Main Hall, located in the center of the College campus, was under construction from 1901 until students occupied the building in November 1902. It was designed by the Green Bay architect W.C. Reynolds, and constructed at a cost of $40,000.00.

With the exception of Old St. Joseph Church, Main Hall is the oldest building on campus. The cornerstone was laid on March 19, 1902 and the building dedicated on April 22, 1903.

When students occupied the not-quite-finished building in November 1902 it contained classrooms, a study hall, a one-floor dormitory, and six private rooms; an auditorium, a small one-room library, kitchen and dining room on the lowest level, and a basement recreation room.

The building was four stories high and 116' x 64' in size. Until the Francis H. Boyle Hall north of Main was completed in 1917, Main was the site of nearly all administrative, classroom, and living quarter for the College.

Begun under the name St. Norbert's (sic) College, it was also called "The Administration Building", "Old Main", and finally Main Hall. At one time it housed the administrative offices, the college book store, the ROTC headquarters, personnel office, registrar's office, college mailroom, and some classrooms.

In 1956 a major remodeling of the first floor and some revision of other areas was completed at a cost of $60,000.00. The move of the personnel, business, and registrar's offices from the first and second floors to the first floor of the Dr. John R. Minahan Science Hall took place in 1979.

Another major renovation begun in August 1989 saw the heating, ventilation, air conditioning, plumbing, and electrical systems updated. Roof and exterior work on the building was also done. Mailroom, campus bookstore, ROTC headquarters, and career services were relocated to other campus sites. The cost of renovation was $2,993,800 almost all from a loan through the U.S. Department of Education.

In 1989 Main Hall was named to the National Register of Historic Places. In August 1990 the State Historical Society of Wisconsin nominated Main for an Historic Preservation Achievement Award for excellence in the area of preserving the historical and architectural environment of Wisconsin.

At present Main Hall contains in addition to administrative offices the Academic Mastery Center, the Counseling Center, and the Student Health Center, on lower level. Alumni and Parent Relations which was on third floor was relocated to the Van Dyke Alumni House in the summer of 1999. Public Relations and Communication offices are still on the third floor. With the 1989 renovation as much of the original interior design as possible was preserved.