Some of you may recall reading about our Managing editor Santiago Pardo Sanchez way back when he was an “interesting sophomore.” Well, he continues to be “interesting” now that he is back at Adams as a resident tutor and House Librarian while pursing an MBA at MIT Sloan. One of his hobbies is collecting ephemera of Adams House, and he has developed quite a fascinating collection of glass negatives, a few of which appear below.
Though these images have a marvelous haunting quality to them, surprisingly they can often be obtained quite cheaply, because it takes a trained eye to know what you are looking at in reverse. But these days, they can be scanned and inverted in Photoshop with a single keystroke, providing a fascinating glimpse into our past.
Do you recognize this building?
Now you do. It Claverly Hall, with the Fly Club to the right and a now demolished building to the left where the forecourt of Lowell House stands.
And here is…
Our grand dame Westmorly, rather prettily covered in ivy don’t you think? This practice has now become taboo because of the damage the ivy tendrils do to the brick, but I am old enough to remember when some of the Yard dorms, including my own, Grays, still had their ivy coats and it added a wonderful cool green feel to the buildings in summer. As well as a botanical qualifier to the League.
And finally….
This classic shot is of Randolph Hall, with the Lampoon Building across the street. Sharp eyes will spot that where Russell (C-Entry) now stands, a different building appears. This is Old Russell, which was demolished at the last minute during the House construction in 1930 owing to an increased gift by benefactor Edward Harkness which allowed the construction of the Gold Room entry way.