Quonset Huts

The Quonset hut was first developed at Quonset Point at the Davisville Naval Construction Battalion Center in Davisville, Rhode Island. Between 150,000 and 170,000 were manufactured for the U.S. military’s use as barracks, MASH units and other uses during World War II. They were prefabricated and portable, with a semicircular, corrugated roof that curved downward to form the walls. After the war, many of them were sold. Among the buyers were were colleges and universities in need of more classroom space. Source: University of Wisconsin-Madison, news.edu

Concord acquired two of the Quonset huts in 1947 to use as additional classroom space. After the end of World War II, millions of service men and women returned to continue their education under the G.I. Bill. This created a crisis at the colleges and universities who needed more classroom space and housing to accommodate the large increase in enrollment. Quonset huts were  temporary solutions to help fulfill that demand. We speculate that the Athens Theater, which was constructed and opened in 1947, also made use of one of the surplus huts.