Princeton University - Bric A Brac Yearbook (Princeton, NJ)

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I 1 1 II I I I I II I I I I 11 II II II u w 19281 An Early History of Princeton A STUDY of the history of Princeton shows it to be closely linked with the names of several great pres- idents, to whose ambition and ene rgy the Univer- sity ' s present position in the front ranks of American educational institutions is due. Princeton owes its origin to a movement set on foot by the Presbyterian Synod of Philadelphia in 1739 to estab- lish in the Middle Colonies a college to rank with Har- vard and Yale in New England and William and Mary in Virginia, which were too far away, in those days of slow travel, and too radical to suit pious Calvinists. Prior to 1746, the only in the Middle Colonies purporting to give a college education was the Log College, located on Neshaminy Creek, about twenty miles from Phila- delphia, which offered a very restricted curriculum. Religious dissension halted all progress in the direction of a new college until 1746, when several alumni of Log College united with the Presbyterian Synods of New Jersey and New York and under the leadership of Eben- czer Pemberton, a Harvard graduate, and Johnathan Edwards, a graduate of Yale, obtained a charter from Governor John Hamilton of New Jersey for a college to be erected in this State. With the grant of a more ade- quate charter by Governor Belcher the following year, college was opened at Elizabeth Town in the parsonage of the first president, the Rev. Johnathan Dickinson. His term of office was cut short by his untimely death a few months later, and the college removed to Newark, with the elder Aaron Burr as president. Here in 1748 the first commencement took place, six men graduating. With the enlargement of the scope of the curriculum and the size of the student body under President Burr, conditions in Newark became cramped and the question as to another and a permanent site for the college became pressing. After due consideration by the trustees, the choice devolved upon either New Brunswick or Prince- ton. More favorable inducements offered by the people of the latter town and a gift of a large plot of land meas- uring four and a half acres, by Nathaniel FitzRandolph, settled the choice upon Princeton. Accordingly, on July 19, 1754, ground was broken for the building which was afterward known as Nassau Hall. At its completion, it was the largest stone building of its kind in the col- onies, containing sixty separate apartments for recitation rooms, dining room, sleeping quarters, a hall, and a chapel. It was proposed at first to name the building after Governor Belcher, but he modestly declined the honor and suggested that it be called after King William the Third, of the House of Nassau. In 1756 President Burr and seventy students formally occupied Nassau Hall. Under the successive administrations of Presidents Burr, Edwards, Davies, and Finley the college steadily increased in numbers and influence until its development was suddenly halted by the outbreak of the Revolution. It was due to the foresight and determination of Presi- dent Witherspoon that the college was able to weather that war. Nassau Hall was captured by the British and Hessians and used as barracks; during the Battle of Princeton it changed hands three times in a single day, each time suffering considerable damage from bullets. College was practically disbanded during the first years of the war, but reopened in 1777. Sessions were held in the Presidents house, pending repairs on Nassau Hall. For several years the attendance was very small, not more than six or seven graduating each year. A disastrous fire in 1802. and the Riot of 1807, as a consequence of which 115 of the zoo students were expelled, featured the administration of President Smith. But the greatest disturbance was the Great Rebellion, 1817, when the undergraduates barricaded Nassau Hall, 11

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TABLE OP CONTENTS Views 13 Register .... 35 Faculty .... 41 Graduate School . . 55 The Classes . . . 6i Publications . . . 105 The Halls .... 12.1 Public Speaking . 133 Musical Clubs . 145 Dramatics .... i6i Athletics .... 175 Religious Organizations 311 Upper Class Clubs School Clubs . Sectional Clubs F.A.R.O.T.C. Miscellaneous Dances Retrospect Commencement Alumni Activities Directory . Index ... Advertisements Hi kJ

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I I ' M II II II n: rf ' I I 1 1 fT ' ' 1778 I II II I I I I II n J I II If II II II 1 1 J 7 1928 An Early History of Princeton — {Continued) imprisoning the tutors in their rooms, and for three days defied the authorities of the town and faculty, whiling away the hours in the interim by smashing windows and furniture. Under the presidencies of Dr. Green and Dr. Carnahan, a substantial endowment was secured, new life infused in the college, and a Department of Law added. This department had later to be abandoned be- cause of lack of funds. Fire in 1855 and the outbreak of the Civil War soon afterward united to hamper progress, reducing the number of students to a mere corporal ' s guard. The installation of Dr. James McCosh as presi- dent in 1868 was marked by the addition of many new buildings, the establishment of the schools of archi- tecture and civil engineering, and the introduction of the elective system. The enrollment of students and faculty was substantially increased, and upon his resig- nation in 1888, Princeton had passed through the transi- tion stage to a broader influence and rank among the foremost American colleges. This short resume of the history of Princeton from the early date of its conception is of peculiar interest to us now celebrating the hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the Battle of Princeton, which had such a direct bear- ing upon the ability of the colonists to secure their independence a century and a half ago. The Battle Mon- ument stands significant of that trying period following which the University rapidly rose to attain its present standing among the colleges of the country. 12