One of the finest universities in America is located in the heart of Williamsburg, the College of William and Mary, the second oldest institution of higher learning in the United States (Harvard is the oldest.) King William III and Queen Mary II granted the charter in 1693. Although many out-of-state visitors assume William and Mary is a private school, it is actually a state-supported, four-year university with a prestigious reputation. Often referred to as a “public ivy,” William and Mary offers its students the diverse resources of a large institution with the community atmosphere of a smaller town.
The campus is at the western end of Duke of Gloucester Street between Jamestown and Richmond Roads, a landmark known locally as College Corner. Near this intersection you’ll find the Sir Christopher Wren Building, which typically has served as the starting point for any self-guided walking tour. It is well worth spending a few hours of your stay in Williamsburg to survey the gracious campus of this school, whose earliest alumni, Thomas Jefferson among them, were the first leaders of our nation.
As you approach the Wren Building, you’ll notice the brick wall surrounding the triangular College Yard, which also holds two other pre–Revolutionary War structures: the President’s House and Brafferton, formerly an Indian school. While the college was chartered by the Crown in 1693 in response to a 1691 petition from Virginia’s General Assembly, bricks weren’t laid for the Wren Building (originally known as “The College”) until two years later, making it the oldest academic building in continuous use in the United States.
For several years the building served as temporary headquarters to Virginia’s colonial government. Then, in 1705 and again in 1859, fires destroyed portions of the building, which was twice rebuilt by using the remaining foundation and walls. Alas, in 1862, Federal soldiers set the building afire again. Despite such damage, the original exterior walls survived to be restored during the 1920s and ’30s, and the Wren Building visitors see today has the appearance of the pre–1859 fire structure. Today the Wren houses William and Mary’s religion department. Visitors also will see early classrooms, the 1732 chapel—under which noted Virginians such as Sir John Randolph and Lord Botetourt are buried—and Great Hall, where the Burgesses assembled.
North of the Wren Building in the College Yard is the President’s House, built in the early 1730s. Besides serving as a home to such famous college presidents as James Madison and James Blair, it also housed British General Cornwallis before his Yorktown surrender to Revolutionary forces led by Washington. The building is still in use as a residence for College of William and Mary presidents.
The third and smallest structure facing the College Yard is The Brafferton, now used for offices, but originally an Indian school. The Brafferton was built in 1723 with funds provided by an English scientist determined to bring Christianity to area Indian youths, who already were forced to attend a training school in Williamsburg. Apparently, the young boys were not at all happy about living in town, learning English, or wearing uniforms, and they longed for their villages and tribes. A William and Mary myth holds that one of these Indian students can sometimes be seen running quick as the wind across campus at night, as if trying to regain his freedom.
You can stroll in the Sunken Garden west of the Wren Building or through shady Crim Dell with its footpaths and small pond. Other buildings worth noting on campus include Phi Beta Kappa Memorial Hall, Earl Gregg Swem Library, and the Muscarelle Museum of Art.
Its long history, appealing campus, and strong national reputation for top-notch academics have made admission to William and Mary, a state university, highly competitive. A record number of applicants—12,500—sought admission in 2009, up 3 percent from the previous year. (The Tribe football had one of its best seasons in recent memory in 2009. That helps, too!) They’re hoping to join the 7,650 students already enrolled here in the schools of Arts and Sciences, Business Administration, Education, Law, and Marine Sciences.
Student-led tours of the college campus for prospective students are available throughout the year. For information on tours call (757) 221-4223.