Visitor Guide
Virtual Campus Tour
Alumni House
The Alumni House, adjacent to campus, serves as a spot for alumni to meet and socialize when they return for a visit. The recently-renovated house features a lounge, the Alumni Council boardroom, and the offices of the Alumni Relations staff.
Athey Baseball Park
Athey Baseball Park, named in honor of longtime coach and athletic director Ed Athey '47, features a brand-new, state-of-the-art playing surface. Construction is currently underway on improved spectator seating and a beautiful facade designed to match neighboring Kibler Stadium.
The Washington College Bookstore
Barnes & Noble, one of the largest booksellers in the country, operates the recently renovated bookstore, located on the ground floor of the Casey Academic Center. In addition to textbooks and class materials, the bookstore offers a selection of bestsellers, electronics, and Washington College apparel.
Bunting Hall
Though at one time it served as the College Library, Bunting now houses the administrative offices of the College's President, the Provost and Dean, Advancement, College Relations, Institutional Research, and the Registrar. The building is named after alumnus George A. Bunting, who created a "Sunburn Remedy" now known as Noxzema.
Cain Athletic Center
Cain is home court for both the men's and women's basketball and women's volleyball programs. The facility also houses offices for physical education faculty, the Director of Athletics, coaches, sports information and sports medicine; locker rooms; and the Athletic Hall of Fame.
Caroline House
The three-story coed building is one of several dormitories across the street from the main campus. It houses men on the first floor and women on the second and third floors.
The Eugene B. Casey Academic Center
This grand Georgian-style brick building is at the heart of campus activity. The ground floor is a grand concourse that opens onto the College's bookstore, student post office, and a common room for both faculty and students. The second floor includes our Hall of Presidents, a multipurpose forum, several seminar-size classrooms, and the Student Affairs Office. The third floor is home to the Office of Admissions and Student Financial Aid. Wireless access is available in the building.
Nicknamed the "CAC," it is adjacent to the landscaped Martha Washington Square, a popular meeting place for students and faculty.
The Eugene B. Casey Swim Center
With the opening of the Casey Swim Center in 1984, the College built highly competitive men's and women's swimming programs that have produced numerous All-Americans and academic All-Americans. The pool is open to community members. It hosts local high school swim meets as well as the Sho'men Aquatics age-group swim program that has placed first in the Delmarva League for five successive years.
The Cater Walk
Named for WC President Douglass Cater (1982-1990), a well-known journalist with connections in Washington D.C. who is credited for taking Washington College into "a higher orbit," the Cater Walk is the central artery on campus, beginning at the theater and passing the library, the dining hall, and the Hill dorms until it meets Washington Avenue.
Cecil, Dorchester, and Talbot Houses
Known as the "Quad," these dorms are configured to accommodate four three-man suites and two six-man suites. They serve as homes to the Phi Delta Theta Fraternity, the Theta Chi Fraternity and the Kappa Alpha Order. Limited housing is available for other male students.
Chester Hall and Sassafras Hall
Our two newest residence halls, housing approximately 100 students each, are built to LEED certification standards and use geothermal energy. Rooms are suites or semi-suites, and the common areas and study lounges in each building overlook Kibler Field. Both halls feature community kitchen, and Sassafras, the larger building, offers a "grab-n-go" snack bar/convenience store, Sassafras Outtakes, and an exercise room on the first floor.
Thomas W. Cullen Dormitory
Somerset, Worcester and Wicomico houses are all located in the "Cullen Dorms." Somerset, the four-floor central building, provides all-male housing with lounges on the second and third floors.
Worcester is a two-floor coed building, with men on the first floor and women on the second floor.
Wicomico, facing Washington Avenue, is a two-floor residence hall for men only. The Department of Public Safety has its office in the basement.
The Custom House
Located at the foot of High Street along the Chester River, the Custom House is a reminder of Chestertown's importance as a port of entry for Maryland's Eastern Shore. Constructed in the 1740s, the building features Flemish bond brickwork with glazed headers. This significant historical structure is one of few of its type that survives from the colonial era. The historic Custom House serves as the principal offices of the C. V. Starr Center for the Study of the American Experience and the Center for the Environment and Society.
Daly Hall
A mix of classrooms, seminar rooms, faculty offices, and a computer lab, the two-story brick structure has a traditional look but features the latest in technology, including wireless access throughout the building.
Dunning Hall and the Alonzo G. Decker Jr. Laboratory Center
When Dunning Science Hall opened in 1940, it helped the College build upon its strong reputation for teaching in the natural sciences. The Decker Center opened in 1988 and is named for College benefactor, Alonzo G. Decker, Jr. Recently renovated, these buildings are part of a complex devoted to the sciences, housing state-of-the-art classrooms, labs, and offices for the mathematics, physics, and psychology departments. View a video tour of the psychology department.
