Henry Crown Field House is an athletic facility on the campus of the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chic ...

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. Construction of the building took place in 1931 on land owned by the university. The cost of construction, however; was covered by Material Service Corporation CEO and philanthropist,

Henry Crown Henry Crown (; June 13, 1896 – August 14, 1990) was an American industrialist and philanthropist. Among other things, he founded the Material Service Corporation, which merged with General Dynamics in 1959. At the time of his death, he was a ...

. Under the direction of architects

Holabird & Root The architectural firm now known as Holabird & Root was founded in Chicago in 1880. Over the years, the firm has changed its name several times and adapted to the architectural style then current — from Chicago School to Art Deco to Modern ...

, the field house was built as a replacement for Bartlett Gymnasium to be the home of the

Chicago Maroons men's basketball The Chicago Maroons men's basketball team is an NCAA Division III college basketball team competing in the University Athletic Association. Home games are played at the Gerald Ratner Athletics Center, located on the University of Chicago's campus ...

team, as well as an indoor practice facility with a dirt infield that was utilized for football and baseball practices. A track encircled the infield and a raised wood floor that was used for basketball. In 2003, the team moved into the newly built Gerald Ratner Athletics Center, and the building was remodeled to become a full-time

intramural Intramural sports are recreational sports organized within a particular institution, usually an educational institution, or a set geographic region. The term, which is chiefly North American, derives from the Latin words ''intra muros'' meaning " ...

facility. The building also contains a fitness center with resistance and weight training equipment, a cardio hallway with 34 cardio machines (treadmills, ellipticals, rowers, steppers, step mills), a 200-meter indoor track, four multi-purpose courts for basketball, volleyball, indoor soccer, and tennis, an Astro-turfed multi-purpose room, five squash courts, and four racquetball/handball courts. Upon its completion, the field house was located just north of the original Stagg Field, at University Avenue and 56th Street. The building measured 368 feet long and 165 feet wide. The interior was a single great arena with no obstructions. The height from the clay floor to the centerline of the trusses was fifty feet. There was a 220-yard track with a 100-yard straightaway surrounding a raised wooden basketball floor measuring 110 feet by 62 feet. Removable bleachers gave a seating capacity of 3,500. There are locker rooms in the basement which provide accommodations for 500 athletes. The building utilized a Gothic design, with an exterior of Indiana limestone harmonizing with the other university buildings.

References

External links

Historic images of the Henry Crown Field House

Current images of the Henry Crown Field House

University of Chicago, Henry Crown Field House Information
* {{Chicago Maroons men's basketball navbox Athletics (track and field) venues in Chicago Basketball venues in Chicago College indoor track and field venues in the United States Indoor track and field venues in Illinois Indoor arenas in Chicago Sports venues in Chicago Tennis venues in Chicago Volleyball venues in Chicago Defunct college basketball venues in the United States Chicago Maroons basketball Projects by Holabird & Root 1931 establishments in Illinois Sports venues completed in 1931