University Announces Eighth House Location

The long-awaited eighth House will be built by the University in the block now occupied by the Psychological Clinic, Mather Hall, and a row of houses on DeWolfe Street, the Crimson learned last night.

Occupants of the buildings on DeWolfe and Plympton Streets, between Mount Auburn and Mill, have been told in a letter from the University that they must leave their dwellings by June 30 of this year.

Edward Reynolds '15, administrative vice-president, said yesterday that "the construction won't begin for a good many months, but demolition of existing structures will probably begin this summer."

Reynolds also stated that "the University owns enough property at the present time to build a House without additional acquisition of land." This probably means that the House will lie entirely within the Plympton-Mill-DeWolfe-Mt. Auburn Street block.

The House, which is still being planned by University architects, will cost approximately five million dollars and hold about 350 students. It will, according to President Pusey, draw off the current overcrowding from other Houses and may also be used as a starting point for the College's proposed 15 to 20 percent expansion over the next decade.

According to current planning ideas, the eighth House will incorporate Mather Hall, now a part of Leverett House, into its structure. It is not certain at present exactly how this will be accomplished. To enable Leverett House to maintain its present population the University will probably build another such "annex" type hall running along the south side of Grant Street, to the east of McKinlock Hall, the central part of Leverett House.

Although the architectural features of the House are still indefinite, President Pusey has stated they will definitely not be in the traditional Georgian style and that they will not have entry divisions.

One of the most prominently displayed objects at Pusey's press conference last month--in which he formally announced the goals of the Fund for Harvard College--was an architect's sketch which showed a split level type room for the eighth House.

This arrangement would have four study-bedrooms on the top level, with a living room on the lower level. The University has not committed itself to use such a plan, although it is known that this design has received important consideration.

Funds for the new House will come from the Program for Harvard College, and thus it will represent the first aim of the Progam to be realized in a final, physical form.

Location of Additional Houses

With the position of the eighth House now definite, there remains the problem of location for the remaining two Houses mentioned in Pusey's Program for the College.

The land on the east side of DeWolfe Street--opposite the site of the new House--is owned largely by St. Paul's Catholic Church and the building at the north corner of DeWolfe and Grant Streets is likewise not owned by the University. Therefore, this position is nearly out of the question as far as construction in the near future is concerned.

The most likely spot for a ninth House is the land now owned by the Metropolitan Transit Authority across Boylston Street from Kirkland and Eliot Houses. It is known that Harvard has been attempting to reach an agreement with he M.T.A. concerning this land. University architects have been working on possible designs which would enable the College to build a House and still give the M.T.A. its desired operating space.