Honoring the History of Recreation & Wellbeing

Originally called the Men’s Gymnasium, the Old Shed was the first home of recreational sports on campus for men. Built in the 1870’s close to Bascom Hall, it sat where the Carillion Tower now stands. It was 100 feet by 50 feet and cost about $4,000 to build. Before its construction, “military drills” and all indoor recreation took place in Bascom Hall.

In 1874, women petitioned to use the Old Shed for their own recreation. Administration accepted their petition and allowed them to use the gym for two one-hour sessions of “physical culture” classes per week. Campus newspapers praised the courage of these students saying, “We glory in the heroism and pluck of our sister students and assure them…there is no reason they can’t become celebrated athletes.”

On June 12, 1891, the Old Shed burned to the ground. Ironically, the Board of Regents had talked about replacing or expanding the space as early as 1884. Even before the fire, people had concerns that the gym was not big enough to meet programming needs. With the Old Shed gone, the need for a new recreational facility became a priority on campus.

Construction of the Armory and Gymnasium (the “Red Gym”) began in 1892 and finished in 1894 with a large opening ceremony. The building had a swimming pool, bowling alleys, assembly hall, large gym, batting cages, and rifle range. The assembly hall became a popular place for both students and Madison residents to hold political gatherings, dances, banquets, basketball games, and lectures. In 1911, an annex was added to the east side of the Red Gym. It was called “the first university field house” because its baseball cages, rowing machines, and track equipment made it an indoor facility for outdoor sports. Again, only men could use these spaces.

After the Red Gym opened, women asked to use it. They were using Ladies’ Hall, now Chadbourne Residence Hall, but they needed more space. Administration denied their request to use the Red Gym because they had plans to remodel Ladies’ Hall. In 1895, they added two floors of space to Ladies’ Hall, including locker and bathing rooms.

At the beginning of the 1900’s, only gym class offered physical activity for women on campus. They wanted more ways to play and be active. In December 1902, students organized the first UW chapter meeting of the national Women’s Athletic Association (WAA), a student-run organization supervised by the women’s physical education department. At the first meeting, students elected officers for six sports—basketball, bowling, hockey, tennis, golf, and rowing.

In 1902 and 1904 the Red Gym received national attention for hosting the Republican state conventions under the leadership of Robert M. La Follette. The Red Gym often hosted political gatherings because it was the largest space available in Madison and near the state capitol. The Board of Regents wanted students to have easy access to these political events.

Finally in 1910, Lathrop Hall opened, and women students got their own recreational facility. It had a large three-story gym with an indoor running track, equipment for gymnastics, pool, four bowling alleys, locker and shower rooms, and administrative and teaching space. At the time, Lathrop was celebrated as one of the most modern and best equipped recreational buildings on any college campus in the United States. UW–Madison became a national leader in co-educational colleges.

From 1900 – 1910, students played more and more games between themselves – especially in track and field, basketball, and swimming. This was the start of intramural sports. In the 1910’s, intramural sports grew in popularity on campus. UW created a constitution for an intramural sports committee in 1912 and started one of the first college departments of intramural sports in the nation.

More than 6,350 UW students participated in intramural sports by 1930. Boxing was the most popular sport on campus. That year, 4,000 fans watched 20 fighters compete in the all-university boxing tournament at the UW Stock Pavilion. Boxing was so popular that it became a varsity sport by 1933. Over the next 27 years, the Badgers dominated national intercollegiate boxing, winning eight NCAA team championships.

In 1940, Professor A.L. Masley became Director of Physical Education (for men) and led intramurals. With the U.S. involved in World War II, Masley focused on getting men ready for battle. He pushed forward a requirement of four years of physical education for men and two for women. This requirement led to intramurals counting for physical education credit. Activities included basic conditioning, gymnastics, track and field, tumbling, and other sports such as basketball, tennis, and badminton.

