Chatzigianneio Girls’ School – Historic Building in Karlovasi, Samos

🏛️ One of Karlovasi’s characteristic Neoclassical buildings

In Neo Karlovasi, Samos, stands the Chatzigianneio Girls’ School, one of the town’s most characteristic historic educational buildings.

The imposing Neoclassical structure was created in the early 20th century to house the Girls’ School of Karlovasi and is directly connected with the period of economic, social and educational growth of the town.

Today, the historic building has taken on a new educational role, as it houses the Samos Branch of the Library of the University of the Aegean.

📚 The Girls’ School of Karlovasi

Education for girls in Karlovasi had already been organised during the 19th century, with the Girls’ School operating from 1861.

The need for a new and suitable school building led to the construction of the Chatzigianneio in the early 20th century.

The new building represented an important investment in girls’ education at a time when Karlovasi was experiencing strong economic growth through trade, industry and especially tanning.

👤 Ioannis Chatzigiannis

The building is associated with Ioannis Chatzigiannis, an important figure in the political and economic life of Samos.

Chatzigiannis was born in 1832 in Karlovasi and was active as a merchant, industrialist and politician during the period of the Principality of Samos.

He provided financial support for projects related to education, healthcare and infrastructure in his hometown.

The new Girls’ School was built with his funding, and the building was named “Chatzigianneion” in his honour.

🏗️ Construction of the building

The foundation of the Chatzigianneio was laid in 1902.

The characteristic inscription that survives on the façade reads:

“CHATZIGIANNEION 1903”

The year 1903 became closely associated with the building, while construction work was completed in 1905.

The inscription above the main entrance remains one of the most recognisable features of the monument.

📍 On the site of the earlier Porfyriada School

The Chatzigianneio was built on a site with an even longer educational history.

The Porfyriada School, one of the important educational institutions of Samos, as well as the church of Agia Sofia, had previously stood on the same site.

Porfyriada had been founded in 1784 by Porfyrios Zambetis and became an important centre of education in Karlovasi.

The site of the present Chatzigianneio is therefore connected with more than two centuries of educational activity.

🏛️ Neoclassical architecture

The Chatzigianneio is a characteristic example of the Neoclassical architecture that developed in Karlovasi during the town’s period of economic prosperity.

The main façade is symmetrically arranged, with strong vertical elements and a central entrance emphasised by columns and a triangular pediment.

Above the entrance is the inscription bearing the building’s name and date.

The large openings, balanced proportions and monumental entrance give the building the formal character found in several public and educational buildings constructed on Samos in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

📖 A long educational use

The Chatzigianneio was used for many decades as an educational building.

With the exception of the period of the Greek Civil War, it maintained a continuous connection with education, even as school structures and the needs of the town changed.

This continuity is one of its most important characteristics, as the building never ceased to function as a place of knowledge and learning.

🎓 Connection with the University of the Aegean

The presence of the University of the Aegean on Samos began in 1987, together with the establishment of the Department of Mathematics.

In 1989, the Municipality of Karlovasi granted the Chatzigianneio building to the University of the Aegean.

Restoration and adaptation works followed so that the historic building could meet the needs of the university library.

This new use allowed the building to retain its educational character, this time within the framework of higher education.

📚 The Library of the University of the Aegean

Today, the Chatzigianneio houses the Samos Branch of the Library and Information Centre of the University of the Aegean.

The building provides approximately 920 square metres of space over two levels and includes areas for reader services, study and bibliographic research.

Of particular historical importance is the Porfyriada School Collection, which preserves books linking the modern university library with the older educational tradition of Karlovasi.

In this way, the Chatzigianneio continues to serve as a place of education and knowledge more than a century after its construction.

🚶 Visiting the Chatzigianneio

The building is located in Neo Karlovasi, on Vliamou Street, and is easily accessible within the urban fabric of the town.

Its exterior can be viewed freely, with particular interest in the central entrance, the columns, the pediment and the historic inscription.

As the building currently functions as a university library rather than a museum, access to the interior follows the current opening hours and operating rules of the Library.

👀 A building that continued the same mission

The Chatzigianneio presents a particularly interesting continuity of use.

It was built to provide education for the girls of Karlovasi and, more than a century later, it still serves knowledge as a university library.

At the same time, its location on the site of an even older school creates an impressive historical continuity: from the Porfyriada of the 18th century, to the Girls’ School of the early 20th century and to modern university education.

The Chatzigianneio is therefore not only an important Neoclassical building, but also one of the most characteristic symbols of the educational history of Karlovasi.