A Venn diagram illustrating the relationship between “William & Mary students” and “people who love to build models from kits” would likely show a significant overlap. That explains, in part, why there’s a lot of excitement about a major community project that kicks off in earnest this month: a model of William & Mary’s Historic Campus, constructed entirely out of Lego bricks. 

The Class of 2025 got a sneak peek at the project before Commencement, but the bulk of the work begins now. The community-driven effort will use as many as 200,000 Lego bricks to render the Sir Christopher Wren Building, the President’s House and the Brafferton in the iconic knobby, multicolored plastic pieces. 

The Lego Company, headquartered in Denmark, is not officially involved in the W&M project, though every piece used will be a standard Lego brick. Nothing was custom-made to fit the project. Even the statue of Lord Botetourt in front of the Wren Building will be made of Lego pieces.  

The build officially began with the Aug. 20 installation of the first module, constructed by the family of Bruce Christian ’73.  The 890-brick replica of the Wren’s west steps was affixed to the platform that will eventually hold the entire 64-square-foot model of the Historic Campus. Christian, a longtime supporter of William & Mary, has generously agreed to fund the entire Lego model although he is not a Lego hobbyist himself. He had expert help putting the steps together. 

“My whole experience with Lego is that it really hurts if you step on one,” he said, “but I have a grandson who is a huge Lego fan. He knew exactly how it was meant to go together.” 

Seven-year-old Maks helped his grandfather with the finished product. “That’s going on his application,” Christian’s wife, Spas, said. 

From kits to a full model

This year marks the 330th anniversary of the start of construction of the Wren Building, the oldest academic building in the nation. Charles E. Fulcher Jr. ’99, director of Wren operations and events, oversaw a similar project while serving as director for visitor programs at Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D.C.

That model, begun in 2019, is more than twice the size of the Wren project. It is not yet finished.

“I thought it would be a really great fit here, so I went to Matthew Lambert (’99, senior vice president for university advancement) and he came back with an enthusiastic ‘Yes!’” Fulcher recalled. 

The specs for the model came from Romão Santos, a designer for Sensational Bricks, a London company that specializes in large-scale Lego builds. Santos, who lives in Portugal, worked with Fulcher to render a brick-by-brick design.

Tens of thousands of bricks have already been sorted into component modules by Fulcher and a team of volunteers, including many from Swem Library. “Basically, we made kits that will join together to build the full model,” Fulcher said. 

That’s important because completing the project in distinct parts will mean the build can happen anywhere. The plans are to host “facilitated builds” at such locations as the Alumni House, the Washington Center and Swem Library. The next scheduled build will be held on the Sadler Terrace on Aug. 27, the first day of undergraduate classes. 

Additional builds will be held in concert with William & Mary signature events, including Women’s Weekend, Family Weekend, Homecoming & Reunion Weekend, Charter Day, Commencement and more. Participation will extend to regional alumni networks, like the Yule Log celebrations hosted in multiple cities by William & Mary alumni.

A community effort

Fulcher, who also oversees the Spotswood Society, a student organization that directs public tours of the Wren, says the model will be a boon to his volunteers. “It will give them a way to talk about the relationship between the historic campus buildings and why there are different colors and patterns to the bricks.

The Lego model will have a rainbow appearance until it is finished, when the completed project will reflect the brick architecture. “The variety of colors make it a lot easier to put the model together, but you won’t be able to see those colors once it’s finished,” Fulcher said.

Ainsley Ruhl ’26, a government major from Jackson, Mississippi, interned at the Wren Building over the summer, helping Fulcher get ready for the Lego kickoff.

“I think students are definitely excited about it,” said Ruhl, whose favorite hobby as a child was building Harry Potter Lego kits. “Lego itself is a very nostalgic thing for people my age, and it’s a fun way for students to interact with the building while leaving a piece of themselves behind.”

The hope is to have a complete model by July 2026. “The unknown factor is the rate at which it will be built,” Fulcher said. “If there’s a looming deadline, we could open up the floodgates.”

That’s why reaching out to the whole William & Mary community is such an asset, Fulcher said. “I’ve seen some other colleges that have big builds —The Ohio State University has a giant version of their football stadium — but all of those other projects are passion projects, the work of one person.”

William & Mary’s model, like the university itself, will be all about community.

“Everyone within the broader William & Mary community will have an opportunity to take part in this,” Christian said. “It’s the Tribe that’s doing it. That’s the most powerful piece of this.”

Upcoming build events: 

• Aug. 27, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the Sadler Terrace. Open to the campus community.
• Sept. 13, noon to 2 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m. Alumni House, Hunter B. Open to participants in Women’s Weekend.
• Oct. 3 and 4, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sadler Center, Tidewater Room. Open to students and families in town for Family Weekend.