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Syllabi and Course Materials Collection

Notifications

Held at: Princeton University Library: University Archives [Contact Us]

This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held at the Princeton University Library: University Archives. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in their reading room, and not digitally available through the web.

Overview and metadata sections

The Syllabi Collection brings together original materials from the university archives that document the content of classes taught at Princeton University. Document types include printed syllabi, reading lists, study outlines, grade books, examinations and similar materials.

Additional syllabi and course materials will be added to the collection as accrued by the University Archives.

This collection has been assembled through multiple accessions.

For preservation reasons, original analog and digital media may not be read or played back in the reading room. Users may visually inspect physical media but may not remove it from its enclosure. All analog audiovisual media must be digitized to preservation-quality standards prior to use. Audiovisual digitization requests are processed by an approved third-party vendor. Please note, the transfer time required can be as little as several weeks to as long as several months and there may be financial costs associated with the process. Requests should be directed through the Ask Us Form.

Series 2 was added to the collection and the finding aid updated by Christie Peterson with assistance from Suchi Mandavilli '14 and Eleanor Wright '14 in October 2011. Series 3 found in repository and added by Phoebe Nobles in 2023.

Appraisal has been conducted according to University Archives procedures.

Publisher
University Archives
Finding Aid Date
2007
Access Restrictions

This collection is open for research use with the exception of one file in Series 1 (Box 1) that contains student records that are restricted for 75 years from their date of creation. The file is marked as restricted in the inventory below.

Restrictions beyond 30 years are noted in the relevant series or subseries descriptions and in the folder list.

Use Restrictions

Single copies may be made for research purposes. To cite or publish quotations that fall within Fair Use, as defined under U. S. Copyright Law, no permission is required. The Trustees of Princeton University hold copyright to all materials generated by Princeton University employees in the course of their work. For instances beyond Fair Use, if copyright is held by Princeton University, researchers do not need to obtain permission, complete any forms, or receive a letter to move forward with use of materials from the Princeton University Archives.

For instances beyond Fair Use where the copyright is not held by the University, while permission from the Library is not required, it is the responsibility of the researcher to determine whether any permissions related to copyright, privacy, publicity, or any other rights are necessary for their intended use of the Library's materials, and to obtain all required permissions from any existing rights holders, if they have not already done so. Princeton University Library's Special Collections does not charge any permission or use fees for the publication of images of materials from our collections, nor does it require researchers to obtain its permission for said use. The department does request that its collections be properly cited and images credited. More detailed information can be found on the Copyright, Credit and Citations Guidelines page on our website. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us through the Ask Us! form.

Collection Inventory

Arrangement

Items in Series 1: Syllabi and Course Materials, 1884-2005 are arranged alphabetically by subject name, which may not be identical to the department name. For example, syllabi for French courses are under "French," regardless of whether the course was taught under the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures or the Department of Romance Languages and Literatures. Materials from courses at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public Affairs are grouped at the end.

Scope and Contents

Series 1: Syllabi and Course Materials, 1884-2005 consists of syllabi, reading lists, study outlines, grade books, examinations and similar materials from Princeton University courses in a variety of subjects. The majority of the materials are from the 20th century.

Physical Description

5 boxes

Architecture and Urban Planning, 1970-1975. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Art, 1948, 1962-1963. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Biology, 1922-1923. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Conklin, Edwin Grant (1863-1952). Biology -- Laboratory Directions in General Biology, Second Edition, circa 1910. 1 box.
Conklin, Edwin Grant (1863-1952)
Biographical / Historical

American biologist and educator, Edwin Grant Conklin specialized in embryology and cytology and was an ardent evolutionist. He was one of the leading proponents of the importance of cytoplasmic localization and segregation during development. Chairman of the biology department at Princeton (1908-1933), he published the widely-read Heredity and Environment in the Development of Men (1915).

Physical Description

1 box

Chemistry, undated. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Cornwall, Henry Bedinger. Chemistry -- Laboratory Notes in Chemistry, circa 1884-1900. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Chemistry, Examination Questions, 1927-1928. 1 box.
Scope and Contents

Includes examination questions for Chemistry 101 and 102.

Physical Description

1 box

Chemistry, Lecture Topics and Assigned Readings, 1927-1928. 1 box.
Scope and Contents

Includes lecture topics and assigned readings for Chemistry 101 and 102.

Physical Description

1 box

Atkinson, Glenn. Chinese 101 and 102, 1977-1978. 1 box.
Scope and Contents

Courses taught by Professor Ta-tuan Chen.

Atkinson, Glenn
biographical statement
Physical Description

1 box

Atkinson, Glenn. Chinese 107 and 202, 1978. 1 box.
Scope and Contents

Courses taught by Professor Ta-tuan Chen at the Middlebury Summer Language School.

