William & Mary Wren Building

Wren Bldg, 111 Jamestown Rd, Williamsburg, VA 23185, USA

Virginia

state

James City

county

VA - Williamsburg

city

MUSEUM

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The Wren Building is the oldest building on the campus of the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. Along with the Brafferton and President's House, these buildings form the College's "Ancient Campus." With a construction history dating to 1695, it is the oldest academic building still standing in the United States and among the oldest buildings in Virginia. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1960.

SITE FEATURES

Surviving Structures

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The college was founded on February 8, 1693, under a royal charter. Named in honor of the reigning monarchs King William III and Queen Mary II, the college is the second-oldest college in the United States. In 1695, before the town of Williamsburg existed, construction began on the College Building, now known as the Sir Christopher Wren Building. The charter named James Blair as the college's first president (a lifetime appointment which he held until his death in 1743).

SCHOOL

EST. 1698

The building is constructed out of red brick in the style of Flemish and English Bond, as was typical for official buildings in 17th- and 18th-century Williamsburg, including several walls remaining from previous structures, and it contains classrooms, offices, a refectory, known as the Great Hall, kitchen, and a chapel, which was added as a south wing in 1732. The crypt beneath the chapel is the resting place of several notable Virginians, including royal governor Norborne Berkeley, 4th Baron Botetourt, Speaker of the House of Burgesses Sir John Randolph, and his son Peyton Randolph, the first President of the Continental Congress.