By the end of the 1940’s, the Red Gym and Lathrop Hall were decades old and outdated. In 1953, UW decided to replace the 45-year-old annex at the Red Gym with a new practice facility. In May 1956, the Camp Randall Memorial Practice Building opened. Known as the “Shell,” it was 200 by 400-foot and “had room for baseball, tennis, and track to be practiced at the same time.” In 1972, the UW Intramural Recreation Board officially changed the Shell’s name to the Camp Randall Memorial Sports Center.

In 1958, UW approved plans to build a complex of gym buildings on the Lakeshore side of campus. Unit I (also known as the Natatorium or “Nat”) opened in fall 1963. The $2 million building had a swimming pool, diving well, gym, and offices. Unit II opened in 1967 at a cost of $3.8 million and had multipurpose gyms, offices, classrooms, research labs, locker and shower facilities, and handball and squash courts. Only men could use these spaces when they opened.

In the mid-1960s, women had two main recreational resources on campus: the physical education department and Lathrop Hall. Katherine “Kit” Saunders was determined to change this. In 1966, she became Coordinator of the Women’s Recreation Association (WRA), which replaced the WAA. Her leadership prepared the way for sport clubs and women’s varsity sports under two tracks – intramural sports and intercollegiate competition. This was just the start of her impact at UW.

Nielsen Tennis Stadium (NTS) opened in 1968 thanks to a gift of more than $2 million from Arthur C. Nielsen (‘18). Valedictorian of his class and devoted tennis fan, he is best known for developing the Nielsen TV Ratings, a standard for measuring television viewership. NTS made a big impression when it opened and was unlike any other indoor tennis facility in the nation. It features 12 indoor tennis courts, six squash courts, and spectator seating.

As two major indoor recreational facilities were completed with Nielsen Tennis Stadium and the Natatorium, outdoor spaces became the focus. Along Observatory drive, six outdoor tennis courts were installed by several residence halls in the Lakeshore neighborhood allowing students to play tennis outside during the summer. Today, known as the Cole Recreation Area, it now includes nine tennis courts, four sand volleyball courts, and two blacktop basketball courts.

Milt Bruhn, a former UW head football coach, became the first Director of Club Sports in 1970. Kit Saunders joined his team as Coordinator of Women’s Sports. Their Intramural Recreation Board managed facilities and used student fees to fund club sports. Saunders had a budget of only $2,000 and struggled to get funding for women’s club sports, including competition with non-varsity teams from other schools.

Title IX opened possibilities for women’s sports at UW–Madison. Kit Saunders played a key role in meetings where women’s sports advocates and opponents disagreed. A chancellor’s committee to study women’s athletics on campus was created. In 1973, women on the committee recommended remodeling the locker and shower rooms at the Red Gym, Nat, and Shell to make them accessible for men and women. Saunders supported this in her doctoral thesis in 1977 and renovations soon began.

Discussions to build the Southeast Recreational Facility (SERF) started as early as the 1960’s when the Nat was built. With Lathrop Hall outdated and the addition of several residence halls in the Southeast neighborhood, UW needed a large recreational facility on that side of campus. The SERF opened in 1983 and was an immediate success. It had a pool, weight rooms, racquetball courts, running track, and two large gymnasiums. By the early 2000’s, the SERF was welcoming over 500,000 people a year.

By 1994, 85 percent of UW students and around two-thirds of faculty and staff used recreational buildings and programs. Over 1.4 million people visited the Nat, SERF, Shell, and Nielsen Tennis Stadium every year. Over the next decade, campus experienced the “health club boom.” People wanted more cardio machines and aerobics and spin classes. They weren’t as interested in racquetball and team sports. By the end of the decade, fitness classes were held weekly on basketball courts in both the SERF and Nat.

Despite the popularity of the SERF, the building had many flaws. Budget cuts during building design led to a lack of space and air conditioning. From its opening day, plans for big changes began for the SERF. It took over two decades, but UW–Madison built a three-story addition with two sets of courts, cardio space, a multipurpose studio, and much needed air conditioning in 2004. That expansion led to more than 700,000 visits yearly to the SERF.