Atkinson, Glenn
biographical statement
Physical Description

1 box

Classics, 1947-1964. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Computer Graphics, COS 426, 1993. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Economics, 1921-1932, 1944. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Bernanke, Ben.. Economics 101, 1992. 1 box.
Scope and Contents

Includes syllabus, examinations, and lecture handouts.

Physical Description

1 box

Engineering, 1944-1954. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Billington, David P. (1927-2018). Engineering: Structures and the Urban Environment, 1978. 1 box.
Scope and Contents

Printed book of Professor Billington's lecture notes.

Physical Description

1 box

English, 1893, 1920-1948. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

English, Examination Questions, 1927-1928. 1 box.
Scope and Contents

Includes examination questions for English 101 and 102.

Physical Description

1 box

English, Reading List and Writing Instructions, 1927-1928. 1 box.
Scope and Contents

Includes reading list and writing instructions for English 101 and 102.

Physical Description

1 box

English, Student Essays, 1927-1928. 1 box.
Scope and Contents

Includes student essays for English 101 and 102.

Physical Description

1 box

English -- English 504: An Introduction to Graduate Study, 1950. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

English -- English 302: Literature of the 18th Century, 1924. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Perry, Bliss (1860-1954). English -- "Outline of Lectures and Topical Work on Prose Fiction (Aesthetic Criticism - Senior Elective)", 1895. 1 box.
Perry, Bliss (1860-1954)
Biographical / Historical

Bliss Perry was an American educator, author, and editor. He taught at Princeton University from 1893 to 1900 and at Harvard University from 1907 to 1930; he was Harvard lecturer at the University of Paris from 1909 to 1910. From 1899 to 1909, Perry was the editor of the magazine The Atlantic Monthly. The French government awarded him the Legion of Honour. He edited many volumes, including the works of Edmund Burke, Sir Walter Scott, and Ralph Waldo Emerson. He wrote a number of books, including works on Walt Whitman, John Greenleaf Whittier, and Thomas Carlyle, as well as novels, short fiction, essays, an autobiography, and studies of poetry.

Physical Description

1 box

Tate, Claudia. English and English/African American Studies, 1997-1999. 1 box.
Tate, Claudia
biographical statement
Physical Description

1 box

French, 1926, 1944, 1961-1962. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Libbey, William (1855-1927). Physical Geography [Geology/Paleoanthropology], circa 1900. 1 box.
Libbey, William (1855-1927)
Biographical / Historical

William Libbey (Princeton Class of 1877) was a professor of physical geography at Princeton University. Libbey also served in the New Jersey National Guard, evenutally advancing to the rank of colonel, and was twice a member of the U.S. Olympic Rifle Team, winning a silver medal at the 1912 Olympic Games.

Libbey, William (1855-1927)
biographical statement
Physical Description

1 box

History, 1934-1948, 1961-1973. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

History, 1960-1963. 2 folders.
Scope and Contents

Includes mid-term examination (1965) and final examination (1967) for History 202, American Industrial Growth, Professor Lively; mid-term and final examinations for History 201, Origins of the United States, Professor W. Frank Craven (1966-1967); syllabus for History 302, America from Reconstruction to World War I, Professor James McPherson (Spring 1967).

Physical Description

2 folders

Hertzman, Lewis, Dr. (1927). History -- Grade Book, History 102, 1957. 1 box.
Hertzman, Lewis, Dr. (1927)
biographical statement
Physical Description

1 box

Shipman, Henry R.. History -- Record Books, 1877-1935. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Humanistic Studies 201, undated. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Japanese 101, 1990. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Japanese 102: Elementary Japanese, 1991. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Weber, Shirley Howard (1883-1962). Latin, 1933-1934. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Literature 132, 1991. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, MAE 319, 1993. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Military Science and Tactics, 1936 September 29. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Oriental Languages and Literature, undated. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Philosophy, 1921-1922, 1951, 1962. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Philosophy 308, 1962. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Greek Philosophy, circa 1910. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Physics, 1991-1993. 1 box.
Scope and Contents

Includes course materials for Physics 203, 208, 304 and 311 such as syllabi, examinations, and laboratory assignment handouts.

