Meeting minutes maintained by the Secretary, Nov. 12, 1777

These minutes concern General William Heath's request for permission to house the soldiers of John Burgoyne – British prisoners of war – at Harvard. The Overseers voted to recommend that the Corporation allow the soldiers to occupy one or more College buildings, in spite of various hesitations. It has not been decisively determined whether or not the British troops were ultimately housed at Harvard. Some sources assert that no buildings were occupied, while others claim that Burgoyne and his soldiers lived in Apthorp House for a time.