Growing Public Ivy: The Old Well as a Symbol of Conflicting Ideals at UNC (2009)

Undergraduate: Genevieve Beaudry

Faculty Advisor: Erich Werner
Department: Psychology & Neuroscience

---

The Old Well has been upheld as a symbol of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill for years. Students interviewed considered it to be an importatn landmark, symbolizing the tradition and prestige of the university. There is a root reason, though not explicitly acknowledged, that students find the Old Well to be such an important symbol. The Old Well's longstanding status as a symbol is important because it represents the inclusive ideals of democracy as well as the exclusive aura of a prestigious university. Thus, the Old Well signifies the intention that President Alderman, the erector, had for the university during the post-Civil war era, as well as the mission statement for the university. The Old Well represents the conflicting goals of the university that Alderman encountered, and remains an important symbol because it continues to represent the conflicting goals of the university today: to function as an inclusive democratic institution of higher learning, while, even though a state school, being able to exude an air of academic prestige of an Ivy League school. Aldermans design of the Old Well encompasses an air of elitism and prestige, seen in its derivation of the Temple of Love at Versailles, but also depicts the ideals of inclusivity and democracy, seen in its derivation of Greco-Roman style architecture. A letter Alderman wrote to his niece also shows his intentions for the university and that the conflicting goals today were also present then.