Huai Shi Hall

Huai Shi Hall

Huai Shi Hall is located in Kang Le Yuan (the South Campus of Sun Yat-sen University). It was a YMCA building constructed for Lingnan School with funding from Ambrose Swasey, president of Warner & Swasey Company in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, USA (a manufacturer of machine tools and astronomical instruments). Construction began in 1915 and was completed in 1916. To commemorate the donor, it was named "Huai Shi Hall", also known as the "Little Auditorium". Today, it is one of the iconic buildings of Sun Yat-sen University.

Huai Shi Hall, also known as the "Little Auditorium" of Sun Yat-sen University, is situated on the central axis of Kang Le Yuan in the South Campus of Sun Yat-sen University. To its west is the Graduate School (formerly the Second Student Dormitory Building of Lingnan University), and to its east is the University Staff and Workers’ Union (formerly the Second Ma Kinmo House). Huai Shi Hall was a YMCA building constructed for Lingnan School with funding from Ambrose Swasey, president of Warner & Swasey Company in Cleveland, Ohio, USA (a manufacturer of machine tools and astronomical instruments). Construction began in 1915 and the building was completed in 1916. To commemorate the donor, it was named "Huai Shi Hall".

Huai Shi Hall is a three-story building with a basement, facing north. The original stone lamp posts on both sides of the steps at the first-floor entrance were inscribed with the name of the hall in both Chinese and English, but they have since been removed. Ascending the steps, the central three-bay section features a two-story-high porch, flanked by three-story towers that each extend one additional story outward, with terraces on top. The entire structure is symmetrical along the east-west axis and features a well-balanced layout. The red brick exterior is accented with traditional emerald green openwork bricks. The original gray brick “cross” pattern exuded a Western religious feel but was later replaced with a diamond pattern. The first-floor lecture hall has an irregular pentagonal shape, appearing solid and robust. Its sloped glazed roof features three octagonal tower-style ventilation windows, surrounded by lush greenery. On the southern lawn stands the inscription of Sun Yat-sen’s motto for the university: “Study extensively, inquire accurately, reflect carefully, discriminate clearly, and practice earnestly.” The total floor area is 1,550.77 m², with the first floor covering 687.01 m².

On December 21, 1923, Dr. Sun Yat-sen and his wife Soong Ching-ling visited Lingnan University and took a commemorative photo on campus. Dr. Sun also delivered an important speech at Huai Shi Hall, encouraging young students to “aim to accomplish great deeds, not to seek high office.”

On both sides of the main northern entrance of Huai Shi Hall are embedded slabs of marble. The left slab bears the three characters “Huai Shi Tang” (Hall of Huai Shi) inscribed by Shang Chengzuo in a bold seal script style, filled with dark green lacquer. The right slab is also inscribed by Shang in the clerical script style of the Qin dynasty, featuring the title of Dr. Sun Yat-sen’s lengthy speech delivered at Huai Shi Hall on December 21, 1923: “Students Should Aim to Accomplish Great Deeds, Not Seek High Office.” These plaques carry Dr. Sun’s earnest teachings, which continue to inspire generations of Sun Yat-sen University students even after a century. During the 2013 graduation ceremony, alumnus and renowned scholar Chen Pingyuan quoted this statement by Dr. Sun to encourage graduates: besides pursuing government positions, university students can excel and achieve greatness in all walks of life, becoming capable individuals who are “ordinary yet accomplished.”

Like other red-brick buildings at Sun Yat-sen University, Huai Shi Hall is not just an ordinary structure—it embodies the university’s humanistic spirit and is the very soul of the institution.