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Adams House - Russell Hall
Access to material may be restricted.
Access to material may be restricted.

Adams House - Russell Hall

Address26, Plympton Street, Cambridge, MA, United States of America, 02138
Site Number910D
Previous Building Number 914
Building Root Number 03214
Architect (Renewal)
Architect (Original)
Land Acquired 1925
Constructed 1931
Building Acquired 1931
Renewed 2021
StatusActive
Site Name HistoryAdams House was named to commemorate the Adams family, including John Adams and John Quincy Adams, second and sixth Presidents of the United States. The site is named after a previous building on the site known as Russell Hall. The original building may have been named for Wiiliam E. Russell, a Harvard graduate and mayor of Cambridge. Historical NotesRussell Hall was designed by Boston-based architecture firm Coolidge Shepley Bulfinch and Abbott and completed in 1931. The building was a gift of Edward Stephen Harkness and was built on the site of the old "Gold Coast" dormitory of the same name.

In 1932, Russell Hall became part of Adams House, which includes Claverly, Randolph, and Westmorely. It was built on the site of a building also named Russell Hall. A tunnel under Plympton Street was created at the same time Russell Hall was built, which connects it to Randolph Hall.

Additional Information
Photographic Views of Adams House, 1931-1961. (1931). Harvard University Archives call number HUV 569
Weber, Paul J. Photographs of Harvard University Buildings and Grounds Taken by Paul J. Weber, Ca. 1929-1931 and 1939. Harvard University Archives call number HUV 2329
"Harvard Names Five New House Units." Daily Boston Globe, 13 May 1930, p. 9.
Harvard University Archives. Construction Management Records, ca. 1953-1986. Harvard University Archives call number UAV 298.8000
General information about Adams House, Harvard University Archives call number HUB 1119.
Descriptive pamphlets of the buildings included in the House Plan - Adams House, Dunster House, Eliot House, Kirkland House, Leverett House, Lowell House, John Winthrop House 1930-1931, HOLLIS number 003160105.
"Four-Story Dormitory to Replace Russell Hall." Daily Boston Globe, 6 Mar 1931, p. 17.
"Baxter to Be Master of Adams House Harvard Unit." Daily Boston Globe, 3 Dec 1930, p. 34.
“Seven Harvard Colleges Where One Grew Before.” Daily Boston Globe, 27 Sep. 1931, p. B2.
This building has been designated by the University Planning Office as having a Notable Interior.
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