Keep Cottage

Date

1913-present

Location

154 North Main Street

Architects/Collaborators

Patton & Miller, Chicago (architects)
George Feick, Sandusky, OH (contractor)

Style

Craftsman

History

The cottage was opened for use in January, 1913, with dormitory accommodations for fifty-two women. It was named in honor of Rev. John Keep and Mrs. Theodore J. Keep. Mr. George M. Clark and his wife, Mrs. Elizabeth Keep Clark, contributed funds toward the cost of this cottage. It was designed by architects Patton & Miller, highly regarded both in their Chicago location and beyond. Today Keep is a co-op operated by the Oberlin Student Cooperative Association (OSCA), a nonprofit organization that gives back any extra funds they have at the end of the year. Keep is no different from the other co-ops when it comes to maintenance. Every member of the house has an assigned, equitable task requiring some work hours every week. Students find this a small price to pay in return for at cost housing.

For more Oberlin buildings by Patton & Miller or their successive companies, see Warner Gymnasium and the Carnegie Building.

Sources

Keep, Oberlin College Resed Housing website, accessed May 27, 2015.

Oberlin College Archives, Office of the Secretary Records.