BEFORE: The main entryway in 1961 was brighter than the original, and more accessible to persons with disabilities, but still a very dull and constricted space.

The Entryway

Improving on the original

First-time visitors to Altgeld Hall can be forgiven for believing that the grand entryway is a magnificent recreation of the original.

In reality, however, the area was a very pedestrian space throughout the building’s first century. Just one story high, the room was little more than a passageway to access hallways and staircases.

The soaring atrium and sweeping twin staircases of today are a dramatic departure from the past; great care was taken, however, to select a design consistent with the era of the building’s original construction. The result is a formal gateway to the university’s landmark building that matches the character of the rest of this stately structure.

The ironwork of the railing along the staircases was inspired by details found in photographs of the original entryway. Such nods to history can be seen throughout Altgeld Hall. The decorative brackets, ornate moldings and plaster friezes of today were all made using molds taken from original elements in the building. These historic touches were often employed to disguise structural changes required to make room for modern essentials such as ventilation and sprinkler systems.

The attention to detail will serve as a reminder that while Altgeld Hall is a fully functional 21st century office building, it also houses more than a century of NIU history.

Above: The brackets seen throughout were restored by making a mold from the original. Below: The ornamental iron in the stair railings was inspired by design work found on the original stairs in the old entryway.