Harvard Varsity Polo Team B&W Magazine Photo
$150
6" x 8 5/8"
Left to Right
Front Row: Bliss, H.I. Nicholas, Captain Gerry, F.S. Nicholas, Coach Sharp.
Second Row: Cooke, Rumsey, Wetten, Kimball, Manager Sondern
The Harvard University Polo Club (also known as the Harvard Polo Club) is the intercollegiate polo program of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1883, it is among the oldest collegiate polo organizations in the United States.
Origins (1883–1900s)
Polo was introduced at Harvard in 1883 when a group of undergraduates began playing during summer months in Newport, Rhode Island, and later leased a field and stables in Watertown, Massachusetts. A regulation-size grass field was prepared in 1884 along the Cambridge–Watertown Highway.
In 1885, Harvard won the Newport Championship Cups, defeating the Westchester Polo Club and Meadow Brook Polo Club — the first major tournament victory for a U.S. college team.
Intercollegiate competition and early championships
As collegiate polo grew, Harvard became a founding member of the Intercollegiate Polo Association (IPA) in 1925. Throughout the 1920s and 1930s, Harvard won multiple intercollegiate championships, including titles in 1925, 1929, and several years during the 1930s.