United States Department of the Interior
National Park Service

National Register of Historic Places
Continuation Sheet

Section Number 7

Pomeroy Hall, 489 Main St., 1829.

Pomeroy Hall, a chain of three red common bond brick structures, the front main block being built in 1829, the second in 1858, and the third in the rear in 1997, is oriented with its narrow front façade facing Main Street to the north. The primary block has a low-pitched hip roof and is three stories high, three bays wide, and two bays deep, with an external stair tower centered on its front façade. Behind the main block is a narrower brick section with a gable roof sheathed in standing-seam metal. The peak of the gable end of the secondary block, which is three bays deep and three stories high, rests just under the eaves of the hip roof. Between the second and third sections is a full height entrance hall, constructed of glass and metal. The rear addition is three stories high, a similar mass to the primary block, however its fenestration divides it into five bays on the east and west sides, with one window centered on each floor of the rear. A metal roof in the shape of a segmental arch caps the modern addition. Adjacent to Pomeroy Hall is a one and a half story wooden barn to the south, open land to the east, and parking to the west.

The front portion of the building was originally constructed in the Federal style, but was enlarged and modified in 1858, to combine Italianate forms with existing Federal windows on the first and second floors. Typical of Italianate buildings, Pomeroy Hall is cube-shaped with a shallow hip roof and a projecting tower. There is decorative corbelling high on all four of the masonry walls. The band is made of a series of units; each unit is comprised of three graduated brick cubes stacked vertically from bottom to top, smallest to largest. The largest of the brick surfaces supports the overhanging brick face, a visual "cornice" to the building. Above the decorative brick, wooden eaves overhang the facades, protecting and adding visual weight to the structure.

Contained in the towerâs three-story recessed arch are both the buildingâs front entrance and the two-story round arched window above it. The segmentally arched door opening is neatly incised into the brick façade and is framed in wood. Each leaf of the double-leaf wood door contains two horizontal sunken panels on the bottom, and a larger single light on top. The transom is divided into three lights, which mimic the arch on the top but are flat on the bottom. Above the door, halfway up the two-story arched window is a date ÷"1829." The sides of the tower are plain and its roof flush with that of the primary block. On top of the tower is a cube, decorated with quoins, which is in turn crowned by an octagonal cupola. Each side of the domed cupola contains a six-pane round-arched window.

Each bay on the front and side facades of Pomeroy Hallâs primary block contains one window on each of the three floors. The window openings on the first and second stories retain their dimensions and splayed lintels from the buildingâs original Federal period construction. All windows on the primary block are currently six-over-six

double- hung sash, with those on the third story being topped by a semi-circular fanlight with hub and spoke tracery. On the west façade a third window has been centered between the two bays on the first floor. The rear wall of the primary block is largely covered by the secondary block, leaving exposed a bay of windows on each side. The windows on the rear of the promary block are six-over-six double-hung sash, as are those on the secondary block. The windows on the secondary block are aligned horizontally with those on the main block, eaves resting just above the top lintels, which are float brick arches.

To the rear of the ell, connecting it to the third brick box, is a modern entrance constructed of metal and glass-block. The area is recessed, and so is not immediately apparent from the street. Only the green standing-seam metal awnings stand out from a distance.

The newest addition to Pomeroy Hall, built to replace a smaller clapboard structure, is a brick cube similar in shape and size to the primary box. The green metal roof is in the shape of a segmental arch, and has no overhanging eaves. Alternating sections of brick are stepped in and out at the top of the building, an effort to mimic the primary block's decorative corbelling. The façade facing the ell has room for one column of windows. All windows on the addition are one-over-one double-hung sash. The rear façade is solid except for the center, which has a door on the ground level and corresponding windows on the second and third floors.

Since its construction in 1829 as the Medical College Building, the appearance and use of Pomeroy Hall have been largely altered; the original 2 1/2-story Federal Style building is indistinguishable. In 1839 the University of Vermont purchased the Medical College building from the struggling medical school, then allowed them to occupy the building again upon their reopening in 1854. By 1858 the growing medical school required more space. The building was enlarged, adding a third story with round-arched windows. A three-story tower topped by a cupola wad added, and the gable roof changed to a hop roof. A three-story gable roofed addition was added to the rear of the building. In 1879 a 2 1/2-story gable roof clapboard addition was made, as the medical college continued to grow. By 1884 the medical college had outgrown the building; the theater department subsequently used the third floor, and the rest was left vacant. In 1886 the building became the agricultural experiment station, requiring the addition of a barn in 1888. The third floor was divided into two floors of dormitories in 1890, requiring the removal of the arched windows, and the first floor addition then served as the dairy and botanical labs. It was in 1890 that gas lighting was introduced into the building. By 1900 a greenhouse had been added, along with an addition to the barn. In 1907 the building was again largely vacated, housing only a janitor. Further changes were made to the building in 1925. The cupola was removed because of disrepair, and the building was occupoed by the departments of home economics and dairy husbandry. In 1937 there was a small fire in the third and fourth floors. In 1997 the building was restored to a late 1850's appearance, except for the new three-story brick building which was constructed in place of the smaller wood structure. The building currently houses the Department of Communications.

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