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Dear Mr. Mudd: War, Epidemics, and Suspended Classes at Princeton
Q. Dear Mr. Mudd, Has Princeton University ever had to close the campus before? Or have a lot of students been displaced and had to leave and/or study at home for some other reason in the past? A. In 2020, Princeton University suspended residential instruction after Spring Break due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It was…
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Ask Mr. Mudd: “Levee Song” and Princeton’s Minstrel Shows
Q. Dear Mr. Mudd, Is it true that the University of Texas school song, “The Eyes of Texas,” has a Princeton University connection? Where did the song come from, and why don’t Princeton students sing it anymore? A. “The Eyes of Texas” is set to a tune best known today as “I’ve Been Working on…
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Dear Mr. Mudd: Who Was Princeton’s First Jewish Student?
Q. Dear Mr. Mudd, Who was the first Jewish student at Princeton? A. An exhibit at the Historical Society of Princeton speculated that Albert Mordecai of the Class of 1863 was “very likely the first” Jewish student at the College of New Jersey (now named Princeton University). Although Mordecai might well have been the first Jewish student…
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Who Founded Princeton University?
Q. Dear Mr. Mudd, Who founded Princeton University? A. The founding of Princeton University is nearly as complex as the courses that have been and continue to be taught within its hallowed lecture halls. The College of New Jersey (as Princeton University was known until 1896) was a child of the Great Awakening, an institution born…
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Dear Mr. Mudd: Whose Cannon Is It?
Dear Mr. Mudd, My friend goes to Rutgers and keeps saying that the cannon in Cannon Green isn’t really Princeton’s. Whose cannon is it?
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Dear Mr. Mudd: Princeton Theological Seminary
By Spencer Shen ’16 Q. Dear Mr. Mudd, Is Princeton Theological Seminary part of Princeton University? A. In short, no. The two are separate institutions. However, they enjoy a cooperative relationship that began in 1811. In 1810, the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church judged that the College of New Jersey (Princeton) had grown too…
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Dear Mr. Mudd: Is the Institute for Advanced Study Part of Princeton University?
By Spencer Shen ’16 Q: Dear Mr. Mudd, I’ve heard that Albert Einstein taught at Princeton University. Is this true? A: Einstein was actually appointed to the Institute of Advanced Study, or the IAS, which is a distinct organization, but its proximity to the university and their intertwined histories has led some to think they…
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Dear Mr. Mudd: Which School Is Older, Penn or Princeton?
By Spencer Shen ’16 Q: Dear Mr. Mudd, I have a friend at Penn who claims that his school is older than Princeton. Is he right? A: The answer to this question depends on what you mean by “older”, but institutional pride can result in tenuous claims for precedence. The University of Pennsylvania currently asserts…
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When Did the College of New Jersey Change to Princeton University?
Q: Dear Mr. Mudd, When and why did the College of New Jersey change its name to Princeton University? A: The College of New Jersey, founded in 1746, changed its name to Princeton University during the culmination of the institution’s Sesquicentennial Celebration in 1896. Historically, the University was often referred to as “Nassau,” “Nassau Hall,” “Princeton…
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The Origins of the “Ivy League”
Q. Dear Mr. Mudd, Where did the term “Ivy League” come from, and what schools are in it? A. The eight universities belonging to the Ivy League are Brown, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Harvard, Pennsylvania, Princeton, and Yale. The idea dates back to October 1933 when Stanley Woodward, a sports writer for the New York Herald Tribune,…
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