Sagana Lodge, located on the foothills of Mount Kenya, was built in 1949-1950 as a royal residence. It was a leased wedding gift in 1947 to the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh (later Queen Elizabeth II) from the colony whilst they were in Kenya. The lodge's lease was returned to the Kenyan government after independence in 1963.
American-born John Lithgow graduated from Harvard college with an A.B. magna cum laude in 1967, in history and literature. He lived in Adams House as an undergraduate. After graduation, Lithgow won a Fulbright Scholarship to study at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art in west London.