In 1900, the Georgia Legislature appropriated $45,000 for the construction of a men's dormitory to be named in honor of Governor Allen Daniel Candler.  Completed in 1902, Candler served primarily as a boys dormitory until World War II, when the U.S. Navy renovated the building, renamed it "Yorktown Barracks," and used it as a dormitory for their Pre-Flight School.  Towards the end of the war and for a time thereafter female students were housed in Candler.  In the years since, Candler has been home to the Institute of Higher Education, the Office of International Public Service and Outreach, the Institute of African American Studies, and the Office of International Development, to name just a few.

In 2003 Candler Hall underwent extensive renovations, restoring some of its historic features that were changed or removed during past renovations.  Hard wood floors were installed, ceilings were returned to their original height, and the stairwells were returned to their original locations in the building.  The restoration effort won an Outstanding Rehabilitation Award from the Athens-Clarke Heritage Foundation, and an 2006 Excellence in Rehabilitation Preservation Award from the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation. (See pictures)  Since August 4, 2003 Candler Hall has been home to the Department of International Affairs and the School of Public and International Affairs.  The building is located on North Campus next to Herty Field between Gilbert and Meigs Halls.  Click here for a map.

Some Candler Hall trivia

Few, if any, of the window panes in Candler Hall are original.  In 1910, when word got back to campus of Georgia's first victory over Alabama in football since 1902, students canvassed downtown for pallets and anything else that would burn.  A huge bonfire was prepared on Herty Field, which was then doused with gasoline.  When an unfortunate student struck a match to set it afire, the air, heavy with gas fumes, exploded.  Almost every window pane was blown out in Candler Hall, Moore College, New College, and Denmark Hall. The student who lit the match survived, but was hospitalized for a long time.
(Ghosts of Herty Field: Early Days on a Southern Gridiron, John F. Stegeman, 1966, UGA Press, pp. 93-94).

During his time here as a proctor, the 1920s equivalent of a graduate teaching assistant, long-time UGA Dean of Men William Tate lived on the third floor of Candler as a resident assistant.  One night some students thought it would be fun and funny to bring a cow up the stairs and tie it to the foot of his bed. But getting the cow back down the stairs was not nearly as easy as the trip up. A janitor suggested lowering it out a window using a block and tackle, but the cow was much too large for any of the windows. Tate covered the cow's head with a blanket, assigned one student to each of the cows legs and they "walked" it back down.
(Remembering Athens, Susan Barrow Tate, 1996, Athens Historical Society, pg. 166.)