Site Search
230Results for "1861"
Stories

The Civil War Comes to Princeton in 1861
by Kimberly Klein | Civil War (1861-1865)
Tensions between Unionist and Secessionist students reached their peak in 1861, shortly after the outbreak of the Civil War.

Princeton Students Attempt to Lynch an Abolitionist
by Joseph Yannielli | Antebellum (1820-1861)
In September 1835, a crowd of students descended on Princeton’s African American neighborhood to apprehend an abolitionist. The assault underscored the presence on campus of a large number of students committed to slavery and white supremacy.

Princeton Academies and Slavery
by Zena Kesselman | Antebellum (1820-1861)
Local academies in Princeton helped maintain the relationship between the College of New Jersey and the South.

Counting Princetonians in the Civil War
by Daniel J. Linke | Civil War (1861-1865)
Extensive research by the Princeton University Archives staff has determined that over 600 Princeton students and alumni fought in the Civil War. Of these, 86 died in the conflict—47 for the Confederacy, and 39 for the Union.

“Let the Southerns Come Here”: Letters of a Slaveholding Father and Son
by Paris Amanda Spies-Gans | Antebellum (1820-1861)
The extensive correspondence between antebellum Princeton student Henry Kirke White Muse and his slave-owning father illustrates the College of New Jersey’s appeal to southern students as well as its conservatism on the issue of slavery.
Primary Sources

Land Grant Certificate for James Holcomb Muse
1861 | Antebellum (1820-1861), Civil War (1861-1865)
This certificate details the land purchased by James H. Muse in Louisiana in 1861.

Autograph Book Entry by Samuel Comfort
1861 | Antebellum (1820-1861), Civil War (1861-1865)
Autograph book entry from Samuel Comfort to Winfield Purviance ('1861).

Autograph Book Entry by Henry Stinnecke
1861 | Antebellum (1820-1861), Civil War (1861-1865)
Autograph book entry from Henry Stinnecke to Winfield Purviance ('1861).

Autograph Book Entry by R. McC. Shepherd
1861 | Civil War (1861-1865)
Autograph book entry by R. McC. Shepherd to William B. Lane (class of 1861), with sketches of "college life."

Autograph Book Entry by Edward F. Neufville
1861 | Civil War (1861-1865)
Autograph book entry by Edward F. Neufville (class of 1862) to Thomson McGowan ('1861).