Bright red rhyolite skins University of Wisconsin Science Hall, built in 1888. This U-shaped, three-story Romanesque Revival building was constructed in 1888 and later declared a National Historic Landmark in 1993. It is significant for its association with Charles R. Van Hise, "who led the Department of Mineralogy and Geology to national prominence" and then served as president of the university. The hall was designed by Milwaukee architect Henry C. Koch and was later altered during construction by Allan D. Conover, a professor of civil engineering at the school.
Look up at the bright red rhyolite ashlar that skins the exterior and along the main facade: 205 feet long, it overlooks Park Street. A five-story tower with a hipped roof anchors the facade while wings stretch west from the north and south, enclosing a courtyard. Each corner of those wings carries a three-story tower, and near the western ends you will spot a small, three-story round tower on each courtyard side. Terra cotta hip roll trims the towers below their roofs. Originally the roofs were slate; they were replaced with asphalt shingles in 1992. Slate once covered these roofs until asphalt shingles replaced it in 1992.