Michael Gabriel ’28 is currently undecided on his major, but he enjoys history and the sciences. Here at The Flat Hat, he is one of the Graphics Editors and contributes an issue of his Willy and Mary comic almost every edition. He is a big baseball fan, likes the outdoors and is always happy to talk to anyone about anything. Contact him at mdgabriel@wm.edu.
The views expressed in the article are the author’s own.
Ok, ok, I’ll admit it. Boswell Hall isn’t the most inspirational place to take a class on this campus but, like every building here, I think it has its own character, and that is important.
When I first arrived on campus this past fall, it was hard not to notice all the construction going on. New buildings were being constructed from scratch, and other buildings were being gutted and renovated. That’s awesome, I thought. All these new buildings are going to be done in time for my sophomore year. In the meantime, I can just explore the rest of the buildings on campus.
Of course, the Wren building is the main attraction. Obviously, it’s the oldest building on campus, but it’s not going anywhere. In fact, the school is in the process of restoring it as I write this. All the other buildings around the Sunken Garden are old, but they have that preppy college look to them, and some of them, like Chancellors, are completely modern on the inside. I think it’s safe to say that they aren’t going anywhere, either.
The whole Integrated Science Center complex is constantly evolving and growing. The Raymond A. Mason School of Business, the Sadler Center and Phi Beta Kappa Memorial Hall, plus the attached Music Arts Center, are all on the newer side. Earl Gregg Swem Library, Kaplan Arena and the Student Recreation Center have all been updated and/or expanded since they were first constructed. That leaves a couple outliers: Jones Hall, Andrews Hall and, you guessed it, Boswell.
Okay, do I enjoy the environment of my classes in these buildings? No. Are the bathroom stalls a regular height? No. Are the chairs comfortable? No. Am I inspired to change the world while I sit in those uncomfortable chairs? No. But does it make me appreciate the more scenic locations on campus? Yes!
Listen, I’m relatively new here. I’m sure some people have had some awful experiences in some of the older buildings on campus. However, I am of the belief that you need the bad and the mediocre to make the “good” look good. I’m being a tad bit satirical, of course. Obviously, if the school has the funding to construct a new building, they should by all means go for it, but a nice sunny day on Sunken is 100 times better after you’ve been stuck in Boswell the entire day.
It seems that as time progresses, the buildings on this campus will further diverge into two groups: the really old and the really new. The fate of everything that’s left in between is uncertain.
If everything is just really old and new, we don’t get a complete picture of the school’s history. We miss the stepping stones that got us from the Wren to the ISC. While Boswell isn’t the best-looking or most functional building, it gives us a look into what a state-of-the-art college facility was like in the ’70s.
There are also little details in these buildings from the ’60s and ’70s that are just neat to notice. If you walk through the basement of Jones, for instance, you’ll find an old telephone booth. There is not a payphone there anymore, but the actual booth is still there. I find that cool. Maybe that’s just me.
In an ideal world, I think it would be nice for the College to strike a balance and try to fix up these middle-age buildings, bringing them up to modern educational standards while still maintaining their unique character and charm. I understand that that is probably not the most financially or logistically smart thing to do, but in a semester where I spend most of my time between Boswell, Jones and Andrews, I have learned to look past their cramped chairs, cinder block walls and often questionable smells. I’ve learned to just appreciate the buildings for what they are: educational spaces.
Boswell may not be the Wren, but the Wren is not Boswell either. What does that mean? I’ll leave it up to you.
