Historic Sullivan County building in dire need of repair
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowIn the late 19th and early 20th century, the tiny Sullivan County town of Merom was the epicenter of arts and culture.
The budding cultural scene made way for the construction of Union Christian College in 1859. Its anchor building, College Hall, is the centerpiece of the Merom Camp and Retreat Center.
“This was the first place, the first college in all of Indiana to offer the same curriculum to women as to men,” said David Grimm, executive director of the Merom Camp & Retreat Center. “We know that it’s going to be roughly a million dollar or a multi-million dollar project to restore this building.”
The building stands high above the Wabash River and still has most of its pre-Civil War features. While the beauty remains, it is in dire need of repair.
“Architecturally, College Hall is itself impressive. It’s not often you see a six-story building from circa 1860 with its cupola on top, towering over a small community like this. I think that’s part of what makes it unique, the fact that it’s still standing,” said Tommy Kleckner, Indiana Landmarks Western Regional Office director.
Kleckner says the decision was made to put College Hall on Indiana Landmarks’ 10 Most Endangered List to proactively raise awareness about the building and address the rehabilitation and repair needs.
“We’re assisting the Merom Camp and Retreat Center in identifying funding to be able to have a full, comprehensive rehabilitation assessment done,” Kleckner said. “The building is an intrinsic part of Merom…so to see College Hall rehabilitated, continue to be used, expanding use opportunities can do nothing but benefit the Merom community, Sullivan County [and] Western Indiana.”
College Hall currently serves as a place for retreats, camps and meetings. With the restoration, there are hopes of creating a cultural learning center and welcoming even more community members and groups in.
“College Hall has birthed so many things that are important to this community,” said Beth Reed, Merom Camp & Retreat Center Inc. board member. “We are hoping to expand upon that history and to develop it into more of a cultural learning center…this campus will once again be very vital and important in the development for the future.”