Muskingum News

Otto and Fran Walter Hall, Muskingum’s new music building, honors the extraordinary lives and generosity of two long-time champions of excellence. For Otto and Fran Walter, the arts, music, and literature were lifelong passions. Dr. Otto L. Walter was an accomplished pianist and his wife, Fran, a talented watercolorist.

Otto was driven from his native Bavaria by Nazi persecution. He came to the United States and, turning hatred into understanding, became a powerful voice for German-American reconciliation in the decades following World War II. With Fran at his side, he became a renowned international jurist, published and honored in both his native and adopted lands.

Fran Doonan Walter loved young people, but had no children of her own. Never forgetting the circumstances of her own impoverished childhood, she used her talents and resources to ensure innumerable young people could have the happy memories she had not known during her own childhood.

“We are proud that the indomitable spirit of Otto and Fran Walter will live on in the prized liberal arts tradition of music at Muskingum,” said Harold W. Burlingame ’62, Chair, Muskingum College Board of Trustees.

This milestone is reached on a path forged by a core group of alumni who stepped forward as Cornerstone Donors:

Harold W. Burlingame ’62, and Susanne Hussey Burlingame ’63
William T. Dentzer ’51 and Celia Hill Dentzer ’52
Walter Young ’66 and Donna Higginbotham Young ’66
James R. Gray ’74

“Our community will forever be enriched by the musical gifts that Muskingum students and faculty will share in the superb setting of Walter Hall,” said Muskingum College President Anne C. Steele.