File:Breese Gymnasium, Western Carolina University, Cullowhee, NC - 53421228214.jpg

English: This is Breese Gymnasium, named for William E. Breese, whom was then a trustee of the college whom was influential in its construction. Constructed between 1937 and 1939 by the Works Progress Administration, the imposing stone structure was home to the athletic programs as what was then Western Carolina Teacher’s College, now known as Western Carolina University. The building housed a basketball court on the upper floor, used from 1939 until 1956 by the Western Carolina basketball team, which then moved to Reid Gymnasium. The building also was the home of the local Cullowhee High School basketball team, which shared the space with college programs until Cordelia Camp Laboratory School was constructed in 1964, which had its own purpose-built Gymnasium. The building also housed a four-Lane 25 yard swimming pool on the lower floor, which is where I and many other residents of the town learned how to swim during our childhoods, and where the local youth and high school swim teams used to practice. The building remained largely the same, with a few minor alterations, until 2004, when it was renovated, all the windows and doors were replaced in the building, and the upstairs basketball gymnasium was converted into a dance studio, while the pool saw some minor upgrades to electrical fixtures and the like, which were much more minor. The pool remained open until around 2010 or 2011, when it was closed due to expensive repairs being needed, which the university was unwilling to pay for, and has sat empty ever since. Future plans call for the building to be converted into academic space, but whether the thick stone walls will see that happen is not clear. However, as a solidly-built building beloved by many at the university and in the local community, I do see it remaining a feature of the campus for quite some time to come.