It is not Butterfield Hall's substance-free environment that makes it different from the College's other residence halls.
Some drinking does occur in Butterfield. And most students agree that problems caused by drunk students are no more a problem in other residence halls than Butterfield, where residents must sign a pledge to abstain from drinking alcohol, smoking or using drugs in the building.
But Butterfield residents say the dorm is more social and more cohesive than other dorms.
Students who live in residence halls other than Butterfield say students' drinking almost never causes problems.
Mike Stacy '98, who lives in the River Cluster, said students' using substances like alcohol "has never been a problem for me. It has never disrupted my sleep or daily routine."
Kate Maher '99, who lives in Gile Hall, said, "I haven't noticed anything at all" negative resulting from students' drinking in her residence hall.
It may be the realization that conditions in other residence halls are excellent that leads to a decline in students applying to live in Butterfield with age: 19 freshmen, 13 sophomores, 12 juniors and only nine seniors now live in Butterfield, according to Director of Housing Services Lynn Rosenblum.
But many students who live in Butterfield reapply to live there every year because of the residence hall's strong sense of community.
"There are quite a few people who stay in Butterfield for multiple years," Undergraduate Advisor Brian Hughes '99 said. "They get used to the community."
Richard Petty '97 said he has lived in Butterfield all four of his years at Dartmouth.
"There are five or six other 97s who have lived here for four years," he said. "There is a strong sense of community."
Butterfield residents insist it is the dorm's sense of community rather than its regulations that set it apart.
Hughes said it differs from other dorms in that "Butterfield is a little more social within the dorm, within the floors. There are no raging parties, but people just hang out together."
"Everyone who is living there has applied to live there," said Gordon Spaeth '97, the area coordinator for Butterfield and Russell Sage. Spaeth said this creates a "family feeling."
Erin Fuse '99, an Undergraduate Advisor in Butterfield, said she has noticed that her floor is more friendly than those in other residence halls, a statement some say is supported by the large number of students with decorative welcome mats in the hallway.
People in the dorm always visit each other, creating a community atmosphere in the hallways, said Mike Ringenburg '99, who lives on the first floor.
Fuse says she has heard complaints from students that most residence halls are not social enough, but that residents of Butterfield are always hanging out in each others' rooms.
Stacey Morris '99 says Butterfield is much more social than Gile, where she lived as a freshman. "In Gile I didn't even know all the names of the people who lived on my floor," she said.
The East Wheelock Supercluster, where students must complete an application to live, hardly captures Butterfield's community atmosphere, said Marc Resteghini '99 said.
Because of the way the buildings are structured, each room with its own bathroom, dormitory life in East Wheelock "tends to be a little less social than most."
Fuse said the straight and narrow hallways are more conducive to socializing with neighbors than the L-shaped or U-shaped halls of other residence halls.
Some residents say Butterfield's substance-free policy contributes to its community environment. Eliza Wald '00 said she applied for housing in Butterfield because she does not drink alcohol and wanted to meet other non-drinkers.
"I definitely heard from people that [Dartmouth] was a big drinking school," said Wald. "I do see that there is more of a need for a substance-free dorm than at other schools."
But many students who live in Butterfield do drink. Brian Farrow '97 said he thinks many of his Butterfield neighbors drink on occasion.
"I think there is a conception that people from Butterfield don't go to parties," Wald said. "But we do."
Upperclassmen in Butterfield are more likely to drink than freshmen and sophomores, Farrow said.
Freshmen "come here and they want to concentrate on social options that don't involve alcohol," he said. "But then they realize that it's no crime to combine alcohol free events with events that involve alcohol.
