Precedence at Harvard College in the Seventeenth Century.

The article presents an examination into the system of precedence which was upheld at Harvard College by its administration until 1772. Details are given outlining how the students' social status and lineage were used to determine their permanent placement on the school rolls and its influence on the school culture. Further comments are given highlighting the drastic change in 1773 when the school eliminated the practice in favor of alphabetical listing. Comments are given discussing the social implications of this practice and its abolition. Further discussion is given examining the earlier context of the social precedence in institutions such as Oxford and Cambridge in England.