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This Week in Princeton History for April 6-12
In this week’s installment of our ongoing series bringing you the history of Princeton University and its faculty, students, and alumni, Prohibition ends, the Board of Trustees urges parents not to send students money, and more. April 6, 1771—The Rittenhouse Orrery, the most noted scientific instrument of its time, arrives in Nassau Hall, where it…
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This Week in Princeton History for March 30-April 5
In this week’s installment of our ongoing series bringing you the history of Princeton University and its faculty, students, and alumni, the campus tries to help mitigate the AIDS crisis, locals descend upon Nassau Hall in spontaneous celebration of a Civil War victory for the Union, and more. March 30, 1933—The owner of Students Hand Laundry is…
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Sue Jean Lee and the Women of Triangle Club
The first thing that usually comes to mind with reference to the history of Princeton University’s Triangle Club is probably a kick line of men in dresses. Until 1969, admission to Princeton was for men only, so putting on student plays meant men often took women’s roles, and performances usually poked fun at this fact.…
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This Week in Princeton History for March 23-29
In this week’s installment of our ongoing series bringing you the history of Princeton University and its faculty, students, and alumni, the Blair Tower clock gets a sophomore makeover, students give Grover Cleveland a birthday present, and more. March 23, 1899—Poet John Whitcomb Riley, whose best known work, “Little Orphant [sic] Annie,” has continued to…
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The St. Patrick’s Day P-Rade
It’s no secret that Princetonians love parades; thousands descend upon our small town for each annual celebration of Reunions, the capstone of which is the “P-Rade.” Each class wears its own specially-designed orange and black jacket for this parade. As the Alumni Association notes, this tradition has roots in other, older traditions. It began officially…
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This Week in Princeton History for March 16-22
In this week’s installment of our ongoing series bringing you the history of Princeton University and its faculty, students, and alumni, the women’s swimming team sets three national records, Jimmy Carter surprises students with an early morning walk on campus, and more. March 16, 1967—David Ben Gurion, the first Prime Minister of Israel, speaks informally…
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This Week in Princeton History for March 9-15
In this week’s installment of our ongoing series bringing you the history of Princeton University and its faculty, students, and alumni, undergrads form the Veterans of Future Wars, a civil rights protest turns violent, and more. March 11, 1936—About 200 Princeton undergraduates form the Veterans of Future Wars, a cynical club that satirically petitions the…
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“We May Be Unable to Give You an Admission Decision”: The Women of the Princeton University Class of 1970
In 2013, 26,642 people applied to the Princeton University Class of 2018. Princeton made offers of admission to 1,983 of these applicants, an acceptance rate of 7.4%. Though many find this competitiveness discouraging, clearly a significant number choose to try their odds anyway. Yet how many applications can one imagine Princeton would get if the…
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This Week in Princeton History for March 2-8
In this week’s installment of our ongoing series bringing you the history of Princeton University and its faculty, students, and alumni, juniors take up roller skating when cars are banned, a fire forces the school to start over almost from scratch, and more. March 2, 1927—In order to protest the new “car rule,” which bans student…
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This Week in Princeton History for February 23-March 1
In this week’s installment of our ongoing series bringing you the history of Princeton University and its faculty, students, and alumni, Jewish students get their own space, the campus reels from discovering the true identity of a student, and more. February 23, 1883—The Princetonian calls for coeducation in an editorial that asserts, “The time has…
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