Thursday Doors: Willamette University

In honor of my daughter’s starting her freshman year at Willamette University in Salem OR, for this week’s post I am going to show some Willamette doors. 

Baxter Hall, a dorm where many freshmen live, including my daughter

Until I moved to the US west coast I did not know much about the school, but I did read about it in Loren Pope’s excellent college guidance book, Colleges That Change Lives. I liked the fact that it is considered student centered, that teaching is a priority for the professors and several of them have won Oregon statewide teaching awards, that class sizes are small, that no one gets lost in the shuffle. More importantly, my daughter wanted to attend a small school like that rather than a big, potentially impersonal, state university.

Waller Hall tree entrance

Waller Hall: doors on doors

Waller Hall

Waller Hall, the oldest building on campus. Built in the Renaissance style of architecture, it is currently used for administration offices and is also the oldest university building west of the Mississippi in the US still in use. Designed in the shape of a Greek cross, each side has the same measurements and the top has a cupola.

After we moved I got to know a friend whose son went to Willamette and loved it, which moved it up the list a little further. They also taught me how to pronounce the name (“It’s Wil-LAM-it, dammit”). I have relatives in Seattle so I had visited the Pacific Northwest periodically when I was growing up and I knew that it is a beautiful area, but the weather is a bit different than in California. Our visit to the area a year and a half ago, during which it rained virtually non-stop, confirmed both impressions.

August in Salem was beautiful, warm, and sunny. The campus is a mix of older and newer architectural styles.

Eaton Hall, a late-Gothic style building that houses humanities classrooms

The Collins Science Center

The Pelton Theater entrance reminds us of our time in China, with its female and male lions guarding the entrance:

M Lee Pelton Theater

Willamette’s library is named after Mark O Hatfield, a Willamette alumnus, professor, Oregon State Governor, and Oregon’s longest-serving US Senator.

And here are a few other doors that I thought were especially remarkable or pretty as I walked around campus:

Gatke Hall: administrative offices

Ford Hall: classrooms, offices, and labs

Lausanne Hall: a coed residence hall for sophomores, juniors, and seniors

Walton Hall: humanities classrooms

Putnam University Center: student center with mail room, credit union, stores, offices, etc

Before I left campus, I bought this car magnet for the rear hatch door of my car. It says “Willamette University mom,” and has a pawprint from the university’s mascot, the bearcats.

Go Bearcats!

Thursday Doors is a weekly feature allowing door lovers to come together to admire and share their favorite door photos from around the world! This week it is hosted by Jolene at Joeyfully Stated while Norm 2.0 is on vacation. Her post shows a secret “cow path” where the students trod on a different campus.