McGraw Tower

McGraw Tower
McGraw Tower at Cornell University
Location of McGraw Tower in New York state
General information
Type	Clock tower
Location	Ithaca, New York, U.S.
Coordinates	42°26′51″N 76°29′06″W / 42.44757°N 76.48505°W / 42.44757; -76.48505
Completed	1891
Height	173 feet (53 m)

McGraw Tower is a masonry clock tower located on the campus of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. The tower was known as Library Tower when it was first built but was renamed in 1961 in honor of either John McGraw, one of Cornell's original donors, or his daughter Jennie McGraw, the philanthropist in whose honor the tower and its adjacent library were originally commissioned by Henry W. Sage.^{[1][2][3][4][5]}

McGraw Tower has housed the Cornell Chimes, which Jennie McGraw donated to the university in 1868, since its construction finished in 1891. The bells were moved from McGraw Hall, a separate building, which had not been designed to support the weight of the bells.^[1] The Cornell Chimes were the first chimes housed and rung on an American college campus.^[3] The chimes play music three times each day during the school year.^[1] They also ring every fifteen minutes between 7:00 A.M. and 11:00 P.M.