Clark Murphy Housing Complex

Clark Murphy Housing Complex. . , This residential complex is named for Clark Murphy, an African American employee at the Greenville Woman's College, which merged with Furman University beginning in 1933. For several decades in the late 1800s and early 1900s, Murphy was a beloved mainstay at the GWC. He rang the bell for class changes and other events, hand-delivered mail, surprised students with sweets, meticulously maintained the campus landscape, and invented a pulley system to more efficiently heat campus buildings. Students remember that he never forgot a name or a face., The oldest buildings in this residential complex were completed in 1961. For decades, it housed women students exclusively; the seal of the GWC was affixed above the main entrance after the university relocated to this campus. In the late 1990s, all genders began to reside here and it became known as Lakeside Housing. In 2020, the university renamed this complex to honor Murphy and the meaningful contributions of university staff throughout the long history of this institution, especially those who labored here even when their work did not accord them equal rights, pay, or privileges.