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University buildings and grounds

Alexander Hall

In Chapel Hill. 6 dated events, 1942–1944.

Map tiles © OpenStreetMap contributors. Site locations from the N.C. State Historic Preservation Office survey, Open Orange, Orange County GIS, OpenStreetMap and a few other published sources named on each site’s page; town and community pins show approximate locations.

People in its history

People named in events about this site, ordered by number of mentions. Each example links to an entry with a source citation.

Sites linked through the same people

In the chronology

  1. The Pre-Flight School moves its administration into Alexander Hall In the first two weeks of May 1942 the Pre-Flight School moved its offices from Swain Hall into Alexander Hall, the dormitory known as Dormitory K, which had been remodeled as the school's administration building. The disbursing office took over a basement billiard room, and Caldwell Hall was being remodeled to hold the academic staff and about 900 cadets at a time for classes. Cloudbuster (Navy Pre-Flight School, Chapel Hill), October 3, 1942, p. 5
  2. A Navy branch post office opens at the Pre-Flight School headquarters A postal inspector from Raleigh and Postmaster W. S. Hogan formally opened a branch post office on the main floor of Alexander Hall, with money order, registry and parcel post service, staffed by four Navy enlisted men. Its cancellation stamp read "U. S. Navy," and on the Monday of opening week the staff found 2,700 cadets' letters waiting to go out. People: William S. Hogan The Chapel Hill Weekly, July 31, 1942, p. 1
  3. The Pre-Flight School's weekly Cloudbuster begins publication The first issue of the Cloudbuster, the weekly paper of the Navy Pre-Flight School, appeared on September 19, 1942, put out by the school's public relations office with Ensign Leonard Eiserer as editor and Lt. (jg) Kidd Brewer as public relations officer. Its nameplate was drawn by a cadet, and from December 1942 it was printed by the Orange Printshop in Chapel Hill. Cloudbuster (Navy Pre-Flight School, Chapel Hill), September 19, 1942, p. 4
  4. The Pre-Flight School begins cockpit instruction in a wingless Navy biplane beside Alexander Hall A new course gave every cadet time in the cockpit of a Vought-Sikorsky O3U-3 biplane, delivered to the Navy in 1933 and set up without wings next to Alexander Hall, so that cadets would know the instruments and controls before reaching flight bases where they now flew within days of arrival. Lt. Richard King ran the course, and a building behind Caldwell Hall was planned to house the plane. Cloudbuster (Navy Pre-Flight School, Chapel Hill), October 24, 1942, p. 1
  5. Pre-Flight School personnel pledge $38,811 in war bonds on Pearl Harbor Day On the first anniversary of Pearl Harbor, 63 percent of the school's officers, V-5 instructors, cadets, crew and civilian employees pledged $38,811 in war bonds and stamps, part of a Sixth Naval District drive. The V-5 instructors led with 95 percent taking part, and the 12th Battalion pledged the most, $10,530. People: John P. Graff Cloudbuster (Navy Pre-Flight School, Chapel Hill), December 12, 1942, p. 1
  6. Twelve WAVES live on the third deck of Alexander Hall Twelve enlisted WAVES, eleven of them serving the Pre-Flight School as laboratory and dental technicians and storekeepers and one with the university's V-12 unit, were quartered together on the third floor of Alexander Hall. Two WAVES officers began teaching navigation to cadets that summer. Cloudbuster (Navy Pre-Flight School, Chapel Hill), July 15, 1944, p. 1

Open these in the chronology →

Indexed works

The index has no works about Alexander Hall itself yet. The surveys and maps below cover where it stands. Search the index for Alexander Hall, or tell us about a book or record we have missed.

Surveys and maps of the area

Not about Alexander Hall alone: the architectural surveys that cover its town or the county, and maps drawn while it stood. Several of the surveys can be read free online at NC Digital Collections.

The Town and Gown Architecture of Chapel Hill, North Carolina: 1795-1975

Little-Stokes, Margaret Ruth · 2006

Margaret Ruth Little-Stokes's survey of Chapel Hill's town and campus buildings from 1795 to 1975, published by the Preservation Society of Chapel Hill in 2006. Chapters run from the first campus buildings through David Swain's romantic campus to midcentury modernism, followed by area surveys of the campus, east and west Chapel Hill, downtown, Northside and the suburbs.

Included because: A survey or map of the town or county where the site stands.

