-
This Week in Princeton History for April 9-15
In this week’s installment of our ongoing series bringing you the history of Princeton University and its faculty, students, and alumni, a group of undergraduate activists derail a segregationist group on campus, the Nassau Literary Review protests police abuse of firearms, and more. April 9, 1964—Activists in favor of integration carry out a coup in the…
-
Acción Puertorriqueña and Divisions among Puerto Ricans at Princeton
By Mario Garcia ’18 Founded in 1972, Acción Puertorriqueña—later known as Acción Puertorriqueña y Amigos—was a student group initially consisting of Puerto Rican undergraduates and later allies who sought to create spaces for Puerto Rican cultures on Princeton’s campus through cultural events and student-led activism. Such celebratory events included the beginnings of Latino Graduation in…
-
This Week in Princeton History for April 2-8
In this week’s installment of our ongoing series bringing you the history of Princeton University and its faculty, students, and alumni, the Judicial Committee makes its first disciplinary decisions, the campus debates housing policies for same sex couples, and more. April 2, 1917—Senator Henry Cabot Lodge attacks Alexander Bannwart, Class of 1906, in the only…
-
World War II “Trainwomen” of the Long Island Railroad
In 1942, The Long Island Railroad (LIRR) took the unprecedented step of hiring women as engine cleaners. World War II’s labor shortages had opened new doors for women, especially in the transportation industry. The engine cleaners performed well, so the LIRR hired many more women for positions previously held only by men, dubbing them “trainwomen.”…
-
This Week in Princeton History for March 26-April 1
In this week’s installment of our ongoing series bringing you the history of Princeton University and its faculty, students, and alumni, the debate team takes up women’s suffrage, a letter defends Russell Crowe’s behavior on campus, and more. March 26, 1957—Thanks to a local law prohibiting coin-operated games not requiring skill, the last of Princeton’s…
-
Princeton University’s 70 Books Project
By Rosalba Varallo Recchia This post is part of a series on education and war related to our current exhibition, “Learning to Fight, Fighting to Learn: Education in Times of War,” on display through June 2018. Please stop by to learn more. War can interrupt education as military training replaces traditional curricula. While away from…
-
This Week in Princeton History for March 19-25
In this week’s installment of our ongoing series bringing you the history of Princeton University and its faculty, students, and alumni, Langston Hughes recites poetry, a third of the women in the Graduate School drop out, and more. March 19, 1877—At a temperance meeting on campus, nine students sign a pledge to abstain from alcohol.…
-
“The End of a Monastery”: Princeton’s First Female Graduate Students
The Princeton University Graduate Announcement for 1961-1962 warned potential applicants, “Admissions are normally limited to male students.” Yet this “adverbial loophole,” as the Daily Princetonian termed it, left room for some admissions that were not “normal” for Princeton at the time. Within the loophole, dozens of women became degree candidates before the advent of undergraduate…
-
This Week in Princeton History for March 12-18
In this week’s installment of our ongoing series bringing you the history of Princeton University and its faculty, students, and alumni, Women Oriented Women are leaving stickers around campus to increase awareness of lesbianism, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter asks professors for advice, and more. March 12, 1969—About 500 disgruntled alumni calling themselves Alumni Committee…
-
Lawrence Rauch *49 and Operation Crossroads: Atomic Testing at Bikini Atoll
By Rosalba Varallo Recchia This post is part of a series on education and war related to our current exhibition, “Learning to Fight, Fighting to Learn: Education in Times of War,” on display through June 2018. Please stop by to learn more. Lawrence Rauch *49, a mathematics graduate student and a research assistant in physics,…
This blog includes text and images drawn from historical sources that may contain material that is offensive or harmful. We strive to accurately represent the past while being sensitive to the needs and concerns of our audience. If you have any feedback to share on this topic, please either comment on a relevant post, or use our Ask Us form to contact us.