The brick auditorium building with Doric portico replaced the eclectic structure of the same name by Samuel Sloan, which was declared unsafe in 1929. In 1930 John Sprunt Hill for the university building committee recommended erecting a new, fireproof replacement, and the old building was demolished to make way for it. The new building was completed in 1931, and plaques with names of Civil War dead and others were transferred from the older building. A renovation in 2003-2004 added more comfortable seating, air conditioning, and other amenities.