Cambridge Bowl Company


The trees of Harvard have for centuries beautified campus, provided lush canopies overhead, and framed the University’s iconic image. Many of these trees contain within their rings, centuries of Harvard’s historic past often outliving many of the buildings on campus. Occasionally these trees need to be removed due to disease, storm damage, or overgrowth.

When trees are cut, Cambridge Bowl Company gathers the wood and uses it to make wooden bowls, premium collector pens, and furniture that preserve the memory and grandeur of these iconic trees and the University. This is a unique opportunity to own or gift a piece of history that will give beauty and distinction to any home or office.  

Who’s who?

Benjamin Strobel is the owner of Cambridge Bowl Company.

Woodworking has been in Ben’s family for generations. In the Summer of 2010, Benjamin finally came of age and was gifted a small benchtop lathe and a large amount of freshly cut maple. Since then, Ben has spent almost everyday on the lathe turning bowls and pens, and now building custom furniture. Ben and his father started a similar small business out of another Ivy League University and demand for the products quickly grew to Harvard University. Ben considers himself extremely fortunate to be the go-to gift source for Harvard’s prominent visitors, alumni, and faculty. When he isn’t busy turning at the lathe, Ben loves to spend time with his wife and 3 children.

Cambridge Bowl Company is officially licensed by Harvard University to produce and sell handcrafted wooden objects from Harvard trees. A portion of the sales price is provided to Harvard University to defray costs for planting new trees on the University grounds and meet sustainability goals. 

Please contact us at orders@cambridgebowl.com with questions about the items we currently have available or to let us know if a tree is coming down on your side of the campus.