In this week’s installment of our recurring series bringing you the history of Princeton University and its faculty, students, and alumni, the first mass-market personal computer is sparking discussion on campus, administrators warn of insufficient funds to pay the faculty, and more.

October 8, 1985—Macintosh puts on a microcomputer fair, “Applefest,” in the Engineering Quadrangle to promote the new Apple Macintosh, the first mass-market personal computer. Some students, like Carlo Cannell ’86, are not impressed, especially considering their price tag of roughly $2,000 (close to $5,000 in 2019). “A Macintosh is certainly a nifty typewriter, but is it really that much better than a 35 dollar used Sears manual?”

October 10, 1958—Over 20 million viewers tune in to CBS to watch Edward R. Murrow’s live interview with Princeton president Robert Goheen from Prospect House for Person-to-Person.

October 12, 1948—In a pamphlet distributed to every undergraduate, Princeton University outlines a financial predicament: There is insufficient revenue to pay faculty salaries.

October 13, 1964—The Daily Princetonian reports that last spring’s “McCosh Hall Putsch” has succeeded in eradicating the pro-segregationist student group, the Council for Racial Reconciliation, from campus.

For the previous installment in this series, click here.

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