Wren Building

Affectionately known as “the soul of the college,” the Sir Christopher Wren Building is often shortened to either the Wren Building or the College Building. The oldest collegiate building still in use in the country, the Wren Building is a National Historic Landmark and is listed on the United States National Register of Historic Places. Built between 1695-1700, its construction began before Williamsburg was founded and while Jamestown was the capital of the Colony of Virginia.

The Wren Building anchors the Historic Campus and remains a vital part of William & Mary - containing the Great Hall, the Wren Chapel, numerous graves, classrooms, offices, and the Department of Religious Studies.

Atop the Wren, a weathervane displays a metallic 1693 banner - the founding date of the second oldest university in the U.S.

The Historic Campus - the Wren Building, the Brafferton, the President’s House, and the Wren Yard - sits at the heart of 300+ years of education. Within the walls of Wren, generations of students have attended classes, eaten meals, recited prayers, and reveled in celebratory events. The north wing contains the Great Hall, while the south wing includes the Chapel.

As described by William & Mary professor Hugh Jones in 1724: "The Building is beautiful and commodious, being first modeled by Sir Christopher Wren, adapted to the nature of the country by the gentlemen there."