Guide to the University of Washington Miller Hall Façade Sculptures Photograph Collection
ca. 1952

"Civil Laws" gargoyle on the north façade of Miller Hall, ca. 1952. Special Collections, UW Libraries, UW22184z

Historical Background

The University of Washington's Miller Hall, named for University regent, William Winlock Miller, is one of seven neo-Gothic buildings on campus with gargoyles and façade sculptures in niches near the top stories. Built in 1922, and originally known as Education Hall, the structure housed the University president and administrative offices, and the education and engineering colleges.

Alonzo Victor Lewis (1886-1946) created the 44 sculptures on Miller Hall's third story. Lewis was born in Utah, received art training at the Art Institute of Chicago, and established a studio in Seattle in 1920, where he specialized in sculpture and oil painting. Lewis also taught sculpture at the University of Washington, and was named Washington Sculptor Laureate by the State Legislature. Among his best-known works are "The Doughboy" at the Seattle Center, "Victory Memorial" on the state capital grounds at Olympia, and the Abraham Lincoln memorial sculpture in Spokane.

Scope and Content

The collection contains photographs of the façade sculptures (grotesques) and gargoyles on Miller Hall, sculpted by Alonzo Victor Lewis in 1922. Since the building was named Education Hall at the time, Lewis's sculptures symbolize education, depicting teachers with students and famous scholars such as Confucius and Dante. Of note are the images of "Fish Teacher," resembling the mythical god Neptune, and "English Public School Students," featuring two young men in top hats.

Restrictions on Access

Collection is open to the public.

Processing Info

Processed by Jen Wolfe, 2002.

Inventory

Folder	Item
			South Façade, Miller Hall
1	1			Grammatist
	2			Music
	3			Printer
	4			Dante (Scriptorium)
	5			Technical Education
	6			Block Book
Folder	Item
			East Façade, Miller Hall
2	7			Medieval School Master and Block Book
	8			Medieval School Master
	9			Begging Student
	10			Early German School
	11			Swiss Teacher (Pestalozzi)
	12			French Teacher and Student
	13			New England Dame School
	14			Charity School Boy and Girl
	15			Kindergarten Pupils
	16			Ragged School
	17			Teacher of Science (American High School Teacher)
	18			American Latin School Teacher
	19			Colonial School
	20			English Public School Students
Folder	Item
			North Façade, Miller Hall
3	21			Arts of Philosophy
	22			Liberal Arts
	23			Medicine
	24			Civil Laws
	25			Theology I
Folder	Item
			West Façade, Miller Hall
4	26			Chivalric Education
	27			Theology II
	28			Roman Pedagogue
	29			Greek Pedagogue
	30			Hebrew Teacher
	31			Music
	32			Astronomy
	33			Geometry
	34			Mathematics
	35			Medieval Dialectician (Francis Bacon)
	36			Medieval Rhetoric
	37			Grammar Teacher
	38			Teacher of ABC's
	39			Phoenician
	40			Egyptian Teacher
	41			Chinese Teacher (Confucius)
	42			Fish Teacher
	43			Chinese Teacher (Confucius) and Fish Teacher
Subject Terms
	Personal Names:
		Lewis, Alonzo Victor, 1891-1950.
	Organizations:
		Miller Hall (Seattle, Wash.)--Photographs.
		University of Washington--Buildings--Photographs.
	Subjects:
		College buildings--Washington (State)--Seattle--Photographs.
		Education in art.
		Facades--Washington (State)--Seattle--Photographs.
		Gargoyles--Washington (State)--Seattle--Photographs.
		Gothic revival (Architecture)--Washington (State)--Seattle--Photographs.
		Grotesques--Washington (State)--Seattle--Photographs.