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Stanford University, Main Quadrangle, Stanford, CA (1886-1891)
AKA: Stanford Quad, Stanford, CA
Structure Type: built works - public buildings - schools - university buildings
Designers: Shepley, Rutan, and Coolidge, Architects (firm); Charles Allerton Coolidge Sr. (architect); Charles Hercules Rutan (architect); George Foster Shepley Sr. (architect)
Dates: constructed 1886-1891
Portrait of Leland, Sr., Jane and Leland, Jr., Stanford, Paris, c. 1882; from Stanford University, photo by Walery
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Stanford University's Main Quadrangle was one of the earliest projects for the Boston firm of Shepley, Rutan, and Coolidge; Henry Hobson Richardson (born 09/29/1838), the great Boston architect, had obtained the commission for Stanford originally, but he died in Brookline, MA, on 04/27/1886 before work had proceeded; it then went to his successor firm, led by employees George Foster Shepley, Sr., (1861-1903), Charles Hercules Rutan (1851-1914), and Charles Allerton Coolidge, Sr., (1858-1936); Coolidge was the lead designer on the Stanford commission, and spent extended periods in Palo Alto during the 1880s.
Numerous alterations have occurred to the Quad over the years; serious seismic rehabilitation work followed the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake, which lasted approximately ten years; due to the 1989 quake, the Geology Corner of the Quad was demolished and painstakingly rebuilt.
PCAD id: 1683
"Architectural strategies in seismic design", Architectural Record, 174: 2, 136-143, 1986-02. Gaines, Thomas A., Campus as a Work of Art, 37, 123, 125, 1991. "Five Millions Loss in San Jose Alone", Los Angeles Times, I9, 04/21/1906. Donhauser, Peter L., "Shepley, Rutan, and Cooldige", Macmillan Encyclopedia of Architects, 4: 51-52, 1982. Longstreth, Richard W., On the Edge of the World, 29, 1998. Edwards, Brian, University Architecture, 15, 17, 18, 72, plate 3, 2000.
Faculty Essay: The Stanfords' vision of their university: Was it appropriate?
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