History

December 2024 Alumni Book Roundup
Online Exclusive
Whether you’re snowed in or taking a break from the rush of the holidays, these newly released titles by William & Mary alumni are perfect companions.
Blast Off
By & Large
W&M launches passion for STEM in Virginia high school students
Evolving Admission Landscape
By & Large
Takeaways from the Virginia law
Lighting the Way
Feature
$2.5 million scholarship and applied learning gift will open doors for Pell Grant-eligible students from outside Virginia
Lighting the Way
Pay It Forward
$2.5 million scholarship and applied learning gift will open doors for Pell Grant-eligible students from outside Virginia
An Ecosystem All Their Own
By & Large
The Institute for Integrative Conservation connects W&M with the world, and vice versa
The Brafferton at 300
By & Large
Rediscovering the complex past of the Brafferton School
History In Motion
By & Large
Preserving and interpreting the Williamsburg Bray School
Buzzer Beater
Pay It Forward
"All In" is more than a landmark campaign for W&M Athletics, it's a life-changing opportunity
The Gift of Education
Pay It Forward
Through their estates, Joan Showalter ’55 and Karen Beldegreen HON ’06 provided a $14.4 million bequest to establish four new graduate and undergraduate scholarships at the business school and expand the existing Lura Dixon Showalter Merit MBA Fellowship
A Journey of Reckoning and Discovery
Pay It Forward
Witney Schneidman’s path to establishing the Lemon Scholarship Endowment
Common Threads
Cover Story
Through W&M's Asian Centennial, students are discovering how the university's history intertwines with their own stories
Bray School Uncovered
By & Large
Colonial Williamsburg joins William & Mary to research, relocate and interpret 18th-century Bray School for enslaved and free Black children
Building on the Legacy
By & Large
William & Mary has published the first book devoted to the history and contributions of African Americans at the university.
An Annual Pilgrimage to Alma Mater
Online Feature
The History of W&M Homecoming
100 Years of Coeducation at W&M
Online Exclusive
In the fall of 1918, 24 women were admitted as undergraduate students at William & Mary. In the coming months we will be featuring vignettes from our fall 2018 cover story on the 100 years of coeducation at William & Mary. This is the second in that series.
The Namesake
Online Exclusive
“This building … is named in honor of one of the truly great alumnae of our college,” said Professor Caroline Sinclair. “One whose intelligence, energy, character and professional skill set an example for all who will enter these halls with purpose.” Sinclair was speaking in late 1963 at the opening of Adair Hall, William & Mary’s new women’s gymnasium.
Iron Men
Feature
An underdog's season of grit and determination
Forty years ago, W&M women made waves
Online Exclusive
In July 1978, Judge John Sirica, still infamous from his pivotal role in the Watergate case, ruled that it was unconstitutional for Congress to bar women from serving on U.S. Navy ships. That November, a handful of women made history when they became the first female crew members of a non-hospital naval vessel.
The haunted history of Dillard Complex
Online Exclusive
Three miles away from campus, the remnants of Dillard Complex lay empty, absent of new residents and in need of a landscaping job. What once resided within those walls?
One Hundred Years
Feature
When women came to the university, Mary didn’t just join William, she saved William.
By Noah Robertson '19
with contributions by Mattie Clear '18
Remembering Fred Kovaleski ’49, veteran, spy and tennis star
Online Exclusive
The William & Mary community is mourning the passing of American patriot and international tennis star Fred Kovaleski ’49. He was a World War II veteran, loving husband and father and unbeknownst to those around him, he was also a spy for the CIA during the Cold War.
W&M Docs: G.I. Ginny
Virginia Claudon Allen '40 reflects on her experience in World War II's "Forgotten Theatre."
G.I. Ginny: The Appendix and the Cigarette Butt
One of Virginia Claudon Allen's favorite memories from her time at William & Mary, was getting the opportunity to meet Cary Grant. Hear the story that involves a boyfriend, an appendix, and Cary Grant's cigarette butt!
G.I. Ginny & The Breakers
With World War II now raging at home as well as abroad, Virginia Claudon Allen '40 worked at the Ream General Veterans Hospital, located at The Breakers in Palm Beach, Fla. Her job was to socialize with the wounded flyers coming home from Europe, some of whom had suffered unspeakable injuries.