Location: Hanover, NH

Noteworthy: The building was originally constructed between 1784-1792 and has been destroyed by fires twice. It is one of the most iconic buildings on campus.

M&A’s Scope: Restoration of Dartmouth Hall’s original 137 windows

Owner: Dartmouth College

Architect: designLAB architects

General Contractor: Engleberth Construction Inc.

About Dartmouth Hall

Dartmouth Hall, the original college building, was built between 1784–1792, and has been twice destroyed by fires. The building is home to renowned teaching innovations including the Great Issues courses of the 1950s and ’60s; the birth of the artificial intelligence concept and the concept of machine learning; the launch of John Rassias’ revolutionary method of language instruction; and the creation of Dartmouth’s signature study abroad programs.

The renovation and revitalization of Dartmouth Hall was part of Dartmouth’s capital campaign: The Call to Lead.

The Restoration and Preservation Work

M&A Architectural Preservation was honored to again work on a restoration project at Dartmouth College focused on preserving the building’s iconic exterior, including the building’s 137 wood windows.

As part of our window installation, we fixed the upper sashes in place, ensuring smooth lower sash operability, and installed new hardware. We were also responsible for installing new weatherstripping at all the sashes, to eliminate air penetration.  The preservation and window restoration work was completed in September 2022.

Location: Hanover, NH

Noteworthy: Project completed amidst COVID-19 pandemic

M&A’s Scope: Restoration of Reed Hall’s original 82 windows and historic shutter restoration

Owner: Dartmouth College

Architect: Einhorn Yaffee Prescott

General Contractor: Lee Kennedy Co.

About Dartmouth’s Reed Hall

Located on the corner of West Wheelock and College Street, in Hanover, New Hampshire, the 179-year-old Reed Hall is one of four historic white buildings known as the iconic “Dartmouth Row.”

Built in 1895, it was home to one of the earliest X-ray machines, built by Dartmouth physics assistant Frank Austin. In 1896, Austin was credited with taking the first medical X-ray in America for a local schoolboy with a broken wrist.

Restoring an Historic Building During Historic Times

Due to Reed Hall’s historical importance on campus, preserving its original exterior was critical. M&A’s key focus for the project was restoring the building’s 82 wood windows that were leaking air and water. In February 2020, we began work on the restoration.

Barely a month into the project, we were faced with the unforeseen challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. For a short time, our team was able to safely continue working in a socially-distanced manner. We were either confined to one room for the restoration, or removing the window sash, which brought in plenty of fresh air. But, ultimately as the virus continued to spread around the northeast, the entire project was put on hold.

After two months of COVID-19 delays, it was finally deemed safe by the authorities and the college to return to the jobsite. Our restoration team continued with our window restoration under stringent COVID-19 safety protocols, carefully removing and repairing the beautiful windows.

While on site, we were able to restore some of Reed Hall’s historic shutters, which we reinstalled with matching hardware. As part of our window installation, we fixed the upper sashes in place, ensuring smooth lower sash operability.  Other shutters, too damaged to be repaired, were completely replicated by M&A to match the originals.

We were also tasked with weather-proofing the building’s historic windows against New Hampshire’s harsh winters. We installed new weatherstripping and sourced exterior storm-screen windows. Now the windows are well-insulated against the cold, while still allowing Reed Hall’s occupants to open the sash to enjoy fresh summer breezes.

The complete window restoration was finished in September 2020. Reed Hall’s full restoration project is slated to wrap in late Fall 2020 and will include the addition of an elevator, air conditioning and sprinklers as well as upgrades to the building’s interior, mechanicals, heating system, entrance, restrooms and electrical.

Despite the extraordinary times, we’re thrilled to have completed our first project at Dartmouth College restoring beautiful windows at Dartmouth Row.

Location: Hanover, NH

Noteworthy: Second Restoration Project on Dartmouth Row During COVID-19ject completed amidst COVID-19 pandemic

M&A’s Scope: Restoration of Thornton Hall’s original 76 windows and historic shutter restoration

Owner: Dartmouth College

Architect: Einhorn Yaffee Prescott

General Contractor: Lee Kennedy Co.

About Dartmouth’s Thornton Hall

Thornton Hall is one of the historic white buildings known as the iconic “Dartmouth Row”. Built in 1929 as a dormitory, Thornton Hall is currently home to the Religion and Philosophy departments.

The Second Restoration on Dartmouth Row During Historic Times

The major infrastructure upgrades to Thornton Hall were similar to the project recently completed at Reed Hall. Upgrading these iconic buildings on campus while preserving the original exterior was paramount to the success of the project.

M&A’s work at Thornton Hall included restoring the building’s 76 wood windows and repair and replication of its wooden shutters.  Work commenced in March of 2021 as the pandemic continued. Protocols were in place and work was sequenced and coordinated to ensure safety and social distancing during these historic times.

Refurbishing the existing window system at Thornton Hall included:

• Restoration of historic shutters including reinstallation with matching hardware.
• Complete replication of shutters too damaged to be restored to match the originals.
• Wooden window restoration included careful removal of all windows, restoration of each window to be reinstalled with full functionality of opening and closing.
• Weather-proofing of the building’s historic windows including installation of new weatherstripping and sourced exterior storm-screen windows.
• Installation of the restored windows including fixing the upper sashes in place, ensuring smooth lower sash operability.

Thornton Hall’s full restoration project is slated to finish in late Summer of 2021 and will include the addition of an elevator, air conditioning and sprinklers as well as upgrades to the building’s interior, mechanicals, heating system, entrance, restrooms and electrical.

We’re thrilled to have completed our second restoration project at Dartmouth College restoring the beautiful windows at Thornton Hall at Dartmouth Row so summer breezes can be enjoyed and the cold winds of winter remain outside.