Daniel Z. Gibson Center for the Arts
Currently undergoing extensive renovation and expansion, Gibson is expected to reopen in Fall 2009. When completed, the facility will house the 440-seat Tawes Theater, a 200-seat recital hall, a 175-seat experimental theater, and the Benjamin G. Kohl art gallery, as well as offices and teaching and support spaces for the music and drama departments.
Louis L. Goldstein Hall
As a student, Louis L. Goldstein '35 was suspended for throwing an after-hours fraternity party—and inviting coeds. The youthful transgression didn't stop him from becoming the longest-serving public official in Maryland. He also held a spot on his alma mater's Board of Visitors and Governors from 1957 until his death in 1998, serving as Chairman for eighteen years. One of the College's newest academic buildings, Goldstein Hall combines faculty offices, classrooms, seminar rooms, labs, a 75-seat lecture hall with 36 laptop computers, and wireless access throughout the building. The building houses the Writing Center and a state-of-the-art GIS lab.
The Hall of Presidents
The recently refurbished entrance to the Casey Academic Center invites visitors to enter the Hall of Presidents, a photographic display of the American presidents who appeared on campus. From George Washington to George H.W. Bush, Washington College has hosted six presidents and three first ladies.
Harford Hall
Adjacent to the tennis center, this three-story building, primarily housing upperclassmen, is comprised of four seven-person suites per floor.
Hodson Hall
In 1936 The Hodson Trust funded the construction of Hodson Hall, as well as the 1964 addition that provided space for a new dining room, snack bar, bookstore, and student lounge. Currently undergoing renovations, the new edifice will house a campus center equipped with video games, a wide-screen TV, performance space, a dance floor, and student center. Readings and lectures are often held in Hynson Lounge, which also doubles as a formal dining room.
The Hill Dorms
Erected in 1844, Middle Hall is the oldest building on campus; it was joined by East and West Halls in 1860. These three historic buildings were designed to house students and have done so ever since. East Hall serves as the International House, for students interested in study abroad, international relations and foreign language study. Middle Hall now serves as the Creative Arts House, a home for students interested in drama, music, and literary and creative arts. West Hall houses students interested in the sciences. Each of the three theme houses has a faculty advisor.
The Lelia Hynson Boating Park
Located a short walk from campus on the Chester River, the college's waterfront property features a dramatic waterfront pavilion, the perfect vantage point for watching sailing and crew races. The picturesque venue is a popular spot for warm weather cookouts and home to the annual Waterfront Festival. The Truslow Boathouse, headquarters for the men's and women's crew teams, the sailing program, and other waterfront recreational activities, is also located here.
Hynson-Ringgold House
One of Maryland's beautiful eighteenth-century mansions, it serves as the home of the College's President. A popular stop on local tours of historic homes, the house is situated on Water Street in downtown Chestertown, overlooking the Chester River.
The Benjamin A. Johnson Lifetime Fitness Center
The "LFC" is the hub for athletes and those with active lifestyles at the college. The indoor field house provides exceptional indoor practice space for varsity baseball, softball, lacrosse, tennis, field hockey, and soccer teams. The field house is also where campus-wide events, such as concerts and the annual Birthday Ball, are held. In addition, the 56,000-square foot facility provides recreational space for individual and intramural activities and includes a recently renovated 4,200-square foot fitness center, a jogging track, a dance studio, squash and racquetball courts, locker rooms, offices for coaches, and classrooms. The facility is named for Benjamin Alvin Johnson '11, an influential member of the Maryland Court of Appeals.
Renovated and expanded in 2006, the weight room features three Olympic lifting platforms with benches and pull-up bars, all new strength equipment, cardiovascular machines, and rubber flooring.
Kent House
Currently undergoing renovations, the two-story coed building is expected to reopen for the Fall 2009 semester. The hall is divided into four separate sections—male, female, and coed. Men and women on the coed floors share community bathrooms.
Kibler Field/Roy Kirby, Jr. Stadium
Completed in 2006, the venue is home to the men's and women's lacrosse and soccer teams, as well as women's field hockey. It features a new Field Turf artificial playing surface, a new track, and a spectacular new stadium. Named one of the top ten venues for collegiate lacrosse in the U.S. by Lacrosse Magazine, the stadium features open bleacher seating, team meeting rooms, a concession area, and an enclosed multi-purpose room overlooking the field.
The Constance Stuart Larrabee Arts Center
The home for the visual arts on campus, the arts building is named for the renowned WWII-era photographer. Once a boiler plant, it has been imaginatively converted into a modern facility equipped with studios for painting, printmaking, and ceramics, as well as a woodworking shop, darkroom, exhibit spaces, and faculty offices.
Lover's Walk
Novelist James M. Cain (The Postman Always Rings Twice) was just a boy when his father, who was College President, had the brick walk installed. Young Cain later recalled learning the cadence of the working man's language as brick mason Ike Newton laid the walk, which runs parallel to Washington Avenue.
