History

• Located in Lawrence on land formerly known as Fort Benjamin Harrison, the Benjamin Harrison YMCA is the first YMCA named after our 23rd President of the United States.
• The Fort was opened in 1906 by United States President Theodore Roosevelt, honoring former President Harrison (1889-1893), who hailed from Indianapolis.
• The YMCA property and building was purchased by the Reuse Authority when Fort Harrison closed in 1997. It formerly served as a military athletic facility, where the Army trained physical fitness instructors.
• The Athlete Village for the 1987 Pan Am Games was built inside Fort Harrison. The YMCA pool was once used for practice by swimmers in the 1987 Pan American Games hosted in Indianapolis.