Armory

Armory / Alumni Sports and Recreation Center (ASRC)

The Alumni Sports and Recreation Center, also known as the Armory, a multipurpose building on the RPI Campus. The Armory served as a miltary armory until is was purchased by Rennselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Army

The Armory was originally built as the Troy Armory in 1920. It was built to replace the Ferry Street Armory, which had recently been destroyed in a fire. Prior to its purchase by RPI, the Armory served as a headquarters for the New York Guard and National Guard. The units stationed at the Armory included the 105th Army Regiment from 1921 through World War 2, where the Regiment saw significant action in the Pacific Theater. From 1961 to 1971, Company "A" 205th Artillery was stationed at the Troy Armory.

RPI

Rennselaer Polytechnic Institute purchased the Armory in 1971 to support the development of its Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps program. The institute had sought to acquire the building since 1944, but it was not able to finalize any arrangements until 1970. RPI agreed to put 1.6 million dollars toward building a new armory for the State of New York. After the successful acquisition, RPI renovated the Armory into a modern gymnasium with synthetic rubber floors. The renovations were made possible by donations from the Alumni Association; it was therefore renamed the Alumni Sports and Recreation Center. Further donations were made to add a wing including a swimming pool and diving boards. These were made possible by the generosity of Mr. Ellis Robison, who funded the aquatic wing and also donated the proceeds of a coin collection. Mr. Robison’s contributions totaled around $650,000, and the gymnasium and aquatic wing were both named after him. To put the donation in perspective, Mr. Robison’s donation would be worth over 1.8 million dollars after adjusting for inflation.

References

“Troy: 15th Street Armory.” New York State Military Museum and Veterans Research Center. February 2, 2023. https://museum.dmna.ny.gov/index.https://museum.dmna.ny.gov/index.php/?cID=1747php%2F%3FcID.

"Armory / Alumni Sports and Recreation Center (ASRC)." Institute Archives and Special Collections. February 2, 2023. https://archives.rpi.edu/institute-history/building-histories/armory-alumni-sports-and-recreation-center-asrc

"105th Infantry Regiment (United States)." Wikimedia Foundation. February 2, 2023. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/105th_Infantry_Regiment_(United_States)