Appeals for athletic facilities at the College of William & Mary began in the 19th century and after the College reopened in 1888, President Lyon G. Tyler made the construction of a gymnasium and other facilities a priority believing “it would attract public attention greater than anything else.” President Tyler viewed the addition of athletic facilities as key to attracting students and expanding infrastructure. What began as the promotion of “healthful and recreative physical activities” became its own force in the expansion of the overall concept of athletics at William & Mary. “Healthful and Recreative” was installed in the Earl Gregg Swem Library at the College of William and Mary in September 2009-February 2010. The exhibit and this timeline illustrates how William & Mary’s athletic ...more >>fields and buildings-both for intramural and varsity sports-changed over the years, reflecting an evolving and growing health-consciousness and interest in competitive sports by new generations of students, alumni, and College administration. Additional information about the exhibit is available at http://swem.wm.edu/scrc/ExhibitsatSwem.cfm. Timeline created by Kaitlyn Gardy, 2009-2010 Computing Humanities Apprentice for the Special Collections Research Center, Earl Gregg Swem Library.