The Harvard Guide
The faces, places, history and lore of American's oldest university.

Did you know?

...how crimson was chosen as the Harvard color?

Crimson was officially designated as Harvard's color by a vote of the Harvard Corporation in 1910. But why crimson? A pair of rowers, Charles W. Eliot, Class of 1853, and Benjamin W. Crowninshield, Class of 1858, provided crimson scarves to their teammates so that spectators could differentiate Harvard's crew team from other teams during a regatta in 1858. Eliot became Harvard's 21st president in 1869 and served until 1909; the Corporation vote to make the color of Eliot's bandannas the official color came soon after he stepped down. Pushed by popular debate to decide, Harvard undergraduates held a plebiscite on May 6, 1875, on the University's color, and crimson won by a wide margin.

Harvard is one of the largest, most stable employers in Massachusetts.

More than 18,000 people work at Harvard. One third of them make up the world-renowned faculty who embody Harvard’s dual missions of teaching and research. Supporting our academic workforce is a contingent of over 10,000 staff – managers, analysts, planners, accountants, scientists, fundraisers, librarians, engineers, chefs, groundskeepers, administrative assistants – almost every conceivable occupation and function can be found when you discover the possibilities.

In addition to providing a wealth of opportunity for job seekers, "Harvard plays an incredibly important role in Boston's world-class community of research, academic, and health care institutions," according to Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino. While Harvard has continuously changed and adapted since its founding in 1636, it remains an important source of economic stability and vitality in the community.

Harvard has produced seven U.S. presidents.

Seven presidents of the United States – John Adams, John Quincy Adams, Theodore and Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Rutherford B. Hayes, John Fitzgerald Kennedy and George W. Bush – were graduates of Harvard. Its faculty have produced 40 Nobel laureates and 41 Pulitzer Prize winners. More fun facts about Harvard’s incredible legacy can be found in the Harvard Guide.

You never know who you might see strolling across the Yard.

You can’t actually park you car in Harvard Yard. However, Harvard’s Commencement speakers in the past 10 years will give you a sense of the dazzling array of luminaries who visit the Harvard campus regularly.

2005 – John Lithgow, Actor and arts activist

2004 – Kofi Annan, Secretary-General of the United Nations

2003 – Ernesto Zedillo, Former President of Mexico

2002 – Daniel Patrick Moynihan, Former U.S. Senator

2001 – Robert E. Rubin, Former U.S. Secretary of the Treasury

2000 – Amartya Sen, Nobel Prize-winning Economist, Master of Trinity College

1999 – Alan Greenspan, Federal Reserve Chairman

1998 – Mary Robinson, Former President of the Republic of Ireland

1997 – Madeleine Albright, U.S. Secretary of State

1996 – Harold Varmus, Director of the National Institutes of Health

1995 – Václav Havel, President of the Czech Republic