University of Mary Washington Then & Now

Willard, the first dorm built on campus, was named after temperance leader Frances Willard.¹  This dorm was home to many campus residence firsts including first coed dorm in the fall of 1973. ²   Willard was also the first dorm to have air-conditioning when it was installed during renovations in 1980.³   Students commented on the thickness of the walls and their ability to hinder sound, and thus Willard was long considered a wilder, party dorm.⁴ Adding to the legacy of Willard, President Combs and his family lived in the dorm for a short while in 1928 while looking for a residence in the area. ⁵

Willard Dorm Room, 1915 Buck Studio, "Willard Dorm Room," 1915, Centennial Collection, UMW Digital Archives, University of Mary Washington.

Willard Dorm Room 2014 Alexandria Parrish, "Willard Dorm Room," March 26, 2014, Personal Collection of Alexandria Parrish, University of Mary Washington.