This month in Harvard history

Feb. 20-March 8, 1901 —French literary critic Gaston Deschamps gives a series of eight Sanders Theatre lectures in French on “Modern French Drama,” sponsored by the Cercle Français (French Club).

Feb. 22, 1901 — At Boston’s Hotel Westminster, “The Harvard Lampoon” celebrates its silver anniversary.

Feb. 1, 1902 — At a gathering of the Medical Faculty, President Charles William Eliot announces that John D. Rockefeller plans to give $1 million to the Medical School’s new Longwood Ave. facilities, if other supporters donate approximately $500,000 to the project.

Combined with J. P. Morgan’s gift in June 1901, the project will have $2.5 million to work with. Morgan’s gift provided for three of the five buildings. Rockefeller’s gift and the related matching funds will cover the other two and help with operational expenses.

Feb. 4, 1902 — At the Harvard Union (now part of Barker Center for the Humanities), celebrated bodybuilder Eugen Sandow shows what he’s made of. Gymnasium Director Dudley Allen Sargent summarizes Sandow’s life and comments on notable features of his physical development. Sandow also gives the University one of three complete plaster casts of his body.

Feb. 21, 1902 — At the Waldorf-Astoria, the Harvard Club of New York holds its annual dinner. President Charles William Eliot is among the guest speakers. Tickets are $6 for members, $9 for nonmembers.

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