Honoring history

Destroyed by fire in 1956, and restored to its original design in 1999, the spire on top of Memorial Hall was rededicated at a ceremony on May 11. Cambridge Historical Commission executive director Charles M. Sullivan M.C.P. ’70 and commission chair William B. King ’54, L.L.B. ’59 announced a Preservation Award from the commission during the ceremony. Receiving the award on behalf of the University were Vice President for Administration Sally Zeckhauser and Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences Jeremy R. Knowles.

The Massachusetts Historical Commission also selected Memorial Hall for special recognition, awarding the University the Commission’s Preservation Award.

The restoration was made possible by gifts from a number of Harvard alumni and friends, most notably Katherine B. Loker. Other donors included Louis J. Appell Jr. ’47, Francis Henry Appleton III ’39, Alexander S. Beal ’31, Bruce A. Beal, Robert L. Beal ’63, M.B.A. ’65, Abram T. Collier ’34, L.L.B. ’37, A.M.P. ’52, George P. Gardner ’39, Robert G. Goelet ’45, Ann and Graham Gund M.A.R. ’68, M.A.U. ’69, John H. Henn ’64, J.D. ’67, Henry A. Jordan ’58, Jonathan M. Kemper ’75, M.B.A. ’79, Caleb Loring, Jr. ’43, L.L.B. ’48, and George S. Richardson ’43, M.D. ’46.