President's House is a historic house at 17 Quincy Street, on the campus of

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is a suburb in the Greater Boston metropolitan area, located directly across the Charles River from Boston. The city's population as of the 2020 United States census, ...

. Built and paid for by the

Lowell family The Lowell family is one of the Boston Brahmin families of New England, known for both intellectual and commercial achievements. The family had emigrated to Boston from England in 1639, led by the patriarch Percival Lowle (c. 1570–1664/1665). ...

, it served as a residence for Harvard

presidents President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *''Præsidenten ...

until 1971, when

Derek Bok Derek Curtis Bok (born March 22, 1930) is an American lawyer and educator, and former president of Harvard University. Early life and education Bok was born in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. Following his parents' divorce, he, his mother, brother and ...

(1971-1991) moved his family to Elmwood, another Lowell family property. In 1995, the building was renamed, and is currently known as Loeb House.

History

President's House was donated to

by then president

A. Lawrence Lowell Abbott Lawrence Lowell (December 13, 1856 – January 6, 1943) was an American educator and legal scholar. He was president of Harvard University from 1909 to 1933. With an "aristocratic sense of mission and self-certainty," Lowell cut a large f ...

. It was designed by Lowell's cousin,

Guy Lowell Guy Lowell (August 6, 1870 – February 4, 1927), was an American architect and landscape architect. Biography Born in Boston, Boston, Massachusetts, Lowell was the son of Mary Walcott (Goodrich) and Edward Jackson Lowell, and a member of B ...

and completed in 1912. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, President

James Bryant Conant James Bryant Conant (March 26, 1893 – February 11, 1978) was an American chemist, a transformative President of Harvard University, and the first U.S. Ambassador to West Germany. Conant obtained a Ph.D. in chemistry from Harvard in 191 ...

and his family allowed the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

to use the building for its

V-12 Navy College Training Program The V-12 Navy College Training Program was designed to supplement the force of commissioned officers in the United States Navy during World War II. Between July 1, 1943, and June 30, 1946, more than 125,000 participants were enrolled in 131 colleg ...

. In 1971, Harvard president

chose to live at Elmwood, off Brattle Street, which had previously housed deans of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences. In 1995, the building was renamed to honor steady benefactors,

John Langeloth Loeb Sr. John Langeloth Loeb Sr. (November 11, 1902 – December 8, 1996) was an American investor and executive who served as president of Loeb, Rhoades & Company. Early life and education Loeb was born to a Jewish family on November 11, 1902, in St ...

and

Frances Lehman Loeb The Lehman family (also Lehmann, Liehmann or Liehman) is a prominent family of Jewish German-Americans who founded the financial firm Lehman Brothers. Some were also involved in American politics. Members have married into the prominent Morgent ...

by President

Neil Rudenstine Neil Leon Rudenstine (born January 21, 1935) is an American scholar, educator, and administrator. He served as president of Harvard University from 1991 to 2001. Early life and education Rudenstine was born in Danbury, Connecticut, the son of M ...

. There are historic records that indicate that the University had wanted to name the building after its actual donor but had been opposed by A. Lawrence Lowell himself. When the building was renamed a number of students and alumni successfully complained about the lack of contemporary acknowledgment there and a painting and plaque were added honoring the actual donor.

Current usage

Since the Boks' departure, the building has housed the university governing board offices and is often utilized by the two boards, the overseers and the corporation, for formal meetings. The first floor of the house is used for a variety of special events ranging from dinners to large receptions, and is available for rent.

References

Harvard University buildings {{Harvard-university-stub