Vintage Princeton | Princeton Magazine

Preserving History

Shirley Satterfield (at podium), president of the Witherspoon-Jackson Historical and Cultural Society, unveiled the first four Heritage Tour plaques and recognized the Society’s board of trustees (surrounding her) at a reception last March at Studio Hillier on Witherspoon Street. (Photo by Charles R. Plohn)

The Witherspoon-Jackson District Heritage Tour

By Donald Gilpin | Plaque designs courtesy of Studio Hillier

It was nothing less than the transformation of a vision into reality on Saturday morning, August 10, as a large contingent of church members, town leaders, and other participants proceeded from Morning Star Church of God in Christ on Birch Avenue, up Witherspoon Street to Mt. Pisgah AME Methodist Church and Witherspoon Street Presbyterian Church, then to the First Baptist Church of Princeton at John Street and Paul Robeson Place to witness the unveiling of the first four of 29 Heritage Tour historic plaques.

“These black church plaques and the other plaques to follow are part of a reminder of the history of the Witherspoon-Jackson (W-J) community and the people, personalities, and families that once lived in this community,” said W-J Historical and Cultural Society President Shirley Satterfield, who led the tour and whose vision has inspired and driven the project to preserve the memory of Princeton’s 20^th Historic District. more

What’s in a Name?

View of Nassau Street before Palmer Square, from Holder Hall.

The Fascinating History Behind Princeton’s Street Names

By Anne Levin | Photographs courtesy of Historical Society of Princeton

When it comes to the names of its streets, Princeton is a mix of the obvious and the curious.

It makes sense that there are streets named for specific landmarks, past and present. Spring Street was once the location of a spring and pond, where residents skated during winter months. The quarry that stood on the present site of Quarry Street supplied the stones used for several buildings on the Princeton University campus. Brookstone Drive runs parallel to historic Stony Brook, Old Orchard Lane was once home to an apple orchard, and so on.

But what about Tee-Ar Place? Lovers Lane? Broadmead?

The origin of these, and nearly every street name in Princeton, is the focus of Princeton: On the Streets Where We Live, written in 1990 by Randy Hobler and Jeanne Silvester. The book is an exhaustive survey delivered with a light touch, full of enlightening anecdotes and nuggets of information. Contemporary tour guide Shirley Satterfield, known for her informative walks through the Witherspoon-Jackson historic district, and Mimi Omiecinski, whose Princeton Tour Company leads themed tours throughout the town, both use the book as a regular reference. more

Drumthwacket to Be a New Jersey “Point of Pride”

IN NEED OF SOME TLC: Drumthwacket, the New Jersey governor’s mansion, is being spruced up under the direction of First Lady Tammy Murphy and the Drumthwacket Foundation. From new parking areas to kitchen improvements, some changes are underway. (Photo by Virginia Hall)

By Anne Levin

With its six white columns and sprawling wings on either side, Drumthwacket is among Princeton’s most visually striking buildings. But the official residence of the governor of New Jersey, last occupied from 2002 to 2004 by former Gov. James McGreevey and family, is in need of some major TLC. more

Hamilton Jewelers, Longtime Princeton Mainstay, Welcomes Fourth Generation to Family Business

FAMILY TRADITION: “I wanted to be part of the family’s legacy and the company’s legacy. It means everything. I am so proud to be here and to be able to learn from my grandfather and father, and the best people in the industry.” Andrew Siegel (right), shown with his grandfather Martin Siegel (center) and father Hank Siegel, represents the fourth generation of the Siegel family to be part of Hamilton Jewelers’ operation.

By Jean Stratton

Hamilton Jewelers is a Princeton treasure. A longtime Princeton establishment, it opened its doors here in 1986. Its history extends well beyond that date, however.

Founded in 1912 in Trenton, it was purchased by Irving Siegel in 1927. He laid the foundation on which his son Martin, and later his grandson Hank, built the thriving business that Hamilton has become today. more

That Club Life

The Ivy Club facade (Courtesy of Ivy Club)

By Anne Levin

In 1877, a small group of sophomores at the College of New Jersey — soon to be renamed Princeton University — decided to start a club where they could dine together and socialize. Renting rooms in a small brownstone and hiring a couple to cook and serve meals, the friends unwittingly began a tradition that has become a key part of the University experience.

