The Sidney J. Watson ice arena opened on January 18, 2009 and is
adjacent to Farley Field House. In addition to a seating capacity
of 1,900 and standing room for several hundred more, it boasts the
best and most energy-efficient refrigeration and dehumidification
systems, seating design and home team accommodations of any
Division III collegiate arena.
The ice arena is named in honor of Bowdoin icon Sid Watson,
Ashmead White Director of Athletics Emeritus. An immortal in the
world of collegiate hockey, Watson guided the Bowdoin hockey
program to extraordinary heights during his career behind the
bench. A native of Andover, Mass., Watson retired from the College
in 1998. He passed away in April 2004 at the age of 71.
In the summer of 2009, Watson Arena became the first newly constructed
ice arena in the United States to earn coveted LEED (Leadership in
Energy and Environmental Design) certification from the United
States Green Building Council (USGBC).
