St. Lawrence University's original gymnasium was built in 1896 on the site where Gunnison Memorial Chapel now stands. After that gym burned in May 1925, construction of Brewer Field House soon began. Named for Charles S. Brewer, class of 1891, the building housed the university's basketball and wrestling programs and also hosted many dances and other events for almost 45 years. Basketball was played there from 1926 to 1969, and spectators were known for dangling their feet over the edge of the stands, especially in winter, when wet shoes dripped onto the away team's bench. After the Augsbury Athletic Center opened in 1970, the field house was mothballed and used mostly for storage for many years. In 1999, during a major campus building program, it was repurposed as a campus bookstore while preserving the exterior and some interior features of the old field house, including the original gym floor and part of the bleachers. Charles "Charlie" Snow Brewer was an athlete, a longtime member of the Board of Trustees, and served on many committees to improve the university, including the Athletic Advisory Board and the Million Dollar Campaign, which contributed to the institution's strong growth in the 1920s.