New Book Explains Why Princeton Grads Show "Sheer Devotion" for Their College

Candace Braun

After its humble Colonial beginnings, Princeton University took on a pivotal role in the Revolution, and then became an innovator in science and scholarship, a leader in the arts and literature, and one of the world's most prestigious schools.

While most students and townspeople are already aware of Princeton's illustrious history, now a larger audience will be able to learn about the important roles Princeton played in American history, thanks to Richard D. Smith's Princeton University, recently published by Arcadia Publishing as part of the Campus History Series.

Mr. Smith is a freelance writer for the New York Times who works in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Princeton.

"I'm basically a writer with a day job at Princeton University," he said, adding that his experiences in Princeton over the years made him an obvious choice for authoring this book.

A longtime resident of Montgomery Township, Mr. Smith has worked as an associate editor for U.S. 1, and has been a writer for the Princeton Packet's Time Out section. Although the Emerson College graduate may not be a Princeton alum, he pointed out that "not being a graduate gives me a little distance, a little perspective. And yet working there also, almost paradoxically, gives me a more intimate experience."

According to Mr. Smith, Arcadia Publishing began with books on historic and picturesque towns, but has now expanded to include sports, corporations, and even specific sites, such as Princeton's Sarnoff Laboratories.

In 1997, Mr. Smith was commissioned to write Images of America: Princeton, which focused on the history of the Borough and Township. A few years later, when the opportunity came along to write a book on the University, Gail Stern, the director of the Historical Society of Princeton, recommended him for the job. After he was hired, the two worked together to compile the facts and photographs of the school that are found inside Princeton University.

Mr. Smith also looked to Constance Greiff, whom he has worked with at Heritage Studies, Inc., as well as Wanda Gunning, past president and current board member of the Historical Society of Princeton.

"Wanda and Connie could be plunked down in Princeton in 1890 and know everyone in town by name," said Mr. Smith.

Among the more interesting and lesser known facts that Mr. Smith's research turned up is that Delaware Indians attended Princeton, and that African Americans studied privately with John Witherspoon during the 18th century. Even Mexican students attended the school early on, with graduates as early as 1843.

While it wasn't until the 1960s and 1970s that "Princeton became the rainbow that it is today" with the admission of women and the recruitment of minorities, the University "was much more multi-cultural and multi-religious than people realize," according to Mr. Smith.

One chapter of the book is devoted to Princeton's sports history, which shows that the Ivy League school was truly an innovator in sports. While it is well known that the first American football game was played between Rutgers and Princeton in 1869, what is less known is that baseball was played here as early as 1786. Princeton's Joseph McElroy Mann, class of 1876, achieved the first successful collegiate use of the curve ball and the first no-hitter in baseball history (amateur or professional).

And George Goldie, the school's athletic instructor in the 1870s, put together the first competitions based on Greek athletics, which later became the modern American track and field.

Another thing that makes Princeton special is how it is viewed by its alumni, said Mr. Smith: "Colleges big and small are loved by their alumni. But there is nothing like the sheer devotion that Princeton graduates have for this University."

They have helped make Princeton "one of the most beautiful campuses in the world," he said.

Princeton University is available at area bookstores, independent retailers, online, and through Arcadia Publishing, by visiting www.arcadia publishing.com, or calling (888) 313-2665.