Harvard Yard
Harvard Yard Historic District | |
Location of Harvard Yard in Massachusetts | |
Location | Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S. |
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Built | 1673 |
Architectural style | Georgian and Federal |
NRHP reference No. | 73000287[1] (original) 87002137 (increase) |
Significant dates | |
Added to NRHP | February 6, 1973 |
Boundary increase | December 14, 1987 |
Harvard Yard, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is the oldest part of the Harvard University campus, its historic center and modern crossroads. It contains most of the freshman dormitories, Harvard's most important libraries, Memorial Church, several classroom and departmental buildings, and the offices of senior University officials including the President of Harvard University.
The Yard grew over the centuries around Harvard College's first parcel of land, purchased in 1637.[2] Today it is a grassy area of 22.4 acres (9.1 ha) bounded principally by
Subdivisions
The center of the Yard, known as Tercentenary Theatre, is a wide grassy area bounded by Widener Library, Memorial Church, University Hall, and Sever Hall. Tercentenary Theatre is the site of annual commencement exercises and other convocations.
The western third of Harvard Yard, which opens onto Peabody Street (often mistaken for nearby Massachusetts Avenue) at Johnston Gate and abuts the center of Harvard Square to the south, is known as the Old Yard.[4] Most of the freshman dormitories cluster around the Old Yard, including Massachusetts Hall (1720), Harvard's oldest building and the second-oldest academic building in the United States.[5] Massachusetts Hall also houses the offices of the President of Harvard University.
The original Harvard Hall in the Old Yard housed the College library, including the books donated by John Harvard—all but one of which were destroyed when the building burned in 1764. Rebuilt in 1766, the current Harvard Hall now houses classrooms.
Across the Old Yard from Johnston Gate is University Hall (1815), whose white-granite facade was the first to challenge the red-brick Georgian style until then ascendant;
Buildings
The freshman dormitories of Harvard Yard include the upper levels of
Nestled among Mower, Hollis, Lionel, and Stoughton Halls is
Administrative buildings in the Yard include the aforementioned University Hall and Massachusetts Hall; Loeb House, on the east side of the Yard; and Wadsworth House, on the south side. Loeb House is the home of Harvard's governing bodies: the
Images
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John Harvard statue
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The Yard in winter
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The Yard ca. 1920
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Wadsworth House, August 6, 1920. Boston Public Library, Arts Department
See also
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Cambridge, Massachusetts
- "Park the car in Harvard Yard"
References
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. April 15, 2008.
- ^ "College Yard purchased". Harvard University. October 9, 2009. Retrieved October 9, 2009.
- ^ Hammond, Mason (Fall 1983). "The Enclosure Of The Harvard Yard". Harvard Library Bulletin. pp. 340–383. Archived from the original on October 5, 2013. Retrieved October 2, 2013.
- ^ "Harvard Yard Historic District - MACRIS Details". Inventory of Historic Assets of the Commonwealth. The Massachusetts Historical Commission. June 23, 1986. Retrieved January 7, 2011.
Old Cambridge; Harvard Square
- College of William and Maryare both often described as the oldest; however, the Wren Building was built before Massachusetts Hall.
- ^ "The art of architecture". Harvard Gazette. February 16, 2011. Retrieved May 21, 2019.
External links
42°22′28″N 71°07′02″W / 42.37447°N 71.11719°W