Steele Hall
"Esther Baker Steele Hall" by Edwin H. Gaggin, Class of 1892 , 1898
Esther Baker Steel Hall originally housed the Physics Department, and over the years it has been the home of the Biology, Architecture, and Citizenship departments. Since the construction of the Physics Building in 1969, Steele Hall has served as an administrative building which includes administrative departments for Housing, Meal Plans, and Student I.D. services. It also houses the Office of the Registrar, the Office of Student Affairs, and the Office of Student Employment Services. Interestingly, Steele Hall was the first designated science building built on Syracuse University’s campus.
Formerly known as the Esther Baker Steele Hall of Physics, Steele Hall was built to provide much needed classroom space for the science department, which had been lodged in the Hall of Languages. Esther Steele, friend and trustee of the University, contributed funds for the laboratory. Steele was an American author who received an honorary Doctor of Letters from Syracuse University in 1892. When considering how Steele Hall would fit onto the University campus, it was designed to match the Holden Observatory in style. The engraved sign over the entryway arch still reads “Esther Baker Steele Hall of Physics 1898”.
Esther B. Steele was born in Lysander, NY on August 4, 1835, the daughter of Rev. Gardner Baker, a prominent minister of the Northern New York Methodist Episcopal Conference. Baker attended Mexico Academy and Falley Seminary in Upstate NY where she showed a promising talent as a writer. Then, in 1857, she taught music at Mexico Academy. Soon after she met J. Dorman Steele, a professor of natural science and they married in 1959. Given their backgrounds, together they wrote a series historical books including: United States (1871), France (1875), Ancient Peoples (1881), Mediaeval and Modern Peoples (1883), General History (1883), Greece (1883), and Rome (1885). Dr. Steele passed away in 1886, it was at that time that Baker Steele had to manage the book series and their revised content. In 1892, she was recognized for her intellectual achievements and was awarded an honorary degree of Doctor of Literature from Syracuse University. Steele was well known for her generosity and sympathy with every project she touched both public and within the University. She provided significant financial contributions to the Steele Memorial Library of Elmira, NY, and the physical cabinet connected with the J. Dorman Steele Chair of Theistic Science in Syracuse University. Steele worked closely with her friend, Chancellor James Roscoe Day, to facilitate the funding of the Library School at Syracuse University. Esther Baker Steele passed away at her home on the morning of Nov. 23, 1911. She was a true advocate for the advancement of education and considered a friend and trustee of the University.
SU University Archives; SU Photo and Imaging Archive; Galvin, Edward L., et al. (2013). The Campus History Series: Syracuse University. Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing; Hare, Jim. (2015, December 23)." A good read: The history of Steele Library in Elmira." Star Gazette; Willard, F. E., & Livermore, M. A. R. (Eds.). (1893). A woman of the century: Fourteen hundred-seventy biographical sketches accompanied by portraits of leading American women in all walks of life. Charles Wells Moulton.