In January, the University Archives acquired a lecture notebook penned by Elijah Rosengrant (1776–1832). The notebook was written in the spring of 1791 for John Witherspoon’s course “Lectures on Moral Philosophy.” The significance of the notebook derives not only from its documentation of President Witherspoon as a faculty lecturer and of the pedagogical technique of the college in the 18th century, but also from the fact that Elijah Rosengrant was not enrolled as a student in the College of New Jersey (as Princeton was then known). In fact, Rosengrant was a student of Queen’s College (now Rutgers University), Class of 1791, in New Brunswick, New Jersey.
The Mudd Manuscript Library received 8 public policy accessions and 31 University Archives accessions between January and March 2010.
In January, the Library purchased a rare pamphlet written in Yiddish supporting Woodrow Wilson’s bid for reelection 1917. The pamphlet is one of only a handful of Yiddish-language Wilsoniana known to exist (accession number ML.2010.003).
In addition, in March the Library purchased a personal notebook by James Forrestal containing records of meetings and conversations as well as Forrestal’s thoughts on current events for the year 1949. The notebook, which is typed but contains a number of handwritten items, seamlessly complements Mudd’s prior holdings of Forrestal’s diaries. It is especially noteworthy because Forrestal was in the habit of typing even his personal notes, making this one of the scarce examples of Forrestal’s handwriting (accession number ML.2010.008).
Coming soon in New Accessions, Part II will be an accessions highlight from the University Archives– the Elijah Rosengrant Lecture Notebook, 1791.
The following is a complete list of materials that were accessioned between January through March 2010. As always, if you would like additional information about these materials, please contact us through our general email account .
The Mudd Manuscript Library received seven public policy accessions and 31 University Archives accessions between October and December 2009.
One of the highlights is an architectural rendering of Commencement Hall (now called Alexander Hall) that was published in American Architect and Building News on December 12, 1891. The rendering was created prior to the building’s construction, which began in 1892, in accordance with architect William A. Potter’s design.
First occupied in 1894, Alexander Hall was built to accommodate commencement exercises and other large gatherings. Today, the Romanesque-style structure is one of Princeton’s most recognizable buildings and it is home to the Richardson Auditorium concert hall.
The following is a complete list of materials that were accessioned between October and December of 2009. As always, if you would like additional information about these materials, please contact us through our general email account .
The accessions from this period include the results of a 30th Reunion Survey of the Class of ’76 [AR.2009.060]. This accession is one of a growing number of materials that come to the University Archives solely in digital format. Some digital accessions are born-digital (items that originated in digital format) and some are digitized by donors before arriving at the archives. They come to the archives in variety of ways: on a storage media such as CDs, DVDs, or external hard drives, or they are simply emailed to us as a file attachment.
The Mudd Manuscript Library is continually working to find effective ways to deliver digital content to patrons. Many of our digital accessions are made available to the public by linking them directly to our online finding aids. The 30th Reunion Survey Results for the Class of ’76, for example, is linked to the Class Records finding aid in the contents list under “Class of 1976″ (see illustration above). Another example of born-digital materials that are accessible through an online finding aid are the Tiger Family Hockey Newsletters. A recent addition to our Public Policy Papers holdings, the World Press Freedom Committee Records, included nearly 1.5 gigabytes of files sent to us on a 4 gigabyte flash drive. Though the records are not fully processed, the electronic files are available via the online finding aid for the collection thanks to an agreement with World Press Freedom Committee.
The following is a complete list of materials that were accessioned July through September this year. As always, anyone interested in additional information about these materials should contact the library through our general email account mudd@princeton.edu.
The following materials were accessioned April through June this year. As always, anyone interested in additional information about the new materials should contact the library through our general email account.
Accessions Highlight: Whig Clio Records Accrual, circa 1850-1970s (AR.2009.049)
Among our recent accessions are several documents and publications from Princeton’s two original political, literary and debating societies, the Cliosophic Society (1770–1941), and the American Whig Society (1769–1941); as well as some material from the American Whig-Cliosophic Society (1942-present), which was created when the two societies merged.
One item– a letter written in 1870 from John Laird ‘1871 to the members of the American Whig Society– reveals the intense secrecy that enshrouded the two societies prior to their merger. Laird, a member of the Cliosophic Society, wrote to apologize to the Whigs for mistakenly entering Whig Hall rather than Clio Hall on a rainy November day.
He assures the Whigs that
“I saw nothing and could not now describe the appearance of your Hall even of the few feet I entered…I am exceedingly sorry that such a thing occurred and I assure you that not a word of information regarding the interior of even the few feet I entered shall be uttered by me.”
The following materials were accessioned in February and March this year. As always, anyone interested in additional information about the new materials should contact the library through our general email account
Among the new accessions to the University Archives is an issue of Old Nassau (pictured below), which was likely the personal copy of Jimmy Stewart ’32 (accession number AR.2009016). Following his death in 1997, Stewart’s estate donated a large number of the actor’s books to the Friends of the Beverly Hills Library to be sold in their used book store. The wife of Kenneth Goldman ’64, a volunteer at the book store, spotted the volume and purchased it for her husband.
Kenneth Goldman donated the book to the University Archives this spring. Published in 1905, the limited edition book tells the story of Princeton’s anthem. It includes an autobiography of Karl Langlotz (composer of the music for Old Nassau); biographical information about Harlan Page Peck, Class of 1862 (author of the song’s lyrics); various musical arrangements for the song; as well as information about Princeton in the years 1858 through 1862. The pages below show Peck’s lyrics, which were first published in the Nassau Literary Magazine in 1859.
