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Author: April C. Armstrong *14

  • A Look Into Asian American Writing at Princeton and Its Focus on Interracial Dating: The Seedling (Part I)

    By Christina Cho ’24 This is a two-part series that broadly explores how discussions of “Asian American” identity and interracial dating overlap in student publications found in the University Archives. In Part 1, I examine a magazine called The Seedling and attempt to contextualize its underlying motive and somewhat ambiguous language. Finding The Seedling After…

  • This Week in Princeton History for March 21-27

    In this week’s installment of our recurring series, a local editorial argues against suffrage for the emancipated, a Prince initiative gets attention in London, and more. March 22, 1867—An editorial in the Princeton Standard argues that those formerly enslaved in the South should not be permitted to vote, and instead the South should be put under military…

  • This Week in Princeton History for March 14-20

    In this week’s installment of our recurring series, students organize a Glee Club, betting on football makes the news, and more. March 16, 1866—Students join with the community to observe a day of fasting, prayer, and confession. All business and schools are closed, and farmers have come in for miles to join in the services…

  • Elizabeth Menzies: Photographing Princeton

    By Iliyah Coles ’22 Photography openly invites those who aren’t necessarily trained to recognize visual techniques. As one of those people, I find myself leaning on how a picture makes me feel. I’ve seen many photographs of Princeton’s campus, but it’s Elizabeth Menzies’s photographs that always draw me in. Any viewer can tell through her…

  • This Week in Princeton History for March 7-13

    In this week’s installment of our recurring series, locals take note of the Gold Rush, the Emperor of Japan honors an alum, and more. March 8, 1882—The Chicago Tribune reports that rumors are circulating that James McCosh will be forced out and replaced by John Hall after losing his temper in chapel when several members…

  • This Week in Princeton History for February 28-March 6

    In this week’s installment of our recurring series, an honorary degree is controversial, students fear smallpox, and more. March 1, 1836—The Baltimore Literary and Religious Magazine expresses outrage that Princeton has awarded William Gaston (Class of 1796) an honorary L.L.D., because they disapprove of thus honoring a Catholic. “We pronounce it a most gross outrage…

  • This Week in Princeton History for February 21-27

    In this week’s installment of our recurring series, Abraham Lincoln disappoints students, the chief of staff for the Black Panthers speaks in Dillon Gym, and more. February 21, 1861—Students who have waited for him are disappointed when Abraham Lincoln does not stop at Princeton’s train station between speaking from the train in New Brunswick and…

  • This Week in Princeton History for February 14-20

    In this week’s installment of our recurring series, Paul Pry insults New Jersey, student journalists interview the “sphinx of Watergate,” and more. February 14, 1835—Anne Royall’s Paul Pry takes Princeton to task for attempting to raise $100,000 in support of expanding its influence into the American west and abroad: “These men cannot and dare not say this…

  • This Week in Princeton History for February 7-13

    In this week’s installment of our recurring series, a junior defends the disproportionate number of Jews rejected in the Bicker process, students complain about seating arrangements in lecture halls, and more. February 7, 1827—New York’s Jamestown Journal prints correspondence from a traveler from Brattleborough to Washington: “In travelling through New Jersey to Trenton, you pass…

  • Caught Between Tradition and Transformation: Princeton University’s Black Athletes in 1985

    Princeton University is an institution self-consciously steeped in tradition, sometimes to an extent that even relatively recent innovations can feel like they’ve been going on for centuries. Yet it has also tried to break free of traditions that have not served it well, like discriminatory admissions policies. Holding these things in tension with one another…