by April C. Armstrong *14

In this week’s installment in our recurring series, a visitor describes the campus, George Washington makes a donation, and more.

September 23, 1846—A writer for Newark’s Centinel of Freedom describes a recent visit to Nassau Hall:

The ceilings of the old College edifice (there are altogether six buildings connected with the Institution,) are low, but the rooms are well ventilated and the Halls are paved with brick. Many of the doors are chalked with hideous faces, figures, —and inscriptions such as Hades, Pluto’s palace, Elysium, Paradise, &c. Whether these were intended as indicative of the characters of the inmates, I was not informed.

September 24, 1783—George Washington donates 50 guineas to the College. It will be used to commission Charles Willson Peale to paint Washington’s portrait with the Battle of Princeton in the background to replace the institution’s portrait of George II.

September 25, 1957—Segregationist activist David R. Wang (who will later be better known as David Hsin-Fu Wand) has announced plans to visit Princeton as part of a tour of Ivy League schools, with the intent to establish White Citizens Councils on each campus. Wang, who says that the U.S. Supreme Court should be tried for “treason” for their decision in Brown v. Board of Education, is an Asian alum of Dartmouth who was born in China.

September 28, 1872—A few faculty members are assisting local women in establishing a library in Ivy Hall.

For the previous installment in this series, click here.

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