William and Mary Hall

From Special Collections Research Center Wiki

William and Mary Hall is a multi-purpose arena that hosts College-wide events such as commencement and Tribe intercollegiate athletic events. The arena floor measures almost 24,000 square feet and the seating bowl has a capacity of approximately 10,000. Catered events for up to 1,200 can be accommodated in the arena. In the past, it has housed a wide array of other activities, from concerts to large academic conferences and trade shows.

The first men’s basketball game was played at William and Mary Hall on December 5, 1970 against the University of North Carolina. At that time, the arena was not heated, so the crowd wore their jackets throughout the game and the teams spent halftime on their buses. Sly and the Family Stone were the first band to play a concert at the Hall in 1971. It hosted the then ECAC South, now Colonial Athletic Association men's basketball tournament in 1985, and in 1993, HRH Prince Charles attended Charter Day celebrations there.

The arena's name change to Kaplan Arena was granted in 2005 as part of a publicized funding effort.

Need help?

To search for further material, see Finding Materials in the SCRC for an introduction to the SCRC Collections Database, card catalogs, Flat Hat-William & Mary News-Alumni Gazette index, etc.

Questions? Contact the SCRC at spcoll@wm.edu or 221-3090, or visit the Special Collections Research Center in the Earl Gregg Swem Library at the College of William and Mary (hours).

A Note About The Contents Of This Wiki

Unfortunately, many of the early original records of the College of William and Mary were destroyed by fire, military occupation, and the normal effects of time. The information available here is the best available from known documents and sources at the time it was written. Information in this wiki is not complete as new information continues to be uncovered in the SCRC's collections and elsewhere. Researchers are strongly encouraged to use the SCRC's access tools for their research as the information contained in this wiki is by no means comprehensive.