From that first club, called Ivy, 18 more followed. The architecturally distinctive mansions that line Prospect Avenue and a section of Washington Road are the focus of The Princeton Eating Clubs, a lavishly-illustrated, diligently-researched book by Clifford Zink. Published last fall by the Princeton Prospect Foundation, it is full of historical anecdotes and photographs from the clubs’ archives and libraries. more

Every Vintage Gift Has A Story

By Lynn Adams Smith

Photograph by Jeffrey E. Tryon

Back in 1968, Joanne Woodward purchased a Rolex Daytona watch for Paul Newman and had it inscribed “Drive Carefully Me.” For the next 16 years, he wore the watch while acting in movies, fly fishing, and racing cars.

In 1984, Newman’s daughter Nell was dating James Cox. One summer day Cox was helping to repair a treehouse on their property, when Newman casually gave him the watch. more

Princeton University’s Gothic Love Affair

By Doug Wallack

Photography by Charles R. Plohn

“Here we were taught by men and gothic towers democracy and faith and righteousness and love of unseen things that do not die.” — H.E. Mierow, Class of 1914

So reads the inscription in the arch of Princeton University’s McCosh Hall. It’s not entirely clear how Gothic towers inculcated such lofty virtues in students, but it is clear to anyone who visits campus how the University’s architecture could exercise a powerful influence on them. more

I Hear My People Deeply and Clearly

By Wendy Plump

Photographs Courtesy of the Historical Society of Princeton

Unusually, there is a great deal to envy in this community that has seen so much struggle through the centuries. Who would not want to grow up in a world embraced by a few boundary streets where everyone knows you and will make sure you are well looked after? Buying penny candy on Leigh Avenue. Fishing in Stony Brook. Being shushed into your home at 9 p.m. by elders who don’t want you to come to trouble. It seems a kind of sanctuary.

On the other hand, it is a place that embraced slavery, a northern Jim Crow town—“spiritually located in Dixie,” as Paul Robeson has said—where some of the earliest residents were bought and traded and some of the latest were barred from restaurants and stores because they were black. more

Preparing For The Trenches – Princeton’s Role in WWI

By Anne Levin

Photography Courtesy of The Historical Society of Princeton

World War I had been raging in Europe for three years when the United States finally declared war on the German Empire on April 6, 1917. By the time the armistice was signed over a year later, this global conflict of massive, devastating proportions had claimed more than 17 million lives. more

Princeton University P-rade 2017

The Tradition Continues

Photography by Charles R. Plohn

Inside Princeton Reunions

By Doug Wallack

Art by James McPhillips/JayMcPhillips.com

Sometime in April of each year—typically just in time for campus preview visits for accepted high school seniors—the cold, grey damp of winter at Princeton University gives way to a brilliant spring. Dogwood flowers and daffodils grace the grounds with flecks of gold, and white and pink. Saucer Magnolias bloom, lining the newly verdant up-campus lawns. Following their campus’s botanical lead, students emerge too, and all life at the university becomes more visible. Professors hold classes on the steps of the sundial in McCosh Courtyard, and students take their reading outside. The odd frisbee or slack line appears. more

Princeton’s Stately Mansions

Photography by Robert Manella, Callaway Henderson Sotheby’s International Realty

The First in an Occasional Series

by Anne Levin

Back in the late eighteenth century when the Rev. John Witherspoon was the sixth president of Princeton University, he was known to end his work day at Nassau Hall when he saw a light in a front window of Tusculum, his  country house and tenant farm located just a mile to the north. According to a local legend, one of Witherspoon’s daughters would light a candle in that window, letting her father know it was time to close up shop and head home. more

Beatrix Farrand – Force of Nature

by Wendy Plump

It is possible to be cowed by Beatrix Farrand even now, over 100 years since her first landscape commission at Princeton University and half a century since her death. There is much to be thankful for in the sylvan, living landscape she put in place to give an austere campus a greener aspect. Two hundred years ago the university was practically a field; there were no trees at all around Nassau Hall. Farrand‘s influence remains most evident today in the twisting blooms of wisteria that climb the great Gothic walls of the Graduate College each spring. Or the Wyman House rose garden. Or the sugar maples and beeches that accentuate—rather than compete with—the university’s soaring architecture. Or for that matter the entire, park-like character of campus. more

