In an effort to provide its viewers with a look at a “typical small-town Fourth of July” celebration in the U.S., the British Broadcasting Company sent a crew to Harvard for two days to film the local festivities. (The theme that year was “Harvard E.T.—Extraordinary Town.”) Among the things caught on film were the Carlson and Hazel families decorating parade floats, children decorating their bikes, firefighters polishing the fire engines, and residents making potato salad and strawberry shortcake. The finished segment was shown on British television, where it was seen by a Harvard resident vacationing in Scotland.
A study committee appointed by the Board of Selectmen debated whether or not town needs warranted a computer. The group talked with town department heads and committees, who “expressed needs for computer-organized information, and enthusiasm for a town computer system.” Some, however, resisted the idea of using expensive computers to do jobs people had been doing manually for years.
—Based on reports in the old Harvard Post