Physical Description

1 box

Physics, undated. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Ewald, Paul Peter (1888-1985). Physics--Theory of X-Ray Defraction by Crystals and a Related Syllabus, 1950. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Wigner, Eugene Paul (1902-1995). Physics--Theory of Collisions, 1953. 1 box.
Wigner, Eugene Paul (1902-1995)
Biographical / Historical

A Hungarian-born physicist, Wigner worked in the early 1930s as a professor at the Technische Hochschule in Berlin, where he studied the quantum mechanical interpretation of atomic spectra which resulted in the publication of his book Gruppentheorie und Ihre Anwendung auf die Quantenmechanik Der Atomspektren (1931), later translated and published as Group Theory (1951), now a classic in its field. He moved to the United States, where he became professor of mathematical physics at Princeton University from 1933 to1937 and from 1937 to 1938 at the University of Wisconsin; he then returned to Princeton, where he worked until 1971, becoming professor emeritus. Prior to World War II, Wigner, along with Leo Szilard and Albert Einstein, was instrumental in getting the United States government to investigate the use of atomic energy for military purposes. During the War, he was on the staff of the Metallurgical Laboratory at the University of Chicago (the Manhattan Project) researching ways to produce an atomic bomb, and he helped design the nuclear reactor at Hanford, Wash., where plutonium was produced. He was a member of the general advisory committee for the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission (1952-1957, 1959-1964) and director of the Civil Defense Research Project at Oak Ridge, Tenn. (1964-1965), reflecting his interests in civil defense and national security. He received the Enrico Fermi Award (1958) and the Max Planck Medal (1961), and in 1963 he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics.

Physical Description

1 box

Physics 203, 1991. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Physics 405, 1994. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Politics -- Politics II Reading Assignments, circa 1950. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Politics, 1930-1948, 1964-1965. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Politics, 1960-1964. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Sobel, Richard. Politics -- Sobel, Richard -- Seminar for Politics 203, 1976-1977. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Sobel, Richard. Politics -- Sobel, Richard -- Instructors' Notes and Correspondence, 1975-1977. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Sobel, Richard. Politics -- Sobel, Richard -- Draft Report, 1976-1978. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Psychology, 1937-1949. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Religion, undated. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Religion 202: Jesus and Christian Beginnings, 1963. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Romance Languages: European Literature 301, 1963-1964. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Sociology and Anthropology (Previously Economics and Social Institutions), 1948-1951, 1962. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Sociology 308, 1991. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Statistical Report for the Class MECF91, 1991 October 31. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Bradford, David F. (1939-2005). Woodrow Wilson School of Public Affairs, 1966-1989, 2005. 1 box.
Bradford, David F. (1939-2005)
Biographical / Historical

David F. Bradford (1939-2005) was a professor of economics and public affairs at Princeton University and served on the faculty from 1966 to 2005. His main areas of study were public finance and urban problems, and he was internationally known as an expert on taxation. His later research also included developing policies to address environmental issues. Bradford also served as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Tax Policy, Department of the Treasury from 1975 to 1976 and as a member of the White House Council of Economic Advisors from 1991 to 1993.

Physical Description

1 box

Woodrow Wilson School: Public Affairs 524, 1963. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Arrangement

Materials in Series 2: Syllabi Removed from the Princetoniana Collection, 1826-1947 (bulk 1950-1920) have been arranged in folders by subject, following the call numbers they were assigned under the Richardson classification system. The subject-based folders remain in the same alphabetical order in which the subjects appeared in the classification system. Please see the Special Collections Classed List of 1920 for an outline of this classification system.

Scope and Contents

Series 2: Syllabi Removed from the Princetoniana Collection, 1826-1947 (bulk 1850-1920) consists of printed syllabi and lecture notes that at some point were classified as part of the library's Princetoniana collection under call numbers starting with P435. Almost all of the items were printed specifically for use by students in classes at Princeton, and are based on lectures given by Princeton professors. They cover a broad range of subjects, including subjects no longer taught at Princeton, such as Law.

Physical Description

29 boxes

Administration, 1892. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Algebra, Undated. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

American History, 1905-1907. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Anatomy, 1880-1883. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Ancient Art, Undated. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Astronomy, 1846-1849, 1877, 1891-1896, 1908. 2 boxes.
Physical Description

2 boxes

Bible, 1896-1906. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Biology, 1906. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Botany, 1896. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Bryce's American Commonwealth, 1896. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Butler's Analogy, 1869-1875. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Calculus, 1847-1938. 2 boxes.
Physical Description

2 boxes

Chemistry, 1883-1914. 2 boxes.
Physical Description

2 boxes

Economics, 1901-1914. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

English, 1880-1914. 4 boxes.
Physical Description

4 boxes

Ethics, 1879-1903, 1917. 2 boxes.
Physical Description

2 boxes

Fiction, 1896. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Finance, 1895. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

French, 1871, 1896-1902. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Geography, 1896-1914. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Geology, 1841, 1880-1896. 2 boxes.
Physical Description

