University Yearbooks

The Scarlet Letter was first published by Rutgers fraternities in 1871, and provided a list of fraternity members and a catalog of officers and students. Over the years it was published by the junior class, the senior class, and a student organization with members from different classes. Although the earliest Scarlet Letters do not have photographs, they began to have group and individual photographs by the early 1900s. No Scarlet Letters were published for the classes of 1944 through 1946, as publication was suspended because of World War II. The final Scarlet Letter was published in 2005.

Between 1886 and 1931, Scarlet Letters were published by the junior class; for example, the 1931 edition would feature the senior class of 1930. There are actually two 1932 editions of the Scarlet Letter, one published by the junior class and featuring the senior class of 1931 (published in 1931) and one published by and featuring the senior class of 1932.

The Scarlet Letter is only one of the Rutgers University yearbooks. The Newark and Camden campuses along with other New Brunswick campus colleges (including Douglass, Livingston, Cook, and University College), also produced yearbooks throughout the twentieth century and some into the twenty-first. These yearbooks provide invaluable glimpses into student life over the years. The photographs, design elements, and names of clubs and organizations all tell a story.

The Rutgers yearbook collection is part of the University Archives and they may be viewed in the Special Collections and University Archives reading room. Inquiries regarding yearbooks should be sent to Erika Gorder at gorder@libraries.rutgers.edu.

The online Scarlet Letters have been digitized through a collaborative effort between the Special Collections and University Archives and the Technical and Automated Services units of Rutgers University Libraries.

Bibliographic Citation and Credit Line Example:
Rutgers College.  Scarlet Letter, 1941.  New Brunswick, NJ:  Graduating Class of 1941.  Special Collections and University Archives, Rutgers University Libraries.

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