Funston Courtyard

The Funston Courtyard is located next to the main entrance of the Raether Library & Information Technology Center. It is named for G. Keith Funston, who was Trinity College's president from 1945 until 1951.

Funston submitted his resignation to the College on June 16, 1951, to become president of the New York Stock Exchange. Money for the construction of the fountain was donated by Trinity alumna Florence Sidette Marcy Crofut of Hartford, Connecticut, who received an honorary Master of Arts degree from the College in 1938. Crofut wanted to express “her personal appreciation for Funston’s service to Trinity when she presented the Funston Court, a sunken garden between the chemistry building and the new library.” Her contribution was received by the College on June 28, 1951. According to the Trinity College Bulletin, 1951 (President's Report), she donated $1,500 for the construction of the “Library Courtyard.” By 1952, this amount had increased to $2,000.

The courtyard and fountain were built between the years 1952 and 1954 after Crofut's donation was received. A photograph of the completed courtyard can be seen in the 1954 edition of Ivy.

According to an alum quoted in The Trinity Reporter, Winter 2024, the fountain was still functional when they were a student between 1979 and 1982. The fountain was still operational in 1991, but it was leaking at that time. An anonymous student was quoted in The Trinity Tripod about the fountain: “Why can't someone fix the leaky fountain in the Funston Courtyard? Not only is it unsightly, but also an icy hazzard [sic] to pedestrians.”

The fountain currently is not operational, but the courtyard is still in use today.