Harbin Hall is a nine-story freshman dorm located at the center of campus adjacent to Cooper Field, formerly known as Harbin Field. Construction began in August 1963 and was completed in November 1965 making Harbin the University’s first high rise dormitory. Designed by Cooper and Auerbach and Walter and Madden, each floor has three clusters of eight rooms with each cluster sharing a bathroom.
Naming and Opening
Harbin was dedicated to the memory of Dr. George F. Harbin, a mathematics professor and student advisor from 1929 to 1942.
Harbin’s first four floors opened to male students in October 1964, and by January 1966, the top floor floors were similarly occupied by male students. In 1965, the Director of Maintenance Operation and a division of the Housekeeping Department moved into the Harbin basement from their previous location in the Gervase basement. By 1968, Harbin’s basement was taken over by the physical plant operations with the exception of the student laundry rooms and the housekeeping linen room.1
Renovations
Since opening, Harbin has received extensive and repeated renovations. In February of 1977, a portion of the building lost heat causing the radiator pipes to freeze and then flooding six floors.2 In January of 1978, water pipes burst again flooding another nine rooms.3 Amidst the flooding troubles, the brick exterior of the building’s southeast corner began to bulge and crack due to improper covering, leading the University to sue architects and constructors.4 Additional renovations include revision of the heating system in the area of the carpenter's work shop and replacement of the fire alarm system in 1985; replacement of the emergency generator, renovation for the Division of Facilities' basement area and installation of a roof top satellite dish in 1989; a full replacement of the exterior brick in 1990; enclosure of a trash dumpster area in 1993; and a sweeping indoor renovation including the installation of fire-safety sprinklers in 2000.5
Harbin remains famous on campus for hosting both Bill Clinton (Room 505) for the 1965-1966 school year and an illegal drug lab aimed at manufacturing Dimethyltryptamine or DMT (Room 926) in 2010.6
- 1Francis X. Ballman, "Harbin Hall," Building Outlines Campus Buildings, 1789 – 1995, Father Lawrence Hurley Memorial Edition, Francis X. Ballmann and the Division of Facilities, 1995, p. 26-27.
- 2Sarah Maleady. “Harbin Pipes Burst; Six Floors Flooded.” The Hoya. 11 Feb. 1977, p. 2.
- 3Mary Lou Hartman. “Harbin Water Pipes Burst; Several Rooms Damaged.” The Hoya. 20 Jan. 1978, p. 2.
- 4Miles O’Brien. “G’town Sues Contractors to Regain Harbin Repair Costs.” The Hoya. 4 Nov. 1977, p.2.
- 5Anne Rittman. “Construction Begins at GU.” The Hoya. 25 Aug. 2000.
- 6Lauren Webber. “Breaking: Police Find Harbin Drug Lab; Students Evacuated.” The Hoya. 24 Oct. 2010.
