Harvard, Idaho — University Name Is Purely Accidental

Harvard sits in eastern Latah County surrounded by timber country.

Despite the name—and despite being within driving distance of two universities—no Ivy League branch is hiding in the trees.

The community developed around forestry, transportation and rural settlement.

Railroads once moved timber and passengers through the corridor between the Palouse and Clearwater country.

Highways later inherited most of that role.

Homes remain scattered among forest and open ground, while logging continues around them.

The academic name is memorable precisely because the landscape offers no explanation for it.

Harvard, Idaho, is a timber community that happens to sound like it should have tenure.