1. A Walk Down Prospect Avenue
Campus Club
Stretching down Prospect Avenue in a stately double row, Princeton's privately operated upperclass eating clubs collectively encompass one of the most evocative and architecturally compelling groups in Princeton.
These buildings are an important part of the architectural legacy of the University's Golden Age: monuments to an affluent and exuberant era at the turn of the century when Princeton's prestige was rising fast. And although the club system that spawned these structures has changed considerably, the view of the clubs from the arch of 1879 Hall hasn't changed appreciably in 75 years.
Today, 11 of these clubhouses continue their century-old function as independent upperclass eating clubs, serving up to three-quarters of all upperclassmen. Six other clubhouses are now owned by the University: Elm is the Carl A. Fields Center for Equality and Cultural Understanding; Campus Club now serves as an undergraduate meeting and event facility; Dial Lodge is currently vacant; Key & Seal is now the Mamdouha S. Bobst Center for Peace and Justice; Court serves as the Office of the Dean for Research; and Arbor houses the Center for the Study of Religion. Arch and Gateway have been demolished.
Curator's note: This chapter has been updated thanks to input from Clifford Zink
Princeton University. Property of the Trustees of Princeton University.
Source: Bric-a-Brac, 1914, p.216
Tower Club
Princeton University. Property of the Trustees of Princeton University.
Source: Princeton University Archives, Mudd Library, Grounds & Buildings, Box 66
Adjacent to Campus and of similar style and materials is Tower,...
Cannon Club
Princeton University. Property of the Trustees of Princeton University.
Source: Bric-a-Brac, 1917, p.254
...followed by the Cannon Club, with its signature field piece in the front yard.
Quadrangle Club
Princeton University. Property of the Trustees of Princeton University.
Source: Princeton University Archives, Mudd Library, Grounds & Buildings, Box 61
Next to Cannon stands Quadrangle's Georgian Revival clubhouse.
Ivy Club
Princeton University. Property of the Trustees of Princeton University.
Source: Princeton University Archives, Mudd Library, Grounds & Buildings, Box 42
Then the architectural heart of Prospect Avenue: first the ageless, Jacobean Revival beauty of Ivy Club , ...
Cottage Club
Princeton University. Property of the Trustees of Princeton University.
Source: Bric-a-Brac, 1907, p.216
...followed by McKim, Mead, and White's spectacular Georgian Revival design for University Cottage Club.
Cap and Gown Club
Princeton University. Property of the Trustees of Princeton University.
Source: Bric-a-Brac, 1910, p.208
Next to Cottage stands the dark brick Norman Revival edifice of Cap & Gown, with its distinctive exterior detailing.
Cloister Inn
Princeton University. Property of the Trustees of Princeton University.
Source: Princeton University Archives, Mudd Library, Grounds & Buildings, Box 30
After Cap & Gown comes the arched facade of Cloister Inn, a late arrival to Prospect Avenue that mirrors the Collegiate Gothic style and materials predominant on the campus during the 1920s.
Charter Club
Princeton University. Property of the Trustees of Princeton University.
Source: Bric-a-Brac, 1916, p.234
Charter Club, Cloister's neighbor to the east, echoes the stone Georgian Revival mansions common on the Philadelphia Main Line.
Key and Seal Club
Princeton University. Property of the Trustees of Princeton University.
Source: Princeton University Archives, Mudd Library, Grounds & Buildings, Box 64
Finishing off the south side of Prospect Avenue are two other late arrivals to the club scene, both now defunct: Key & Seal, a handsome Tudor Revival design done in brick and limestone, ...
Court Club
Princeton University. Property of the Trustees of Princeton University.
Source: Bric-a-Brac, 1933, p.341
...and furthest from the campus, the modest brick home of Court Club.
Dial Lodge
Princeton University. Property of the Trustees of Princeton University.
Source: Bric-a-Brac, 1920, p.308
On the north side of Prospect stand four more clubs: Dial Lodge, a handsome stone building that recalls an English manor house; ...
Colonial Club
Princeton University. Property of the Trustees of Princeton University.
Source: Bric-a-Brac, 1910, p.210
imposing Colonial Club, with its larger- than- life portico and columns; ...
Tiger Inn
Princeton University. Property of the Trustees of Princeton University.
Source: Bric-a-Brac, 1899, p.158
...and then the Tudor Revival Tiger Inn, reputedly inspired by an old English tavern from Chelsea.
Elm Club
Princeton University. Property of the Trustees of Princeton University.
Source: Bric-a-Brac, 1903, p.192
Elm Club comes last, a lone Italianate Revival design among Georgian, Gothic, and Colonial neighbors.
Terrace Club
Princeton University. Property of the Trustees of Princeton University.
Source: Bric-a-Brac, 1922, p.254
Adjacent to Campus Club on Washington Road stands Terrace Club, which started life as the Colonial Revival home of Professor (later President) John Hibben and was renovated into the half- timbered Tudor Revival clubhouse that stands today.
Arbor Inn
Princeton University. Property of the Trustees of Princeton University.
Source: Bric-a-Brac, 1938, p.197
...Arbor Inn, the last eating club chartered by the university, occupied a French- style villa near Palmer Stadium on Ivy Lane.
Arch Club
Other license.
Source: Unknown
The view from the 1879 Arch doesn't capture all of Princeton's 19 eating clubs. Four were not located on Prospect Avenue: Arch Club operated for its brief existence out of a house on Washington Road to the north of Prospect Avenue; ...
Gateway Club
Princeton University. Property of the Trustees of Princeton University.
Source: Princeton University Archives, Mudd Library, Grounds & Buildings, Box 64
Gateway Club, one of the shortest- lived clubs, had its clubhouse in a former private residence immediately south of Terrace, on the lot now occupied by the Center for Jewish Life.
Starting on the southeast corner of Washington Road and Prospect, first in line comes Campus Club, whose dark brick Tudor Revival style echoes Palmer Hall and 1879 Hall across the road.