By April C. Armstrong *14
Dear Mr. Mudd,
What is the origin of the “‘Old Nassau’ Salute”? It has a concerning appearance to me, and I wondered if it has any relationship to any 20th-century gestures we might want to avoid today.
What your message terms a “salute” looks as it does now because most of the time the people singing Princeton University’s school song, “Old Nassau,” are not wearing hats. The directions to students historically said to wave your hat in your hand, because tradition held that the hat must be removed for the singing of the school song. Here is one set of directions from 1935:
During the singing of the chorus of “Old Nassau,” the hats should be waved outwards on the strong beats. Thus, on the first word, “in”, the hats should be in front of the body; on the second word, “praise,” they should be extended and waved alternately thereafter on each syllable of the chorus.
Daily Princetonian, October 19, 1935
You can also watch the Class of 1928 singing Old Nassau at Commencement, waving hats as expected, starting at 0:44 in this video:
When an actual hat was not present, one would wave an imaginary hat, as Woodrow Wilson did at his inauguration “smoker” in 1912.
Indeed, they didn’t call it a salute at all, they called it waving. Here’s an admonition from 1910 to ensure your head is bare and you wave whether you sing or not:
It has long been a tradition among Princeton men that, when Old Nassau is being sung, singers and listeners should stand, and during the chorus should join in waving.
Daily Princetonian, May 10, 1910
The custom is said to have originated with Alexander Moffat, Class of 1884, well before any associations with a particular, straight-armed salute.
Sources:
Historical Audiovisual Collection (AC047)
Historical Photograph Collection: Alumni Photographs Series (AC058)
“Old Nassau” Collection (AC051)