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This Week in Princeton University History for June 2-8


by April C. Armstrong *14

In this week’s installment in our recurring series, a newspaper remarks on an alum’s transformation, scientists rely on an artist’s skills, and more.

June 3, 1961—Sayre, Pennsylvania’s Evening Times says of a member of the Class of 1911, “What a lot of people don’t know about Thurman Arnold is that this bete noir of big business came out of Wyoming so shy a student at Princeton that nobody knew he was there.”

Two men sitting and talking
Thurman Arnold, Class of 1911, with psychology professor Edward S. Robinson, 1936. Historical Photograph Collection, Alumni Photographs Series (AC058), Box MP49.

June 4, 1976—Nancy B. Perestman ’76 vows to address academic pressure as a newly elected alumni trustee, saying she was “appalled” to see a packed library on weekends.

June 5, 1950—German exchange student Werner Hoffman ’51 is expressing support for the Schuman Plan, which will integrate French and German coal and steel markets (a first step to what future generations will know as the European Union).

Image of a woman standing in a 1950s kitchen, smiling and surrounded by new appliances
Page from a French brochure promoting the Schuman Plan of a shared market for certain goods. The text promises advantages for workers and consumers. “Men and women of Europe,” it urges, “we will finally have what we need within our reach, but also for the majority of us, what constitutes a luxury today, will become commonplace and accessible.” Translation by April C. Armstrong *14. Robert R. Bowie Papers (MC290), Box 5.

June 8, 1918—Howard Russell Butler, Class of 1876, is with the U.S. Naval Observatory eclipse viewing party not as a scientist, but as an artist. His painting of the total solar eclipse captures what cameras can’t yet, and in vibrant color. Butler, a graduate of Princeton’s School of Science who has focused on art since his late 20s, developed a form of “shorthand sketching” to be able to prepare to paint the scene after only 112 seconds of viewing. This achievement—the first painting of its kind—will be heralded by scientists and lay people alike.

Before photography caught up, Howard Russell Butler’s eclipse paintings captivated the world. This brochure for those hoping to catch 1932’s eclipse features another of Butler’s eclipse paintings from 1925, as well as his signature. Astrophysical Sciences Department Records (AC157), Box 40.

Did you read the previous installment in this series?

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