Leverett House, residential House of Harvard College
Leverett House is a residential college at Harvard University in Massachusetts, made up of several buildings along the Charles River. It combines McKinlock Hall, built in 1925, with two towers added in the 1960s, and includes single and double rooms, a dining hall, common rooms, and a house library.
The house was founded in 1931 and named after John Leverett, who served as Harvard president in the early 1700s and pushed the university toward independence from church authority. McKinlock Hall came before the house itself, donated in the 1920s by a family wishing to honor a graduate who died in World War I.
The name John Leverett refers to the first Harvard president who came from a legal rather than a religious background, which set a new direction for the university. Today, students gather in the dining hall and shared spaces in ways that reflect a strong sense of belonging to this particular community.
The upper floors of the towers look out over Boston and the Charles River, which makes them worth a glance if you get a chance to visit. The location along the river also means it is easy to walk to other parts of campus or along the waterfront from here.
The most sought-after room in the house is the Iliad Suite, known for its oval window, which older students compete for each year through a friendly selection process. Leverett House also has a formal sister relationship with Timothy Dwight College at Yale University, which has led to regular exchanges and visits between students of both schools over the years.
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