The Historical Society of Princeton opened its latest exhibition, Princeton in the 1930s, on Tuesday, September 11, 2007.  The exhibition is on view at Bainbridge House, 158 Nassau Street in Princeton and will run until July 13, 2008.

The Dust Bowl.  Hoovervilles.  Okies.  Brother, can you spare a dime?  These phrases evoke a distinct era in United States history: the Great Depression, bounded by the Stock Market crash of October 29, 1929 and the entry of the United States into World War II in 1941.  Thoughts of Princeton, New Jersey in the 1930s do not typically evoke images of bread lines, thread-bare clothes, or soup kitchens.  However, Princetonians, particularly those in the African-American and Italian-American communities, were affected by these national and international conditions, too.  In the first months of the 1930s, numerous Princeton residents endured the loss of their livelihoods.  The privately-run Community League of Princeton undertook relief drives, endeavoring to raise $44,000 to be spent on procuring food, shelter, fuel and clothing for the needy of Princeton.  A visiting nurse traveled throughout Princeton, providing free care as needed.  Princeton University students were also affected.  Newspaper accounts of the day recorded a jump from 550 (1931) to 672 (1932) undergraduates registered for work with the Student Employment Section of Princeton University.  Applications for scholarships and tuition loans increased.  A 1937 report of the Princeton Social Service Bureau blamed difficulties in Princeton on the large numbers of men, primarily Italian, who came to Princeton when large-scale building projects were on Princeton’s campus.  These men and their families stayed and could not keep up with the high cost of living in Princeton when these building projects ended.  The African-American community in Princeton endured the movement of their homes and businesses as the Palmer Square project finally got underway in the latter part of the decade (after having been delayed by the Stock Market crash). 

Despite the hard times in New Jersey, in many instances everyday life continued unaltered.  Children went to school, families celebrated birthdays and anniversaries, and people entertained themselves with radio, movies and restaurants.  McCarter Theatre, the Princeton Playhouse in Palmer Square, the Garden Theatre, and Struve’s Arcade Theatre on Nassau Street, provided multiple entertainment venues for Princeton residents.  Princeton Community Players was an outlet for those with a dramatic flair.  Princeton University students brought jazz bands into the eating clubs for their proms and parties.  Louis Armstrong visited in 1930, and Cab Calloway and Benny Goodman played in 1931.  At home, families enjoyed listening to the radio, gathering around for such programs as, The Lone Ranger and The Shadow.  In October, 1938, many Princetonians believed in the invasion of men from Mars to nearby Grovers Mill, New Jersey, as described in Orson Welles’ airing of The War of the Worlds on his Mercury Theatre radio show.  Both during and after Prohibition, the Nassau Inn on Nassau Street was one of the key places for men to relax and meet with friends at lunch or after a hard day’s work.

The 1930s in Princeton were in many ways the end of an era in the town’s history.  After World War II, Princeton schools desegregated, Princeton University experienced massive growth and expansion, farmland became developed for business and housing and families were equipped with new technologies.  By presenting the ways in which the people lived through this turbulent decade, Princeton in the 1930s helps set the stage for understanding the challenges of the mid-twentieth century.

This exhibition is assisted by a grant from the New Jersey Historical Commission, a division of the Department of State. Additional financial support from PNC Bank and PNC Wealth Management, Wilmington Trust, and the estate of Alice O. Breese. The Historical Society of Princeton, located in Bainbridge House at 158 Nassau Street, is open Tuesday through Sunday, 12PM – 4PM.