2 boxes

German, 1896-1909. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Greek, 1826, 1848, 1884-1906. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Graphics, 1890-1891. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

History, 1888-1920. 3 boxes.
Physical Description

3 boxes

Latin, 1852, 1874-1896, 1919. 2 boxes.
Physical Description

2 boxes

Law, 1888-1910. 2 boxes.
Physical Description

2 boxes

Logic, 1865, 1883-1897. 2 boxes.
Physical Description

2 boxes

Mathematics, 1859-1891, 1938-1939. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Metaphysics, 1865, 1880, 1896-1906. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Philosophy, 1869, 1882-1914. 2 boxes.
Physical Description

2 boxes

Physical Geography, 1906. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Physics, 1892-1923. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Poetics, 1896. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Political Economy, 1878-1884, 1896-1906. 3 boxes.
Physical Description

3 boxes

Economics, 1901-1916. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Politics, 1896-1912, 1935-1947. 5 boxes.
Physical Description

5 boxes

Psychology, 1877-1804, 1896-1908. 3 boxes.
Physical Description

3 boxes

Sociology, Undated. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Sewerage, 1896. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Theology, 1886-1893. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Trigonometry, 1896-1908. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Zoology, 1892-1906. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Syllabi in Courses of Princeton University, 1910. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Scope and Contents

These course materials were removed from the Lecture Notes Collection (AC052), as they are not notes taken by students. Some material in this grouping may never have been in the Lecture Notes Collection but was stored together with material that was. Some are professors' notes for lectures, some are problem sets or laboratory instructions kept by students.

Physical Description

2 boxes

Scholastic Philosophy, James W. Alexander, ca. 1840s. 1 folder.
Physical Description

1 folder

English Literature and Cicero, Volune 2, James W. Alexander, ca. 1840s. 1 folder.
Physical Description

1 folder

English Literature, Forms of Literature, Roman Literature, James W. Alexander, 1842-1844. 1 folder.
Physical Description

1 folder

George Dobbin Brown, Outlines of Carlyle's Six Lectures on Heroes and Hero-Worship, undated. 1 folder.
Physical Description

1 folder

William Berryman Scott notes for Evolution 305, 1912. 1 folder.
Scope and Contents

Photocopy.

Physical Description

1 folder

Laboratory Directions in General Biology 102, 1948. 1 folder.
Scope and Contents

Notes by Dan Lutzeier '49 and Thomas E. Dater '51.

Physical Description

1 folder

Laboratory Directions in General Biology 101, 1943. 1 folder.
Scope and Contents

Instructor: Wilbur WIllis Swingle. Notes by Fred E. Rogers '47. Folder includes a schedule of dissection of a cat from Biology 401.

Physical Description

1 folder

Labs and problem sets, Department of Electrical Engineering, 1954. 1 folder.
Scope and Contents

With notes by R. McKeon

Physical Description

1 folder

Lab exercises in Chemistry S303, circa 1943-1947. 1 folder.
Scope and Contents

With notes by Fred B. Rogers '47.

Physical Description

1 folder

Henry B. Cornwall, Water Book, 1899-1907. 1 folder.
Scope and Contents

Local water sample measurements of solids, chlorine, etc. at places such as Lawrenceville School Brook, Bridgeton Water Works, well east of Blairstown. Notebook and correspondence.

Physical Description

1 folder

Electrical Engineering 211 and 212 Laboratory Instructions and Work, 1947-1948. 1 folder.
Scope and Contents

Instructions by C.H. Willis, work by Walter N. Snow

Physical Description

1 folder

Program of Study in American Civilization Conference materials, 1946-1947. 2 folders.
Scope and Contents

Printed notes on topics in Socialism

Physical Description

2 folders

Chemistry Laboratory Directions and Problems, undated. 1 folder.
Scope and Contents

Nathaniel Howell Furman '1913

Physical Description

1 folder

Problem sets for Engineering 205, Statics, 1953-1954. 1 folder.
Scope and Contents

Course taught by Professor Sollenberger; work by Robert McKeon '56.

Physical Description

1 folder

Math 208 and Chemical Engineering 101 printouts, 1948. 1 folder.
Physical Description

1 folder

Exercise for English 303, undated. 1 folder.
Physical Description

1 folder

Botany: Third Term, Professor G. Macloskie, undated. 1 folder.
Scope and Contents

Printed course schedule with handwritten list of crustaceans from Bermuda on the back.

Physical Description

1 folder

History [booklet], circa 1909-1913. 1 folder.
Scope and Contents

Printed booklet "History"; possible structure for lectures. With name of Wells Morris '1913 written at the top.

Physical Description

1 folder

Print, Suggest