This month in Harvard history

May 23, 2002 1 min read

May 4, 1943 – At the Boston Chapter of the American Institute of Architects, the Boston firm of Perry, Shaw & Hepburn accepts the J. Harleston Parker Gold Medal for Houghton Library as the best architecture in New England for 1942. The City of Boston has given the award annually since 1923.
May 27, 1943 – Traditional Commencement Day in the Yard. Graduation exercises and the annual meeting of the Harvard Alumni Association are combined into one three-hour afternoon. A crowd of about 7,000 is expected (10,000 seats are eventually set out and occupied, with about 1,000 additional standees), prompting a change of ceremonial venue from the Sever Quadrangle to the south porch of the Memorial Church.
May 1946 – As part of its continuing effort to expand housing for returning veterans, Harvard signs a three-year lease on the Hotel Brunswick (Boylston St., Boston). Repainted and refurbished, the hotel operates as a Harvard dormitory at the start of the fall term. Residents are a 20-minute subway ride from Harvard Square. – From the Harvard Historical Calendar, a database compiled by Marvin Hightower

Sections