The list below includes information on items and collections accessioned in December 2008 and January 2009. There were 17 Princeton University Archives accessions added to our collections during this period. As always, anyone interested in additional information about the accessions listed below should contact the library through our general email account .
Princeton University Archives
Among the University Archives accessions for this period was an accrual for the Program in Latin American Studies Records, 1949–2008 [AR.2008.162]. The Program was founded in 1966 as an interdisciplinary course of study to supplement undergraduate and graduate curriculum. The Program in Latin American Studies Records documents the program from its beginnings to the present day.
Additional Accessions Include:
Peter B. Lewis Library Bookmark, 2008
AR.2008.155
Correspondence of Harry Zebulon O’Brien, Class of 1899, Additions
AR.2008.156
James McCosh Letter, 1878
AR.2008.157
Three Score and Nine, Recollections and Reflections of Cornelius P. Trowbridge, 1898–1967
AR.2008.158
Arthur C. Eschenlauer Correspondence and Memorabilia, 1952–1956
The list below includes information on items and collections accessioned in October and November 2008. As always, anyone interested in additional information about the accessions listed below should contact the library through our general email account .
In November, the University Archives was pleased to receive a donation of materials relating to Princeton’s 1948 one-fifty pound crew team. The team traveled to England to compete in the Henley Royal Regatta and came home as victorious winners of the Thames Challenge Cup. The crew team’s coach, Davis Spencer, Class of 1945, collected the materials which include a scrapbook, photographs and memorabilia. The photograph below depicts the 1948 crew team (Gift of Susan Spencer Cramer, AR.2008.149).
Additional University Archives accessions in October and November 2008 include:
The list below includes information on items and collections accessioned in August and September 2008. There were no Public Policy Papers accessioned during this period. As always, anyone interested in additional information about the accessions listed below should contact the library through our .
Princeton University Archives
Autograph Book of Valentine Hummel Berghaus, Class of 1864
AR.2008.109
This leather bound and gilt-embossed autograph book belonged to Valentine Hummel Berghaus, Class of 1864. Nearly each page in the book is filled with messages from Berghaus’ classmates. Although the binding of the book is in poor condition, its individual pages are in excellent shape (see the images below). The book will be sent to the conservation lab for repairs and then it will be added to the Autograph Book Collection. Autograph books document student life at Princeton University in the 19th century.
Additional materials accessioned in August and September 2008 include:
Princeton University Course Syllabi 1960s, and Memorabilia, 1920s
AR.2008.110
Historical Postcard Collection Accrual and Letter Written by Joseph Eckley, Class of 1772
AR.2008.111
Photographs of the Interior of the Charter Club, circa 1915
AR.2008.112
Papers of Former Woodrow Wilson School Faculty Member, Edward Tiryakian,
1961–1962
AR.2008.113
“Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, and the Tasks of the Russian Novel,” Alumni Studies Lecture by Professor Caryl Emerson, Audio Cassette, 2001
AR.2008.114
Carl A. Fields Center for Equality and Cultural Understanding Records, 1970–2001
AR.2008.115
Butler College Student Academic Records, circa 2004–2008
AR.2008.116
Wilson College Student Academic Records, circa 2004–2008
AR.2008.117
Annual Reports to the President from Academic Departments, 2005–2007
AR.2008.118
Minutes of the Board of Trustees, 2007
AR.2008.119
Class of 1894 Records, 1890–1949
AR.2008.120
Richardson Auditorium Programs, 2007–2008
AR.2008.121
Alumni Council Records Accrual, 1970–1998
AR.2008.122
Library Records from Technical Services Department, 1915–2004
AR.2008.123
Faculty and Professional Staff Files, circa 1994–2003
AR.2008.124
Class of 1930 Memorabilia and Princeton Publications, 1926–1970
AR.2008.125
Office of Communications Photographs, 1983–2001
AR.2008.126
Class of 1953 50th Reunion Yearbook, 2003
AR.2008.127
Department of Architecture Senior Theses, 1995–2001
AR2008.128
Office of the President Records Accrual, 1957–1998
This month’s highlighted accession is a Princeton University flag signed by director Michael Bay, Shia Lebouf, and other cast members of Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (accession number: AR.2008.108) . To answer the most commonly asked question about this accession: Optimus Prime was, unfortunately, unavailable for the signing. The flag was obtained by the Communications Office while Transformers was filming in Princeton earlier in the summer and transferred to the University Archives.
The list below includes information on items and collections accessioned in July 2008. Though they do not relate to future summer blockbusters, their evidential and/or informational value is at least as high as that of the Transformers flag. As always, anyone interested in additional information about the accessions listed below should contact the library through our .
Public Policy Papers
Council on Foreign Relations Records Accrual, 1996–1999
ML.2008.022
Princeton University Archives
Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Graduate Student Photo-Identification Cards and Photographs, 1993–1997
AR.2008.086
Newspaper Clippings, Ephemera and Photographs of Princeton Alumni, 1963–1988
AR.2008.087
Constitution and By-Laws of the Metropolitan Club of the City of Washington, 1966
AR.2008.088
“Going Back” Fifty-Two Members of the Class of 1952 Revisit Their Undergraduate Days, undated
AR.2008.089
Princeton Summer Theater Brochures and Promotional Correspondence, 2008
AR.2008.090
Princeton Summer Theater Promotional Materials and Newspaper Clippings, 2005–2007
