Virtual Tour

With its fine interior architectural elements, the Kahin Center provides an inspiring ambiance for academic events and an ideal atmosphere for the pursuit of advanced scholarship. The Kahin Center also provides facilities such as wireless networking and computer support for students and faculty members.

View the Kahin Center floor plans
Tour the first floor
Tour the second floor

William H. Miller, a prominent Ithaca architect, designed the house at 640 Stewart Avenue by combining elements of the Queen Anne and the Arts and Crafts style-resulting in a lavish building with tiled roofs, half-timbering, and rusticated stone. With its three floors and basement, the house has many rooms that were originally designed for specific purposes. The basement had separate storerooms for food, wood, and coal, as well as a laundry room, cistern, and furnace room. A large ice box was kept cool with hundred-pound blocks of ice from Cayuga Lake. The first floor had eight rooms, including the library, living and dining rooms, butler's pantry, and kitchen. The second floor housed the family and guest bedrooms, as well as two bathrooms. Servants slept on the third floor, which also contained a billiards room and gymnasium.

In 1944, Cornell bought the house for $28,000 and it was occupied first by a fraternity and then by the Department of Communication Arts. Although a well-built structure, the house needed extensive renovation by the time it was fated to become the Kahin Center. Another challenge was to blend the style of the original building with the first floor addition dating from the 1950s. The addition created a new exterior side and back, enclosing one of the original matching loggias. A new stairway to the basement was put in the place of this loggia, retaining original outside wood and stonework in what is now a dramatic interior feature. Overall, the original style, beauty, and warmth of the Treman house has been enhanced by this graceful renovation. From the chestnut paneling in the seminar room to Laura Treman's carvings in the meeting room, the spirit of the building shines through and welcomes its new occupants.

The Kahin Center in the summer time.