{"nrhp_refnum":"75001281","name":"Biddle Memorial Hall, Johnson C. Smith University","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"Beatties Ford Rd. and W. Trade St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Charlotte","county":"Mecklenburg County","state":"NC","lat":35.243616581000026,"lon":-80.85694818599995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1975-10-14","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Black","Education","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"Biddle Memorial Hall is a Romanesque Revival brick administration building at the corner of Beatties Ford Road and West Trade Street on the campus of Johnson C. Smith University in Charlotte, North Carolina. It was built in 1883 as the main building of a college for Black students.","why_significant":"It was the main building of a college for Black students founded in 1867, and it is an ambitious example of Romanesque Revival design with a dramatic clock tower and elaborate brickwork. Students made the bricks and helped build it, and it has remained the center of campus operations. The exterior and much of the interior keep their original appearance despite renovations in 1955 and 1974.","narrative":"Biddle Memorial Hall, on the campus of Johnson C. Smith University in Charlotte, is a monumental Romanesque Revival building completed in 1883. It rises three and a half stories above a raised basement, with a central clock tower, pyramidal slate roofs, corner bartizans and boldly textured brick and stone. A rear auditorium, originally seating about 600, has exposed paneled beams and art nouveau decoration. The hall was built for a school for Black students founded in 1867 as Biddle Memorial Institute, later Biddle University and, in 1923, Johnson C. Smith University. Construction cost $40,000, with fundraising led by faculty member Thomas Lawrence and support from the Presbyterian Board of Missions for Freedmen. Students made the bricks and contributed labor. No architect has been identified. A carillon chime clock was added to the tower in 1925. The building still serves as the administration building, and its exterior and much of its interior remain largely original.","period_of_significance":"1800-1899","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Romanesque Revival","criteria":[],"status_note":"Condition listed as excellent; still serves as the university's administration building. Interior renovated in 1955 and 1974, and wood window casements replaced with metal.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:58:58.476221-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/10/7213/47721310/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NC/75001281.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/75001281/61121f9043-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/75001281/61121f9043-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"James Willamor","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Biddle_Memorial_Hall,_Charlotte.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">James Willamor</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Biddle_Memorial_Hall,_Charlotte.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/47721310","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biddle_Memorial_Hall","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4904057"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/north-carolina/mecklenburg-county/biddle-memorial-hall-johnson-c-smith-university-75001281/"}