Williamsburg (925) Built 1953
October 14, 2025
October 14, 2025
I started this blog approximately one year ago today when I visited the Hoosier Gym in Knightstown for the first time. After that I started writing about every active high school gym I visited during the basketball season. I had a blast doing it. When summer hit, I found myself with more time on my hands and nothing to scratch that gym-seeking itch. I had kicked around the idea of visiting old gyms, but my introverted self didn't want to put in the work of contacting the people who are in charge of these old gems and basically asking them the favor of donating their time to show me around. I hate asking people for things, it's always something I've struggled with. Once I overcame that hurdle and had an amazing experience at Sharpsville, I was off and running. I quickly realized most of the people involved with the old gyms in whatever iteration they currently are in actually love to talk about the history of the places, and they don't often find people as weird as me who also find it really interesting. The people I've met over the last few months visiting these old gyms and the interactions I've had with them have been some of the most rewarding experiences I've had in a long time.
This trend only continued when I stepped into the old Williamsburg school over my fall break. The one big difference was this time I truly was stepping into an old school, not just a gym. Every other time I've visited an old gym to this point, it's been standing alone with only a plaque of some sort beside it indicating where the old school used to reside. The schools themselves are more costly to maintain over time and it is difficult to find a use for all the space inside so they typically are razed even if the gym is lucky enough to be saved. The entire Williamsburg building is fully intact with the gym, and my gracious guide named Cliff was kind enough to give me the grand tour. I will keep my description here focused on the gym, but it's worth mentioning how much of a thrill it was to see the entire three-story school as well. People like to talk about how old Indiana gyms remind them of Hoosiers the movie, but seeing this school took me back to that time as much as any gym I've ever visited. The high ceilings, the ornate woodwork everywhere, even the principal's office set at the end of the long hall. It is immaculate. It's also filled top to bottom with Williamsburg memorabila. I was awestruck.
While the school itself truly knocked my socks off, the gym held up its end of the bargain as well. When you walk in, there is a little foyer area where the ticket booth used to be. Now there are old display cases showing oodles of old Williamsburg memorabilia in a variety of forms. There is a sign over the door to the gym recognizing the 1955 team that went undefeated in the regular season before falling to Richmond in the sectional. The Yellow Jackets were never able to capture that elusive sectional title, but they had many fine seasons nonetheless. I've listed the gym here as being built in 1953, which is only half true. The school was built in 1922 and had an original gym that ran parallel to the school building. I learned in Kyle Neddenreip's Historic Hoosier Gyms that the gym was rebuilt much larger and ran perpendicular to the school itself. Cliff elaborated on this point and I learned that the school was actually designed to be expanded in this manner when it was originally built. They must have known at some point that a larger gym would be needed and judiciously planned ahead. Up on the stage in the current gym, you can actually see cement steps that lead up to the door into the school building that actually served as bleachers for the original gym. It's really the only sign remaining that indicates its existence.
The gym is set up in a classic old-school fashion with seven rows of permanent wooden bleachers opposing each other along each sideline. They’ve been stained a deep, rich, brown color. What struck me about them is the tongue and groove trim that adorns the side of each row of bleachers. Another unique aspect are the five support beams that partially obstruct views along one sideline. These were not uncommon for bigger gyms from this era, but I have not seen them in a gym this size. In two opposing corners of the gym are little small areas that have been framed out. One houses a bathroom, while the other is harder to perceive what it may have been used for. The top looks like an old pressbox of some sort while the bottom just contains a closet. Up above on one sideline wall are large, beautiful square windows that let in a lot of natural light. The side with the support beams actually has a little overhang that juts out above the bleachers. That uppermost part of the cut out used to be made of frosted glass bricks, but it has since been replaced by drywall and more standard rectangular windows.
The far baseline wall is mostly bare with the exception of some small signage honoring individuals who have donated over the years to keep the school going as a community center. The baseline wall right by the entrance features a large stage that runs right through where the original court would have been before the gym was remodeled. A blue curtain hangs across the front. Behind it you can see the old steps I mentioned before as well as two gorgeous old doors leading into the school at the top. Cliff also took me underneath the stage into the old locker rooms where the original lockers still reside. Last but not least, the hardwood floor was just recently refinished a lighter tan color. The old Yellowjacket mascot is displayed along both sides of the floor. The court is named after Jon Detweiler who was the driving force behind the upkeep of the school and gym for many years.
Williamsburg consolidated into Northeastern in 1962. It then operated as an elementary school until 1983. From the moment it closed, some like-minded individuals in Williamsburg decided to keep the entire facility running as a community center. Since that time, they have put countless hours into raising funds to utilize and maintain the building so it can remain a place that the community can use and take pride in. Every single level of the school is used for something. They've gone out of their way to ensure it isn't left to sit and rot. Has it been a humongous undertaking? Yes. Has it been worth it? I think the people involved would say "Yes" without hesitation. While I've always understood why communities tear down old school buildings as weather and Father Time slowly chip away at them, it still saddens me. This was especially true as I drove away from Williamsburg on this day. While I was still on a nostalgia high from everything I saw in the old gym and school, I couldn't help but think about what could have been possible in other small towns across the state if people had the collective gumption that the people of Williamsburg did to seemingly make something out of nothing. Every time I read about another old gym or school taking its final breath, something flares up inside of me. You can ask my wife how many times I've groaned in frustration from the couch about a gym I just missed getting to see before it was finally lost forever (Bourbon, Pine Village, Hope, just to name a few). It's no one's fault, it's just life and what comes with the passage of time. It just makes me all the more impressed and grateful for what has been done here at Williamsbug. It's nothing short of a miracle.
