Content warning: The items in this collection may contain racist and harmful depictions of marginalized groups and sexist or misogynistic language.
This collection includes two series containing yearbooks and ephemera from the Jersey City State Normal School.
Series 1 - The Tower Yearbooks, 1933-1935
In 1932, the graduating class published the first volume of The Tower. This series contains The Tower published in 1933, 1934, and 1935. The forward of the 1933 addition states, “We accept with gratitude the heritage of ‘The Tower’ bequeathed to us by the proceeding class. We desire to increase this legacy by adding our contribution of school anecdotes, trusting that each succeeding year will add materially to its value as an heirloom.”
All of the yearbooks feature a forward, dedication, listing of yearbook staff; faculty; management; their school and class history; school organizations and student clubs with photos and descriptions; underclassmen class photos; and the senior class featured with portrait photographs of each student, a quote, and description of the student.
The Jersey City Free Public library’s collections contain the second edition of The Tower, published in 1933 (and digitized in this series), and subsequent years through 2006.
Series 2 - Ephemera, Jersey City State College, Pre-1980
This series contains ephemera of the Jersey City State Normal School spanning from 1914-1934. There are two commencement pamphlets, one from 1934 in a time after the opening of the Jersey City State Normal School in 1929, and the other from a precursor to the normal school called the Teachers’ Training School in 1914. Additional ephemera includes a 1934 song book, as well as a reprinted 1932 article by Peter J. Ganon in the school newspaper The Golden Gothic on the gothic architectural style of the campus’ buildings. The song book index indicates that it contains songs from the school and other colleges, songs about the United States and New Jersey, hymns, rounds and songs of greeting, children’s rote songs, and miscellaneous songs.