Concept of Campus The word "Campus" is very important to us. Do you know what it means? University? Collection of buildings? Libraries and computers? Place to meet students? It was John Witherspoon who produced this word. Witherspoon was the sixth president of the College of New Jersey (now called Princeton University), but was effectively the founding president and served for 25 years. He was one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. Before him, the college consisted of one building called Nassau Hall, but many new buildings were added during his presidency. After seeing those buildings springing up, he came with the word "Campus." Princeton University is known to have a beautiful campus. Thanks to internet technology, you can make a virtual tour of the campus. You can then formulate your own concept of Campus.

Princeton Campus

• Nassau Hall. Princeton's protocol requires that this building be placed first in every Princeton photo collection. This main administration building was once George Washington's capitol of the United States. A fierce combat took place in and around this building during the Independence War.
  

  Historic Alexander Hall

  1. Two Tigers and a rear view of the Nassau Hall.
  2. Putnam Sculpture and a side view of the Nassau Hall.
  3. Alexander Hall. This building has a complicated history, but it is clear that many important meetings were held in the auditorium of this building. The sculpture seen in this photo was donated by the Putnam family.
  4. John Witherspoon (1723-1794). He came from Scotland and became the 6th president of Princeton University in 1768. Witherspoon was the first president who knew how to build a college of the form known today. He invented the word campus. He was a Presbyterian minister and was a strict moralist. Thanks to him, my PhD diploma of 1961 says "This person is morally perfect!"
     Pyne Hall is in the background. This old building is used for many different purposes, including the comptroller's office, student meeting rooms, cafeterias, etc.
  5. Firestone Library. This building is also Princeton's landmark. In addition to a study place for students, the library contains many books and documents of historical importance. This photo was taken from Washington Road. Here is a front view of the library.
  6. Prospect Garden used to be the presidential mansion located at the center of the Campus. It is now used for a faculty club. Here is another view of the Prospect Garden. A photo of the Garden taken earlier.
  7. Picasso Sculpture in front of the Art Museum. This art piece called the "Head of a Woman" was constructed by a Norwegian artist Carl Nesjar in 1971 under the supervision of Pablo Picasso.

  A Tense Moment in the Stadium

• Palmer Stadium. Princeton's Football Stadium
  1. Jadwin Gymnasium.
  2. DeNuzio Pool. Princeton's Swimming Pool.
  3. McCosh Health Center. If you become tired and exhausted, you can spend one, two, or even three nights here under nurse's care. I spent three nights here in 1961. I was 25 years old, and the nurse was about 50 years (like my mother). It was like home.
  4. Lake Carnegie. This lake is relatively narrow but long, and it is ideal for canoe race (1983). This lake is between the campus and the US Route 1.
     Lake Carnegie during the winter time (1960).
     Lake Carnegie on Sunday morning (2007).

  
  

• Graduate College. The Graduate College has a history. When Woodrow Wilson was the president of the University, he was interested in building the Graduate College building at the center of the campus, perhaps near the Prospect Garden. The College was to include residence halls for graduate students. However, the rest of the University was against his idea. At that time, the concept of graduate education did not sound exciting to the University community. Eventually the College was built at a location about one km away from the center of the campus. Woodrow Wilson was so upset that he had to seek a new position. He became the governor of New Jersey, and then the president of the United States. Let us look at a photo of
  Woodrow Wilson.

  Entrance to Graduate College Quadrangle

  1. Cleveland Tower at the Graduate College.
  2. Graduate College Commons Room, where many things happen.
  3. Bicycles parked at the Graduate College quadrangle. Since classes are held in the main campus (1 km away from the College), graduate students need transportation.
  4. Marriage Penalty. Married students live in this village called "Butler Barracks." These temporary buildings were built in 1945 for WWII veterans, and the streets in this village are named after the famous generals such as Eisenhower and Patton. The University later took over these barracks to accommodate married graduate students. These barracks are now more than 50 years old, but they still play an essential role in Princeton's graduate education.
  5. Proctor Hall has been and still is the main dining hall of the Graduate College. When I was a student (1958-61), we had to wear black academic gowns, but I cannot find my own photo with the gown. I did not like the gown.
  6. Pierre Sabatier was an exchange student from France loved to be formal (1958-59). In this photo, he (tall man) is wearing the gown in preparation for the Proctor-Hall dinner. As in this photo, he used to insist on French way of living. I like to know who the other person in the photo was (photo courtesy of Dieter Brill). Like to see Sabatier's recent photo? another photo! He is now an important person at the Univ. of Montpelier in France, and likes to worry about the physics of waves.
  7. I was also wearing the gown. I am the tallest person in this photo.

  Blair Hall and Blair Beach

• Dormitories The campus of Princeton University largely consists of undergraduate dormitories. Dormitory buildings constructed in recent years.
  1. Blair Hall Blair Beach Dorms.
  2. Princeton Inn used to be an expensive hotel across the golf course from the Graduate College. It is now one of the undergraduate colleges called "Forbes College."
  3. Wilcox Hall. One of the undergraduate dining halls. This building was completed in 1961 with a gift from the Wilcox estate. Ferdinand Wilcox was from the Class of 1900, and died in 1958.
  4. Chefs making omelettes for Sunday brunch.
  5. Students enjoying a late brunch. There were no girls on campus when I was a student (1958-61). The Wilcox Hall was for meetings of campus groups.
  6. Eating Clubs on Prospect Avenue.

• Palmer Physical Laboratory. The first physics building, where Feynman and Weinberg studied. I was old enough to studied here. Photo courtesy of the Princeton University Library.

  Entrance to (old) Fine Hall (now called Brown Hall)

  1. Palmer Lab became the "Frist Campus Center" and the "Center for Asian Studies." When I was a student (1958-61), I was a very unusual student because of my Asian origin. Times have changed.
  2. Jadwin Hall. The physics programs are housed in Jadwin Hall. This is a photo of the Jadwin quadrangle.
  3. Jadwin Hall Entrance. Two young physicists in front of the entrance.
  4. Cosmic Ray Laboratory. This building, now called the Elementary Particles Lab, was built as a temporary building during the WW-II period. This is one of the permanent temporary buildings on the campus. My physics career started from this building.

• Fuld Hall at the Institute for Advanced Study. Einstein and von Neumann used to work here.

  Einstein's House on Mercer Street

  1. Westminster Choir College. This is a music college in Princeton. The student choir of this college used sing Christmas carols in front of Einstein's house in the morning of Christmas day every year. Here is one of the ladies who used to sing for Einstein (photo 2004). Another Westiminster lady who used to sing for Einstein.
  2. Sarnoff. On the other side of the US-1, there is the campus of the Sarnoff Corporation. It used to be the David Sarnoff Research Laboratory of RCA.
     Who was Sarnoff?
  3. Princeton Junction. The railroad station on the other side of the US-1.
  4. Campus Railroad Terminal. It takes ten minutes to reach Princeton Junction from this small campus station. This building seems to be empty these days, as the railroad became less important.

• Princeton Garden. This was one of the two movie theaters operating when I was a student. I watched Melina Mercurie's "Never on Sunday" here in 1960. Forty two years later, on January 11 (2002), I was standing next to the box office.
  1. Princeton Play House. The other movie theater was called "Princeton Playhouse" on Hulfish Street behind the Nassau Inn. At this location, there is an Italian restaurant called "Mediterra." In 1960, in this movie house, I watched a Soviet film entitled "Cranes are flinging." A Soviet actress named "Tatyana Samoilova" starred in this film. I have a story to tell about this Russian lady.

  Stores around Palmer Square

• U Store, Princeton University Store. Like to buy Princeton things from this store?
  1. Hamilton Jewelers, located at the center of town (across Nassau Street from Nassau Hall). This European-style building tells Princeton was a place for rich people. It was Woodrow Wilson who strengthened Princeton's academic programs. Among the many reforms he introduced, Wilson developed the graduate school which was initiated one year before he became the president of the University (1902-1910). Yet, Princeton still could not completely shake off its reputations as an exclusive university for sons and daughters of rich and famous people.
  2. Fidelity Mutual Fund has a big branch office for investors in the Princeton area.

  Brooke Shields'87 and her signature

• Nassau Inn and Restaurant. I once stayed in this hotel (1991). The hotel has a restaurant called "Yankee Doodle." There are photos of many famous Princeton graduates, including John Foster Dulles, James Baker, Donald Rumsfeld, Steven Weinberg, and Brooke Shields . They used to dine here.
  1. Green House Restaurant adjacent to the Nassau Inn. It used to be there, but no longer. Now a Swiss chocolate store.
  2. Annex Restaurant. Moderately priced place on Nassau Street.
  3. Witherspoon Grill on Witherspoon Street.
  4. Princetonian Diner. Moderately priced diner on US-1.
• Hyatt Regency Hotel, near the intersection of Washington Road and US-1. This hotel is relatively new, and did not exist when I was a student. I meet my friends and colleagues at the restaurant in this hotel. Actress Brooke Shields used to come here with her mother. Often I go there with my wife. I like their food and environment.

More about Princeton

1. P-rade. Parade of Princeton Alumni. Annual Event. Affluent Society!

2. Einstein Magazine.