Dartmouth celebrates opening of six new facilities

Posted 10/12/00

Dartmouth formally opened six new facilities in three days Oct. 5-7, including the new Berry Library, McCulloch Hall (a major new undergraduate residence hall) and four new athletics facilities which form an integrated complex: the Boss Tennis Center, the Gordon Pavilion, Scully-Fahey Field and Blackman Fields. Dartmouth President James Wright presided over the Berry Library and McCulloch Hall events, while Dean of the College James Larimore presided over the dedication of the athletics facilities.

Berry Library

The activities began Oct. 5 with a ribbon-cutting at Berry Library, to celebrate the opening of the facility. Completion of Berry marks the first step in a process that will include renovation of Baker Library and construction of Carson Hall, a new home for Dartmouth's Department of History, on the west side of Berry. Completion of the entire project is planned for the spring of 2002. Once completed, Baker/Berry Library will allow the college to nearly double its library collections, better link its computing services and library services, make the library more a crossroads of campus life and better serve its users. The library is named for the late John W. Berry '44, whose 1992 gift of $25 million -- the largest individual gift in Dartmouth's history -- led a combined gift from several donors that ultimately totaled $37 million for the new library. John Berry's son George Berry '66, who was among those donors, was present for the event, as were a number of other members of the Berry family.

McCulloch Hall

On Oct. 6, Norman E. (Sandy) McCulloch Jr. '50 and his wife Dorothy (Dotty) McCulloch joined President Wright and others for the dedication of McCulloch Hall, which will house approximately 80 undergraduates on the east side of campus and provide enhanced social and programming space. Located along North Park Street, McCulloch Hall is the latest building in the East Wheelock Cluster of undergraduate residence halls, which house more than 300 students plus a group of faculty, staff and graduate student advisors. Students living in cluster residence halls are part of a community of scholars who discover common intellectual interests and are able to extend those interests far beyond the classroom. McCulloch is Chairman of the Rhode Island Foundation, one of the nation's largest community foundations. He served on the Dartmouth Board of Trustees from 1975-1988, the last two years of that time as its Chair.

Boss Tennis Center, Gordon Pavilion, Scully-Fahey Field, Blackman Fields

Finally, on Oct. 7 the College held dedication ceremonies for an integrated complex of new athletics facilities off South Park Street behind Thompson Arena: the Boss Tennis Center and Gordon Pavilion, Scully-Fahey Field and Blackman Fields. The tennis center features six indoor regulation doubles tennis .5courts and a variety of amenities that make it one of the most advanced tennis centers in the nation. The center is named by Marjorie and Russell Boss '61 and their family in memory of their daughter, the late Alexis Boss '93, who was a five-time All-Ivy League tennis player at Dartmouth. Gordon Pavilion, which links the tennis and field sports facilities, is central to the entire complex. It houses a reception area, lounge, tennis viewing mezzanine, tennis and field sport locker rooms and a training room. The pavilion is the gift of Lynn and Alan D. Gordon '77. (Alan Gordon played on Dartmouth's tennis and squash teams as an undergraduate.) Scully-Fahey is the home of Dartmouth's field hockey and lacrosse teams,with an all-weather artificial turf field, lighting and seating for 1,500 spectators. The facility was given by the families of Alma and Donald Scully '49 and Helen and Peter Fahey '68. The Scully gift was made in memory of the late Tom Dent, who coached Dartmouth soccer from 1924-60 and became the first lacrosse coach at the College in 1926. His lacrosse teams won ten New England championships and Dent compiled what is still the best coaching record in the history of Dartmouth lacrosse. Blackman Fields encompasses two practice fields for Dartmouth's varsity football team, featuring the latest in athletic field technology. The fields were given by an anonymous donor in memory of the late Bob Blackman '37A, football head coach at Dartmouth from 1955-70, whose teams won seven of the first 15 Ivy League championships and who still holds the record for the most wins by any coach in Dartmouth football history.