Old Money: Rutgers University and the Political Economy of Slavery in New Jersey

Wealth accumulated from participation in slavery created a colonial aristocracy whose members would found Queen’s College, serve as its trustees and officers, and patronize the institution as pupils. Prominent slaveholding families donated money and land to Queen’s College (Rutgers), which helped the college reopen and remain in operation when it struggled financially. These families had relationships with Queen’s College for generations. Prominent individuals who descended from the colonial aristocracy passed their wealth and privilege to subsequent generations, and the college continued to benefit from “old money” that was earned through the economic exploitation of enslaved people. InEbony and Ivy: