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Walking Tours

Available public walking tour dates are listed below, and can also be found on our calendar of events. Please note there will NOT be a walking tour on the following Sundays: 12/22.

If you have more than eight people in your group, please contact eve@princetonhistory.org to schedule a private tour. Private tours of town and campus are available by request for up to 25 participants ($15 per person, $150 minimum).

Walking tours are generously supported by

 

Princeton History Sunday Tour

“We have lived here for nearly 17 years and are familiar with the town and campus. This is the first time we took the tour and wished we had taken it earlier since we learned a fair amount of new information and factoids. (Our guide) was informative and entertaining … Thanks for offering a great resource for the community.” – S. A.

Enjoy a 2-mile walk around downtown Princeton and the University campus as you learn about historic sites in the area, including Nassau Hall, University Chapel, and Palmer Square. In addition to the early history of the town, founding of the University and Revolutionary War,  guides will share some of the lesser-known stories of Princeton’s diverse past. 

Tickets are $15. 

Advance purchase is required. Ticket sales end at 1:00 PM on the day of the tour (or when the tour is sold out). Due to space limitations, we cannot accommodate last minute add-ons at the start of the tour. 

Portions of the tour may include stairs and hills, please notify guide of any accessibility needs.

Tours are held in light rain; in the event of severe inclement weather, a message will be sent to the email address used when booking. You can also click here for an update on HSP’s calendar of events. Refunds or ticket exchanges will be issued only if the tour is cancelled.

PARKING: Meters are enforced 7 days a week. Free parking is available on weekends in Princeton University’s numbered lots.

Tickets

Princeton History Walking Tour on December 29, 2024, 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm

Princeton History Walking Tour (Special focus on the Battle of Princeton) on January 5, 2025, 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm

Princeton History Walking Tour on January 12, 2025, 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm

Click to buy tickets or view more dates.

Themed History Walks

History/Nature Hike at Institute Woods

Join us on a hike through the treasured Institute Woods to explore bits of history, as well as the sites and sounds that form this unique and serene setting. Hear stories about the Woods’ origin and the ways IAS mathematicians, physicists, and other members have engaged with it. Stops along the way will highlight the history of early Stony Brook, the Battle of Princeton, the Old Trolley trail, the establishment of the Institute for Advanced Study, and Founders Rock. We will make a special stop at the infamous Swinging Bridge, then hike over to the observation decks at the adjacent Rogers Wildlife Refuge. 

Tour starts at the Princeton Battlefield parking lot at 500 Mercer Street, Princeton.

Tickets are available for the following dates: December 21 and January 25 at 2:00 pm.

Princeton University Eating Clubs

Join author Clifford Zink on a walking tour outside Princeton University’s majestic eating clubs. Learn about the architecture, origins, and development of the sixteen Classical and Gothic-style clubhouses, which date from 1895 to 1928. 
Tour starts outside Colonial Club, 40 Prospect Avenue.

Copies of Zink’s 2017 book, The Princeton Eating Clubs, will be available for sale at a discounted price at the tour.
Co-sponsored by Princeton Prospect Foundation and the Historical Society of Princeton.

Spring Tours will be offered on April 12 and May 3. Check back in January to purchase tickets!

The Magic and History of Marquand Park

Explore this incredible preserve with members of the Marquand Park Foundation, who will share the property’s history and highlight the native and exotic trees in the collection. Tour starts at Lover’s Lane parking lot in Marquand Park.

Check back for a new tour date in the spring!

Historic Jugtown Walking Tour

Join historian Clifford Zink for a tour of Princeton’s third oldest neighborhood, the Jugtown Historic District. First called Queenston, the area started as a crossroads settlement around 1730. View the architectural evolution of the neighborhood, while enjoying some stories of people who lived and worked here. Locations will include the site of the potteries that gave Jugtown its name, the attempted women’s college in Princeton, and the quarries that supplied stone for the construction of many of Princeton’s buildings.  Tour starts in front of the Hook and Ladder Co. firehouse, 27 N. Harrison Street.

Check back for upcoming tour dates. 

Oppenheimer Walking Tour

Want to learn more about Princeton’s role in J. Robert Oppenheimer’s life and the development of the atomic bomb? Inspired by Christopher Nolan’s award-winning film, this tour will traverse the University campus (including locations where Oppenheimer was filmed) while sharing stories about the local academics recruited to work on the Manhattan Project. (Please note: this tour does not go to the Institute for Advanced Study.) 
Tour starts at the Princeton Garden Theatre at 160 Nassau Street.

Check back for upcoming tour dates. 

Historic Stony Brook: Gateway to Princeton History

Before there was a “Princeton,” six Quaker families established a community on the fertile ground along Stony Brook. This two-hour hike explores the lives of the early settlers and the community they established, while following a portion of the trail George Washington took from Trenton to the Princeton Battlefield. Stops include the Stony Brook Meeting House and Burial Ground, walking a portion of the “hidden” back road into Princeton, and a view of the Battlefield.
Tour starts at 354 Quaker Road, Princeton.

Check back for upcoming tour dates.

Digital Tours

Explore some of Princeton’s most notable – and more hidden – places, with the help of unique material from HSP’s extensive collections. Click the links below to access our digital tours on the web via a smartphone, tablet, or computer: