Keene-Flint Hall

The historic Keene-Flint Hall at the University of Florida was constructed in 1910. J.J. Cain Company of Atlanta served as contractors, and William Augustus Edwards was hired as architect. The building was one of the original 13 campus buildings designed by Edwards. The two-and-a-half story Collegiate Gothic style structure, with its front facing University Avenue in Gainesville, is made primarily of common bond brick, as well as Flemish bond brick, and possesses a gable roof. Inside, the layout has a double loaded corridor and central hall. At the time of its completion, the building was known as Science Hall, and it served as home to the chemistry, botany, zoology, physics, bacteriology, and horticulture departments. The second floor of the building held the University Museum, part of the Florida State Museum. The Museum's collections, including a variety of fossils, are now held at Dickinson Hall and the Florida Museum of Natural History.

According to Claudie Mae Hamilton, who served as a custodian at the university for over 30 years, Science Hall first underwent a massive renovation in the 1940s. She first noticed a soft spot in the floor, leading the building to be condemned and all departments were forced out. Hamilton claimed that the inside of the building was completely torn apart and steal beams were placed through the building. The different departments gradually trickled back into Flint after it was nearly completely rebuilt. In 1955, the building came to be known as Flint Hall, named after the University of Florida's first university physician and a professor of chemistry, Dr. Edward Flint. Flint, who received his Ph. D. in Germany and then studied medicine at Harvard, worked in the chemistry department from 1905 to 1919. In the 1970s, Flint Hall was once again decaying and sitting vacant. At one point, the building was facing demolition, but a local group came together to save it. For more than 20 years, Flint Hall was only used for storage. That was until Kenneth and Janet Keene gave a large gift of $3 million to the university in 1997, allowing for a massive restoration and renovation project to take place. Kenneth Keene attended a local school in Gainesville called P.K. Yonge and earned his B.S. from the University of Florida. After donating their generous gift, the building was then named Keene-Flint Hall.

In 2001, because of the Keene's contribution, Rowe Architects completed a massive renovation project at Keene-Flint Hall, as well as its sister building, Anderson Hall. On the exterior, renovations were completed on the north and south entrances. Inside, the north entrance lobby and stairs were redesigned to emulate historic designs while bringing them up to modern-day standards. Classrooms and offices were also updated and new electrical systems were added. In addition, a new auditorium and service tower were built. The Florida Trust for Historic Preservation awarded Rowe Architects with the Outstanding Achievement Award for the project. In 1979, Keene-Flint Hall was added to the National Register of Historic Places, and it is a part of the University of Florida Campus Historic District.

UF Keene-Flint Hall, Rowe Architects Incorporated. Accessed January 24th 2021. http://rowearchitects.com/project/uf-keene-flint-hall/#img544.

University of Florida Physical Plant Division Architecture & Engineering. Keene-Flint Hall: Science Hall, The University of Florida Historic Campus. November 1st 2017. Accessed January 24th 2021. https://historic.facilities.ufl.edu/hckeene.htm.

UF VLT presents - Flint Hall, UF VLT. Accessed January 24th 2021. https://sites.google.com/site/ufvltpresents/flint-hall.

Teague, Edward H. Keene-Flint Hall, Historic Sites Guide. October 1st 1999. Accessed January 24th 2021. https://www.uflib.ufl.edu/ufarch/xflint.htm.

Taylor, Jr., George Lansing. Keene-Flint Hall Plaque, UF, Gainesville, FL, University of North Florida Digital Commons . December 30th 2012. Accessed January 26th 2021. https://digitalcommons.unf.edu/historical_architecture_main/3291/.

Gibson, Jane. $3 Million Gift Will Trigger Restoration of Historic Flint and Anderson Halls, Alumni CLASnotes . March 1st 1998. Accessed January 26th 2021. https://legacy.clas.ufl.edu/alumni/alumninotes/98spring/.