Stoughton Hall
Address17, Harvard Yard, Cambridge, MA, United States of America, 02138
Site Number954
Alternate Names
New Hall
Building Root Number
03371
Architect (Original)
Charles Bulfinch
Constructed
1805
Building Acquired 1805
Building Acquired 1805
StatusActive
Materials for this building in our collection are not fully processed at this time.
Site Name HistoryThe site is named for William Stoughton, Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts and Harvard benefactor.Historical NotesStoughton Hall, or New Stoughton Hall, was built as a Harvard dormitory in 1805 as a replacement for the poorly constructed and fire damaged Old Stoughton Hall which was demolished in 1781. The new building was constructed to the north of the location of the original site which was south of Harvard Hall.The majority of the funding for the new building was provided by a state-authorized lottery in 1795-1796 which raised over $18,000.
It is the first Harvard building to be erected in the nineteenth century and it resembles Hollis Hall in overall massing, materials, and fenestration. Stoughton Hall was designed by noted Boston architect Charles Bulfinch (A.B. 1781). Like many of the other buildings in Harvard Yard it was originally oriented to have its main entrances facing Cambridge Common. Additional changes were made to the appearance of the building after fire damage in 1879.
Notable alumni who resided in Stoughton Hall are Oliver Wendell Holmes (A.B. 1829) and Edward Everett Hale (A.B. 1839). The Hasty Pudding Club held its first performances on the top floor in 1844. The Porcellian Club rented its first quarters here. Today, it houses first year students.
Additional Information
Gerry, John P. The old Stoughton Hall site : an archaeological view of eighteenth century Harvard. Harvard University Archives call number HU 88.25.113 and Tozzer Library call number F74.C1 G47 1988x;
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
Hale, Herbert D. “Recent Buildings at Harvard University.” The Architectural Review, vol. 8:6, June 1901, pp. 65-75, illus.
"A College Explosion." Center Hall Reporter [Center Hall, PA], 6 Jan. 1871, pp. 1.
"Scapegrace Students." New York Herald, 8 Feb. 1871, pp. 6.
"Gunpowder Plot at Harvard College." New Bloomfield Times [New Bloomfield, PA], 27 Dec. 1870, pp. 4.
“Stoughton Hall--Past and Present.” The Harvard Crimson, 17 Dec. 1888, https://www.thecrimson.com/article/1888/12/17/stoughton-hall-past-and-present-in-1700/.
Harvard. 1850-1920. Boston Public Library, Print Department., Boston. Web. Local Accession Number: 06_11_000915
Harvard University Archives. Construction Management Records, ca. 1953-1986. Harvard University Archives call number UAV 298.8000
Harvard University. Corporation. Records of Early Harvard Buildings, 1710-1969. (1710). Harvard University Archives call number UAI 15.10.5. http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.ARCH:hua50010
Massachusetts Daughters of the American Revolution. Hannah Winthrop chapter, Cambridge. An Historic Guide to Cambridge. 2nd ed., rev. ed., Cambridge, Mass., 1907.
Hurlbut, Byron Satterlee. A Guide Book to the Grounds and Buildings of Harvard University. Cambridge: U, 1898. Print.
Harvard University Archives. Records of Early Harvard Buildings, 1710-1969. Harvard University Archives call number UAI 15.10.5.
Harvard University Archives. Items Related to the History of Hollis, Mathews and Stoughton Halls. Harvard University Archives accession number 12678.
Harvard University Archives. General Information by and about Stoughton Hall. Harvard University Archives call number HUB 1810.2.
Ware, Henry. "Stoughton Hall." The Harvard Register; an Illustrated Monthly (1880-1881) 3.2 (1881): 72. Print.
Harvard University Archives. Wallpaper Fragment from Stoughton Hall. 1855. Harvard University Archives call number HUB1810.7 PF.
Kirker, Harold. "The Architect of Stoughton Hall." Harvard Alumni Bulletin 9 Oct. 1965: 64-67. Print.
Harvard University Archives. Manuscript Inventory of Personal Property of the College, 1828. Harvard University Archives call number UAI 20.828.