Historic places Archived article from Dec 7, 2001   Last spring, new plaques were hung on 12 of Rutgers' oldest buildings, those recognized by both the national and state registries of historic places. The plaques were the idea of Nicholas G. Rutgers IV, the great-great-great-grandnephew of Col. Henry Rutgers, and were sponsored by various donors. Not surprisingly, six of the buildings are located on the Old Queen's campus, itself a national historic district well-known to the Rutgers community. But six others are scattered across New Brunswick. For those who may not be familiar with these less-central historic structures, here is a brief introduction taken from the plaque inscriptions. COLLEGE HALL (1855) 125 George St. College Hall was originally constructed as a private residence by Levi D. Jarrard, a local merchant and political figure, between 1855 and 1860. John Neilson Carpender, a trustee and graduate of Rutgers College, purchased the brownstone residence in 1880. In April 1918, the building was leased by Rutgers from the Carpender family for the newly established College for Women (now Douglass College) and became known as College Hall. Through the generosity of James Neilson, the mansion was soon purchased for the college. During the early years, College Hall served as a dormitory, classrooms, library, and administrative offices of the college, including the Office of the Dean of Douglass College. New Jersey Register of Historic Places: March 27, 1981 National Register of Historic Places: April 22, 1982 Photo by Alan Goldsmith WOOD LAWN (1830) 191 Ryders Lane Colonel James Neilson built Wood Lawn in 1830 on part of land that his mother's grandfather, Johannis Voorhees, purchased in 1720 from Cornelius Longfield, an early settler in New Brunswick. Alterations to the original house followed in 1850 and again in 1868 after James Neilson, son of Colonel James Neilson, assumed management of the estate in 1862. He built a cottage in 1880 and lived there with his wife until 1905, when they returned to reside in the larger house, to which he made additional alterations. James Neilson died in 1937. He bequeathed his remaining estate to Rutgers University. From 1937 to 1956, Wood Lawn was under the custody of the Associate Alumnae of Douglass College. In August 1956, Wood Lawn became home for the Eagleton Institute of Politics. State Registry of Historic Places: April 15, 1977 National Register of Historic Places: March 8, 1978 Photo by Nick Romanenko BISHOP HOUSE (1852) 115 College Ave. Bishop House, a 42-room mansion that constitutes a fine representation of the Italianate style of architecture, was built for James Bishop. Bishop had large interests in the shipping and rubber industries. He also served as a member of the New Jersey Assembly (1849) and the U.S. Congress (1855-1857). Active in the Republican Party in New Jersey, Bishop later became the first director of the State Bureau of Labor Statistics. The Panic of 1873 created financial troubles for Bishop, and he was obliged to sell his mansion and property to Mahlon Martin in 1874. Rutgers University acquired the property from the Martin estate in 1925. Over the years Bishop House has served as the home for various academic and administrative units for Rutgers College. New Jersey Register of Historic Places: January 9, 1976 National Register of Historic Places: July 12, 1976 Photo by Nick Romanenko ALEXANDER JOHNSTON HALL (1830) 101 Somerset St. Alexander Johnston Hall, the second-oldest building at Rutgers, was designed by Nicholas Wyckoff in 1830 to provide a home for the Rutgers Preparatory School and the two student literary societies, Philoclean and Peithessophian. Forty years later, Henry Janeway Hardenbergh, the architect of Kirkpatrick Chapel and Geology Hall, added a two-story wing to the north side of the building. Subsequently, a third story over the entire structure was added to serve as a gymnasium. The Rutgers Preparatory School remained in the building until 1963, when it moved to its current campus on Easton Avenue. In 1964, the Rutgers Board of Governors renamed the building in honor of Alexander Johnston, an 1870 graduate of Rutgers College who taught classics in the Rutgers Preparatory School for 10 years and wrote extensively on American history. New Jersey Register of Historic Places: March 8, 1975 National Register of Historic Places: July 18, 1975 Photo by Alan Goldsmith NEW JERSEY HALL (1889) 77 Hamilton St. New Jersey Hall, situated on land deeded to Rutgers by James Neilson, was designed by George K. Parsell in 1889. The structure was partially destroyed by fire in 1903, but was restored without essential changes to its original design. Built by the State of New Jersey for the State Agricultural Experiment Station, it also housed the chemistry and biology departments of the college. New Jersey Register of Historic Places: June 5, 1974 National Register of Historic Places: February 24, 1975 Photo by Nick Romanenko DEMAREST HOUSE (1867) 542 George St. This Victorian brownstone was designed by Professor George H. Cook for his family residence in 1867. The building has been referred to by several names, including Riverstede, the name given to it by Cook because of its distinctive view of the Delaware-Raritan canal and Raritan River. Subsequently, the structure became known as Demarest House, named in honor of William Henry Steele Demarest, the first graduate of Rutgers to have served as president (1906-1924), and who lived in the house from 1924 until his death in 1956. New Jersey Register of Historic Places: February 14, 1977 National Register of Historic Places:August 10, 1977 Photo by Nick Romanenko

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