Today, I asked ChaptGPT 4o about another old photo I have of my husband’s grandmother, Pearl Brasher. Pearl graduated from Noble High School in Noble, Oklahoma in June 1916 and moved to the “big city” of Norman, not far away.

The Stufflebeans have ties to Oklahoma University in Norman, but I know little about the school myself.

AI didn’t do well identifying a Passaic public school so I thought I would try a different public building.

My query:

This is Pearl Brasher in Norman, Oklahoma. The building behind looks like it is on the campus of Oklahoma University. Can you identify the exact building and its name?

The answer was spot on:

Thank you for the photo! This image appears to be from around 1916, showing a woman—likely a student—standing in front of a striking Gothic Revival-style building.

Based on the architecture and your filename (which mentions “OU”), this photo was very likely taken at the University of Oklahoma in Norman, Oklahoma. The building in the background appears to be Evans Hall, the university’s administration building, which was built in 1912 and is one of the most iconic structures on campus.

Key identifying features of Evans Hall:

• Distinctive collegiate Gothic style with brick and limestone trim
• Tall, narrow arched windows with stone surrounds
• Parapet and castellated roofline
• Prominent corner towers

Evans Hall still stands today and remains one of OU’s central landmarks. The woman’s outfit and the leafless trees suggest the photo was taken in fall or early spring.

Would you like help enhancing or colorizing the photo?

It even asked if I’d like to colorize the photo! I checked online for more information and found that although OU was founded in 1890, Evans Hall, built in 1912, serving as the school’s administration building, was the THIRD admin building after the first two burned in 1903 and in 1907.

Evans Hall looks like it was built to last and it is still there today, now well over 100 years old.