Walter M. Cabot is widely viewed as the architect of the Harvard endowment, the world’s largest, and a pioneer in the field.
Beyond his many achievements, colleagues and friends also recall him as a man of uncommon modesty and grace, one who fostered an atmosphere at Harvard Management Company (HMC) more like a family than the kind of harsh competitiveness more common in investment firms.
Cabot served as president, chief executive officer, director, and deputy treasurer at HMC, which manages the University’s endowment, over nearly two decades. He died on June 2 at the age of 93.
Cabot was a mild-mannered man with a genuine interest in people, said his son David R. Cabot. He tended to be short on words but open-minded, qualities that may be traced to a malady he experienced at a young age.
“He had a bout of polio at age 10 or 11,” David Cabot said. “I think that made him persevere, and it also made him a little humble and aware of other people’s conditions. He was a very sensitive man.”
