The single-family home known as the Commencement House, built in 1957 by students at Women's College (now UNCG), is gone.

The history of the house has been well-chronicled by Benjamin Briggs, executive director of Preservation Greensboro, and by UNCG.

The innovative home on Greensboro's North Elm Street featured many elements representative of the style now known as "mid-century Modern."

Photos can depict elements of the home, but they do not allow the viewer to experience the spatial environment of a room or see how rooms relate to one another.

Thanks to 360° Virtual Reality images, it is still possible to visit the Commencement House. When photographed in spring 2010, the house was disheveled and in need of repair. But the integrity of its design was solid until the end.

The 360° VR tour is self-guided and does not depict every room (bathrooms, utility rooms, and a lower-level recreation room and bedroom were not photographed).

Use the directional arrows in the navigation bar that overlays each image, or your mouse, to explore each space. The button on the far right of the navigation bar opens a full-screen view.

Hotspots, which link to views of other rooms, are depicted by highlighted areas or pulsing circles.

– Tom Lassiter
Westridge VR
September 2010

Archival images courtesy of the UNCG Walter Jackson Library, Department of Special Collections.