DeNorval Unthank Jr. Hall welcomed its first residents for the 2021-22 school year on Sept. 10. The University of Oregon named the seven story building after the first African American student to graduate from its School of Architecture and Allied Arts, according to its website. However, friends and family say Unthank Jr., or De, preferred to be recognized for other accomplishments.
“It wasn’t my dad’s mission to change people’s mind about people who didn’t look like them,” Unthank’s daughter, Libby Tower, said. “It was more, if you’re interested in having an approach to problem solving with a building that needs to be designed, and you appreciate my style and my design sensibilities, then hire me to do the building. But it’s not about hiring me because I’m Black.”
Unthank grew up in Portland with his parents and four siblings. His father, DeNorval Unthank Sr., was one of the first Black doctors in Portland, and he encouraged his son to be a doctor, too. Unthank went to Howard University for two years before returning to Oregon to study his true passion at UO’s architecture school.
He started a design and construction company with fellow architecture student Dick Chambers to help pay for school. The company, now Chambers Construction, is still a Eugene fixture. Unthank then moved on to work for Wilmsen Endicott Architects in 1955 and eventually became partner of the firm. In 1968, Unthank created his own firm with Otto Poticha, now a UO professor, and UO lecturer and Eugene architect Grant Seder. The firm won over 50 design awards, and Unthank established himself as a respected craftsman. He even designed McKenzie and Justice Bean Halls on UO’s campus, according to friends and family.
Unthank worked as an architect in Eugene for nearly 50 years before he died in 2000. He was a “pillar of the community,” his friend Greg Evans said, known for his skill and dedication to his craft, his commitment to his family and his guidance of aspiring architects and of the Black community in Eugene.
UO sought to honor Unthank in 2017 by renaming a wing of Hamilton Hall after him, but the Hamilton-Walton construction project includes removing Hamilton Hall in 2023.
“It’s got two more academic years, and then that building goes away,” Anna Schmidt-MacKenzie, the director of residence life and educational initiatives, said. “So, the work that was done to celebrate DeNorval Unthank, we did not want to lose that opportunity to maintain that celebration.”
Unthank Hall is meant to be a space of social gathering, Schmidt-Mackenzie said. The hall hosts lots of common spaces and dining venues, as well as the university’s Welcome Center. The university painted the words “Duck’s House” on the windows and introduced a sports bar to watch UO sporting events. Tower said both aspects of the building suit its namesake.
“My dad was very much a Duck,” she said. He loved sports, she said, and he loved mentoring those in his community.
That’s how he first bonded with Evans in the 80s. Evans said they got to know each other by drinking beer and talking shop about football and basketball. Evans claims UO wasn’t the powerhouse it is today, but said Unthank always begged to differ. He gave Evans advice on living in Eugene as a Black man.
“I watched how he approached raising his children in a predominantly White community and saw some of the issues, the pitfalls back then,” Evans said. “Racism was par for the course; you just knew that there were certain parts of town you didn’t go to, certain places you couldn’t live because you would be harassed out of there and it would be difficult for you to live in certain places in town. He did guide you in that respect.”
Unthank was a “backroom operator” when it came to addressing racism in Eugene, Evans said. He prioritized running his business and raising his family and avoided political movements.
“He didn’t have the luxury to be out there doing that when he had a business to run,” Tower said. “I think people get a little confused and they think that he was an activist when, from my perspective and from my mother’s perspective, that’s not what we remember. We remember him being pretty dedicated to his work and his business and his family and his teaching.”
In addition to guiding Evans and other members of the community, Unthank mentored aspiring architects, especially undergraduates, and founded the National Organization for Minority Architects. He taught at UO from 1965 to 1980 and “had a strong impact on students,” Poticha said. Today, the DeNorval Unthank Jr. Memorial Scholarship in Architecture provides aid to undergraduate students in the architecture school.
Tower said naming such a prominent building on campus after the Unthank family is a “huge honor.” She said she is proud to see a building named for someone’s impact rather than a monetary donation.
“It is fitting it should be named for DeNorval Unthank Jr., an unwavering advocate for others who understood that design, education and opportunity are intertwined,” UO spokesperson Kay Jarvis said in an email to the Emerald.
Poticha said Unthank could be better honored by renaming McKenzie or Justice Bean. Friends, family and Schmidt-MacKenzie agree that Unthank’s legacy should be explained inside the new building.
Evans said Unthank deserves to be recognized for his work addressing racism in Eugene and his contributions to UO.
“Is everything perfect? No. Are things moving in the right direction? I would say yes,” Evans said. “Are they moving fast enough? No. But they are moving, and they would not be moving without De Unthank and some of the other Black families who were pioneers here in Eugene.”
