Winthrop’s about to be the sleek new kid on the block, everyone. Following Dunster’s renovation last year, Winthrop is the next house to undergo renewal, and that means some good news for Winthrop residents—they will be placed in swing housing next year (score), followed by a reacquaintance (or a sweet introduction for incoming freshmen) with a new and improved Throp in 2017. Between the anticipation of the renovated house and Winthrop’s existing tight knit community, it's starting to sound like Throp might be the housing lottery jackpot this year, no?
1. Winthrop will be renovated in the 2016-17 academic year. It is the largest renovation project to date.
2. Winthrop has a joke board in the dining hall that is updated daily, with a theme to match each day of the week. The joke board has become an aspect of house life that students and tutors alike look forward to.
3. Winthrop has been IM champion for six out of the last eight years, making their Housing Day “All We Do is Win-Throp” theme actually pretty accurate.
4. Winthrop is currently made up of two buildings—Gore (where the dhall is) and Standish Halls, but the slated renovation will introduce a third one to be named Winthrop East.
5. Gore and Standish Halls were first created in 1914 as freshman dormitories, and were unified as Winthrop House when the housing system was instituted. The House’s current library used to be a freshman dining hall.
6. Winthrop houses the famous JFK Suite, where former President John F. Kennedy lived. It’s suite F-14 in Gore Hall, and no you cannot live in it, but it is adorably furnished to preserve its history.
7. Speaking of famous people, some other illustrious figures that lived in Winthrop were former U.S. Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, former chairman of the Federal Reserve Ben Bernanke, and the CEO of Goldman Sachs Lloyd Blankfein (so make sure to put that you live in Winthrop on your resume for Goldman). With Winthrop as your house, you too can be on the path to greatness.
8. Faculty Deans Ronald S. Sullivan and Stephanie Robinson are the first African American Faculty Deans at Harvard.
9. Winthrop’s mascot is a lion. You know what else has a lion as a mascot? Gryffindor. So basically, if you get Winthrop, you can be Harry Potter. Or Hermione, since this is Harvard and we’re all nerds.
10. Winthrop used to have a K-entryway which is now in disrepair, but you can still see traces of it. For instance, there is a door in J-entryway that still says K-entryway and leads outside.
Sophomore housing in Winthrop is currently split between DeWolfe and the house proper, which itself is made up of two separate building – Gore and Standish Halls. . Between the two locations, almost all current sophomores live in n-1 quads consisting of two doubles and a common room. Though the common rooms are typically relatively spacious, space in bedrooms tends to be lacking. However, this is soon to change as Winthrop will be in Swing Housing next year while the House is being renovated. This means that in all likelihood sophomores placed in Winthrop will live together in the Inn at Harvard, which will serve as the home base for the house throughout renovation.
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The Inn is sandwiched between Mass Ave and Harvard Street (and if you don’t know the street names of Cambridge, that’s right behind the back of Barker Center). You couldn’t be closer to the yard without being a freshman—take that, Adams. Housing consists mostly of standalone doubles each with their own bathrooms, which include bathtubs. The Inn also has a dining hall, elevators, common rooms, a study room, and a gym. After a year here, sophomores will get to live in the newest House on campus for two more years.
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Upperclassmen in Throp will be spread out in various swing housing spaces in the square, such as the ones on Plympton, Prescott, and Mt. Auburn Streets. And we all know that Harvard swing housing essentially means living in a real apartment, so no complaints there either.', [ShortcodeImageGQL(key='{shortcode-8e26163607433742b347a14c5cc634e814775ff9}', image_url='https://s3.amazonaws.com/thumbnails.thecrimson.com/photos/2016/03/08/123603_1313718.JPG.1500x1125_q95_crop-smart_upscale.jpg', nofilm=False, pos='center', size='large', byline=True, quote=False, quotebyline=False, theme='light', caption='Sophomore common room in Winthrop', hovertext=None, contributors=Despite the general consensus on campus that Winthrop is somewhat run down and lack luster, residents could not be more satisfied with the strong sense of community felt within the house. Known for its laid back and familial nature, collection of enthusiastic tutors, and overall house pride, Winthrop’s community is one of the most present on campus. Winthrop IMs are a crucial aspect of community in Winthrop, as the house has won 6 out of 8 championships and is currently in first place. The emphasis on IMs within the house is indicative of overall student and tutor involvement in the House community. According to Matt DiSorbo '17, one of Winthrop’s current HoCo chairs, “there's nothing quite like arriving at an IM event and seeing the look of fear as people read the name across your shirt.”
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HoCo also puts on themed Stein Clubs in the JCR every other week, and Winthrop’s often boasts rockin’ live music from the student band the Ex-Feds. HoCo also plans Winthrop’s annual Thropstock, an outdoor carnival held every spring with music, food, and games. The house tutors contribute to the community in many ways, one of which is by offering family-style dinners every Sunday night in the dining hall for members of the community. Winthrop’s current community also includes events like weekly Restorative Yoga sessions, held in common spaces throughout the house.
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Many may be wondering how the renovations will impact the current state of house community. According to DiSorbo, though dispersion throughout the square is certainly an obstacle for House community, House life should only benefit from the year of swing housing. New renovations will provide the House with great social spaces such as a glass rooftop common space and a terrace looking out onto the Boston skyline, as well as a central home base at the Inn.
", [ShortcodeImageGQL(key='{shortcode-da032bc1e7398c1cbe3b94accd825e9cdf8f1817}', image_url='https://s3.amazonaws.com/thumbnails.thecrimson.com/photos/2015/03/08/234128_1304784.jpg.1500x997_q95_crop-smart_upscale.jpg', nofilm=False, pos='center', size='large', byline=True, quote=False, quotebyline=False, theme='light', caption='The Dining Hall in Winthrop House', hovertext=None, contributors=If Winthrop were a Hogwarts House, which one would it be?
“Pretty much Gryffindor.”—Matthew DiSorbo
Where are the party suites?
Winthropian Megan O. Corrigan ’16 tells us that party suites can be found in C-51, which calls itself “Olympus,” and H-51, which calls itself the “Sky Palace.”
What are some traditions Winthrop has?
Corrigan says, “Winthrop has the absolute best community facilitated by our tutors.” One tradition is a Tutor-written interactive House fan fiction every year during the fall semester’s reading week, in which members of the house get a few pages daily of a novella about their friends and neighbors. In recent years, these works have been called “Winthrop House Hunger Games” and “Game of Throp.” The tutors also lend out a cat named Winifred and a dog named Walter and they “are the most precious.” We see you with the letter “w” alliteration, Winthrop.
What is the formal theme?
Winthrop has a winter formal as well as its Arbella Ball in the spring. The Arbella Ball is supposedly named after a historic ship that John Winthrop rode on during his naval voyage, which is rumored to have carried three times more alcohol than water.
