Since the day this campus map was drawn in 1876, the Gettysburg College footprint has more than doubled in size, substantially multiplying its less-than-90 student enrollment—all of whom were male at the time—to a diverse enrollment of 2,517 in the fall of 2021. It has grown into a campus with a multitude of academic and co-curricular opportunities.
Several of the buildings highlighted on the preserved map remain erect to this day. However, they are now known by new names, have undergone renovations, and were converted to satisfy varying purposes over the years.
As noted on the map, “College” is our historic Pennsylvania Hall. The then-President’s House later housed the Political Science Department and is now the Alumni House. The “Prep Department”—also known as Stevens Hall upon its dedication to Thaddeus Stevens in 1868—has long served as a dormitory.
Others, including the College’s first gymnasium building, Professor’s House, the arbors once positioned nearby the College (Pennsylvania Hall), Linnean Hall, the Janitor’s House, and the College Observatory were demolished in the 1800s and 1900s. These earliest College buildings have since faded into the history of our landscape—now remembered through photographs and archaeological research.
Our latest campus map, updated this year, is smattered with new facilities. As the new intermingles with the old, it helps us put this nearly 200-year evolution of campus into perspective.
by Molly Foster
Posted: 06/01/22
