ECU marks centennial of Jarvis Hall groundbreaking

One hundred years ago this month, C.V. York’s construction company started building Jarvis Hall, the first structure to appear on the campus of East Carolina Teachers College.

On Tuesday, July 29, York’s grandson, Smedes York, returned to the building to celebrate the centennial anniversary of the original groundbreaking.

Faculty, staff and supporters of East Carolina University attended the ceremony. On display were the historic shovel used to break ground for Jarvis Hall and a photograph documenting the July 29, 1908 event.

“I don’t think anybody could have realized then what East Carolina would come to mean to our state,” York, chairman of York Properties, said.

York’s family is proud of its involvement with ECU. His grandfather’s company went on to build four more buildings on campus before moving the business to Raleigh, where it continues today.

Jarvis Hall was named for an East Carolina founder, Gov. Thomas Jarvis. The governor was present at the 1908 groundbreaking and, according to newspaper reports, did “a more than sufficient job at turning the earth,” said ECU Historian John Tucker.

The residence hall was renovated in 1999 and continues to house ECU students.

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