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This Week in Princeton History for November 8-14
In this week’s installment of our recurring series, an alum resigns the U.S. Senate in anticipation of war, two undergraduates chase down a criminal suspect, and more. November 9, 1903—Controversy has erupted locally over the town’s first Black postman, A. B. Davis, who secured his appointment in competition with several white applicants. Kansas’s Wichita Searchlight…
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This Week in Princeton History for November 1-7
In this week’s installment of our recurring series, some alumni are not pleased that students are cross-dressing for the theater, Abraham Lincoln is the most popular candidate for president on campus, and more. November 1, 1798—Using the “ride and tie” method and sharing one horse, Jacob Lindley and James Carnahan arrive in Princeton to begin…
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This Week in Princeton History for October 25-31
In this week’s installment of our recurring series, a visitor is shocked by students expressing political views, faculty deny a petition to begin a college newspaper, and more. October 25, 1797—In Newark’s Centinel of Freedom, an anonymous writer expresses shock and dismay at observed behavior of students in Princeton. “From students at college we expect…
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This Week in Princeton History for October 18-24
In this week’s installment of our recurring series, students are taking a new kind of exam, a play written by a member of the Class of 1883 debuts on Broadway, and more. October 19, 1859—The Princeton Standard reports on a new innovation at Princeton College: Closed-note, written exams. October 21, 1896—As part of the Sequicentennial…
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This Week in Princeton History for October 11-17
In this week’s installment of our recurring series, an alum makes an influential argument in favor of segregation, a controversial article about Jimmy Stewart ’32 appears, and more. October 13, 1958—Carleton B. Putnam ’24 writes his infamous “Putnam Letter” to Dwight D. Eisenhower. He argues that segregation is so important that it must be preserved,…
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This Week in Princeton History for October 4-10
In this week’s installment of our recurring series, Esther Edwards Burr mourns the death of her husband, two students are fined, and more. October 5, 1989—Dial Lodge and Cannon Club complete a merger, becoming Dial and Cannon Club. October 7, 1757—Not long after moving with the institution and their family to Princeton, Esther Edwards Burr…
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This Week in Princeton History for September 27-October 3
In this week’s installment of our recurring series, the Board of Trustees approves a plan for French classes, a student is sent home for involvement in a secret society, and more. September 27, 1843—The Board of Trustees vote to require students to pay a $5 deposit in order to study French, which will be refunded…
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This Week in Princeton History for September 20-26
In this week’s installment of our recurring series, residents of Baker Rink are asked to notify the Prince of their bunk numbers for subscription deliveries, Americans are questioning Princeton’s decision to hold a funeral for Aaron Burr, and more. September 21, 1999—Peter Singer’s first day of teaching is marked by protest, as 14 demonstrators are arrested and…
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This Week in Princeton History for September 13-19
In this week’s installment of our recurring series, a student experiences culture shock, the campus mourns the death of William McKinley, and more. September 15, 1813—Philadelphia’s Tickler reports on the college life of Nathaniel B. Boileau (Class of 1789): At the age of about fourteen he got the notion of going to college to get…
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This Week in Princeton History for September 6-12
In this week’s installment of our recurring series, the alum who chose Princeton’s colors passes away, a local quarantine is in place, and more. September 6, 1927—William Libbey, Class of 1877, who was responsible for choosing orange and black as Princeton’s colors, was the first person to earn a doctorate from Princeton (in 1879), and…
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