Joseph H. McLain '37 Atrium
This beautiful open area, where receptions, meetings, and study sessions are held, is named for renowned pyrotechnical inventor, environmentalist, beloved chemistry professor and president of Washington College, Joseph H. McLain '37. The dramatic three-story glass atrium connects Dunning Hall and the Alonzo G. Decker Jr. Laboratory Center to the newly finished John S. Toll Science Center.
Clifton M. Miller Library
Erected in 1970, Miller Library is centrally located on campus. It houses a collection of more than 500,000 books, periodicals, newspapers, government documents, microform, and audiovisual resources, and is equipped with a teaching classroom/computing lab, computing workstations, Multimedia Production Center, the College archives, and a conference room. The Beck Multimedia and Technology Learning Center is located on the ground floor. The Center is equipped with Windows and Macintosh computers, video editing workstations, digital video and digital still cameras, and DVD/VCR units. The Academic Skills office and the Math Center are also located in the library.
Minta Martin Hall
Minta Martin Hall, a women's dormitory built in 1954, was named for the mother of aviation pioneer Glenn L. Martin. The Glenn L. Martin Company operated an aircraft manufacturing plant in Middle River that produced many of the country's best known war planes and transport craft. The dormitory has four floors of single, double, and triple rooms for women.
Queen Anne's House
Queen Anne's House, located next to Caroline, is a two-story building providing substance-free coed housing. Alcohol and tobacco products are prohibited in the building. The campus' Health and Counseling Services practice has its office in one side of the Queen Anne's building.
Reid Hall
Reid Hall, which provides housing for female students, was the college's first dormitory for women. Originally known as "Normal Hall" because early female students enrolled in the "Normal School" to study teaching, the building was renamed in honor of College President Charles W. Reid who, in 1891, proposed that the College admit women. The building's basement has a full kitchen.
The Rose O'Neill Literary House
Commonly known as the "Lit House," this is the focal point for creative writing and literary activity on campus. The renovated Victorian home contains a student study lounge, a paperback lending library, individual student writing rooms, gallery space for small art exhibitions, two Chandler and Price letterpresses and a Heidelberg Press. The offices of the Literary House Press and the Literary House's director and associate director are also located here.
Lectures and readings are often held on the house's glassed-in porch, which faces Washington Avenue.
The interior walls are decorated with posters from past literary events. When a visiting author was not well-received by students, that poster was hung upside down.
The Ellen Bordley Schottland Tennis Center
One of the College's newest athletic facilities, the tennis center provides a home for Washington College's nationally competitive tennis program. The facility has eight tennis courts and a team clubhouse with a spacious greatroom, coaches' offices, locker rooms and a kitchenette.
William Smith Hall
Named in honor of the College's founder, this early twentieth-century classroom building is affectionately known as "Bill Smith." During World War II, female students gathered to roll bandages in the basement. Today, the building is wireless-accessible and includes seminar rooms and larger classrooms, faculty offices, and the Norman James Theatre, a 164-seat auditorium used for symposia, films, and student recitals.
The John S. Toll Science Center
The science facility is named for College President John S. Toll, a noted physicist who served the institution from 1995 until 2005. This 45,000 square foot, state-of-the-art classroom, office, and laboratory complex houses chemistry and biology labs, the 94-seat Litrenta Lecture hall, an environmental classroom, two seminar rooms, and a penthouse greenhouse.
The Victory Bell
Erected by the Alumni in memory of Joseph H. McLain, in recogition of his conviction that athletic competition is an integral part of a college education, the bell is rung by all varsity teams for every home game win.
Bust of Washington
Prominently located on the Cater Walk, this bronze bust of the College's namesake—fondly referred to as the "big, giant head"—is a gift from the class of 2000.
The George Washington Statue
Standing at the foot of the historic Hill Dorms, George Washington, the college's founding patron, presides over graduation ceremonies, weddings, and Town Ball games on the Campus Green. The statue, a gift to the College by sculptor Lee Lawrie, was installed in 1957 to commemorate the 175th anniversary of the founding of Washington College. These days, he is draped with Christmas garland, included in champagne toasts and asked "George, George, are you all right?" at each sound of the town's fire alarm every spring by fraternity pledges.
George Washington Stone
George Washington did not visit campus to receive his honorary degree from Washington College—William Smith instead presented it to him in New York. In 1925, the Daughters of the American Revolution placed this solid reminder of that connection to the nation's first president on the walk leading to William Smith Hall.
Western Shore Dorms
Located on the north end of campus overlooking the baseball field, the eleven buildings each have four apartment-style suites. Each suite contains four single bedrooms, two baths, a common area, and kitchenette. Four of the buildings are home to members of the Zeta Tau Alpha, Alpha Chi Omega, and Alpha Omicron Pi sororities. The non-sorority halls are limited to juniors and seniors.
The modern new buildings, located on the campus' north end, are among the most popular residences for upperclassmen. Large single bedrooms offer privacy and quiet for studying, while the spacious common areas are ideal for gathering with friends.
300 Washington Avenue, Chestertown, Maryland 21620 | 410-778-2800 | 800-422-1782