THE NEW ENGINEERING BUILDING OF THE UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA
The new engineering building of the University of Pennsylvania was dedicated on October 19, in the presence of delegates from over one hundred scientific institutions and societies and representatives of six leading foreign nations. The building was open for inspection in the morning, and after luncheon had been served in the building the formal ceremonies took place. > Provost Harrison accepted the building on behalf of the trustees, thanking especially Professors Spangler and Marburg, the heads of the departments of mechanical, electrical and civil engineering that occupy the building, the architects, Messrs. Cope and Stewardson, the workmen and the numerous donors who had made the building possible. The degree of doctor of science was conferred on a number of eminent engineers, and the principal addresses were made by Mr. Frederick W. Taylor, the president of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, and Dr. Alexander C. Humphreys, president of the Stevens Institute of Technology.
The building, a view of which and a general plan of the first floor are shown in the accompanying illustrations, is the largest of the seventy buildings now occupied by the University of Pennsylvania, having a frontage of 300 feet and a depth of 210 feet. The cost, including equipment, was almost one million dollars. It is of fire-proof construction, and the equipment is of the most modern and approved type. The exterior is of dark brick, with limestone trimmings, and the general architectural treatment is in the English-Georgian school, in accord with the later university halls. There are three stories, the total floor area being 128,000 square feet. The heating is by direct steam; the ventilation by electrically-driven fans, and the lighting by electricity. The steam for the engines is supplied from the central station of the university, and, after being used by the engines, is sent into the heating system of the building. There are two principal entrances leading to the main hallway, which extends east and west the entire length of the building to staircases at both extremities. The basement contains locker rooms, lavatories, machinery for heating and ventilating, storage battery rooms, laboratories for geodetic and hydraulic work, and for the testing of the materials of construction. On the first floor, adjacent to the main entrance, are the offices of the heads of departments, the eastern part of the building being devoted entirely to the civil engineering department, and the western part to the mechanical engineering department. Accommodation is also provided for physical and hydraulic testing, instrument testing and for special work in mechanical and electrical engineering. Rooms are likewise set aside for dynamos and electric motors, steam and gas engines, refrigerating apparatus, hydraulic motors, boiler testing, pattern-making, wood and iron working, foundry and machine shops, etc. On the second floor is a reference library and reading room, a students' assembly room, rooms for the use of instructors and for lectures and recitations. The rear portion of this floor is devoted almost wholly to drawing rooms. A room for the use of the engineering societies, a general supply store, and the library stack occupy
