This month in Harvard history

• Feb. 6-7, 1978 – The Blizzard of ’78, a snowstorm of historic proportions, dumps 27 inches of snow on Greater Boston and brings the state to a virtual standstill for days. When the University officially closes on Feb. 8, it is believed to be the first weather-induced disruption in Harvard history. The University spends more than $200,000 to clean things up. The City of Cambridge spends about $1.5 million.
• Feb. 23-24, 1978 – Artist Robert Motherwell spends two days at Harvard as guest of the Learning From Performers program of the Office for the Arts.
• Feb. 27, 1981 – In his sixth open letter to the Harvard community, President Derek Bok focuses on “Issues of Race at Harvard.”
• February 1986 – An owl spends several days perched atop a column inside the Law School Library in Langdell Hall. Library officials contact the Audubon Society, the Animal Rescue League, and other humane organizations, but none shows up to help (claiming that the owl is perched too high). On a Sunday night, librarians finally try turning off all the lights and opening several windows. By next morning, the owl is gone.
• Feb. 8, 1986 – After a $4 million renovation, the Indoor Athletic Building is rededicated as the Malkin Athletic Center.
• Feb. 3, 1995 – Singer Barbra Streisand speaks at the Kennedy School’s ARCO Forum on “The Artist as Citizen.”

– From the Harvard Historical Calendar, a database compiled by Marvin Hightower