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The students of Lake Erie College were so intent on having a dedicated gymnasium that they began to raise money on their own beginning in 1913. The building opened in 1920 and included offices, a beautiful lobby area, a gymnasium, stage, pool and two bowling lanes. Students were required to swim the length of the pool prior to graduation and the Dwan synchronized swimming club was quite popular.
The building became known as the Ritchie Gymnasium in 1976 after Mable Marsh Ritchie, a 1901 graduate. Most activity in the building subsided in 1979 with the dedication of the Lincoln Gymnasium, and the building was almost exclusively used by children in the College's Phillips School. The building was later sold in 1990 and became part of the independent Phillips Osborne School.
The College reacquired the building in 2008 and has completely renovated it into an athletic training facility.
