| Dunster House | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harvard University | ||||
 The central tower of Dunster House | ||||
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| Location | 945 Memorial Drive | |||
| Coordinates | 42°22′07″N71°06′58″W / 42.3686°N 71.1162°W /42.3686; -71.1162 | |||
| Full name | Henry Dunster House | |||
| Established | 1930 | |||
| Named for | Henry Dunster | |||
| Sister college | Berkeley College | |||
| Faculty Deans | Taeku and Shirley Lee | |||
| Dean | Gregory Davis | |||
| HoCo chairs | Ellie Cassidy and Spencer Lee | |||
| Tutors | 19 | |||
| Website | dunster | |||
Dunster House is one of 12 undergraduateresidential houses atHarvard University. Built in 1930, it is one of the first two Harvard dormitories constructed under PresidentAbbott Lawrence Lowell's House Plan and one of the seven Houses given to Harvard byEdward Harkness. In the early days, room rents varied based on the floor and the size of the room. Dunster was unique among Harvard dormitories for its sixth-story walk-up (it had no elevators); these rooms were originally rented by poorer students, such asNorman Mailer.
The House was named in honor ofHenry Dunster, Harvard's firstpresident.
Dunster House's tower is inspired by, but somewhat smaller than,Tom Tower ofChrist Church, Oxford. Above the east wing is the Dunster familycoat of arms, and above the west wing is the coat of arms ofMagdalene College, Cambridge, where Henry Dunster matriculated in 1627.[1] Magdalene College commemorated the relationship between the two universities by sending medievaltracery stones from theFirst Court of Magdalene; these are now set in the wall near the doors to J-entry of Dunster House.[2]
Dunster is on the banks of theCharles River next to theJohn W. Weeks Footbridge, which links Harvard'sAllston andCambridge campuses. From above, its architectural shape, unusual among the River Houses, resembles a branching flowchart due to the odd trapezoidal footprint of the land on which it was built. Dunster underwent a "full House renewal", a comprehensive renovation, that was completed in 2016.[3] It was the first of Harvard's residential houses to undergo such a renewal.[4]
Like many of Harvard's Houses, Dunster has many yearly traditions, including Keg Races in the fall, aMessiah singalong in the winter,[5] a Goat Roast in the spring, and the yearly Dunster House Opera.[6] It is known as one of the more social houses, with Stein Clubs and formals in either the dining hall or courtyard.
Dunster's Faculty Deans (formerly known as "house masters") are Taeku and Shirley Lee.[7] The House's first master wasChester N. Greenough (Harvard class of 1898), an English professor and former dean of Harvard College. Former faculty deans/house masters includeSean Kelly and Cheryl Chen,Roger Porter and Ann Porter,Raoul Bott, andSally Falk Moore and Cresap Moore. Gregory Davis currently serves as the Allston Burr Resident Dean.[8][9]
Dunster's mascot is themoose, inspired by the three goldenelk on the Dunsterfamily crest.
Dunster House opened in 1930, and contains student rooms, a faculty dean residence, and a dining hall with views of the Charles River.[10]
| Name(s) | Years of tenure |
|---|---|
| 1930–1934 | Chester N. Greenough[11] |
| 1934–1948 | Clarence H. Haring[12][13] |
| 1948–1962 | Gordon M. Fair[14][15] |
| 1962–1970 | Alwin Max Pappenheimer Jr.[16] |
| 1970–1973 | Roger Rosenblatt[17] |
| 1973–1978 | James Vorenberg & Elizabeth Vorenberg[18][19] |
| 1978–1984 | Raoul Bott[20][21] |
| 1984–1989 | Sally Falk Moore & Cresap Moore[22] |
| 1989–2001 | Karel F. Liem & Ann Liem[23] |
| 2001–2017 | Roger B. Porter & Ann R. Porter[24] |
| 2017–2025 | Sean Kelly & Cheryl Chen[25] |
| 2025–present | Taeku Lee & Shirley Lee[26] |
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Al Gore andTommy Lee Jones were roommates at Dunster House in the late 1960s. Other notable Dunster alumni includeTatyana Ali,Christopher Durang,Lindsay Hyde,Dan Wilson,Michael Mainelli,Jean Kwok,Alan Garber,Ryan Fitzpatrick, andDanielle Sassoon.[27][28] In 1995, residentSinedu Tadesse killed her roommateTrang Ho in Dunster before dying by suicide in a closet.[29]
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