Summary
Overview
Princeton University
Press.
Princeton University Press Records
1905-2008 (mostly 1940s-1990s)
359 linear feet, 324 archival boxes, 230 record center cartons
Princeton University. Library. Dept. of Rare Books and Special Collections
Manuscripts Division
One Washington Road
Princeton, New Jersey 08544 USA
Abstract
The Princeton University Press Records document the business acitivities of
Princeton University Press. They include extensive files on works published by the
press, as well as staff files, review files, editorial board and board of trustees
files, financial information, production files, and publications.
Description
Description
The Princeton University Press Records document the business acitivities of Princeton
University Press. They include extensive files on works published by the press. The
bulk of the collection is made up of the Press's General Files, which include
correspondence with reviewers and authors as well as Editorial Board dossiers
(reports by staff and readers); contract information; files describing each project’s
editorial, production, and manufacturing characteristics and concerns ("Manuscript
Transmittal Forms"); copyright and permissions information; production schedules;
copyeditors' stylesheets and designers' specification sheets; and promotion and
marketing files. The records also include the files of three former directors, Datus
C. Smith, Herbert S. Bailey, and Walter H. Lippincott, as well as review files,
editorial board and board of trustees files, financial information, production files,
and selected publications.
This collection consists of the Press's paper records only. Records maintained by the
Press in electronic form are not included and remain at Princeton University
Press.
Collection Creator
History
Princeton University Press opened on 30 Nassau Street in Princeton, New Jersey, in 1905
with a capital of $25,000. Charles Scribner '1875 served as its first president. In 1910
the Press was reincorporated under an act providing for not-for-profit organizations “to
establish, maintain, and operate a printing and publishing plant, for the promotion of
education and scholarship, and to serve the University by its manufacturing and
distributing publications.” Its first incorporators were Charles Scribner, M. Taylor
Pyne, Archibald D. Russell, Parker D. Handy, Clarence Blair Mitchell, Arthur H.
Scribner, and Robert Bridges. In 1911, Mr. Scribner contributed the site for the Press
at the corners of William and Charlton Streets as well as the Press building and much of
the printing machinery.
Since the publication of its first book, Princeton University President John
Witherspoon's Lectures in Moral Philosophy (1912), the
P.U.P has published well over 2000 titles. Among these are such seminal works as
Einstein's Theory of Relativity and von Neumann and
Morgenstern's The Theory of Games and Economic Behavior.
The Press has also undertaken such long-range projects as the publication of The Papers of Thomas Jefferson, edited by Julian Boyd, and
The Papers of Woodrow Wilson, edited by Arthur Link.
Since its 1905, the Press has also printed The Princeton Alumni
Weekly.
Although closely connected with the University, the Princeton University Press is a
separate corporation. Nine of its fifteen trustees must be members of the faculty or
administration of the University or alumni. The president of Princeton University, an
ex-officio trustee, appoints four faculty members to five-year terms on the editorial
board, which controls the imprint of the Press.
Collection History
Acquisition
This collection was formed from a donation of author files and printed material given
by Princeton University Press director Datus C. Smith and transfers of printed
material from the Princeton University Archives. Additional files were transferred
from Princeton University Press in 1994, 2001, and 2011.
Archival Appraisal Information
No material was separated during 2009 processing.
Processing Information
This collection was processed by John Buntin, Class of
1994, Kate Snow, Class of 1998 and Karla J. Vecchia in 1992, 1995 and in 2002. Finding aid written by John Buntin, Class of 1994, Kate Snow, Class of 1998 and Karla J. Vecchia in 1992, 1995 and in 2002. Finding aid updated by Regine
Heberlein in 2011. Additional folder inventories prepared by Allysse Terrell, Class
of 2014, and Alex Rodgers, Class of 2014.
Researchers are advised that box # 32 was accidentally skipped when assigning box numbers.
Access and Use
Access Restrictions
Collection is open for research use.
Access Restrictions
Please consult with Rare Books and Special Collections about having the collection
recalled to Firestone Library for your use. This process normally requires 48-72
hours notice.
Use Restrictions
Single photocopies may be made for research purposes. No further photoduplication of
copies of material in the collection can be made when Princeton University Library
does not own the original. Permission to publish material from the collection must be
requested from the Associate University Librarian for Rare Books and Special
Collections. The library has no information on the status of literary rights in the
collection and researchers are responsible for determining any questions of
copyright.
Preferred Citation
Princeton University Press Records; 1905-2008 (mostly 1940s-1990s), Manuscripts Division, Department of Rare Books and Special Collections, Princeton University Library.
Princeton University Library Finding Aids 
View Entire Finding Aid
Download Finding Aid