Hendricks Chapel

Hendricks Chapel sits symbolically at the center of the campus as a gathering place for people of all faiths. Throughout the year, the Chapel also hosts renowned speakers, concerts and special events, and many alumni weddings. It's here that you'll find the Office of Community Engagement, and People's Place, a student-run coffee shop.

Hendricks Chapel, SU Photo & Imaging RS 8661

Contract Awarded: November 1928

Cornerstone Laid: June 9, 1929

Dedicated: June 8, 1930

First Student Services Held: September 21, 1930

Organ Dedication: October 5 & 8, 1930

New Organ Dedication: 1952

Style: Georgian Colonial

Architects: James Russell Pope and Dwight James Baum, Class of 1909, New York, NY

Contractor: A.E. Stephens Company, Springfield, MA

Materials: Georgia limestone and brick

Named For: Eliza Jane Hendricks

Cost: $600,000

Funding: $500,000 bequest from Francis Hendricks

1969 Renovation: $90,000

1985 Rededication: $1.2 million 5-year renovation of interior and exterior

Notes:

Francis Hendricks was a state senator, SU trustee from 1895 until his death in 1920, and Forestry College trustee from 1913 to 1920. His donation called for a chapel honoring his late wife Eliza Jane that would serve all faiths. He also stipulated the name "Hendricks Chapel" in his will. Seating 1,450 Hendricks was the third largest University chapel in the country at the time of its construction. The pulpit was the gift of the Class of 1918. The original Aeolian organ, the gift of Kathryn Hendricks, niece of Francis Hendricks, was replaced in 1952 with a new organ built by Walter Holtkamp.