This blog includes text and images drawn from historical sources that may contain material that is offensive or harmful. We strive to accurately represent the past while being sensitive to the needs and concerns of our audience. If you have any feedback to share on this topic, please either comment on a relevant post, or use our Ask Us form to contact us.

This Week in Princeton History for April 18-24


In this week’s installment of our ongoing series bringing you the history of Princeton University and its faculty, students, and alumni, the campus mourns Abraham Lincoln, Fidel Castro pays a visit, and more.

April 19, 1865—Someone etches “We Mourn Our Loss” into a window on the third floor of Nassau Hall in reference to the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. (More on campus reaction to Lincoln’s death here.)

Scrapbook ribbon
Ribbon found in the college scrapbook of Edward Wilder Haines, Class of 1866. Scrapbook Collection (AC026), Box 16.

April 20, 1959—Fidel Castro visits Princeton University, saying during a talk at the Woodrow Wilson School, “It is difficult for me to speak here in the middle of a forest of prejudices…”

Castro_ticket
Ticket to Fidel Castro’s talk at Princeton University, April 20, 1959. American Whig-Cliosophic Society Records (AC023), Box 25.

April 21, 1987—The editor-in-chief of Business Today, a Princeton University student publication, confirms in a statement that many of the “Letters to the Editor” have been ghostwritten by the magazine’s staff, but promises that they will not write such letters in the name of other students in the future.

Pages from Princetonian_1987-04-22_v111_n054_0001
Clipping from the Daily Princetonian, April 22, 1987 ( click to enlarge). Back issues of Business Today can be found in the Princeton University Publications Collection (AC364).

April 22, 1789—George Washington awakes at the home of College of New Jersey (Princeton) president John Witherspoon, who is hosting Washington during the journey from Mount Vernon to the United States presidential inauguration in New York. He was greeted the day before, as he will be elsewhere in New Jersey, with the firing of cannons.

Washington_program_1889_AC200
Program from the College of New Jersey (Princeton)’s Washington’s Birthday Exercises, February 22, 1889. Washington’s Birthday Celebration Records (AC200).

For last week’s installment in this series, click here.

Fact check: We always strive for accuracy, but if you believe you see an error, please contact us.


One response to “This Week in Princeton History for April 18-24”

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.