The Harvard Club of Boston is a private social club

Gentlemen's club

A gentlemen's club is a members-only private club of a type originally set up by and for British upper class men in the eighteenth century, and popularised by English upper-middle class men and women in the late nineteenth century. Today, some are more open about the gender and social status of...

 located in Boston, Massachusetts. Its membership is essentially restricted to alumni and associates of Harvard University

Harvard University

Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...

. It has two clubhouses, a main clubhouse located in Boston's Back Bay neighborhood, at 374 Commonwealth Avenue, and a Downtown clubhouse on the top floor of One Federal Street

One Federal Street

One Federal Street is a skyscraper in the Financial District neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. Completed in 1975, it is Boston's 11th-tallest building, standing 520 feet tall, and housing 38 floors....

, in Boston's Financial District

Financial District, Boston, Massachusetts

The Financial District of Boston, Massachusetts, United States is located in the downtown area near Government Center and Chinatown.Like many areas within Boston, the Financial District has no official definition. It is roughly bounded by Atlantic Avenue, State Street, and Devonshire Street...

.

History

The Harvard Club was founded by a group of 22 Harvard alumni in 1908. The original dues were $5.00 per year, and by the end of the year, more than 1,200 members had joined. The first president, Henry Lee Higginson

Henry Lee Higginson

Henry Lee Higginson was a noted American businessman and philanthropist. He is best known as the founder of the Boston Symphony Orchestra.-Family and Early Life:...

, was also the founder of the Boston Symphony Orchestra

Boston Symphony Orchestra

The Boston Symphony Orchestra is an orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts. It is one of the five American orchestras commonly referred to as the "Big Five". Founded in 1881, the BSO plays most of its concerts at Boston's Symphony Hall and in the summer performs at the Tanglewood Music Center...

. In 1909, the Club established its first scholarships. One of the first recipients of these scholarships, James Bryant Conant

James Bryant Conant

James Bryant Conant was a chemist, educational administrator, and government official. As thePresident of Harvard University he reformed it as a research institution.-Biography :...

, went on to become the 23rd president of Harvard. Famous people to have spoken at the Club include Vice President

Vice president

A vice president is an officer in government or business who is below a president in rank. The name comes from the Latin vice meaning 'in place of'. In some countries, the vice president is called the deputy president...

 Dick Cheney

Dick Cheney

Richard Bruce "Dick" Cheney served as the 46th Vice President of the United States , under George W. Bush....

, Eleanor Roosevelt

Eleanor Roosevelt

Anna Eleanor Roosevelt was the First Lady of the United States from 1933 to 1945. She supported the New Deal policies of her husband, distant cousin Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and became an advocate for civil rights. After her husband's death in 1945, Roosevelt continued to be an international...

, Henry Kissinger

Henry Kissinger

Heinz Alfred "Henry" Kissinger is a German-born American academic, political scientist, diplomat, and businessman. He is a recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize. He served as National Security Advisor and later concurrently as Secretary of State in the administrations of Presidents Richard Nixon and...

, William Taft, Robert Frost

Robert Frost

Robert Lee Frost was an American poet. He is highly regarded for his realistic depictions of rural life and his command of American colloquial speech. His work frequently employed settings from rural life in New England in the early twentieth century, using them to examine complex social and...

, Buckminster Fuller

Buckminster Fuller

Richard Buckminster “Bucky” Fuller was an American systems theorist, author, designer, inventor, futurist and second president of Mensa International, the high IQ society....

 and John Foster Dulles

John Foster Dulles

John Foster Dulles served as U.S. Secretary of State under President Dwight D. Eisenhower from 1953 to 1959. He was a significant figure in the early Cold War era, advocating an aggressive stance against communism throughout the world...

. In 1913, the Club decided to construct a clubhouse, the Main Clubhouse at 374 Commonwealth Avenue. In 1925, eight squash courts were built. During World War II, cots were placed in these courts and lodging was offered to military officers at the cost of $1.50 per night. In 1976, the Downtown clubhouse was purchased at One Federal Street, providing a location more convenient to most of Boston's offices.

Membership

Membership eligibility is restricted to anyone who has received a degree or honorary degree from Harvard, a full-time student at the university, faculty members, those holding appointments at any of Harvard's teaching hospitals, and children and grandchildren of current members. Dues are on a sliding scale, based on age and proximity to the Club. Like most private clubs, members of the Harvard Club are given reciprocal benefits at 130 clubs around the United States and the world.

Clubhouse

The Clubhouse's facilities include three dining rooms, the Grill Room, the Boston Room, and the Commonwealth Lounge, guest rooms, ten squash courts, a fitness center, guest rooms, and numerous function rooms, including Harvard Hall, which has hosted events ranging from prize fights to squash matches. Dress code for dinner in the Boston Room is jacket and tie, but otherwise, the code is business casual.

Harvard Club Foundation

The Harvard Club maintains a Foundation, with a separate Board of Directors from the club's Board of Governors, which oversees assets in excess of $10,000,000. The purpose of the Foundation is to support the activities of the University, primarily through providing undergraduate financial aid. The Foundation also supports the University's undergraduate admissions program by hosting receptions for admitted students, as well as sponsoring the Prize Book program. In 2008, the Foundation donated $510,944 to undergraduate financial aid.