Class Book, 1848-1899

The Harvard classes began compiling class books in about 1800. These documents capture what college life was like from freshman to senior year. They were typically written by an elected class secretary and were often maintained for many years following commencement.

Each class book is titled according to a specific class's graduating year, but it sometimes includes information about the entire college and post-college group experience, from freshman to senior year, often documenting class reunions, significant events in each alumnus's life, and finally including obituary notices. Harvard classes discontinued the practice of compiling class books around 1900.

Class books for the earliest years pre-date photography. They therefore do not contain photographs, unless the class members took the trouble to include alumni photographs. The class books are complemented in the later years of the nineteenth century by another series, the class albums. Unlike class books, class albums were usually compiled by individual students, not the class secretary. Therefore, many class albums may exist for only a single class year. Class albums typically include a student's selection of photographs of students, faculty, staff, the campus, and buildings. Class albums exist for classes of the mid-20th to early 21st-century.

The early 19th century was a time of student unrest at Harvard, but by the end of Josiah Quincy's presidency, in 1845, the disturbances started to decrease and many academic and social changes were introduced. Quincy resigned and was succeeded by Edward Everett, former Congressman and Governor of Massachusetts. The students returned to their traditional misbehavior. The year 1848 itself, however, was a quiet year, notably there was only one expulsion.

The Class of 1848 was a typical group of Harvard men. Their most prominent member, Eugene A. Hoffman, followed the traditional path of many Harvard graduates, theology.

Also in adherence to tradition, the class maintained contacts as alumni, which included class meetings and class suppers that coincided with Harvard's commencement activities from 1865 onward. During the meeting of 1866, a new class fund was raised for the purpose of securing an income to pay the expenses of the class supper so that no member should feel deprived from being present on the account of the expense. The year 1873 marked the twenty-fifth anniversary of the class, and a special effort was made to reach each member with an invitation. Fourteen of the class met at Parker House and a roll of the class was printed listing the surviving and dead members of the class.

On the fortieth anniversary, the class had dinner at the Parker House. Each classmate gave a short talk narrating in brief his life's experiences, and each surviving member of the class was requested to send the class secretary his photograph taken that year to be preserved among class archives.

Following the prevailing tradition, the Class of 1848 appointed a Class Secretary to organize and to assemble the record of their activities. The role was filled by seven men. This volume was maintained by the following Class Secretaries: Alexander Hale, 1848-1850, Charles Smith Weyman, Edwin Davenport, 1851-1853, Charles Greenly Loring, 1858-1864, Henry Savage Chase, 1864-1884, Thomas Henderson Chandler, 1885-1891, and David Whitney.