Kirkland House Celebrates 100th Year, JCR Renamed

Administrators, alumni, and students celebrated the 100th birthday of the main buildings of Kirkland House, Smith Halls, Friday night. The ceremony, which took place in the house’s junior common room, also marked the renaming of the room as the Finnegan Family JCR in honor of Paul J. Finnegan ’75, a former Kirkland resident, prominent University donor, and current member of the Harvard Corporation.

Addressing a packed room, Finnegan reminisced on his time spent at Kirkland and praised the House system as a foundational aspect of student and University life.

“We have a lot of Finnegans that have experienced the joy of Kirkland House,” said Finnegan, whose father also lived in the house. Adding that the house system fosters “the creation of lifelong friendships,” Finnegan invited his college roommates, former residents of Kirkland B-51 and 52, to the stage during his speech.

“This house has meant so much to all of us, and those who know me well know that I wouldn’t say this lightly, but I really love these guys,” he said.

Michael D. Smith, dean of Harvard's Faculty of Arts and Sciences, who was present at the event alongside University President Drew G. Faust, Interim Dean of the College Donald H. Pfister, and incoming dean Rakesh Khurana, recounted the history of the building and its role in solidifying house culture.

“Smith Halls themselves were originally freshman dormitories…. Upperclassmen lived around the yard until President Lowell came along and decided to create the house system in the 1930s,” he said. “This was certainly one of the cornerstones of that house system, as it was first built—Smith Halls together became what is now known as Kirkland House, and they say the rest is history.”

During the celebration, current Kirkland residents entertained attendees with dramatic performances, including a mock “Conversations with Kirkland” that saw the House’s re-animated namesake, John Thornton Kirkland, opine on the unchanged nature of the House and lament his poor performance in Kirkland’s annual game of “Humans vs. Zombies.” The Kirkland Drama Society performed an additional skit that featured a kazoo-smoking army general.

The night ended in a performance of “Ode to Kirkland,” an anthem penned by former resident and current House tutor Eric P. Lesser ’07, with the audience singing, “Oh Kirkland, oh Kirkland! Damn you are so fine! Oh Kirkland, Oh Kirkland, thank God that you are mine!”

—Staff writer John P. Finnegan can be reached at finnegan@thecrimson.com. Follow him on Twitter @finneganspake.

Editor’s Note: The author of this article is in no way related to Paul J. Finnegan.