Wren Building

The Wren Building is the signature building of the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. Along with the Brafferton and President's House, these buildings form the College's Historic Campus. Construction of the first building on this site began August 8, 1695 and was completed by 1700. After several fires and rebuildings, the Wren Building was the first major building restored or reconstructed by John D. Rockefeller, Jr., after he... more

The Wren Building is the signature building of the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. Along with the Brafferton and President's House, these buildings form the College's Historic Campus. Construction of the first building on this site began August 8, 1695 and was completed by 1700. After several fires and rebuildings, the Wren Building was the first major building restored or reconstructed by John D. Rockefeller, Jr., after he and the Reverend Dr. W.A.R. Goodwin began Colonial Williamsburg's restoration in the late 1920s. Although the building's current state dates to the 20th century restoration by Boston architects Perry Shaw & Hepburn, the College named the building in honor of the English architect Sir Christopher Wren, after the Reverend Hugh Jones, a William and Mary mathematics professor, wrote in 1724 that the College Building was “modeled by Sir Christopher Wren”. Perry Shaw and Hepburn's restoration reflects the building's historic appearance from its... less