows. And then when it became a more important campus building, quite a few Victorian details were introduced to it, including the ornamental brick work, the conical roof [and] the gothic arched windows that were visible on the north side of the building ... It was a very eclectic building at the time of its original heyday."
With the building having gone through a series of renovations throughout its history, the architects had the tricky task of deciding which features to keep in order to give the building a cohesive look, Johnston said.
"Most people thought that those features of the ornamental brickwork on the front of the building and] the conical roof over the North End ... were some of the building's most memorable features, so those were fully restored rather than being stripped away," he said.
As part of the restoration, not only will the interior of Packard Hall be refurbished, but slate roofing, original to the structure, will be reintroduced to the building. Johnston said this slate is a great addition because it is sustainable and "the slates that are being used on the building are recycled slates that were taken off of a mansion in Brookline [Mass.]. So it's a sort of doubly sustainable material and it ... will continue to live for a very long time happily on the roof of Packard Hall."
In conjunction with the building's restoration, an additional structure containing a fire staircase and an elevator will be added to the building's west side. According to Johnston, this addition will make the building more accessible on all floors and bring it into compliance with modern codes.
In order to ensure that the new addition will blend well with the existing structure, the firm picked a brick that was as close as possible to the style of Packard Hall's south facade -- the one that faces the Academic Quad. The renovation will also focus on increasing the building's energy efficiency by installing new, more insulated windows, which will, according to Johnston, improve the building's "environmental impact."
The renovations are expected to be completed by July.
