Holtzendorff Hall Clemson University

As with most large public institutions Clemson University has not always been known for its proactive preservation efforts. While much of the campus has retained its historic architectural resources and has been nominated to the National Register, sites like Fort Hill have received large scale restoration efforts but the majority of campus buildings are maintained with a focus on academic use making preservation concerns secondary. This had resulted in the campus losing some of its historic integrity and becoming very homogeneous. In 2015 the University undertook the exterior restoration of Holtzendorff Hall, built in 1915 it is the first of Rudolf Lee's Italian Renaissance buildings on campus. Holtzendorff had received multiple unsympathetic renovations over the years including the removal of many of the large wood casement windows on the front fai;ade of the building and replacing them with single sheets of glass in aluminum frames. This sort of wholesale removal of details and replacement with low maintenance materials regardless of design had been the rule not the exception up until this project. The replacement of the remaining original windows was ruled out and the decision was made to refurbish them. The previously replaced windows were removed and new wood replacements were installed that match the original plans for the building. In the course of the refurbishment the original two tone color scheme was found in documentary photos and on the building, the decision was made to repaint the building in its original color scheme despite the fact that the entire campus had been painted snow white for decades.

The rehabilitation of Holtzendorff Hall was well received by students and alumni alike and led the University to begin to reconsider their cyclical maintenance priorities in the future