Disoriented

Posted on October 1, 2015 by Melissa Kean

Every once in a while I just get stuck. In this case I’ve completely lost my bearings.

What am I looking at? Is the picture flipped? Am I??

Help!

construction 047

Bonus: At least I know where this is.

L1010415

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19 Responses to Disoriented

  1. Bill Cox says:
    October 1, 2015 at 5:47 pm

    I am going to throw out a wild guess that this may the Hanszen College commons as it was being rebuilt after the 1975 fire. The left edge of the picture looks like the old section of Hanszen. I am trying to convince myself that the area behind the truck may be part of the new section, plus part of the kitchen area that was undamaged by the fire. (The fire started in the dining area and the firewall protected most of the kitchen.)

    Just a guess…

    Reply
  2. Ron Sass says:
    October 1, 2015 at 7:03 pm

    I agree that the building on the left really reminds me of the old section of Hanszen. Also, peaking out above the new building in the center of the photo is a suggestion of a building that must be the med center. I just can’t seem to remember the roof of the new building and think it may be the beginning construction of Hanszen College dining room. That brings me to the truck which appears to be circa 1950 in vintage. So, I guess we are looking at the construction of the college system.

    Reply
  3. marmer01 says:
    October 1, 2015 at 7:17 pm

    Having been at Hanszen in the early ’80s, I’m having trouble with this being the Commons. If that’s the old section to the left, and we’re looking at the back of the “commons” then the commons wasn’t nearly as far into the small Hanszen “quad” as this picture would imply. If this is the front of the commons, then the picture is reversed and the old section should be on the right. I also don’t think the roof is right and we don’t see the new section at all. But I can say with confidence that the truck is a 1967-72 Chevrolet C-50 medium-duty truck or its GMC counterpart. I think it’s a Chevy, though. That would put it into the proper time frame for 1970s construction.

    Reply
  4. Bill Cox says:
    October 1, 2015 at 8:31 pm

    OK, after pulling out my 1976 Campanile and looking at the construction pictures therein, I no longer believe that the mystery picture shows the Hanszen commons reconstruction. There was (and is) a covered walkway from the corner of the old section tower to the commons that should be exactly where the truck is parked. Pictures in the Campanile show that walkway intact and leading to the building under construction. I also agree with the concerns about the roof line of the new section, and I will also note that windows for rooms in the new section should be visible behind and above the truck.

    New theories???

    Reply
    • marmer01 says:
      October 1, 2015 at 8:46 pm

      OK, y’all are really going to laugh, but after reading Bill’s last comment, now I think it is Hanszen Commons, but from the north (old Wiess) side. The truck is where the walkway would eventually go. The roof pitch is more plausible running north-south. The roof of the new section is possibly just above the truck and the slanting structure right on top of the truck bed might be a precursor to the covered arcade. And the building mentioned by Dr. Sass is a Med Center building (school of nursing, maybe?) that got obliterated by the Titanic building in the mid-2000s.

      Reply
  5. loki_the_bubba says:
    October 1, 2015 at 8:45 pm

    My first guess was Rayzor Hall. But I don’t know why.

    Reply
  6. marmer01 says:
    October 1, 2015 at 8:47 pm

    Truck is way too new for Rayzor Hall. I am confident about that identification.

    Reply
  7. Melissa Kean says:
    October 1, 2015 at 9:06 pm

    I can’t tell you how relieved I am that the answer is not something obvious.

    Reply
  8. Leoguy says:
    October 1, 2015 at 9:21 pm

    It’s a photograph during the construction of the addition to Anderson Hall in the early 1980’s.

    Reply
  9. Leoguy says:
    October 1, 2015 at 9:32 pm

    You’re welcome

    Reply
  10. Leoguy says:
    October 1, 2015 at 9:36 pm

    You should always consult a Rice archi first…

    Reply
  11. Deborah Gronke Bennett BSEE Hanszen 1982 says:
    October 6, 2015 at 11:49 am

    OK, I want to know where the tile with the train is.

    Reply

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