President's House

Date

1920-1927 (private); 1927-present (college)

Location

154 Forest Street

Architects/Collaborators

Clarence Ward, Oberlin (architect)
J.B. Tucker (contractor)

Style

Georgian Revival

History

Designed by Oberlin College art professor Clarence Ward, this house was built for physics professor Samuel R. Williams. The contractor, J.B. Tucker, completed the house in 1920. Williams left Oberlin College for a position at Amherst College in 1924. In 1927 the college bought the house as a home for college presidents, beginning with President Ernest Hatch Wilkins (president from 1927-1946). This house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as part of the Oberlin College thematic nomination in 1978. It was listed by the City of Oberlin as an Oberlin City Landmark in November of 1997.

Sources

Oberlin College Archives, Office of the Secretary Records.

Ohio Historic Inventory for Oberlin College President's House by M. Fedelchak-Harley and L. Previll, Ohio State Historic Preservation Office, September 15, 2000, accessed from the Oberlin Heritage Center website, May 27, 2015.