Koppes-Norris House

Date

1909-2011 (private); 2011-present (college)

Location

285 East College Street

Architects/Collaborators

Keith Company Architects, Columbus, OH? (architects)

Style

Victorian: Queen Anne

History

From about 1927 to 1942, this architect-designed house with a wrap-around porch was owned by Karl Wilson Gehrkens, head of the Conservatory's school music education program for 35 years. It had several more owners before it was purchased in 1987 by Professors Clayton Koppes and William Norris, life partners for 35 years. In 1993, Koppes and Norris began a significant renovation and redecoration process that enhanced the home's Victorian and Craftsman characteristics. They also upgraded the garden and landscaping, and repainted the exterior. Together Koppes and Norris hosted many college functions, receptions, fund raisers and parties. In 2011, Professors Koppes and Norris gifted their restored home to the College to be used as a residence for the Dean of Students and a community space. Their hospitality tradition will continue under the Dean of Student's residency.

Koppes and Norris were leaders on issues affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered people at Oberlin. Norris joined the faculty in 1978, served as Chair of the Sociology Department and the Standing Committee on Pluralism and Equality, and was the founding chair of the Comparative American Studies Program. He retired in 2008, and passed away in April 2014 in Cleveland. Clayton Koppes, who also joined the College in 1978, was a Professor of History who served in various administrative positions at Oberlin from 1996 to 2004, including Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, Provost, and, in 2000, Acting President.

Sources

"Emeritus Professor William P. Norris, 1943-2014," Oberlin OnCampus (web), Oberlin College, April 14, 2014, accessed July 16, 2015.

Ohio HIstoric Inventory by Petersen, T. Reeves, and M. Surovy, Ohio State Historic Preservation Office, August 19, 2003. Accessed from the Oberlin Heritage Center website, July 16, 2015.