Frances Cha has examined the remarkable Wheelock memorial window in Bartlett Hall in The Dartmouth:

The window depicts John the Baptist and quotes him: “Vox Clamantis In Deserto Viam Domini.” In doing so, the window recalls Wheelock’s invocation of that message in his suggestion that the college motto be “Vox Clamantis in Deserto.” (Meacham photo)

Dartmouth has put up several pages about the art and architecture of Rollins Chapel.

College Chaplain Rev. Richard Crocker expects the stained glass windows in Rollins to be repaired beginning during the summer of 2006 according to an interview in the Dartmouth Review.   The Review also prints Kale Bongers’ historically-minded editorial supporting the restoration.

In his interview, Rev. Crocker related with qualifications the story that the Rollins altar was moved back to the east end during the 1960s and that the sun that shone through the apse windows into the eyes of the audience as a result was part of the reason the school covered the windows.   The pulpit or lectern had been moved to the southeast corner of the crossing in 1912 when the transepts were lengthened and effectively made into a new nave (the hillside blocked any more expansion to the east).

As part of a restoration, Facilities Planning will reveal the now-covered stained-glass windows in the apse of Rollins Chapel, The Dartmouth reports. Donors gave each memorial window in the name of a president of the school, the first five (three in the chancel and one in each transept) in 1886 after the building opened according to “Dartmouth College. Description of the Five Memorial Windows in Rollins Chapel,” New York Times (5 March 1886), 8, col. 5.

• The center window in the chancel is a memorial for President Eleazar Wheelock, made by James Ballantine & Son of Edinburgh, and depicts a group of hearers listening to John the Baptist, also including college motto and seal.
• The President Brown memorial was made by F.X. Zettier at the Royal Bavarian Stained Glass Works in Munich and depicts the apostle John.
• The President Tyler memorial was made by Donald McDonald of Boston and depicts the apostle Paul with the usual colors replaced with reds and brown to go with the chapel.
• The President Lord window, also by McDonald, depicts Moses.
• The President Smith window, also by McDonald, depicts St. James.

Other windows have followed, including President Bartlett’s memorial in 1905, a window designed and executed by Tiffany Studios according to The Dartmouth 26 (24 June 1905), 2.