Newell Boathouse
[1] It stands on land subject to an unusual peppercorn lease agreement between Harvard and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.[2][3] Called "the elder statesman among Charles River boathouses,"[4] Newell Boathouse is named for 1894 Harvard College graduate Marshall Newell, a varsity rower and All-American football player in all four of his undergraduate years, "beloved by all those who knew him" and nicknamed "Ma" for the guidance he gave younger athletes.[5] Built in 1900 on the south side of the Charles to a design by Peabody and Stearns (architect Robert Peabody having been rowing captain as a Harvard undergraduate),[1] Newell Boathouse is constructed of concrete, with a slate façade and roof.[4] Architectural historian Bainbridge Bunting wrote that its "complex profile ... closely resembling that of Carey Cage reflected in the Charles in the early morning, has made it a landmark on the river."[7] The "prime riverfront space" upon which Newell Boathouse stands belongs to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.