Sudler House

Campus Building Directory

This Week in
KU History

The University
of Kansas

Sudler House
Home to the Max Kade German American Document and Research Center

Now the Max Kade German American Document and Research Center, this limestone house was originally built as the private home of Dr. Mervin T. Sudler, former dean at the KU Medical Center in Kansas City and a private physician in Lawrence. Dr. Sudler oversaw the construction of his home, insisting on a foundation strong enough for a building twice the size.

Interior walls were paneled with thick walnut slabs, the finest available from trees near Lawrence. A noted craftsman, he stocked his basement with fine woods and woodworking tools. Many of his own handcrafted chests and cabinets remain in local collections. In the yard, Dr. Sudler planted rare tree specimens, including a copper beach tree now reputed to be the largest in Kansas. KU received the home when he died in 1956.

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Location: Off West Hills Terrace

Construction: 1927

Architects: Buckley and Van Brunt, Kansas City, MO

Contractor: Olmstead Brothers Construction, Lawrence

Levels: Three

Structure: Limestone

Roof: Bellcast gable, cross gable, dormer of blue-gray slate; two interior chimneys

Exterior walls:
Limestone squared

Foundation:
Reinforced concrete and limestone

Door surrounds
Copper canopy

Window surrounds: One segmental arch with voussoirs; others set into walls

Side porch: One story; buttressed limestone piers under segmental arches with voussoirs; flat roof with iron railing Two-story decorative green terra cotta opening to rotunda