In Praise of Sage Chapel, East Hill’s Beloved House of Worship

Built in an era when the University was under fire for being nonsectarian, it offers respite from a bustling campus

By Corey Ryan Earle ’07

Hired as professor of moral and intellectual philosophy, Wilson was a Harvard Divinity School graduate who had spent time as a Unitarian minister before becoming an ordained deacon in the Episcopal Church.

Cornell had faced withering attacks from clergy and the media for its nonsectarian founding, which was unusual at a time when religion was a major force in higher education.

Cornell had faced withering attacks from clergy and the media for its nonsectarian founding, which was unusual at a time when religion was a major force in higher education.

Faculty were accused of atheism—and the fact that students weren’t required to attend chapel services was considered evidence of the new university’s sacrilegious ways.

In his writings and public remarks, founding president Andrew Dickson White often attempted to clarify that nonsectarianism did not equate to an un-Christian philosophy.

“We will labor to make this a Christian institution,” he said in his inaugural address. “A sectarian institution may it never be.”

Amid attacks by denominational forces, trustee Henry Sage offered to fund a chapel four years after Cornell opened; the first professor of architecture, Charles Babcock, was commissioned to design it.

Constructed of brick instead of stone, the building cost only $30,000, less than half of Morrill Hall and about one quarter of McGraw Hall.

We will labor to make this a Christian institution—a sectarian institution may it never be.

A.D. White

Sage Chapel officially opened on Sunday, June 13, 1875, four days before the University’s seventh Commencement.

The original structure was smaller and less ornate, with subsequent additions and renovations expanding its footprint and beautifying its interior (and removing its original tower).

Capacity of the L-shaped building was about 500 students, with the main chapel oriented east-west (as it is today) and a smaller chapel extending south.

The Ithaca Daily Journal noted, tongue-in-cheek, that the eminent faculty processing to the chapel at “the great infidel University” was “a sight to discomfit those carping individuals whose daily nourishment seems to come from finding atheistic evidences in the University.”

Organ music at the opening was provided by William Henry Miller 1872, who years later would be the architect of the neighboring Uris Library building and Stimson Hall.

The first sermon was given by Reverend Phillips Brooks, rector of Boston’s Trinity Church—perhaps better known today as the lyricist of “O Little Town of Bethlehem.”

Instead of hiring a campus chaplain, White proposed a rotating chaplaincy that would bring eminent figures of all faiths to speak, thus attracting students to services instead of compelling them.

“I felt that leading men coming from week to week from the outside world would be taken at the value which the outside world puts upon them,” he wrote in his autobiography, “and that they would bring in a fresh atmosphere.”

In the chapel’s first year, it welcomed clergymen from Presbyterian, Congregational, Baptist, Methodist, Unitarian, Episcopal, and Universalist Churches; in January 1896, Rabbi Emil Hirsch became the first Jewish speaker.

A plaque over the stone pulpit recognizes visits from Martin Luther King Jr. in 1960 and Martin Luther King Sr. in 1979.

The chapel also has the distinction of hosting some of the first electric lighting on campus (or anywhere): arc lights were hung in its belfry in 1879.

Four major renovations enlarged the chapel as the student population grew.

Instead of hiring a campus chaplain, White proposed a rotating chaplaincy that would bring eminent figures of all faiths to speak, thus attracting students to services instead of compelling them.

The memorial antechapel, with its crypt, was built in 1883–84 on the northwest side, providing a final resting place for the University’s founders and their families. The chapel’s eastern portion, including the apse with its secular mosaic, was constructed in 1898–99.

The northeast transept was added in 1903–05 to house the organ and choir loft, and much of the interior decoration accompanied this renovation.

Finally, the west side was extended in 1940, moving the organ and choir loft while expanding seating capacity to around 1,000 (although it has since decreased).

The large rose window, depicting the 12 apostles of Christ, dates to the original building but was moved westward in the addition. Sage’s gorgeous stained glass windows—added over the decades, often in memory of faculty or alumni—remain a highlight for visitors.

The chapel has the distinction of hosting some of the first electric lighting on campus (or anywhere): arc lights were hung in its belfry in 1879.

In addition to its role in religious activities, the chapel has been an important musical venue, hosting organ recitals as well as the Glee Club and University Chorus and many other performances.

The chapel currently houses two organs. The Aeolian-Skinner in the choir loft was installed in 1940, maintaining pipework and other elements from an earlier instrument. At the front is a boxy-looking, 18th-century Neapolitan organ that the University acquired in 2000.

In the decades after Sage opened, Cornell expanded the footprint of its spiritual activities with the opening of Barnes Hall—originally built for the Christian Association—and later with Anabel Taylor Hall as the home for Cornell United Religious Work, the nation’s first collegiate interfaith program.

But the chapel, at the heart of campus, continues to offer a tranquil space for reflection, faith, and an escape from prelims.

An expert on Big Red lore, Corey Ryan Earle ’07 teaches “The First American University,” a wildly popular spring semester course on Cornell history.

Top: A “Soup & Hope” event from 2024 (Noël Heaney / Cornell University).

Published January 13, 2026

---

Comments

1. 

   George Weiner, Class of 1964

   13 Jan, 2026

   Notably, there’s also a stained glass window honoring Michael “Mickey” Schwerner ‘61, James Chaney and Andrew Goodman, three civil rights workers murdered in Mississippi in 1964. Both of Goodman’s parents, Carolyn ‘30 and Robert ‘35, graduated from Cornell.

   Reply
2. 

