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Constructed: 1967
Architect: Frank C. Shattuck and M. F. Siewert and Associates of Neenah
Contractor: Oscar J. Boldt Construction Company
Named for: Ruth DeYoung Kohler, Lawrence trustee, 1945-1953
Kohler Hall, seven stories high and nicknamed the "high-rise dorm," was first occupied in September, 1967 by 125 women. It remained a women's residence hall until the 1974-75 school year. At the dedication, several items unique to 1967 were placed in the copper cornerstone box: several commemorative stamps of the year (Davy Crockett, Henry Thoreau and an astronaut making a space walk), and a bright copper penny minted in 1967. Other artifacts included a copy of "Kohler Hall Philosophy and Proposals for Use of Facilities," a rooming list of the first 125 women to occupy the building, and a sheet of instructions for using the new key card system. Kohler residents were able to gain access to the building after normal closing hours by inserting a sensitized card into a slot which automatically opened the main entrance. Kohler was the first dormitory at Lawrence to have key privileges.
Marguerite Schumann '44, Director of Publicity and Publications, wrote that "in response to student wishes for privacy in their social life, the design includes a number of small-scale public rooms instead of a few large ones. In Kohler Hall there is a living room on each of its seven floors, there are eight kitchens for student use, and seven other public-access rooms of varying sizes and functions". The inside of the building was described as a "pillar of white-white walls in every room, white draperies at every window-and against the white has been laid the subtle tones of autumn earth, forest and sky." While the student rooms were white, the inner area of each floor had a key color which was repeated in the living room furniture and carpet, the bath and the kitchenette.
Ruth DeYoung Kohler, after whom the building is named, was a trustee of Lawrence University from 1945 until her death in 1953. After graduating Phi Beta Kappa cum laude from Smith College, she pursued a career in journalism as a member of the Chicago Tribune reporting staff, ultimately serving as women's editor from 1933-37. During this time, she covered the women's view of three national political conventions and conducted an annual Women's Congress on current affairs which brought to Chicago speakers of international renown. After her marriage to Herbert V. Kohler, she became an expert on Wisconsin frontier history and authored two books on Wisconsin history. She also organized a major historical display for the Wisconsin state centennial and supervised for the Kohler Foundation the restoration of Wade House, a 19th century wayside inn at Greenbush.
Kohler Hall currently houses 120 male and female students.
Search LUCIA for Kohler, Ruth Miriam De Young.