Rutgers Then and Now Explores Transformation of Historic College Avenue Campus Over the Centuries

Richard L. Edwards remembers 2013 as a monumental year in the evolution of Rutgers-New Brunswick's College Avenue campus.

That's when construction started on massive $330 million project to makeover large swaths of College Avenue by adding the Honors College, Academic Building, The Yard and Sojourner Truth Apartments.

As Rutgers-New Brunswick's first chancellor, Edwards attended multiple groundbreakings, which sparked the idea for a book to document centuries of change at the university through photos.

The project was developed through conversations with James W. Hughes, then dean of Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy, and David Listokin, professor at Bloustein's Center for Urban Policy Research, and an expert in historic preservation. Chats about their shared interests in history, community development and Rutgers, inspired the trio to channel their knowledge into a book that charts the architectural trajectory of College Avenue Campus from its Old Queens origins in 1808 to the present.

The result, Rutgers Then and Now. Two Centuries of Campus Development: A Historic and Photographic Odyssey, hits shelves Nov. 15, 2024 - just after Rutgers University's Charter Day (Nov. 10). Published by Rutgers University Press, the book also includes a foreward from President Jonathan Holloway.

With 120 collective years at Rutgers, Hughes, Edwards and Listokin, provide readers with a unique perspective on the 10 developmental phases of the campus' expansion. Edwards, a photographer by hobby, also contributed many images to the photo heavy book that juxtaposes locations over decades to illustrate significant physical transformations.

Rutgers Today spoke with all three authors of Rutgers Then and Now to learn more about College Avenue's history.