Memorial Gymnasium (University of Idaho)

War Memorial Gymnasium is a 2,500-seat multi-purpose indoor arena in the northwest United States, on the campus of the University of Idaho in Moscow, Idaho. Opened 93 years ago in November 1928,[6][7] the venue honors state residents who gave their lives in the service of their country in World War I.[4][8][9]

Memorial Gymnasium
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Gym tower's west face in 2007
Location	1001 University Ave. University of Idaho Moscow, Idaho, U.S.
Coordinates	46.7265°N 117.014°W / 46.7265; -117.014
Area	0.3 acres (0.12 ha)
Built	1927–28
Architect	David C. Lange[1][2] T. Pritchard - ass't
Architectural style	Tudor-Gothic heavily buttressed
NRHP reference No.	77000466[3]
Added to NRHP	October 10, 1977

Memorial Gymnasium

"Mem Gym"
Full name	War Memorial Gymnasium
Location	1001 University Ave. University of Idaho Moscow, Idaho, U.S.
Owner	University of Idaho
Operator	University of Idaho
Capacity	2,500
Surface	hardwood
Construction
Broke ground	1927 (summer)[4]
Built	1927–28
Opened	1928 (November),[4] 93 years ago
Renovated	1954
Expanded	1951–52[5]
Construction cost	$616,767 - (original)
Architect	David C. Lange[1] Theodore Pritchard - ass't
Structural engineer	A.T. Schenck
General contractor	Victor N. Jones & Assoc. - Boise
Tenants
Idaho Vandals women's volleyball (through 2020)

The architectural style is Tudor-Gothic and is heavily buttressed; the chief architect was David C. Lange,[1][2] the head of the university's architecture department. The west end addition was built from 1951–52,[5] and the building was renovated in 1954.[10] Ivy partially covers the brick and concrete exterior, which is decorated with crouching football player gargoyles and stained glass windows.[11] The elevation at street level is approximately 2,600 feet (790 m) above sea level.

Its predecessor was the original gymnasium (and armory), located directly east;[12] constructed in 1904;[13] it has been reconfigured and continues on campus as the "Art and Architecture South" building.[14] During its time as the varsity basketball venue, it was also a library, with bookshelves along the walls.[15][16] After the Memorial Gym opened, it became the women's gym.

Memorial Gymnasium was the primary home of Vandal basketball until January 1976,[17] replaced by the newly-enclosed Kibbie Dome;[18][19] the Dome's basketball configuration was renamed "Cowan Spectrum" in early 2001. Future hall of famer Gus Johnson played for the Vandals during the 1962–63 season,[16] and the "Mem Gym" was frequently sold out, with the attendance estimated at 3,800.[20][21][22] During the 1940s and early 1950s, Idaho had a nationally prominent boxing team; over five thousand attended a dual meet against Palouse neighbor Washington State in 1950.[23][24] It was dropped by the university as an intercollegiate sport in 1954,[25][26] and discontinued by the NCAA after 1960.

The Memorial Gym is the current home court of Vandal women's volleyball, with a portable Taraflex court since 1999.[27] It occasionally hosts early season basketball games on the hardwood, depending upon the late season football schedule, and the facility is used extensively for physical education classes, intramurals, and open recreation. Commencement ceremonies for the university were traditionally held in the gym from 1929,[28] through 1975.[29][30] The Kibbie Dome has hosted the primary ceremony for all graduates since 1976,[31] and the Mem Gym is one of several campus venues used for the subsequent individual college ceremonies for the awarding of diplomas.

The 2020–21 school year is expected to be the last for Mem Gym as a varsity athletics venue. The university is preparing to build Idaho Central Credit Union Arena, a 4,200-seat facility that will become the new home of Vandals basketball (men's and women's) and volleyball, and is expected to open in time for the 2021–22 school year.[32]

At just 49 years of age, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1977. The narrow swimming pool in the basement of the Mem Gym was retired in 1970, when the new swim center opened. The Kibbie Dome lacked locker rooms for its first seven years, so the Vandals and visiting teams continued to dress in the Memorial Gym. The completion of the East End Addition in the fall of 1982 ended the long trek, frequently in rain or snow during basketball season.