Lothrop Hall facts for kids
Lothrop Hall is a large building where students live at the University of Pittsburgh. It's on the main campus in the Oakland area of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Lothrop Hall is right next to the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) hospital. It's on Lothrop Street, which is on a steep hill. People sometimes call this hill "cardiac hill" because it's so steep.
The building has 14 floors. Some parts of the building are separated by gender. Most rooms are for one student, but some are for two or even three students. Lothrop Hall can house 723 students. It also has a resident director and 15 resident assistants who help the students.
History of Lothrop Hall
Lothrop Hall was once known as the Nurses' Residence. It was built to be a home for nursing students at the University of Pittsburgh. It had 650 rooms. Building started in 1950 and finished in May 1953. It cost about $4.5 million back then. This would be much more money today!
The building was officially opened on May 11, 1953. This date was chosen because it was the 133rd birthday of Florence Nightingale. She was a very famous nurse. During the opening, a special brick from Florence Nightingale's home was given to the university.
In the early 1960s, the university had some money problems. Lothrop Hall was one of five buildings used as security for a loan. This helped the university get the money it needed. By 1976, its name changed to the Lothrop Street Residence. By 1979, it was called Lothrop Hall, which is its name today.
Lothrop Street is named after Sylvanus Lothrop. He was an important engineer and businessman. He built the first locks and several big bridges on the Monongahela River in the 1830s and 1840s. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Lothrop Hall was used to house UPMC doctors and nurses. They were working very long hours and needed a place to stay.
What's Inside Lothrop Hall?
Lothrop Hall has many useful facilities for students. There is a fitness center where students can exercise. There is also a laundry room to wash clothes. Students can pick up their mail at the student mail center. In the lobby, there are computer kiosks for quick email access. Each floor also has a lounge area where students can relax. Soon, there will also be a shared kitchen for students to use.
Lothrop Hall is home to special learning communities. These include the Gender and ... Living Learning Community and the Nursing Living Learning Community. These groups help students connect and learn together. The building is also connected by a skywalk to the School of Nursing. This makes it easy for nursing students to get to their classes. It also connects to the UPMC hospital facilities.
Students like Lothrop Hall because most rooms are for one person. They also like that most rooms have their own sinks. However, some students don't like that the building does not have air conditioning. They also find it a bit far from other main university buildings. For example, it's a walk to the Cathedral of Learning and the main dining halls.
For many years, the lower floors of Lothrop Hall had medical offices. In 2010, the university decided to change these offices. They spent $1.56 million to turn them into 47 more beds for students. Because many students needed housing that year, even some lounges were turned into rooms for four people. This added 52 new beds in total. But in recent years, the lounges have been changed back to their original design.
| Preceded by Fitzgerald Field House |
University of Pittsburgh Buildings Lothrop Hall Constructed: 1950-1953 |
Succeeded by Old Engineering Hall |
