House History
Harrison House was built in 1962 as an all male residence but is now a coed residence on the UNB Fredericton campus. The mascot for Harrison is the Husky and our
house colours consist of red and black.
Harrison House maintains the longest running tradition at UNB, The Great
Pumpkin Sacrifice, which began in 1973. For the event, a large pumpkin is carved
in the face of the Roman god Janus. One side of the face is a happy face, the
other a not-so-happy one. This represents the 'academic' harvest and that some
are happy with the crop reaped, while others are not. House residents decorate
campus and the city with pumpkins in the lead-up to the event, and mark the
coming of the event by a two-minute howl at midnight on each of the seven days
prior to the event. Silence marks the daylight hours of 31 October in a mark of
the solemnity of the occasion and the judgement that will come in the
sacrifice.
House Charity
We plan an all day curling tournament to raise money for the Children's Wish Foundation. Whether you have experience curling or have never tried it before, it is a day full of fun and a great way to support the house charity!
Fun Fact
Leading up to midnight on Halloween, the Great Pumpkin is escorted by a cast of actors, wise-people, and house residents guarded by the Pumpkin's militia out of the house front doors, and across campus, blessed at the former Lady Dunn Hall courtyard (now Joy Kidd House), and returned to Harrison House where it is risen to the roof and sacrificially dropped and exploded (under the supervision of a pyrotechnician).