By 2008, rec facilities needed updates to serve growing needs. Students stood in line for up to an hour to use cardio machines during the busiest times at the SERF. A student group called “NatUp 2010” supported a referendum to renovate and expand the Nat. In April 2010, a record 34.5 percent of students voted, but the referendum failed. The plan was not ambitious enough.

A grassroots effort began in 2013 to find the best way to support health and wellbeing needs on campus. The Student Services Finance Committee asked Rec Sports to develop a master plan to improve all indoor and outdoor facilities. The ambitious plan set out to replace facilities with two synthetic turf complexes and two state-of-the-art recreation facilities at a cost of $223 million. The student organizations Badgers for Recreational Reform and Student Recreational Leadership Council educated other students about the plan. Their efforts helped pass a referendum in March 2014 with (a state record) 12,070 students voting to pass it. This immediately changed the future of what it means to be an Active Badger.

The Near West Fields – the first project of the master plan – opened in May 2017. The synthetic turf was lined for many sports including soccer, flag football, baseball, softball, and lacrosse and resulted in fewer weather cancellations and longer playing seasons.

The SERF also closed in fall 2017 and construction began for the new Nicholas Recreation Center (Nick). Between 1983 and 2017, the SERF welcomed over 20 million people.

Rec Sports shifted from reporting to the Vice Chancellor of Finance and Administration to reporting to the newly created Student Affairs. Student Affairs focuses on programs and services for health and wellbeing, identity and inclusion, leadership and engagement, and student advocacy. This change created an immediate connection with University Health Services and other departments that help students succeed outside of the classroom and foster a sense of belonging to campus.

Recreational programming grew and changed during this time to include athletic training for all students, group fitness classes across campus and on the water, instructional lessons for many activities, professional and first responder certification offerings, mindfulness classes, personal training and group training, massage therapy, intramural sports with an expansion into esports, the largest sport club program in campus history, year-round youth programs (including a summer youth camp), and wellness coaching – for students and by students.

In 2019, the Division of Recreational Sports changed its name to University Recreation & Wellbeing (Rec Well). This started a new era in health and wellbeing at UW–Madison, showing that recreation is more than just sports. When the Nicholas Recreation Center opened, Rec Well expanded its programs and services to support holistic student health with wellbeing offerings such as massage therapy, meditation classes, and both group and one-on-one wellness coaching.

The COVID-19 pandemic stopped most campus operations and all in-person Rec Well activities between March and September 2020. Rec Well shifted to virtual programming to support students through recorded and live group fitness classes, esports, and meditation workshops. During this time, the Nat permanently closed after almost 60 years of hosting countless WIAA swimming championships, adapted fitness classes, and intramural leagues. Demolition of the Nat made space for a new Lakeshore recreation facility.

In September 2020, the Nicholas Recreation Center (Nick) opened as the first completed building project of the 2014 master plan. It has 30,000 square feet of fitness space, eight courts, five multipurpose studios, a one-sixth mile indoor track, and 50-meter swimming pool with diving well. Nancy Nicholas (‘55) and her family generously donated to the building in honor of her late husband Albert (‘52, ‘55) who passed away in 2016. During the pandemic, the Nick welcomed students and members at 25% capacity in its first year.

In 2023, the Bakke Recreation & Wellbeing Center, built on the site of the old Nat, was designed with spaces especially for wellbeing services and mental health support. Special features include an ice rink, climbing wall, sports simulators, teaching kitchen, esports room, rooftop fitness areas, and views out to Lake Mendota. Jim (‘77) and Sue Bakke generously donated to this project to have a long-lasting impact for the UW–Madison campus and the community. Chancellor Rebecca Blank stated, “The Bakke Center is going to re-define what a center for recreation and wellbeing can be.”

After Bakke opened, the Shell was given back to UW Athletics. Under Rec Well, the historic Shell hosted athletic competitions and community ice programs for decades.