Knowles Memorial Chapel, Mediterranean Revival chapel at Rollins College, Winter Park, United States.
Knowles Memorial Chapel is a white stucco Mediterranean Revival building on the Rollins College campus in Winter Park, Florida, built in 1931–1932 to a design by Ralph Adams Cram. A tall square tower with a tiered belfry, balustrade, domed lantern and finial rises above the roofline, with a round-arched window below the belfry; the lower wing has a red-tiled roof edge and a small arched window, and palms grow at the base.
Frances Knowles Warren donated the chapel in memory of her father Francis Bangs Knowles, who founded both Rollins College and Winter Park in the late 1800s. The building became a defining landmark of the young institution during its formative years.
The chapel is the venue for many musical events, especially during the annual Bach Festival of Winter Park. Its dean serves as pastor of the college, and the building remains the Rollins College Chapel for worship and campus ceremonies. The rose window at the rear depicts the seven liberal arts, a collaboration between architect Ralph Adams Cram and stained-glass artist William Herbert Burnham.
The chapel is an active Rollins College chapel, so visits should be timed around services and campus events; the dean serves as the college pastor. Musical events, notably during the annual Bach Festival of Winter Park, also occupy the building. Enter from the Rollins College campus in Winter Park, and check the college's listings before arriving.
Inside the chapel sits an Ernest M. Skinner organ installed in 1932, which blends original pipes with modern mechanical upgrades completed in 2002. This instrument remains a treasured element that draws musicians and audiences to the space.
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