[Administration Building]

"Standing on the bluff and overlooking the city, the Administration Building has been one of the most recognizable buildings on the Duquesne campus. Completed in 1885, seven years after the school opened as Pittsburgh Catholic of the Holy Ghost, it is now the oldest building on campus, and is a symbol of the University's humble beginnings. At the time of its completion, the Administration Building housed the entire facilities of the school, including classrooms, labs, a library, cafeterias, a gymnasium, a bakery, chapel, and dormitories for students and faculty. The addition of the chapel was not completed until 1904. The small group of Irish and German Holy Ghost Fathers and brothers, who founded the University, worked together to overcome many hardships and setbacks to establish the first Catholic college in the City of Pittsburgh. Working with limited resources, the Holy Ghost brothers actually handmade the bricks from clay excavated from the site for the building. From these modest beginnings, the college slowly grew and expanded, providing a quality education for tens of thousands of students."

University Archives, Duquesne University



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