Several generations of one Athens County family are responsible for the familiar brick structures central to Ohio University’s College Green.
William Dean made 37,000 bricks for Cutler Hall in 1816, charging $4.50 for every thousand bricks. More than 150 years later, a descendant of the craftsman, Larry Dean, built the brick retaining walls surrounding Cutler.
“That icon, my family had a hand in putting that up,” Larry’s son, Todd Dean, said of Cutler Hall. “It’s Ohio University’s history, but it’s also my family’s history.”
Since its completion in the early 1800s, Cutler has been remodeled extensively.
The building, which was used for office space, classrooms, a library, museum and a laboratory over many decades, was condemned for classroom use in the 1930s, according to a Post report in 1946. Renovation planning continued for many years until legislation appropriating the necessary money was passed and the Civilian Production Administration, a board designed to help industries transition from wartime to peacetime production, granted approval, The Post reported.
To restore the building to its original appearance after considerable redesign in the late 1800s and various additions since that time, former OU President John C. Baker was advised to have the building demolished and rebuilt.
“Cutler Hall as it stands today has been dismantled and rebuilt,” Todd Dean said. “They used the same bricks, but that building would not still be standing if it hadn’t been dismantled and put back.”
The interior of the building was refurbished with new windows, new doors and reinforced concrete floors to replace the hardwood. An elevator was added, and the heating, lighting and plumbing were updated.
In 1983, when Cutler’s brick retaining walls were added, a member of the Dean family was commissioned again to build for the university. Larry Dean, who served as a brick mason for OU at the time, built the retaining walls and several other brick structures including a number of buildings on West Green, Todd Dean said.
“My dad never wanted us to go into the trade, because it’s a hard trade,” Todd Dean said. “When he got hired by Ohio University, that was kind of the motivation for him to take the job — he wanted his kids to be able to go college if possible.”
Todd Dean grew up near the university and spent time with his uncle visiting campus before eventually enrolling as a theater and film student. He graduated from OU with a bachelor’s of fine arts in 1986.
“If not for Ohio University, I would not be the person I am today,” he said. “I say that easily because growing up in Appalachia. I would have had a whole different life if OU had not been there for me.”
Todd Dean said he’s proud of the legacy his family created through their brick work and visits Athens often to eat at his favorite local restaurants and reflect on more than 200 years of history.
“When you think of Athens, you think of OU and you think of bricks,” he said.