NC Cardinal UNC Duke NC State Durham Chapel Hill PL Library of Congress CH Historical Society

The town and gown architecture of Chapel Hill, 1795-1975

Little, M. Ruth · 2004 · Preservation Society of Chapel Hill

M. Ruth Little's 2004 architectural history of Chapel Hill and the university campus from 1795 to 1975, written for the Preservation Society of Chapel Hill. A 99-page survey with a bibliography.

Included because: A survey or map of the town or county where the site stands.

NC Cardinal NC Digital Collections DPLA

NC Digital Collections record courtesy of the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.

Chapel Hill historic sites survey : final report.

Gatza, M. B. · 1992 · Chapel Hill Planning Department

M. B. Gatza's final report of the 1992 Chapel Hill historic sites survey for the town Planning Department, with contributions by Beverly C. Kawalec and Catherine Bishir. It covers historic buildings and districts in Chapel Hill in 80 pages.

Included because: A survey or map of the town or county where the site stands.

NC Cardinal NC Digital Collections DPLA

NC Digital Collections record courtesy of the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.

Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Chapel Hill, Orange County, North Carolina.

1925

Sanborn Map Company fire insurance map of Chapel Hill, June 1925, on eleven sheets, with Carrboro also drawn. Sanborn maps recorded the outline, construction and use of each building for fire insurers, so the set shows both towns block by block in the mid 1920s.

Included because: A survey or map of the town or county where the site stands.

Library of Congress Digital Collections

Map of Chapel Hill & vicinity.

1933

Street and property map of Chapel Hill and the surrounding country, revised to 1 January 1933 and printed in the town. Topics include streets, real property and the historical geography of Chapel Hill along with maps of the University of North Carolina in its 1793 to 1962 period. A useful sheet for tracing lot lines and street names as they stood at the start of the 1930s.

Included because: A survey or map of the town or county where the site stands.

UNC

Found a book OCPL doesn’t own? You can often borrow it through interlibrary loan at OCPL.

Start at OCPL

    Where to look on the shelf

    These books don’t necessarily mention Alexander Hall, but they cover where it stands, its kind of building and the land, family and burial records behind it, and they are where a search for a place like this usually goes next. All are at OCPL, most in the Wall Collection.

    Histories of the town and county

    • Rebecca Wall Collection · NC 975.656 STO Chapel Hill: A Pictorial History Stolpen, Steven · 1978

      Steven Stolpen's pictorial history of Chapel Hill, one of the Donning Company's photographic town histories, published in Norfolk, Virginia in 1978. Photographs and portraits carry the story of the town and the university, including references to Thomas Wolfe's years as a student at Carolina. 156 pages with illustrations.

    • Foundational · 975.656 RYAN Orange County Trio: Hillsborough, Chapel Hill, and Carrboro, North Carolina, Histories and Tour Guides Ryan, Elizabeth Shreve · 2004

      Elizabeth Shreve Ryan's combined histories and tour guides for Hillsborough, Chapel Hill and Carrboro, the three towns of Orange County, with the University of North Carolina treated alongside Chapel Hill. Each town gets a narrative history and a tour of its streets and buildings. Published by Chapel Hill Press in 2004, 369 pages with illustrations and maps.

    Buildings and surveys

    • Foundational · NC 720.975 BIS A Guide to the Historic Architecture of Piedmont North Carolina Bishir, Catherine W. · 2003

      Catherine W. Bishir and Michael T. Southern's field guide to the historic buildings of the North Carolina Piedmont, arranged county by county from Wake and Franklin in the east to Mecklenburg and Gaston in the west. The Orange County section takes in Hillsborough, Chapel Hill and Carrboro along with the rural county, with entries on individual buildings and maps for finding them. Published 2003, 596 pages with illustrations and maps.

    • Foundational · NC 917.56 HIS Historic Buildings and Landmarks of Chapel Hill, N.C Chapel Hill Historical Society · 1973

      A pocket-sized guide to the historic buildings and landmarks of Chapel Hill, prepared by the Chapel Hill Historical Society and printed by Creative Printers in 1973. Forty pages with illustrations and maps, 14 by 22 cm. Topics include architecture, historic buildings and historic districts in Chapel Hill, and the guide is useful for a walking tour of the older parts of town.

    Research sources

    Sources cited in this site’s history, National Register documents, and places to get research help. Research guide: Investigate a school or community institution.

    Historic sites, markers, and maps

    Records of the time 9

    Show all 9

    Collections and databases

    Local help 5

    Nearby

    Two mice reading back to back against a leaf, with the hand-lettered words Friends of the Orange County Public Library
    Illustration by Caldecott Medalist Matthew Cordell, gifted to the Friends 2026