Butler College was the fourth of the six current Residential Colleges and was dedicated in honor of Lee D. Butler, Class of 1922 in 1982. Lee D. Butler was a well-known civic leader in Washington, D.C. and contributed $3 million to the construction of Butler College around “New New Quad.”

When the University implemented the Residential College plan, 1915 Hall and Wu Hall were added to the New New Quad to create the original Butler College. Wu Hall was named after its benefactor, Gordon Y. Wu, Class of 1958, who donated $4.5 million for the construction of the neo-Jacobean social, eating, and administrative center of the college.

Bloomberg Hall, originally an Upperclass dorm, was incorporated into Butler College in 2005. Two years later, the dorms of the New New Quad­ — Lourie-Love Hall, 1922 Hall, 1940 Hall, 1941 Hall, and 1942 Hall, along with their notorious waffle ceilings — were demolished to make way for the red brick and limestone of the new Butler complex.

In September 2009 Butler College assumed its final form as a four-year Residential College. Today Butler College houses approximately 500 students of all class years.