In this week’s installment of our recurring series bringing you the history of Princeton University and its faculty, students, and alumni, women gather to discuss sexism on campus, a new kind of roof is being installed for Nassau Hall, and more.

October 5, 1978—Female students and staff hold an exclusive meeting to discuss sexism on campus. Barring men from the meeting is controversial, but the women say this is necessary, “because a lot of women feel uncomfortable saying things in front of men that they wouldn’t feel uncomfortable saying in front of women.” At the meeting, women complain about inadequate medical care, discriminatory employment practices, and professors who penalize female students for refusing their sexual advances.

October 7, 1997—Marvin Gray ’66 is denied a federal judgeship because of involvement in a segregationist organization while a Princeton student. Gray was president of the Princeton Committee for Racial Reconciliation, which formed in 1964 in order to fight against “equalitarian, integrationist propaganda we have been force-fed for most of our lives.” Gray’s defenders say he should not be held responsible for views expressed in college.

October 8, 1833—Princeton professor Joseph Henry has reportedly invented the strongest magnet on earth.

October 9, 1802—Benjamin H. Latrobe is supervising the installation of Nassau Hall’s sheet iron roof, the first such roof in America.

For the previous installment in this series, click here.

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