Leonard Hall (Shaw University)

Leonard Hall
Leonard Hall in 2011
Former names	Leonard Medical Center
General information
Architectural style	Romanesque Revival
Location	Shaw University, Raleigh, North Carolina
Design and construction
Architect(s)	Gaston Alonzo Edwards

Leonard Hall is a historic educational building located on the campus of Shaw University in Raleigh, North Carolina. Built in 1881 and originally named Leonard Medical Center, it became known as Leonard Medical School, and then Leonard Hall. It was established when medical schools were professionalizing and was the first medical school in the United States to offer a four-year curriculum.^[1][2] It was also the first four-year medical school that African Americans could attend.^[3]

The building was named after Judson Wade Leonard, the brother-in-law of Shaw's founder Henry Martin Tupper. Classes began in 1882 and the annual tuition was $60, a substantial sum at the time.^[2][4] It is a contributing part of the East Raleigh-South Park Historic District, listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1990. In 1994 it was designated a North Carolina Historic Landmark.

Shaw University is the oldest historically black college in the South and often called the "mother of African-American colleges in North Carolina", because its alumni founded other colleges.^[5] It is named after Elijah Shaw, an entrepreneur from Massachusetts who contributed financially for the establishment of the school.^[6]

On March 31, 1886, it awarded the college's first medical degrees to six men. Leonard Medical Center was one of fourteen medical schools founded in the late 19th century for the education of African-Americans.^[4] Describing the history of the building, then-President Talbert O. Shaw said, "For Shaw University and the black community, it stands out as one of the bastions of education for our people. We are very proud of it."^[7]