   Kathleen N. White, Class of 1989

   16 Jan, 2026

   Great article summarizing Sage’s history! Wish bit more detail on the why removal/re-location of original tower and resulting interior/ext before & after photos. As church towers have been a strongly recognized symbol of faith centers (particularly in early northeast/New England towns), would have appreciated more attention to the tower & its changes than a parenthetical note.

   Reply
3. 

   Anuprita Kaple, Class of 2026

   16 Jan, 2026

   It is one of the most peaceful spots on campus for me, a quiet place where I can pause, breathe, especially when the campus is at its most bustling and classes are in full swing.

   Reply
4. 

   Melissa Yorks, Class of 1975

   20 Jan, 2026

   I was only at Cornell as a transfer student who finished in a year and a half but during that year and a half I sang in the Sage Chapel Choir. Loved every minute of it. The surprise to me was how many in the chorus would whip out textbooks during the sermon. The chorus sat in the rear so most did not see that. I preferred to listen. However everyone listened to Elizabeth Kubler Ross when she gave the ‘sermon’.

   Reply
5. 

   Steve Wang, Class of 1992

   27 Jan, 2026

   I remember attending a rousing performance of the Saint-Saens Organ Symphony in about 1991 — a piece you have to experience live, for a recording does not do it justice.

   Reply
6. 

   Paul Jensen, Class of 1971

   27 Jan, 2026

   One of my fondest Cornell memories is listening to Professor Morris Bishop read the Christmas story in Sage.

   Reply
7. 

   Joanne Wilson Wietgrefe, Class of 1954

   27 Jan, 2026

   I had a cappella rehearsals every week at Sage chapel. Once each semester we sang for a Sunday service, giving the chapel choir a rest. Otherwise I went to Sunday services for my freshman and sophmore years. My roommate got me up early so she could sit behind the president; he was there most weeks.

   Reply
8. 

   Carolyn McMaster, Class of 1971

   27 Jan, 2026

   I am disappointed that Corey Earle gives so little attention to the Sage Chapel Choir. This was a musical group numbering from 80-100 in my day (1967-1973) that sang in the Chapel every week that school was in session. The Christmas concerts that this group prepared filled the seats in the Chapel, leaving standing room only every year. Every type of religious music was presented in its original language. It’s impossible to overstate the importance of the Sage Chapel Choir in the life of the University.

   Reply
9. 

   Brian Myers, Class of 1980

   27 Jan, 2026

   I always visit Sage Chapel when I return to campus, either for a formal service or just to “talk” to Ezra. In 1979 when MLK, Sr. preached, I attended at the behest of our Phi Delta Theta fraternity house cook, Ausby Hardaway, whose church downtown at which he was a deacon, was one of the hosts for Daddy King’s visit. A moving, rousing sermon ensued, in contrast to the usual peace of Sage. I remember it well to this day.

   Reply
10. 

    Scott Sutcliffe, Class of 1975

    27 Jan, 2026

    I was fortunate to have sung in the choir from 1972-1975 and again in 1985. Donald Paterson was the chief organist and choral director. In addition to the main choir, a group of us called the “CryptTunes” occasionally sang from the crypt. We were a team of music lovers. We helped Floyd O’Grady polish the brass for the annual Christmas Concert, we processed with real candles, blown out at Donald Paterson’s command. We sang to our heart’s content. The choir was central to our lives. What fun we had! Lucky us!

    Reply
11. 

    Melanie Byers, Class of 1984

    27 Jan, 2026

    Sage Chapel remains my favorite building on campus, and I always make a point to visit when back at Cornell. I had the pleasure of rehearsing and performing in Sage Chapel throughout my years at Cornell, first for the Sage Chapel Choir and then in the Cornell Chorus. During Senior Week we sang daily, with a final warmup in the crypt and running laps through the aisles before processing to Schoelkopf for Commencement.

    Reply
12. 

    Giovanna Multala DVM, Class of 1984

    28 Jan, 2026

    My husband and I were married in Sage Chapel- my favorite place to sit and reflect-in 1989. The memories of Christmas Choral ( when fortunate enough to get in) are some of my most treasured. When we travel to Ithaca we always visit this beautiful and sacred space.

    Reply
13. 

    Ralph Budd, Class of 1973

    29 Jan, 2026

    I both sang in Sage Chapel Choir and studied organ there, both under Donald Paterson. I also took his year-long music theory course. He was very demanding but at the same time very personable. I learned as much from him as any professor at Cornell. We became good friends. I loved my many hours of practice on the glorious Aeolian-Skinner organ. It could play the entire organ repertory very well. It was my peaceful break amidst a busy science curriculum. I was also married in Sage Chapel in 1975 to a fellow Sage Chapel Choir member. I had to give up the organ when I went to medical school (Cornell 1977), but now in retirement I have once again taken up the organ. So Sage Chapel has a very special place in my memory. As E.B. White would have put it: “a great balm for the frenzied spirit.”

    Reply
14. 

    Timothy T. Matson, Class of 1981

    31 Jan, 2026

    Thanks for a great article about Sage Chapel. I sang in the Sage Chapel Choir from 1978 to 1981 and it was an important part of my Cornell experience. Weekly performances included wonderful classic sacred music as well as original works by conductor Donald R.M. Paterson, and graduate assistants David Conte and Stephen May. We all enjoyed Professor Paterson’s organ performances plus his wit and wisdom. The Christmas programs were well attended and featured readings from members of the Cornell community, including President Frank Rhodes.

    Reply

Other stories You may like

• 

  • Alumni

  Big (Red) Love: A Celebration of Cornellian Couples

• 

  • Cornelliana

  From Big Red Presidents, Commencement Words of Wisdom

• 

  • Students

  PhD Student Aims to Help Others with Speech Disabilities