The history of Julia Morgan Hall at the UC Botanical Garden

Julia Morgan Hall is a historic building located in the University of California Botanical Garden in Berkeley, California. Designed by architect Julia Morgan, the building was constructed in 1911 and was originally located on the central campus of the University of California, Berkeley, near the present location of the Haas School of Business. It was originally intended as a gathering place for female students who wanted a female counterpart to Senior Hall, the senior men's meeting hall.

Berkeley's female students began planning the hall in 1909 and raised money for the building until 1911. During this period, the building was first called Girton Hall, named after Girton College at the University of Cambridge. When the building opened in 1911, its name was changed to Senior Women's Hall, providing a place for women's groups to meet and representing a significant step toward gender equality at the university.

In 1940, the building was moved 160 feet west to make room for a street extension. By 1969, it became a campus child care center and its name was changed back to Girton Hall. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1991.

In 2014, the building was cut into four pieces to make way for an expansion of the Haas School of Business. It was moved to the UC Botanical Garden and reassembled. The name was changed to Julia Morgan Hall, and the building re-opened to the public in 2015.

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons