Sarah Swann Hall (1904)

Side 1: Sarah Swann Hall, Grand Lady of Carson~Newman University, has been "home" to generations of students. Colonel Alfred Reuben Swann (1843~1926), visionary Jefferson County businessman and Carson~Newman trustee, built this stately home for female students in memory of his mother, Sarah Austell Swann (1808~1888). Its Georgian architecture with Corinthian columns, inviting porch, fireplace, formal parlors, wooden staircase and dining room was an elegant addition to the campus. Side 2: Two ornately furnished rooms served as halls for Calliopean & Hypatian Literary Societies, which met weekly. Until 1945, residents' duties, in exchange for room fees, were also lessons in the domestic arts. From 1943~1945 Sarah Swann Home was headquarters and residence for WWII V~12 Navy Training Program shipmates. In 1965 capacity increased when college officials moved the Society Halls to Henderson Memorial Hall and converted the space to living areas. Restored Hypatian stained glass was hung in the parlors circa 2013.