Building a Legacy

In 2008, for the first time in over ten years, the University of Notre Dame opened a new residence hall on campus. Duncan Hall was made possible by the generous gift of the late Mr. Raymond T. Duncan and his wife, Sally. A 1952 graduate of Notre Dame, Raymond T. Duncan was president of Duncan Oil Inc. in Denver, Colorado, and owner of Silver Oak Cellars in Napa Valley, California before he passed away in 2015. 

Groundbreaking of Duncan Hall took place on March 8th, 2007. The 68,482 square-foot, three-story building housing 232 undergraduate male students took seventeen months to complete, and features eye-catching architectural designs with optimal living space for its residents. From its spacious lounges to the panoramic golf course views, from its unique bay windows to the quiet space for prayer within its breathtaking chapel, Duncan Hall quickly became one of the finest residence halls on campus.

The Duncan Family has enjoyed a lasting and storied history with the University. Raymond’s father, Walter, graduated from Notre Dame in 1912 and later served on the Board of Trustees. Upon graduating with a degree in philosophy, Raymond not only worked with his father in the oil industry, but he also served his alma mater both as a member of the Arts and Letters Advisory Council and the former Snite Museum of Art Advisory Council. Prior to his passing in 2015, Raymond and his family made a generous gift for the construction of the magnificent new Duncan Student Center. His support for the University also included a gift for the establishment of the Duncan Endowment for Excellence in American Art, which supports Raclin Murphy Museum acquisitions, exhibitions, publications, education programs and research projects related to American art. The Duncan Family is also a generous supporter of other areas of the University, including the Institute for Scholarship in Liberal Arts, Monogram Club, Department of Athletics, and McCormack Scholarship.

Duncan Hall has been a collaborative effort of many within the Notre Dame family. An abundance of input from the Office of Residence Life, alumni, students, rectors, and University administrators was gathered to put forth a hall that possesses all of the best qualities of residential life here on campus. The goal of both the staff and residents of Duncan is to nurture a place for study, rest, recreation, and prayer, a source of close friends and happy memories, and most of all, a home away from your home. 

Past Photographs