Usen Castle

The Castle, also known as Usen Castle, is a historic building at 415 South Street in Waltham, Massachusetts. The Medieval style structure, built in the style of a Norman castle in 1928, stands on the campus of Brandeis University, where it served as a dormitory until 2017. The building, the design of which is unlike any other on the campus or in the city, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.[1]

The Castle
Usen Castle is located in Massachusetts
Usen Castle
Usen Castle is located in the United States
Usen Castle
Location415 South St., Waltham, Massachusetts
Coordinates42°22′1″N 71°15′21″W
Built1928
ArchitectSmith, John H.
NRHP reference No.79000359[1]
Added to NRHPApril 09, 1979

Description and history

Usen Castle is located atop Boston Rock, one of the highest points on the Brandeis campus. It consists of a series of six sections, connected to form an enclosed courtyard. Its exterior, apparently inspired by Lismore Castle in Ireland, features a wide variety of turrets, towers, crenellations, and pinnacles. A variety of unusual materials were used in its construction, including colored concrete and ceramic inlays. The interior retains Gothic features, giving the current student residential users a distinctive feel not found in other residences on the campus.[2]

The Castle was built in 1928 by Dr. John Hall Smith, founder of the Middlesex College of Medicine and Surgery, on whose campus it stood until the school closed in 1945. The campus and school charter were acquired by the founders of Brandeis. The building at first housed administrative offices as well as a dormitory and dining hall, but was converted to exclusively residential use in the 1950s. The building is one of two to survive on the campus from its Middlesex College days, and is a sharp contrast to the otherwise modern buildings there.[2]

In Summer 2017, after much of the building was condemned as unsafe by the city of Waltham, the University demolished Castle Towers C, D and E, and Schwartz Castle to make way for the new Skyline residence hall. Castle Towers A and B remained as student residences through the end of the 2016 fall semester.[3][4]

See also
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Usen Castle.

References
  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. April 15, 2008.
  2. "NRHP nomination for The Castle". Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Retrieved 2014-04-24.
  3. "Letter to the Community - The Castle Project - Brandeis University". Archived from the original on 30 March 2016. Retrieved 21 October 2016.
  4. "Partial demolition of Usen Castle continues after summer 2017". Brandeis Hoot. 25 August 2017. Retrieved 20 January 2019.
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