Classroom

A tour of the commemorations of Herman B. Wells, Indiana University President and Chancellor.

A three-sided corner gravestone marks the graves of the three sisters who moved to Bloomington after serving as aides in the Revolutionary war. Ellenor Dunn, the oldest of the three, and her husband bought 160 acres of farm land and built a home where Indiana University Bloomington’s School of Public Health is located today. Ellenor’s husband Samuel gave the family estate to his eldest son, George Gundy Dunn, who established the boundaries of family cemetery. George’s son, Moses Dunn, sold 30 acres of his family’s land to the university trustees after a fire in 1883 destroyed the main campus building. Indiana University continued to build and grow around the Dunn cemetery, which is forever deeded to the Dunn family.There is beauty here, but I am suddenly oppressed. The wind blows colder and the sun does not shine so bright within these confines. I believe I shall retrace my steps through the iron gate in the wall, back to the evanescent world outside… (Richard Bruick in The Folio, 1940)

Dunn Cemetery is located directly to the east of the Indiana University Memorial Union next to Beck Chapel. Three heroines of the Revolutionary War are buried here: Ellenor Brewster Dunn, Agnes “Nancy” Brewster Alexander, and Janet Brewster Irvin. The women spun, wove, and created garments for the soldiers and cooked food for Washington and his army when they were stationed nearby. After the war, the three sisters eventually moved to Bloomington, Indiana. The plot of land it is located on was once known as the Dunn Farm.  In 1883 a fire destroyed much of Indiana University at its former location (which is now Seminary Square) and Moses F. Dunn sold a part of the Dunn Farm for the new site of Indiana University. However, he did not sell the graveyard. This plot of land, also known as "God's Acre" is still owned by the Dunn family. 

Dunn Cemetery

The Well House quickly became the most romantic location on campus, perhaps because it was located about halfway between the male and female dormitories. Kissing at midnight soon became a rite of passage. Reflecting the gendered history of early college campuses where female students represented thirty to forty percent of the student body prior to the mid-20th century, a dated tradition asserted that a female student is not "a true co-ed" until she had been kissed by her sweetheart beneath the dome of the Well House when the clock hits midnight. This tradition once held a bit more risk, as the women's dormitory had a curfew an hour prior to midnight. Today, female students represent a majority of the student population and also lead their male counterparts in GPA and graduation rates.&nbsp;

The Well House is one of the oldest and most beloved structures on the IU campus. It  was built in 1908 and covers the original well that served the college and community. In fact, water from this well saved old Wylie Hall from destruction during a fire in 1900. The structure was a gift from Theodore F. Rose in 1908. 

The Well House was constructed in 1908 and remains one of the iconic landmarks on the IU campus. 

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