Hughes Hall, the former Robert M. Hughes Memorial Library, is a notable building on the

Old Dominion University Old Dominion University (ODU) is a Public university, public research university in Norfolk, Virginia, United States. Established in 1930 as the two-year Norfolk Division of the College of William & Mary, it began by educating people with fewer ...

campus in

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. It had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Virginia, third-most populous city ...

, designed by

Edward Durell Stone Edward Durell Stone (March 9, 1902 – August 6, 1978) was an American architect known for the formal, highly decorative buildings he designed in the 1950s and 1960s. His works include the Museum of Modern Art, in New York City; the Parliament H ...

in 1959. When the building was dedicated, it was the Norfolk Division of the

College of William & Mary The College of William & Mary (abbreviated as W&M) is a public university, public research university in Williamsburg, Virginia, United States. Founded in 1693 under a royal charter issued by King William III of England, William III and Queen ...

. In the book ''Architecture in Virginia'', published by the

Virginia Museum of Fine Arts The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts (VMFA) is an art museum in Richmond, Virginia, United States, which opened in 1936. The museum is owned and operated by the Commonwealth of Virginia. Private donations, endowments, and funds are used for the supp ...

, author William B. O'Neal writes that the building, completely encased in a solar block screen, has a glass interior. While it has practical energy saving benefits, O'Neal says the blocks give "a beautiful unity and a repose not always found in libraries today." The building was named for Virginia lawyer Robert M. Hughes, who helped establish the Norfolk division of William & Mary in 1930 along with J. A. C. Chandler, Joseph Healy and Albert Foreman It was dedicated with speech on "The Place of the College Library" by historian Louis B. Wright, editor of the colonial diaries of

William Byrd II William Byrd II (March 28, 1674August 26, 1744) was an American planter, lawyer, surveyor and writer. Born in the English colony of Virginia, Byrd was educated in London, where he practiced law. Upon his father's death, Byrd returned to Virginia ...

of Westover. It sits at the corner of Hampton Boulevard and 49th Street in Norfolk. Today it holds many of ODU's Computer Science faculty offices. Beginning in 2009, the building – which had been renamed to Dragas Hall – was extensively renovated to unify the architectural character of Kaufmann Mall, bring the building into compliance with requirements of the

Americans with Disabilities Act The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 or ADA () is a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on disability. It affords similar protections against discrimination to Americans with disabilities as the Civil Rights Act of 1964, ...

, and upgrade the interior for modern technological needs. This resulted in a complete reconfiguration of the building, including the removal of the solar screen, alteration of the roof line, and the addition of a rounded glass atrium. The building now looks significantly different. The new two-story glass atrium was dedicated as the Hughes Atrium in remembrance of Robert M. Hughes for whom the building was originally named.

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ODU Map
{{authority control Old Dominion University University and college academic libraries in Virginia Education in Norfolk, Virginia Buildings and structures in Norfolk, Virginia Edward Durell Stone buildings