Though apparently doomed, Building 2 remained standing off Broadway Street on Dec. 26, 2025.
In 2024, the government announced it planned to demolish Building 2 on the Albany campus of the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL). Now that we’re in 2026, how come the historic structure is still there?
“I checked with our folks and this project is currently on hold,” was the answer I got from Shelley Martin, the national communications director for NETL in West Virginia.
I heard the same from Dylan Ray Tsolakos, a specialist with Oregon Heritage, the historic preservation branch of the state Department of Parks and Recreation. “This case is currently on hold for review,” he said.
Last fall I reported on the draft of an agreement between NETL and various other parties. The draft said the building would be demolished but certain steps would be taken to preserve any historic artifacts, and to safeguard two other buildings that played a significant part in the history of the Albany site.
Apparently the demolition is on hold because negotiations are still going on and the agreement has not been signed.
The building is of historic interest because it was built in about 1892 by the Albany Ladies’ Aid Society to serve as a hospital and orphanage. (That’s according to the NETL’s 2024 environmental assessment of the possible demolition.)
Built on a site near present-day Calapooia Middle School, it was a wood-frame structure of two floors above a concrete basement, with wrap-around porches on both floors.
In 1901 the building was sold to Albany College, which moved it to its campus, the present location of Central Elementary School, as a women’s dormitory named Tremont Hall.
Albany College itself moved to a new campus “southwest of the city,” and Tremont Hall was relocated there in 1926 after its wrap-around porches were taken off.
The Albany Democrat-Herald reported in September 1926 that moving Tremont Hall had taken 39 days and was accomplished by V.W. Mason, “assisted by a force of men.”
At its new location Tremont Hall was remodeled as a four-story structure with brick facing and renamed Woodward Hall. It had 24 sleeping rooms, three sleeping porches, a dining room, kitchen and social hall.
Albany College moved to Portland in 1938 and became Lewis and Clark College.
Then, in 1943, the U.S. Bureau of Mines acquired the Albany campus and started using the former dorm for office work and research, including work of national importance related to nuclear energy.
Since the mid-1990s, the building has been vacant and allowed to fall apart inside. NETL says it’s unsafe to enter and wants to tear it down.
I don’t know how long the “on hold” status of the demolition will last. We’ll know that it’s over when heavy machinery moves in to take the building apart. (hh)
This is as close as the curious public can get to the historic structure the Energy Department intends to demolish.
Building 2 looked like this before 1926, when it was Tremont Hall on the site of present-day Central School.
Building #2 is such a landmark in Albany. Those of us who attended WAHS (or AUHS) and lived in SW Albany, we had it as a backdrop to our young lives. It made Albany a bit more cosmopolitan.
Thanks for the history lesson! Neat to know that about the campus and about Lewis and Clark College.
The fine citizens of Albany will have to wait awhile on this decision. Our government is currently too busy shooting its own citizens.
Nice reply! We have a Wag the Dog situation to divert attention from the fraud in the blue states. The knucklehead governor in Minnesota looks to be a dead man walking as more evidence shows the government headed the coverup.
That’s right Hartman. Doesn’t stop there.
Pulled this headline off the O. Nice dovetail, yah!
“Feds pay $125K after Border Patrol agent pointed gun at Portland hotel worker”
Thank you Hasso! Albany history is fascinating.
What’s interesting is how many relatively large structures were moved and relocated, some more than once such as the instant case, by our predecessors. We don’t give them enough credit for their capabilities a century ago.
My Aunt Elsie, long since passed, as they used to say, went to Albany College When I tried to tell Aunt Elsie’s granddaughter that Albany College became Lewis and Clark, she didn’t believe me, but she’s from Portland and unfortunately many people raised there never think anything can originate in other parts of Oregon.
I have always wondered what Albany would be like today, if the college had stayed and the Bureau of Mines never came to town???
Well let’s see… there never would have been Wah Chang, Oremet, Selmet, I forget the name of the one on the S-curve of Queen, it’s Pacific Cast now. These metal firms brought a lot of good jobs to Albany.
Living in Albany all my life I was fortunate to have my entire working career on this historic site as a scientific and technical research photographer. 21 years with the Bureau of Mines starting in 1975 (abolished in 1996) and spent another 21 years part of the Dept. of Energy retiring in 2017. I feel very fortunate to have a lifetime career at place such as this to work with many world renown researchers.
To add a little additional history to this site, before the Albany College was built there Albany Nurseries occupied the property. Frank Stellmacher who had lived on the Albany Nurseries property as a boy later served as landscaper, maintenance man, and was the much-loved supervisor of the groundskeeping crew at the Bureau. Frank was famous for his green thumb. Frank retired in June 1954. And the dogwood tree planted in front of bldg. 1 commemorated his retirement of 11 years.
Some of the old times had told me that before Albany Nurseries existed the Calapooya Indians would gather camas that grew where West Albany High School is now and bring them up to the area where Bldg. 1 now and roast them.
As for a little more history of Bldg. 2, I also had the responsibility of maintaining all of the photographic records from the Bureaus early beginnings. In 1984 the Albany Research Center of U.S. Bureau of Mines was recognized as a national historic site by the American Society for Metals (ASM). But at the time I couldn’t find enough documented evidence of zirconium research that took place in that building. Then in 1998 the Bureau of Reclamation did an evaluation of the historical significance of the entire facility after the US. Bureau of Mines was abolished on February 3, 1996. Still no hard evidence of early zirconium work being done in that particular building.
Years later I happened to stumble across a couple photos taken at the top of bldg. 2 that showed on fourth floor on the North side of the building showed the top of a zirconium retort furnace which was an early scale up from the small zirconium reactor that Dr. Kroll set up in the basement of building 1 back in 1947. This Zr furnace went from basement level to the 4th floor and in a photo I found you can see the Persian walnut tree just South of building. And Dr. Kroll’s office was at the South end of the 4th floor as well. Before I moved to building 33 to a new photo lab my lab occupied the North end of the basement of bldg. 2 and I remember the floor was still scarred from the Zr furnace.
So sad that it took so long to find this photo that could have added building 2 to the other world renown historical buildings with such rich metallurgical history.
That’s so interesting! I would love to see those pictures!
Speaking of buildings being move, were you aware that the building on the NW corner of 2nd and Lyon once occupied the SW corner of 1st and Broadalbin? It’s now the Museum.
Without the bureau of mines there would have not made the component for the bomb that was dropped on Japan
Attending at St. Mary’s tonight January 10th about halfway through the mass one. Albany policeman came in and looking at somebody and then two or three more Albany placement came in about that time. The guy they were looking at jumps up starts running all the police running after him screaming yelling shouting real chaos. Is it something you want to look after? Scary. Scary.
Its really sad it has sat empty all this year and nothing was ever done to persevere it for it history and possibly given a new life.. Can only imagine what stories would be told if those walls could talk.
They should absolutely preserve this building! Is that the current Central School in the background of that shot?
No, that’s Albany College.