Morrill Hall: The Chapel

Although the two foremost reasons for building Morrill Hall were to house a museum and a library, a chapel was quickly added to the list.  Its completion allowed for some changes in Old Main, including the conversion of the old chapel into a dining room.  

Daily chapel was held in Morrill Hall at 7:45 Monday through Friday until 1918.  Sunday chapel, which was held in Curtiss Auditorium at 11:00, was continued by Iowa State’s Chaplain, Dr. O.H. Cessna, until his retirement in 1929.  Cessna, an ordained Methodist minister, also served as Head of the History and Psychology Department from 1902 to 1922. 

By 1910, conditions had become so crowded that the Chapel was being used for class work. The Music Department used the Chapel as a choir room until the new Music Hall was completed in 1980. The organ was donated to a local church and was in use until very recent years.