Headlines from Harvard history, September-October 1910-1995

From the pages of the Harvard Alumni Bulletin and Harvard Magazine

Illustration by Mark Steele

 1910 

Thanks to the local construction company building the Cambridge portion of the new subway system, several thousand carts of earth are secured to fill in the lower part of Soldiers Field, which will be used as playing fields by Harvard teams.

 1920 

The Business School adds regular instruction in labor relations to its curriculum.

 1930 

A carillon of 21 Russian church bells, weighing 27 tons, has arrived in Cambridge to be installed in the Lowell House tower as a gift from an anonymous donor.

 1940 

Concern over Nazi victories in Europe prompts the creation of a 400-member Faculty Defense Group, the Harvard Student Defense League organizes military-drill practices, and more than 130 undergraduates apply for a pilot-training course. Harvard announces that students enlisting in the armed forces or drafted are liable only for the portion of tuition and fees incurred prior to their departure.

 1955 

Harvard College welcomes its first Advanced Placement freshmen, and the Divinity School registers its first women graduate students.

 1960 

Leverett Towers and the Loeb Drama Center open for business.

 1985 

The newly created Harvard-Radcliffe Grocery Society, or “Grocery Table,” organizes petitions for the return of Classic Coke in House dining halls. The group’s charter mandates that members “promote student awareness of an appreciation for the grocery sciences, especially produce, dairy products, and other foodstuffs” and guide their actions by the official motto: Vivere Melius Per Condimenta (“Better Living Through Groceries”).

 1995 

Boylston professor of rhetoric and oratory Seamus Heaney, “a frizzy-haired man of great amiability, for whom many at Harvard feel warm affection,” wins the Nobel Prize in Literature “for works of lyrical beauty and ethical depth, which exalt everyday miracles and the living past.”

Related topics

You might also like

250 Years Ago, Harvard Was Home to a Revolution

A look at the sights, sounds, and characters that put the University on the frontlines of history

When the Revolution Hit Cambridge, Harvard Moved to Concord

College students broke hearts and windows during their year in exile.

The Costly Choice Native Americans Faced

How the Revolution reshaped indigenous New England

Most popular

Harvard’s Class of 2029 Reflects Shifts in Racial Makeup After Affirmative Action Ends

International students continue to enroll amid political uncertainty; mandatory SATs lead to a drop in applications.

Harvard Graduate Student Workers Strike

Union demands higher pay, protections for non-citizen members, and changes to the harassment complaint process.

The Secrets of Haiti’s Living Dead

 A Harvard botanist investigates mystic potions, voodoo rites, and the making of zombies.

Explore More From Current Issue

Historical scene depicting a parade with soldiers and a town square in the background.

When the Revolution Hit Cambridge, Harvard Moved to Concord

College students broke hearts and windows during their year in exile.

Illustration of two students in Harvard hoodies, one speaking animatedly to a phone, the other reading, looking annoyed.

We’re All Harvard Influencers, Like It or Not

In the digital age, it’s hard to avoid playing into the mythology.

Katie Benzan stands on a basketball court holding a ball, with a hoop in the background.

How Women Are Changing the NBA

From coaching staffs to front offices, female leaders are bringing new strategies to men’s basketball.