FORD HALL TURNS 100 The first dorm built on the “new” campus back in 1916, Ford has been home to generations of students—as well as countless traditions and epic pranks. BY RICK TELLER ’70
“ The twisting story of how Ford came to be involves a pair of moonlighting alumni, an untimely death, a brother’s loyalty, and a fortune built on galoshes.”
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mid our recent 175th celebration, a Williston landmark quietly achieved another milestone: Ford Hall turned 100. If any building can be said to embody tradition, it must be Ford. Alumni of various generations will recognize references to the Phantom, the Bomb Sight, the Great Newspaper Caper, Couchie’s Carlings, and the mythical Kid Who Was Taught His Colors Wrong. If you have to ask, you weren’t there. It is hard to imagine that a structure so embedded in the fabric of Williston was almost never built. The twisting story of how Ford came to be involves a pair of moonlighting alumni, an untimely death, a brother’s loyalty, and a fortune built on galoshes. It all begins with Headmaster Joseph Sawyer, who in
the early 20th century undertook an ambitious modernization program. Among his goals was to develop the so-called “new” campus on the grounds of Emily and Samuel Williston’s Homestead, a few blocks from the school’s original Main Street location. The centerpiece would be a dormitory befitting the great promise of the young century. Aware of headmaster Sawyer’s campaign, alumni James Sheffield, Class of 1882, and Charles Hill, Class of 1890, took it upon themselves to engage in some freelance fundraising. Their efforts led them to call on John Howard Ford, class of 1873, a successful manufacturer of waterproof rubber shoes. Might Ford be interested in supporting his alma mater with a gift? On the spot, he pledged $100,000—the equivalent of about $2.5 million today. Sheffield
and Hill left, and a short time later Ford walked home in a heavy snowstorm. Chilled to the bone, he fell ill and soon died. While going through the deceased’s account books, his brother and estate executor, James Bishop Ford, discovered an entry about a gift to Williston. Ford promptly wired the full sum to Headmaster Sawyer. It was an astounding act of generosity—all the more so because Sheffield and Hill had never told the school about Ford’s promise! Ground was broken on the new dorm in October 1915. Sawyer wrote to alumni, “This building will establish a high standard for others that will follow. It will have reinforced concrete foundation, walls of red brick with granite corners and cornice, and slate roof. The interior construction will use as little
combustible material as is possible, thus making the building fireproof.” It had iron girders, modern wiring and plumbing, its own infirmary, and a dining hall. Housing three faculty members and 50 students in single rooms and two-person suites when it opened in 1916, Ford was an exemplary structure. The intervening decades have brought many additions and renovations: reconstruction of the kitchen; expansion of faculty apartments; award-winning redesign of the dining commons; new windows, wiring, and common rooms. As Ford’s structure evolved, so too did its character. At first, Ford was known as the Gold Coast, a cushy enclave set apart from the original Main Street campus. Later, it became the privileged Senior Dorm. Overnight, a rivalry was born with brand new Memorial Hall and its population of Upper Middlers and Middlers (i.e., boys in grades
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10 and 11). The resulting water fights were Napoleonic. Peace broke out in 1999, when Mem became a girls’ dorm and Ford began welcoming sophomore and junior boys to live alongside seniors. Through all the changes, headmaster Sawyer’s model residence has aged with grace. At 100, she wears her years well. SPRING 2017 BULLETIN 7