The College of William & Mary

Welcome, esteemed guests and curious scholars, to the hallowed grounds of the College of William and Mary. You are standing at the physical and intellectual genesis of American higher education. …

Direct your attention now to the magnificent structure that anchors the ancient campus: the iconic Sir Christopher Wren Building. This architectural masterpiece is not merely a building; it is a survivor, proudly holding the…

Let us move slightly away from the Wren building and pause to consider the intense intellectual and moral debates that characterized the faculty of this institution in the years following the American Revolution. The College of…

As we continue our historical excavation of the campus, we arrive at a subject of profound, though often overlooked, significance. The narrative of early American higher education is typically overwhelmingly white, but this…

Direct your gaze now to the striking, three-story brick building standing proudly to the south of the Wren Building. This architectural gem is known as the Brafferton, constructed in the year seventeen twenty-three. …

To the north of the Wren building, providing a perfect architectural counterweight to the Brafferton, stands the dignified and imposing President's House. Erected in seventeen thirty-two, this magnificent structure holds the…

For our final stop on the campus interior, let us walk westward, passing through the ancient core to arrive at a sweeping, majestic landscape feature known as the Sunken Garden. Stretching out before you is a vast, meticulously…

As our extensive scholarly tour of the College of William and Mary concludes, I invite you to pause and reflect on the immense historical gravity of the ground upon which you stand. We have journeyed through centuries of…