Princeton University, founded in 1746 as the College of New Jersey, is a private Ivy League research university located in Princeton, New Jersey.[1] The university is led by a president, who is selected by the board of trustees by ballot.[2] The president is an ex officio member of the board and presides at its meetings.[3] One of five officers of the university's legal corporation, the Trustees of Princeton University, the president also acts as the chief executive officer. The president is tasked with "general supervision of the interests of the University" and represents the institution in public. If the office is vacant, the board can either appoint an acting president, or the university's provost can serve in such capacity. The office was established in Princeton's original charter of 1746.
The institution's first president was Jonathan Dickinson in 1747, and its 20th and current is Christopher Eisgruber, who was elected in 2013.[4] All of Princeton's presidents have been male besides Shirley Tilghman;[5] all have been white. James Carnahan had the longest serving tenure at 31 years, and Jonathan Edwards had the shortest at five weeks. There have been six acting presidents, and eleven presidents who have been alumni of the university.[6] Princeton presidents have a long association with the Presbyterian church,[7] with every president before Woodrow Wilson in 1902 being a Presbyterian clergyman.[8] The first nine presidents were slaveholders, with five holding slaves while living in the president's house. Thirteen of Princeton's seventeen deceased presidents are buried in President Lot of Princeton Cemetery., the salary of the president was $944,952.[9]
The president's official residence has changed several times over the lifespan of the university. Built in 1756, the John Maclean House, also known as the President's House, was where the president lived until Prospect House was acquired in 1878. In 1968, the official residence switched again to Walter Lowrie House. The Office of the President is housed in Nassau Hall.[10]
| President | Presidency | Notes | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | data-sort-value="Dickinson, Jonathan" | Jonathan Dickinson | 1747 | Died shortly after entering office from a pleuritic illness | |||
| 2 | data-sort-value="Burr Sr., Aaron" | Aaron Burr Sr. | 1748–1757 | Minister of the Presbyterian Church of Newark. Father of Aaron Burr, the third Vice President of the United States. Died from illness while in office. | |||
| – | data-sort-value="Cowell, David" | David Cowell | 1757-1758 | Served as acting president. | |||
| 3 | data-sort-value="Edwards, Jonathan" | Jonathan Edwards | 1758 | Eminent theologian to the First Great Awakening.[11] [12] Died five weeks into office after a fever from a smallpox vaccine. | |||
| – | data-sort-value="Green, Jacob" | Jacob Green | 1758–1759 | Delegate for Morris County to the Provincial Congress of New Jersey.[13] Father of Ashbel Green, 8th president of the university.[14] Served as acting president. | |||
| 4 | data-sort-value="Davies, Samuel" | Samuel Davies | 1759–1761 | Died shortly after entering office from pneumonia | |||
| 5 | data-sort-value="Finley, Samuel" | Samuel Finley | 1761–1766 | Founder of West Nottingham Academy;[15] [16] Minister of the Cold Spring Presbyterian Church.[17] Graduate of the Log College.[18] Died while in office in Philadelphia seeking medical treatment. | |||
| – | data-sort-value="Blair, John" | John Blair | 1767–1768 | Graduate of the Log College. Served as acting president. | |||
| 6 | data-sort-value="Witherspoon, John" | John Witherspoon | 1768–1794 | Signer of the Declaration of Independence; Delegate to the Second Continental Congress; Moderator of the first General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America. Died while in office. | |||
| 7 | data-sort-value="Smith, Samuel S." | Samuel S. Smith | 1795–1812 | First president of Hampden–Sydney College.[19] College of New Jersey alumnus. Resigned after pressure from the university trustees and ongoing issues with the institution. | |||
| 8 | data-sort-value="Green, Ashbel" | Ashbel Green | 1812–1822 | Third Chaplain of the United States House of Representatives.[20] College of New Jersey alumnus. Resigned after his loss of confidence in the university trustees. | |||
| – | data-sort-value="Lindsley, Philip" | Philip Lindsley | 1822–1823 | First president of the now-defunct University of Nashville.[21] College of New Jersey alumnus.[22] Served as acting president. | |||
| 9 | data-sort-value="Carnahan, James" | James Carnahan | 1823–1854 | One of the founders of the Chi Phi fraternity.[23] [24] College of New Jersey alumnus. | |||
| 10 | data-sort-value="Maclean Jr., John" | John Maclean Jr. | 1854–1868 | College of New Jersey alumnus | |||
| 11 | data-sort-value="McCosh, James" | James McCosh | 1868–1888 | ||||
| 12 | data-sort-value="Patton, Francis L." | Francis L. Patton | 1888–1902 | Resigned after pressure from university trustees due to dissatisfaction with his lackluster administration style. | |||
| 13 | data-sort-value="Wilson, Woodrow" | Woodrow Wilson | 1902–1910 | 28th President of the United States
| |||
| – | data-sort-value="Stewart, John A." | John A. Stewart | 1910–1912 | Served as acting president | |||
| 14 | data-sort-value="Hibben, John G." | John G. Hibben | 1912–1932 | College of New Jersey alumnus | |||
| – | data-sort-value="Duffield, Edward D." | Edward D. Duffield | 1932–1933 | Served as acting president | |||
| 15 | data-sort-value="Dodds, Harold W." | Harold W. Dodds | 1933–1957 | President of the National Municipal League.[26] Princeton alumnus. | |||
| 16 | data-sort-value="Goheen, Robert F." | Robert F. Goheen | 1957–1972 | United States Ambassador to India.[27] Princeton alumnus. | |||
| 17 | data-sort-value="Bowen, William G." | William G. Bowen | 1972–1988 | President of the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.[28] Princeton alumnus. | [29] | ||
| 18 | data-sort-value="Shapiro, Harold T." | Harold T. Shapiro | 1988–2001 | 10th President of the University of Michigan.[30] Princeton alumnus. | |||
| 19 | data-sort-value="Tilghman, Shirley M." | Shirley M. Tilghman | 2001–2013 | First female president of Princeton University | |||
| 20 | data-sort-value="Eisgruber, Christopher L." | Christopher L. Eisgruber | 2013–present | Princeton alumnus |