William Lawyer Hinds Hall
"William Lawyer Hinds Hall" , 1953-1955
Hinds Hall houses the School of Information Studies, also known as the iSchool. Syracuse University’s iSchool was the very first information school in the nation. The iSchool includes graduate degrees in Library Science alongside undergraduate and graduate degrees in information studies. The redesigned Hinds Hall opened in 2008 with an inaugural iOpening celebration. It was renovated to be one of the most “wired” buildings on campus. In addition to hosting numerous computer servers and high-end information technology programs, Hinds Hall houses the Center for Computational and Data Science, formerly known as the Center for Natural Language Processing. Hinds Hall received a 2008 American Institute of Architects Central New York Chapter Citation Award for its redesign and renovations.
William Lawyer Hinds Hall was named for William Lawyer Hinds, former chairman of the board of Crouse Hinds Co. and former SU Trustee. The building was originally used for administrative offices, research, and instructional laboratories (but no classrooms) to accommodate the growing College of Engineering. Ashley McGraw Architects began renovations on the building in 2003 to transform Hinds into the home of the School of Information Studies, giving the building a modern update. Hinds received a 2008 American Institute of Architects Central New York Chapter Citation Award for its redesign and renovations. In 2009, students, faculty, and staff from the iSchool, VPA, and the School of Architecture all played a role in the iSchool’s Windows Project, which converted a wall of unappealing, raw concrete window wells from renovations into six canvases to display artwork. Margie Hughto’s piece, Information Spiral, received the Dean’s Design prize, as it reflected the mission of the iSchool through sculpted tiles which included a keyboard, a thesaurus, a camera, and other tools that collect and disseminate information.
William Lawyer Hinds was a prominent Syracuse industrialist and philanthropist. Born in 1874 in Binghamton, NY, Hinds joined the Crouse-Hinds Co. in 1903. The Crouse-Hinds Co. was co-founded by Huntington Beard Crouse and Jesse L. Hinds, William Hinds’ uncle. Hinds first served as an assistant to Huntington Beard Crouse and later served in a variety of roles, including general manager and eventually chairman. Hinds retired as chairman in 1955 but continued to serve as a director. Hinds was a member of Syracuse University’s board of trustees and served as the chairman of its executive committee. Hinds also chaired the fundraising committee for Syracuse University’s Research Institute and the committee for Syracuse University’s Building and Development Fund. Hinds was awarded an honorary doctor-of laws degree by S.U. in 1951.
SU University Archives; SU Photo and Imaging Archive; Syracuse Herald Journal, Credit to artist of tree 75, Sam Van Aken.