Harvard History

Stories that explore the institution’s rich history, from archival moments to evolving traditions.

Caricature of a young man in front of red doors, wearing a green striped sweater.

The Year a Beat Poet Squatted at Harvard

In 1954, Gregory Corso moved into Eliot House. How he stayed there is a literary legend.

by Constantine Archimedes Valhouli

Barbara Lawrence seated, wearing a textured blouse, in a portrait from the late 1930s.

Harvard’s Pioneering Mammalogist Barbara Lawrence

Brief life of an intrepid mammalogist: 1909-1997

by Jonathan Shaw

Illustration of a career consultant reading from a paper while seated on a statue pedestal, with a long line of students waiting nearby.

Short Headlines from Harvard History

From the pages of the Harvard Alumni Bulletin and Harvard Magazine

President Alan M. Garber sitting in historic Holyoke Chair during his installation

President Garber installed as president of Harvard

A private ceremony celebrated Garber’s appointment as president.

by Jonathan Shaw

Harvard President Alan Garber at a podium in Memorial Church

Harvard President Alan Garber Speaks at Morning Prayers

President Garber’s Morning Prayers

by John S. Rosenberg

Matthews students pose for picture before Convocation procession

Convocation 2024: The New Crew Redux

Welcoming the class of 2028 to a challenged Harvard

by John S. Rosenberg

Covers of Harvard and Radcliffe College class of 1954 seventieth reunion class reports

How Harvard Has Evolved

Alumni perspectives on Harvard in crisis, and signs of a changed community

by Primus VI

A perfect match of poet and critic: Seamus Heaney and Helen Vendler at Sligo Town Hall for the Yeats International Summer School, 1987

The Friendship of Helen Vendler and Seamus Heaney

Seamus Heaney writes to Helen Vendler.

A whimsical illustration of four people in 1920s attire driving a vintage green car, waving a "Harvard" flag as they pass by a red-brick building with a clock tower at night.

Harvard Short Headlines from the Past

Headlines from Harvard’s history

Construction site of the commercial Enterprise Research Campus in Allston

Harvard Campus New Building Projects

Post-pandemic campus building resumes on a massive scale.

by Jack R. Trapanick

Herbert C. Kelman and Everett I. Mendelsohn

Harvard Professor on Social Psychology for Understanding War

Two scholars’ extracurricular efforts in the Middle East

by Primus VI