South Hall, built in 1873, is the oldest building on the
University of California, Berkeley campus and the only remaining building of the original campus. South Hall was originally the counterpart of North Hall, which no longer exists, but was located where the
Bancroft Library currently stands.
The first
physics laboratory in the United States was hosted in South Hall in 1879. It also has been home to the College of Agriculture, a business school, and a temporary museum for the state geological survey. The University
Herbarium was housed in South Hall from 1890 till 1897. It currently houses the
UC Berkeley School of Information. When
Wheeler Hall was planned, the entrance of South Hall was removed from the west side and added on the east side entrance.
According to legend, the rooftop scene of
Mary Poppins was filmed at South Hall, although this has been shown to be false.
Campus tour guides often point out a small stone bear in the architecture of South Hall, above the entrance, in the third circle from the left, claiming it is the smallest bear statue on campus.
The four-story building is located southwest of
Sather Tower.
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