recycled post

Final exams begin tomorrow.  Here is an interesting post about exams that I wrote one year ago:  old methods of final examination.

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compulsory physical education

In the previous post, I noted that the opening of the ’87 Gymnasium marked a new focus on physical education at Rensselaer.  The effort to acquire appropriate fitness facilities had been largely student driven up to this point.  Students chronically complained about the lack of athletic venues and gym facilities on campus.  In 1912, the [...]

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flu pandemic retrospect

It is not surprising to find that flu pandemics have impacted the RPI community in the past.  In 1918, the Spanish flu hit campus at a most inopportune time.  It was October and 650 students conscripted into the Student Army Training Corp were about to move into temporary barracks on campus.  The flu ripped through [...]

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a walking status symbol

The cane, a fashion accessory popular in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, was also a college status symbol.  Canes or walking sticks were once commonly “worn” by men during this time period.  At many colleges, freshmen had to earn the right to carry a cane on campus.  Cane rushes or cane contests involved a [...]

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back when mandolins were cool

Yes, that’s right — mandolins were all the rage from about 1894 to 1924.  Mandolin clubs popped up at high schools, colleges and cities all over the country.  The club at RPI evolved out of the Banjo and Guitar Club in 1892 –  it was called the Banjo, Guitar and Mandolin Club. When mandolins outnumbered [...]

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The Moustache Club

The Moustache Club was a student club that appeared briefly in the 1870s.  The officers consisted of president, assistant to the president, treasurer and inspector general.  Here are some excerpts from the club’s constitution as detailed in the 1877 Transit: The purpose of this organization is for the mutual cultivation of the “fuzz”.  The eligibility [...]

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women’s history up-close and local

March is National Women’s History Month and it seems fitting to focus some attention on the history of women at RPI.  We have a great online exhibit, Women at Rensselaer, that provides lots of information in a historical chronology.  I also created a quick slideshow of some of the “firsts” for women at the Institute [...]

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new old stuff

I mentioned previously that we rely on donors to acquire new material for our collections.  In this post, I will highlight our latest acquisition. Recently Mr. Cox left this comment on the blog: I live in Seattle Wa. and i found an old calculus book at a garage sale. It is ” practical treatise on [...]

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Mystery Image #12

The holidays have passed, spring semester work has commenced and winter couldn’t get any worse.  Blah.  This probably won’t cure the doldrums, but it may entertain you for a moment.  I thought of inviting captions for this one, but I don’t want to divert attention from an actual identification.  My best guess for the beer [...]

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First Chinese Students

When did the first students from China come to RPI?  This question was asked during our open house event recently.  A quick answer was readily available in an alumni directory, but my curiosity was piqued and I decided to dig a little deeper to find out who these students were.  Two students from Guangzhou (once [...]

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