Ahearn Field House

Ahearn Field House, constructed in 1951, was built to improve facilities for basketball and indoor track events, which were previously held in Nichols Hall.

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Photograph of Ahearn Field House.

 

Building History

The building, named in honor of Michael F. Ahearn a former Kansas State University professor, coach, director of athletics and head of the physical education department. Ahearn Field House can seat up to 11,700 people. It also served as the venue for indoor commencement ceremonies before the completion of McCain Auditorium and Bramlage Coliseum. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his final university speech at Ahearn Filed House on January 19, 1968. To commemorate this historic moment, a memorial bust, sculpted by Dr. Richard Bergen, was installed outside the building by the Martin Luther King observance week planning committee on January 19, 2007. In 1988, basketball games were moved to Bramlage Coliseum, and Ahearn Field House was refurbished to accommodate volleyball, track, tennis and other activities.