Myers Hall is the centerpiece of Wittenberg’s campus. Featured on everything from postcards and coffee mugs to shot glasses and window decals, Myers has long been a symbol of the beauty and stability of Wittenberg. It also happens to be the best residence hall on campus. Want to know why? Read on.
1. History
Myers was the original building on this campus, all the way back before Weaver Chapel or even Recitation were around. It served as administration, academic, and student housing. Myers was also used as a hospital during the civil war (more on that later). Not long after its construction, Recitation Hall was built, followed by Zimmerman Library. However, Myers has the distinction of being the first building on campus.
2. It’s in the center of campus
As any student at Witt knows, campus is built in a very hilly location. In any other residence hall, a student would have to walk uphill every day for class, athletics, and any clubs they might participate in. Save the trouble and live in Myers! It is also a convenient three or four minute walk away from almost every academic building on campus, and right next to the Hollow for easy access.
3. The view
One thing that cannot be beat about Myers is the incredible view. Windows in the front look down the hill to the seal and fountain, and across to Commencement Hollow, while back windows face the Hollow and over to Hollenbeck. Myers also sits on the highest point in Springfield, making it an easy way to look out over the campus and toward the city itself.
4. Biggest hallways and rooms
Most residence halls have skinny hallways and sad, square rooms. Although Wittenberg does have some incredibly nice dorms, Myers takes the cake for most space. While there are a few random rooms shaped like a bowling alley (looking at you, 412), most of the rooms in Myers Hall are long, spacious, and in some cases, have three windows. All the hallways are incredibly wide as well, making Myers the perfect place to sit for a while with friends and talk or do homework. Where else could spontaneous hallway meetings occur?
5. Community
The Myers community is quite possibly the best place on campus to meet new people and make friends. Because of the shared bathrooms, only one on each floor, residents are forced to see each other at least a little in between showers. The hallways too, as previously mentioned, are exceptionally wide, allowing for open doors without obstructing the hall. The people are friendly, helpful, and smart, of course (Myers is the honors dorm).
6. The dungeon
Don’t be afraid, it’s not a real dungeon! The Myers dungeon is the laundry room. It isn’t just any laundry room, though. Generations and generations of Wittenberg students and Myers residents have graffitied their own personal touch onto the walls, ceiling, and floor. Though a bit scary at 1 in the morning, the laundry room is a quirky piece of Myers history that gives yet another reason to live in Myers. You never know what you’ll find written on those walls.
7.Getting your workout in
Two words: No elevator. Honestly, this is only a problem on move-in day, and that only occurs once a year. Besides, who needs to work out when you live on top of a hill, on the fourth or fifth floor? Not Myers residents.
8. Ghosts?
Myers, during the Civil War, was a hospital. One day, after a large battle, an important army official was dying on the fifth floor. His last wish was to see his horse one more time before he died. Knowing they could not upset their commander, the soldiers brought the horse up the stairs to be with his dying master one last time. Well, the man died, and as many people know, horses cannot walk up and down stairs. They had no choice but to shoot the horse, and now, all these years later, it is said that residents can still hear the horse run up and down the hall, looking for his master.
9. The best people and friends you will ever meet
As a second-year resident of Myers, I can quite honestly say that living in this building is one of the best things I decided to do. I moved in for the location and the beauty, and stayed for the people. There is nowhere else I would rather be than right here in Myers Hall, in the middle of campus, surrounded by some of the best friends I’ve ever had.
