| Hamilton Hall | |
|---|---|
 The facade of Hamilton Hall at the entrance, with thestatue of Alexander Hamilton prominent in front of the building | |
 Interactive map of Hamilton Hall | |
| General information | |
| Architectural style | Neoclassical |
| Coordinates | 40°48′24.66″N73°57′42.14″W / 40.8068500°N 73.9617056°W /40.8068500; -73.9617056 |
| Current tenants | Columbia College |
| Year built | 1905–1907 |
| Owner | Columbia University |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | McKim, Mead & White |
Hamilton Hall is an academic building on theMorningside Heights campus ofColumbia University on College Walk (West 116th Street) at 1130Amsterdam Avenue inManhattan, New York City, serving as the home ofColumbia College. It was built in 1905–1907 and was designed byMcKim, Mead & White in theNeoclassical style; the building was part of the firm's original master plan for the campus. The building was the gift of theJohn Stewart Kennedy, a former trustee of Columbia College,[1] and is named afterAlexander Hamilton, who attendedKing's College, Columbia's original name. Astatue of Hamilton byWilliam Ordway Partridge stands outside the building entrance. Hamilton Hall is the location of theColumbia College administrative offices.[2]
Hamilton Hall has been occupied at several times by student protest movements at Columbia: it was occupied and renamedMalcolm X Liberation College in honor ofMalcolm X in1968;[3]Mandela Hall forNelson Mandela in 1985;[4] andHind's Hall forHind Rajab in2024.[5]
The original Hamilton Hall was built in 1878 in theGothic Revival style and located onMadison Avenue between 49th and 50th streets on the college's formerMidtown campus, directly across 50th Street from theVillard Houses. It was five stories tall and had an elaborateturret at its northwest corner.[6][7] The property of Columbia's former Midtown campus was sold in 1898.[8] The Berkeley School relocated from West 44th Street to occupy the southern half of Hamilton Hall, where it remained until 1902 when the property was sold and the school relocated to a new site on theUpper West Side.[8][9][10][11]
When Columbia became a university and relocated toMorningside Heights in the 1890s, there were originally no plans for the area south of 116th Street, where Hamilton Hall now sits, or for any facilities dedicated to the undergraduate college. Nevertheless, college advocates persevered and the cornerstone for the new Hamilton Hall was laid in 1905. The building was designed by the firm ofMcKim, Mead, and White in theneoclassical style, in conformity with the rest of the university campus.[12][13] It was completed in 1907.[14]
Hamilton Hall has undergone extensive renovations in order to restore many of its historic details. Two stained glass windows depictingSophocles andVirgil, gifts from the class of 1885 and 1891, respectively, were installed in the Hamilton Hall lobby in 2003, having sat in storage for nearly 60 years.[15] The building houses many of the classes of Columbia College'sCore Curriculum.
Starting in the latter half of the 20th century, Hamilton Hall was taken over several times in the course of student activism at Columbia University, first during theprotests of April 1968. In the course of this protest, a multiracial group first barricaded themselves inside the building, imprisoning acting deanHenry S. Coleman in his office. The black students renamed the building "Malcolm X Liberation College" and eventually asked the white students to leave,[16] prompting the latter's takeover of several other university buildings. After the violent end to the April activities, Hamilton was the most peacefully cleared hall but was briefly reoccupied in May 1968.[17]
The building was then the site of a major 1985 student strike and barricade to demand university divestment fromSouth Africa, which was under theapartheid system at the time, as well as ethnic studies classes at the university. During the 1985 strike, the building was renamed "Mandela Hall" by the occupying students.[18][19]
In April 2024, a group of students, staff, alumni, who had been participating ina tent encampment protesting theGaza war occupied the hall.[20][21] During the occupation of Hamilton, protesters unfurled a large banner and renamed the building "Hind's Hall" in reference toHind Rajab, a five-year-old Palestinian girl killed by theIsrael Defense Forces.[21][22] The hall was forcibly cleared by theNew York Police Department on the evening of April 30, 2024.[23] American musicianMacklemore released an anti-warprotest song, "Hind's Hall," in reference to the slain child and the occupation of the hall.[24]
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