When I saw this vintage postcard of a huge, magnificent home in Oberlin entitled, "The Tank Home," I thought, "I'll bet that house is long gone – no doubt torn down for some campus building." It didn't look the least bit familiar to me even though I've been commuting to Oberlin for almost five years via various routes.
Little did I know (after doing a little research) that Tank Hall is a part of the Oberlin College campus and that I was driving by it every day on the way home. It's set back from the road a bit and hidden by trees, so it's easy to miss.
So what is Tank Hall?
According to its Wiki entry, “Tank Hall, also known as Tank House and Tank Cooperative, is an 1896 Queen Anne living and dining cooperative owned and maintained by Oberlin College in Oberlin, Ohio, United States. Originally the Tank Home for Missionary Children, the house underwent a series of renovations before becoming the co-op it is today. It currently operates as one of the Oberlin Student Co-operative's co-ops.
“The house was built by the Oberlin Missionary Home Association in 1896 to house the children of the missionaries abroad. It was designed by Cleveland architect F. A. Coburn. The firm of Glen and Copeland, from Oberlin, were the builders. The Home was named after Mrs. Caroline L. A. Tank, who contributed a quarter of the cost of its construction as a gift from the estate of her late husband Nils Otto Tank, who was a wealthy son of a Norwegian gentryman and worked as a missionary in Dutch Guiana in the 1840s; he also founded a Moravian religious commune in northern Wisconsin.
"In 1922, after the Association had ended, the College acquired the property for use as a women's dormitory. It became a residential co-operative in 1963.
“This building is set back from the road on a slight hill and has a large front yard. A sandstone path leads from the sidewalk to the front porch and to a large bike-rack on the west side of the house. There is a paved driveway on the east side of the house that leads to a small parking lot in the back. In front of the house is a massive ash tree.”
It's a beautiful building. I stopped there several times this week trying to get some good photos to match some vintage postcard views. On my first try early in the week, the sun didn't cooperate and I wasn't happy with my photos with the cloudy sky. So I tried again last night since the sun was out. I'm surprised someone inside didn't call campus security and say,"Hey that guy in the blue car is back again!"
As expected, the trees interfered with my ability to get a good, matching 'now' shot angle.
