The Liberal Arts Quadrangle

At the center of the upper campus is the Liberal Arts Quadrangle, usually called "the Quad". It features wide walkways, cherry trees, and stately brick buildings.

Gowen Hall

Gowen Hall was formerly the site of the School of Law and now houses the Departments of Asian Languages and Literature, Political Science, and the East Asian Library. Built in 1932, it was dedicated in 1977 to the memory of Herbert H. Gowen, an Episcopal minister who was the first, and for many years the only, professor in the Department of Oriental Studies.

From 1909 until his retirement in 1944, he taught the history and literature of China, Japan, India, and the Near East, as well as Sanskrit, Arabic, Hebrew, and the history of religion. He also served in the pulpits of most of the Episcopalian churches in Seattle. He was alleged to have read a book a day, and students and faculty members remember seeing him stroll across the campus, head down reading, pockets sagging with the weight of still more books to be read. Gowen continued his learning habits until the day of his death in 1960 at the age of 96.

Smith Hall

Twenty-eight gargoyles by Dudley Pratt adorn Smith Hall:

Six figures at the east entrance symbolize humankind's primitive needs.
Figures on the southeast corner depict the primitive concepts of weather.
Those at the northeast corner symbolize the power and war of Europe, the knowledge of the Orient, the intelligent democracy of the United States, and the magic of Africa.
The two groups on the north side reflect Seattle's early history and Seattle in 1940, the year the hall was completed.

Smith Hall houses the Departments of History, Geography, and Slavic Languages and Literatures. It was named for James Allen Smith, who was member of the political science faculty from 1897 to 1924 and served as Dean of the Graduate School for 11 of those years. He was noted for his unorthodox views on colonial history and was an important influence in launching the Progressive Movement led by Theodore Roosevelt.

Savery Hall

The north section of Savery Hall was constructed in 1917 and the south end in 1920. It is the home of the Departments of Philosophy, Sociology, and Economics.

It was dedicated in 1947 to the memory of William Savery, who was head of the Department of Philosophy from his arrival on campus in 1902 until his death in 1945. Savery was noted for his teaching skills and his ability to relate to students. At least a dozen of his former students went on to become professors of philosophy in other prestigious universities.

Miller Hall

Winlock W. Miller Hall is the home of the College of Education. It was the the university's administration building when it was built in 1922. In 1954 it was dedicated to Winlock W. Miller, the regent who served the longest term in the history of the board, from 1913 to 1957, except for an eight-year period. As a regent he was chair of the Building and Grounds committee and was known as the "protector of campus beauty."

Raitt Hall

Effie I. Raitt, for whom Raitt Hall was named, was a woman with an enterprising talent for organization. When she became director of the School of Home Economics in 1912, it consisted of one other instructor and was housed in a leaky shack on the western edge of campus. Determined to obtain a new building for the three-year-old school, Professor Raitt enlisted the aid of the Federated Women's Clubs in the state and lobbied the legislature. Nor was she above a bit of gentle guile. She invited legislators to a luncheon in the shack and, as luck would have it, it was a rainy day. The roof leaked steadily, lunch was soggy, and a few days later the legislature of 1915 appropriated funds for a new structure for home economics. Professor Raitt guided the school until her death in 1945.

Today the Speech Communications, Scandanavian Studies, and Nutritional Sciences are headquartered in Raitt, the first building in the Quad and the first of architect Carl Gould's several collegiate-Gothic campus buildings.

Central Campus Tour