Zahm Hall is one of the 31 Residence Halls on the campus of the University of Notre Dame and one of 16 male dorms. Zahm Hall was built in 1937 and is located directly east of St. Edward's Hall and is directly west of North Quad. Zahm Hall has 202 undergraduate students, its mascot is Ignats the moose, and its residents are called Zahmbies. The coat of arms is black and red, the colors of Zahm, and the interlaced pattern represents both the Z and the X, symbols of the hall, and the antlers of the moose, the mascot of the hall. The residents of Zahm refer to it as Zahm House.
History
Construction began in the spring of 1937. The new dorm was built just east of Saint Edward’s Hall on the site of a temporary dorm called Sophomore Hall, a wooden-framed structure that was demolished around 1935. Zahm was the third building constructed on North Quad – at the time called the “east campus.” The Boston architecture firm of Maginnis and Walsh designed it, together with Cavanaugh hall and the Biology hall. The designs of Cavanaugh and Zahm Halls are nearly identical. They were erected despite the lack of funds during the Great Depression. The dorm, with its brick exterior, limestone stone, and slate roof, was finished in time for the opening of school in September 1937 and housed 193 men. At its construction, it joined Brownson and Cavanaugh halls to host freshmen, while Carroll, Lyons, Morrissey, and Badin were for sophomores, Howard, Dillon, and Saint Edward’s for Juniors, and Sorin, Walsh, and Alumni for seniors. The first rector of the hall was Reverend John A. Molter, C.S.C. Other rectors included Charles I. McCarragher, James L. Shilts and, Thomas Blantz. The hall also housed U.S. Navy officers in training from 1942 to 1945. Zahm Hall was dedicated to Rev. John Augustine Zahm, CSC. Zahm was a priest, naturalist and scientist at Notre Dame, and was the pioneer of the study of natural sciences at the University. He also is well known for his work on reconciling Christian thought and evolution. He was a close friend of President Theodore Roosevelt and accompanied his in the Roosevelt-Rondon Scientific Expedition to South America. During World War II, Zahm Hall hosted naval officers.
Traditions
Zahm Hall is best known for its practice of streaking during the Bun Run. The Zahm residents run naked across various campus locations, usually the weekend before final exams. This practice has led to controversy and debate. Zahm also hosts their formal dance, known as "Zormal" in the Fall Semester and their SYR dance, Decade Dance, in the Spring Semester. Zahm's traditions run even deeper than surface-level ones, like the 'Here Come the Irish' banner. Zahm is known for its raucous reputation on campus. This no-good stereotype comes from the early days of the university, when Zahm Hall had the least desirable reputation and was always picked last by students. Since picks were in order by GPA, Zahm often hosted the least accomplished students. In the 1960s, the University dropped academic requirements for first housing picks, and students were henceforth assigned randomly to residence halls before they arrived on campus their freshman year. Zahm Hall exhibits a large "Here Come The Irish" sign on the side of the building facing the North Quad during home football games. The mascot of the hall is Ignats, a stuffed moose's head acquired in 1979. There are also numerous secret rituals such as 145, 113, Torquemada, the Shake, and many others.
