{"nrhp_refnum":"75002013","name":"Southwestern University Administration Building and Mood Hall","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"University Ave., Southwestern University campus","address_restricted":false,"city":"Georgetown","county":"Williamson County","state":"TX","lat":30.633599771000036,"lon":-97.66727261699998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1975-04-23","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"Two adjacent limestone buildings on the Southwestern University campus in Georgetown, Texas: the Administration Building (\"Old Main\"), completed in 1900, and Mood Hall, a former men's dormitory completed in 1908.","why_significant":"The Administration Building is a landmark example of Richardsonian-Romanesque design at the oldest institution of higher learning in Texas, based on designs by Professor Robert Hyer. Mood Hall was built to match it and give the campus a unified appearance. The two were the original buildings on the campus.","narrative":"Two limestone buildings anchor the original core of Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas. The Administration Building, finished in 1900, is a three-story Richardsonian-Romanesque structure dominated by a square tower, with an octagonal turret, hipped roofs and a cupola. Its first designs came from physics professor Robert Hyer, later the university's regent, who had been influenced by the work of Henry Hobson Richardson. Layton and Raymond prepared the final plans, and stonecutters from Waterston and Sons worked the locally quarried rock. Mood Hall, completed in 1908 and designed by C.H. Page of Austin, was built as a men's dormitory in a simpler vernacular version of the same style so the campus would look unified. It was altered in 1943 during the Navy V-12 program, when its courtyards were enclosed and it housed women, and it became offices in 1965. The Administration Building remains in use for administration and houses an auditorium used for lectures and chapel services.","period_of_significance":"1900-1908","architect_builder":"Robert S. Hyer (original designs for Administration Building); Layton and Raymond (plans and specifications); Flume and Waterston of Austin (contractor); C.H. Page, architect of Mood Hall; Belford Lumber Company (Mood Hall contractor); Waterston & Sons (masonry)","architectural_style":"Richardsonian-Romanesque (Mood Hall in a vernacular Richardsonian-Romanesque style)","criteria":[],"status_note":"Administration Building is still the university's administration building; Mood Hall became an office building for organizations and faculty in 1965 and was altered in 1943. Condition marked good.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:19.432221-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/2/9740/40974002/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_TX/75002013.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/75002013/97842ad2f3-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/75002013/97842ad2f3-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY 2.0","author":"Matthew Rutledge (rutlo)","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rutlo_3772831372_Southwestern.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Matthew Rutledge (rutlo)</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY 2.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rutlo_3772831372_Southwestern.jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"13000615","name":"Olive Street Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/texas/olive-street-historic-district-13000615/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/40974002","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hugh_Roy_and_Lillie_Cullen_Building","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q42310311"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/texas/williamson-county/southwestern-university-administration-building-and-mood-hall-75002013/"}