Fine Hall

Other Names: Mathematics Building, Fine Tower

Date of Commission: 1966

Date of Occupancy: 1970

Other Dates in Building's History:

1965: Students protest the building of Fine Tower. University able to negotiate with the Princeton Township Zoning Board to keep the height of the tower 170' or 17 stories instead of lowering it to 100' or 10 stories.

22 October 1965: President Goheen publishes letter from Princeton University to the Princeton community explaining the rationale behind the height of the tower.

December 1965: University seeks and receives a variance to suspend the requirement that a building is set back a distance of 1 1/2 times the height of the building.

1966: Complex given Award of Merit in the Architectural Design Award Program for "distinguished accomplishment in architecture".

17 March 1970: Building dedicated.

November 1970: Portrait of Samuel Stanley Wilkes, authority in mathematical statistics and member of the faculty, presented to the reading room in Fine.

May 1989: Dedication of the Frank Taplin '37 Auditorium designed by Tod Williams '65 of Tod Williams-Billie Tsein Architects.

Architect(s): Warner, Burns, Toan and Lunde of NYC

Donor(s): US Department of Health, Education and Welfare ; National Science Foundation

Named for: Henry Burchard Fine

Other Agent(s): Irwin and Leighton, Inc of Philadelphia (builder of)

Materials: Red Granite; Stone

Function: Classroom; Library; Research Facilities; Science Building

Style: Modern