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Do you know your Heritage?

Do you know your Heritage?

Caterina McNamara ’24 January 10, 2025

On a chilly day, students flock to the little brick building beside St. Mary’s Hall along the red brick path to the library. Inside the schoolhouse-like structure, they hold their warm coffee cups, unaware of all the uses this cozy refuge has served in its 100-year history. How you remember this spot may depend on the era you attended University of Dayton. Settle in as we spotlight the many acts of Heritage Coffeehouse.

1 — Men’s bathhouse: “Crystal Palace”

In 1903 the 1,047-square-foot building was constructed as a men’s lavatory to serve the senior residents of St. Mary’s Institute preparatory school. At the time, indoor plumbing wasn’t seen as practical, so bathrooms were omitted from many of the original structures. The space was soon dubbed the “Crystal Palace” among students because of the crystal-like glass used in the windows that line the structure. 

Students sit at tables on laptops

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2 — Carpentry shop 

After the 1927 academic year, most St. Mary’s Prepatory School students moved to other schools, reducing the need for the Crystal Palace. In 1935, the University decided to rework the inside to hold the carpentry shop. The slight remodel included booths for students’ use, and the shop was operational until its 1959 move to the basement of Sherman Hall. 

3 — Post office

The same year the carpentry shop moved out, the post office moved in. It was previously located in a cramped corner of the then-bookstore. Postmaster and Marianist Brother Arnold Klug ’12 spearheaded the location change and obtained a federal government contract to make UD’s post office an official contract station. Mailing services remained here for nearly 70 years until it was moved into the newly constructed Marianist Hall in 2004.

4 — Heritage Center

After a gift of $200,000 from UD’s Alumni Association in 2006, the space was reimagined to celebrate campus history and dubbed Heritage Center. Following its reopening in 2007, Golden Flyer volunteers welcomed visitors and shared their own experiences as students. Vibrant displays and artifacts depicted UD traditions dating back to 1850, when the Marianists arranged the purchase of the land that would become UD’s main campus.

5 — Heritage Coffeehouse

Heritage found new life in 2017 with the building’s new keeper, the student-run corporation Flyer Enterprises. For the renovation, Flyer Enterprises kept the Heritage name and honored its predecessor with TV screens that cycle through archival University images. Heritage Coffeehouse is one of two Flyer Enterprise locations that serves coffee sourced from an alumni-founded company, making for a perfect blend of remembering your UD roots.  

 


A version of this article appears in print in the Winter 2024-45 University of Dayton Magazine, Page 17. EXPLORE THE ISSUEMORE ONLINE

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