The first volume (1748-1796) is a gold mine of information about the personalities and activities of the young College of New Jersey. As these minutes date from the very beginning of the College, they address the multitude of issues and problems the trustees initially addressed. It was the era of the group decision, with the entire Board involved in solving every type of problem at their infrequent (two or three times a year) meetings. This volume is contained in two forms: the original volume (which does not circulate) and a typed transcript in two parts.

The minutes contain the names of officials, trustees, teachers, and students. They also provide a record of the major decisions of the College (such as the election of new presidents) as well as smaller ones (such as which foods the steward could sell to students and where the account books would be kept). Unfortunately, the discussion that led to such decisions was rarely recorded, although many letters, bills, and documents were often copied out into the minutes (though not all reports mentioned are transcribed).

Researchers will find information related to the standards for admission and graduation; legacies received; names of members of the graduating classes; names of recipients of honorary degrees; the list of books donated by Governor Jonathan Belcher; the hiring and firing of tutors; the selection and election of presidents; the purchase and sale of land; the establishment of accounting methods; the maintenance of the College facilities; fundraising efforts; the running of the Grammar School; the rate of board for students; and the continual hiring and firing of stewards. Perhaps the most frequent topic of discussion in the early records is the state of the College's finances and the difficulty in finding an acceptable method of record-keeping.

With a slight adjustment of details (such as the tutors becoming professors and the refectory becoming the eating clubs), these continue to be the dominant concerns of the trustees: staff, discipline, curriculum, finances, infrastructure, and the students' successful completion of their courses.

The President's Report is the best source of a picture of the state and nature of the College at any particular time.

Volumes 2-12 (1797-1915) are very similar in structure and nature to Volume 1. They grow progressively longer, but there is no equivalent increase in depth or detail. A few notes:

Volumes 13-91C (1915-1993) are quarto-sized volumes and noticeably different in style to the earlier volumes. The minutes now become a mixture of short accounts of the flow of the meetings followed by printed reports prepared in advance of the meetings. The trustees met every October, January, April and June (with occasional special meetings) during this period.

These later minutes provide less of an account of a single meeting than a repository of reports by specialized committees researching narrower topics. While the information about Princeton becomes more specific, there is less of a chance to comprehend the opinions and leanings of the various trustees.

The topics addressed by the standing committees whose reports are represented in these volumes include finance, the curriculum, grounds and buildings, clubs, morals and physical education, the graduate school, the library, and undergraduate life.

Researchers may also consult the "Rough Minutes" of meetings in Series 4.