Hygiene Building [Demolished]
Address15-17, Holyoke Street, Cambridge, MA, United States of America, 02138
Site Number1525
Alternate Names
Spee Club,
Zeta Psi Club,
Temporary Building for Employees Clinic
Building Root Number
N/A
Previous Building Number 255
Previous Building Number 231
PIRC Site Number 1525
Previous Building Number 255
Previous Building Number 231
PIRC Site Number 1525
Architect (Original)
Guy Lowell
Constructed
1904
Building Acquired 1931
Demolished 1962
Building Acquired 1931
Demolished 1962
StatusInactive
Materials for this building in our collection are not fully processed at this time.
Site Name HistoryThe site was named after its function.Historical NotesThe Hygiene Building was located at 15-17 Holyoke Street and stood on the site of the house where Stephen Day lived from 1638-1643 where he presumably set up the first British American printing press. The building was designed for the Zeta Psi Club by prominent architect Guy Lowell; the club later changed its name to the Spee Club. The club owned the building from 1904-1931. A fire in 1916 partially destroyed the building but it was restored. In 1931 Harvard acquired the building from the Spee Club in exchange for 25-27 Holyoke Street. Beginning in 1931 the building was used as the headquarters for the Department of Hygiene and the Department of Physical Training.
It was demolished in 1963 to make way for the Smith Campus Center formerly known as the Holyoke Center.
Additional Information
Russell, Benjamin F.W. “The Works of Guy Lowell.” The Architectural Review, vol. 13, no. 2, Feb. 1906, pp. 14–40.
"Spee Club Badly Damaged by Fire." The Harvard Crimson, April 23, 1917.
"Old and Crowded Hygiene Building." The Harvard Crimson, October 22, 1954.
"Facts on Finals Clubs." The Harvard Crimson, March 3, 1999.
“University, With Medical Center In View, Buys Spee Club House.” The Harvard Crimson, 28 May 1931, https://www.thecrimson.com/article/1931/5/28/university-with-medical-center-in-view/.
“New Quarters for Harvard.” Cambridge Chronicle, 30 Sept. 1932, p. 12.
Hygiene Building. General Information by and about the Hygiene Building. Harvard University Archives call number HUB 1458.2.
“Zeta Psi to Have New Club House.” Boston Globe, 25 Feb. 1904, p. 14.