This program documents a production of "The Shoes that Danced," by the American poet and author Anna Hempstead Branch, put up by "The Laboratory Theatre" at the State Teachers College. The play, which was staged in 1935, would have been one of the earliest in Kendall Hall, which first opened in 1932. Like with the production of "Romeo and Juliet" a decade earlier, it appears that students, with teacher guidance, put together most aspects of the play. No transcription.
New Jersey State Teachers College at TrentonContent warning: Some of the yearbooks from 1911 through the 1930s contain racist illustrations of figures in blackface and minstrel characters, as well as inaccurate, derogatory, and/or offensive depictions of Asian and Indigenous people.
The first issue of The Seal was focused on the history and activities of the Class of 1911 and included sections on “class prophecies,” “statistics” of each student, a calendar of the year’s past events, poems, ditties and songs, vignettes of events in each department and hall (dorm) life, listings of the literary societies as well as social clubs (such as “the red mice” and “the clammy six”), a group portrait of the class and some of the societies and clubs, and advertising from Trenton businesses. The seniors were listed in a directory and did not have individual portraits. The next yearbook, 1912, had a similar format, but also included a list of faculty members, as well as photographs of the campus buildings. Starting in 1915, there were individual portraits of graduating seniors (1913 had individual portraits as well, but not 1914). The format remained fairly consistent afterward, however a few issues from the 1920s also have the Juniors, or class of February of the next year listed in the book with the previous May graduates. The Yearbook Club had several name variations, including: Year-Book Club, Year Book Club, or just “Yearbook” or “Seal.”
The collection is complete from 1911 until The Seal ceased publication in 2017. No issue was printed in 1944 due to World War II restrictions.
In addition, there are a few folders of ephemera, correspondence, photographs, obituaries, and other clippings taken from books formerly belonging to Vivian Rolandelli, Kenneth Weber, and Jessie Turk.
College of New Jersey (Ewing, N.J.)The circumstances surrounding this clearly satirical newspaper, and its relationship with The Signal, remain partly unknown. However, it probably relates to a student production of the comedy "Beggar on Horseback" by George Kaufman and Marc Connelly. The rather morbid cover story seems to be a riff on the events of the play, with students appearing under the names of the characters they played. Other "news" stories appear throughout, alongside "advertisements" with the names and members of school organizations, as well as illustrations. Several advertisements related to buying bonds to support the United States in World War Two also are present. No transcription.
unknownThis booklet, which was originally pasted into an unknown scrapbook and at an unknown point removed, details the Normal School's Thanksgiving Festival in November 1917. The original production seems to have dressed students as various Thanksgiving foods in the first act, and as allegorical figures in the second. The top portion of the list for Act 3 is covered by the remains of the scrapbook, but the list of names is clear. No transcription.
New Jersey State Normal School (Trenton, N.J.)This small booklet likely comes from the same unknown "black paper backing" scrapbook as several other documents from around 1918. It details the fifth annual debate between several debating societies of the New Jersey State Normal School and several from Pennsylvania's Swarthmore College. The topic for the debate, which took place amid American intervention in the First World War, regards whether colleges should substitute military training for athletics during the war. No transcription.
unknownThis "booklet" features a sheet-metal front cover, something that likely would not exist following the attack on Pearl Harbor later in 1941 and the beginning of wartime rationing. Like other documents of this type, it includes names of organizers and participating students, as well as spaces to write the names of dancing partners. This student danced with "Ren," "Mike Grayson," "Ruth Kane," "John Thomas," "Jay and Don Robinson," and "George and Rosa." These names are likely similar to the ones in the booklet from the previous year's Junior Prom. No transcription.
unknownThis small booklet unfolds to a long program detailing the staff and students involved in this production of Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet." Based on the credited names, Normal School students worked on nearly every aspect of the production, under the supervision of several teachers. No transcription.
New Jersey State Normal School (Trenton, N.J.)This lantern slide, one of many created by Normal and Model Schools business administrator John S. Neary, Sr., depicts a cohort of Normal School students marching down an unknown street (perhaps State). The caption, typed directly onto the frame surrounding the image, identifies the photographer and the context. This parade likely commemorated the one-year anniversary of the Armistice that ended World War One.
Neary, John S., 1863-1935This booklet from the 1913 Normal School commencement includes lists of graduating students, including their home towns and areas of study. It also contains the list of commencement exercises. No transcription.
New Jersey State Normal School (Trenton, N.J.)This booklet from the 1913 Normal School commencement includes lists of graduating students, including their home towns and areas of study. It also contains the list of commencement exercises. No transcription.
New Jersey State Normal School (Trenton, N.J.)