LeConte Hall

LeConte Hall is the former name of a building on the campus of the University of California, Berkeley, which is home to the physics department. LeConte Hall was one of the largest physics buildings in the world at the time it was opened in 1924, and was also the site of the first atom collider, built by Ernest O. Lawrence in 1931.

The building was named in honor of the brothers Joseph and John LeConte, professors of Physics and Geology, who were respectively the first and third presidents of the university. Their last name was removed from the building in 2020 due to their white supremacist views. As of 2021, the university has not decided on a permanent name.

History

In 1924, the university opened LeConte Hall in order to accommodate an enlarged physics department, and to support the hiring of new, talented faculty. One of the newly hired faculty was Ernest Lawrence, who joined the department in 1928. Lawrence, together with students M. S. Livingston and David Sloan built an 11-inch cyclotron and installed it in room 325 LeConte. The device was the first successful, functional cyclotron and produced a current of 1.22 MeV protons.

Lawrence set up the Radiation Laboratory ("Rad Lab") in the space between LeConte Hall and the Campanile. The lab was later moved up the hill and renamed Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory.

Another nuclear physicist, J. Robert Oppenheimer joined the department in the summer of 1929. Oppenheimer maintained an office, together with his group of students in room 219 LeConte. In 1942, Oppenheimer was appointed head of the fast neutron research group, and in the summer of that year, he invited the leading physicists of the time to discuss the theoretical aspects of developing an atomic weapon. The physicists and Oppenheimer's students, including Hans Bethe, John Van Vleck, Felix Bloch, and others, worked in the top floor of LeConte Hall and spent a month analyzing data. A plaque commemorating Oppenheimer and his students can be found outside of room 433.

In 1950, an addition attached to LeConte Hall at its northwest corner was opened. In 2004, the original part of LeConte Hall was named to the National Register of Historic Places.

In 2006, the UC Berkeley campus completed a US$30.7 million renovation project, designed to update the LeConte Hall facilities as well as to provide seismic retrofitting. Being a historic landmark, an effort was made to preserve the original architecture as well as to restore original attributes, such as the historic skylight on the fourth floor, which houses the Berkeley Center for Theoretical Physics.

In 2020, the university removed the LeConte name from the building due to the LeConte brothers' support of white supremacy. As of 2021, it is temporarily called Physics South (for the original building) and Physics North (for the 1950 addition), while the university decides on a permanent name.

Description

LeConte Hall stands proudly as a Beaux Arts architectural gem amidst the University of California, Berkeley campus. Situated strategically on a sloping hillside, this three-story over-one-basement structure boasts a captivating blend of classical and utilitarian elements. Completed in 1923/24, its reinforced concrete frame supports a rectangular form crowned by a hipped red-tile roof, embellished with a striking copper and glass skylight. Neoclassical adornments such as modified Ionic columns, pediments, and gables grace its exterior, while stucco surfacing adds to its timeless elegance.

Within its walls, LeConte Hall houses a functional layout, with mechanical and shop spaces occupying the basement, and classrooms, offices, laboratories, and ancillary areas spanning the upper floors. The interior, initially adorned with plaster walls, oak trim, and linoleum floors, exudes an atmosphere conducive to academic pursuits.

As the inaugural building dedicated solely to the Department of Physics, LeConte Hall holds a significant place in the campus's history. Its location within the northeastern quadrant, adjacent to the Physical Sciences precinct, underscores its pivotal role in scientific endeavors. Paired with Gilman Hall across a small esplanade, LeConte Hall aligns harmoniously with the campus's architectural vision, reflecting the influence of the 1900 Phoebe Hearst Architectural Plan.

LeConte Hall is currently in a satisfactory condition, although it requires updates for seismic safety and system improvements, which are set to take place in 2003-04. These enhancements will be focused internally to ensure that the building's exterior façade and significant interior spaces remain unaltered. Over the years, LeConte Hall has undergone several modifications. In 1950, the LeConte Annex was added to the northwest, connected by a three-story wing. Subsequently, in 1964, Birge Hall was constructed separately to the west and linked to LeConte through a three-level elevated steel and glass breezeway. Additionally, during the 1960s, a two-story lecture hall within LeConte was replaced with a mezzanine level, providing additional laboratory space and offices.

While these alterations have affected the rear western elevation due to connections with adjacent structures, the principal eastern façade and the north and south ends of the building have remained unchanged. Notably, when viewed from the south, east, and north perspectives, LeConte Hall retains its original appearance, closely resembling historical photographs and architectural plans from its construction era.

Nobel Prizes

In 1939, Ernest Lawrence was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics, the first time the award went to a Bay Area resident. Since then, LeConte Hall has been host to eight Physics Nobel Prize–winning faculty and four alumni.

References

{{National Register of Historic Places in California

1924 establishments in California
University of California, Berkeley buildings
John Galen Howard buildings
Science and technology in the San Francisco Bay Area
National Register of Historic Places in Berkeley, California
Name changes due to the George Floyd protests