Kenney Gym
Encyclopedia
Kenney Gym is a 5,000-seat multi-purpose arena
in Urbana, Illinois
, on the campus
of the University of Illinois
and is named after Harold E. (Hek) Kenney. The arena opened in 1890 and was originally known as the Men's Gym Annex.
It is home to the Fighting Illini
gymnastics
team
. Prior to the opening of Huff Hall
in 1925, Kenney Gym housed the basketball
team. It also was home to the volleyball
program, which moved to Huff Hall in 1990.
From 1919 to 1925, Kenney Gym played host to the state finals of the Illinois High School Association
boys' basketball tournament.
Currently the building is operated by the Department of Campus Recreation, and features an open gym for pick-up basketball games, occasional dodgeball
tournaments, and a weight room
. It serves as the gym for University Laboratory High School in Urbana
, a department of the University of Illinois located two blocks east of Kenney Gym on Springfield Avenue.
Kenney Gym was added to the National Register of Historic Places
on November 19, 1986. Listed in the register as Military Drill Hall and Men's Gymnasium, it was designed by Nathan Clifford Ricker
and Nelson Strong Spencer.
Arena
An arena is an enclosed area, often circular or oval-shaped, designed to showcase theater, musical performances, or sporting events. It is composed of a large open space surrounded on most or all sides by tiered seating for spectators. The key feature of an arena is that the event space is the...
in Urbana, Illinois
Urbana, Illinois
Urbana is the county seat of Champaign County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 41,250. Urbana is the tenth-most populous city in Illinois outside of the Chicago metropolitan area....
, on the campus
Campus
A campus is traditionally the land on which a college or university and related institutional buildings are situated. Usually a campus includes libraries, lecture halls, residence halls and park-like settings...
of the University of Illinois
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign is a large public research-intensive university in the state of Illinois, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Illinois system...
and is named after Harold E. (Hek) Kenney. The arena opened in 1890 and was originally known as the Men's Gym Annex.
It is home to the Fighting Illini
Illinois Fighting Illini
The Fighting Illini are the intercollegiate athletic teams of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The University offers 10 men's and 11 women's varsity sports....
gymnastics
Gymnastics
Gymnastics is a sport involving performance of exercises requiring physical strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, and balance. Internationally, all of the gymnastic sports are governed by the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique with each country having its own national governing body...
team
Team
A team comprises a group of people or animals linked in a common purpose. Teams are especially appropriate for conducting tasks that are high in complexity and have many interdependent subtasks.A group in itself does not necessarily constitute a team...
. Prior to the opening of Huff Hall
Huff Hall
Huff Hall is a 4,500-seat multi-purpose arena in Champaign, Illinois, United States. The arena opened in 1925 and was known as Huff Gymnasium until the 1990s. It is named after George Huff, who was the school's athletic director from 1895 to 1935....
in 1925, Kenney Gym housed the basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
team. It also was home to the volleyball
Volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
program, which moved to Huff Hall in 1990.
From 1919 to 1925, Kenney Gym played host to the state finals of the Illinois High School Association
Illinois High School Association
The Illinois High School Association is one of 521 state high school associations in the United States, designed to regulate competition in most interscholastic sports and some interscholastic activities at the high school level. It is a charter member of the National Federation of State High...
boys' basketball tournament.
Currently the building is operated by the Department of Campus Recreation, and features an open gym for pick-up basketball games, occasional dodgeball
Dodgeball
Dodgeball is any of a variety of games in which players try to hit other players on the opposing team with balls while avoiding being hit themselves. This article is about a well-known form of team sport with modified rules that is often played in physical education classes and has been featured...
tournaments, and a weight room
Weight training
Weight training is a common type of strength training for developing the strength and size of skeletal muscles. It uses the weight force of gravity to oppose the force generated by muscle through concentric or eccentric contraction...
. It serves as the gym for University Laboratory High School in Urbana
Urbana, Illinois
Urbana is the county seat of Champaign County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 41,250. Urbana is the tenth-most populous city in Illinois outside of the Chicago metropolitan area....
, a department of the University of Illinois located two blocks east of Kenney Gym on Springfield Avenue.
Kenney Gym was added to the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
on November 19, 1986. Listed in the register as Military Drill Hall and Men's Gymnasium, it was designed by Nathan Clifford Ricker
Nathan Clifford Ricker
Nathan Clifford Ricker, D.Arch was a professor and architect known for his work at the University of Illinois. He was born on a farm near Acton, Maine June 24, 1843. In 1875, he was married to Mary Carter Steele of Galesburg, Illinois. His only child, Ethel, was born in 1883...
and Nelson Strong Spencer.