Going, Going, Gone! Sebastian Clarke is the Affable Auctioneer

By Anne Levin

If you attended a charity auction to benefit McCarter Theatre, Trinity Counseling Service, Princeton Charter School, or any number of other organizations in town last spring, you probably encountered Sebastian Clarke. He’s the lanky, personable guy who runs the show, rattling off the numbers and “filler words” to coax bidders higher and higher—but always with a light touch. more

Enter Urban Agenda Magazine’s February Photo Contest

Photos courtesy of Cranford Millburn Camera Club

Send us your best shots of NJ by January 20, 2017 for the chance to be in the next issue of Urban Agenda Magazine!

By Sarah Emily Gilbert

You might have photographed your favorite Jersey diner. Perhaps you’ve snapped a picture of a secret trail in the Garden State. Maybe, you’ve taken an image of a historical location in NJ, or better yet, a historic moment in your life. If you’ve shot a picture of New Jersey that represents your personal vision of the state, we want to see it! more

Rival the Claus’s House with These Festive Outdoor Decorating Ideas

Photo Credit: @shopterrain

By Sarah Emily Gilbert

There is one good thing about the sun setting at 4:30 p.m. in December: Christmas lights. A hitherto dark and dreary time, dusk becomes a period of holiday cheer as neighborhoods light up to showcase their Christmas trees, red ribbons, and wreaths. Here, we provide some outdoor decoration ideas to make the season even brighter. For more holiday inspiration, head to the Hopewell House Tour and Quilt Show on Sunday, December 18 from 1 – 4 p.m. more

Not So Unimaginable: Women and the White House

By Ellen Gilbert

“Although we weren’t able to shatter that highest, hardest glass ceiling this time, thanks to you, it’s got about 18 million cracks in it”

— HILLARY CLINTON TOLD SUPPORTERS WHEN SHE DROPPED OUT OF THE RACE FOR THE 2008 DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL NOMINATION. IT’S IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER, THOUGH, THAT OTHER WOMEN WERE STIRRING THINGS UP QUITE A LONG TIME AGO.

Still known to many in Princeton as the “old Town Topics building,” the imposing 19th-century brick edifice at 4 Mercer Street was restored by its owner, Princeton University, in 2013 and will see new use as apartments for faculty and staff on the second and third floors and office space on the first floor.

Princeton has a rich history of moving houses, churches and other architectural landmarks

By Ilene Dube

The year was 1868. A few heads must have turned when the house with colossal columns, reminiscent of a Greek temple, arrived by barge in Princeton Basin. From there it traveled up Alexander before settling into an orchard on Mercer Street. The owner, the Rev. George Sheldon, had inherited his family’s Northampton, Mass., home, and when a builder gave the thumbs up to moving it more than 200 miles, the 1830s wooden structure was disassembled, freighted through Connecticut to New York City, then shipped up the Raritan and barged along the D&R Canal. more

First Smackdown 1869

This depiction of the Rutgers-Princeton game of 1869 was painted by William Boyd, Rutgers Class of 1932. Since photographs of the game were not taken, Boyd’s painting has become the standard representation of the first intercollegiate football game.

The Football Game That Started It All

By Wendy Plump

Images Courtesy: Special Collections and University Archives, Rutgers University Libraries

The game was held on a November afternoon, so the ground must have been wicked hard. They played without shoulder pads or shin guards. They played without helmets. There were no officials and no referees. The rules of play were adopted that very morning based on the home team’s wishes, and presumably on its strengths. There were uprights at each end of the field but there were no crossbars. more

Alexander Hamilton’s New Jersey

the_death_of_general_mercer_at_the_battle_of_princeton_january_3_1777

Painting: The Death of General Mercer at the Battle of Princeton January 3, 1777.

By Taylor Smith

“Hamilton” has become something of a phenomenon.

The play won 11 Tony Awards, including best musical, as well as a Pulitzer Prize for drama and a Grammy Award for best musical theater album. Additional awards include the Kennedy Prize for Drama and a “genius grant” from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. The musical’s creator Lin-Manuel Miranda has freestyled for President Obama and a national tour is set for 2017. more