Princeton's Magnetic Observatory is shown here ca. 1890s. It avoided iron in its construction in favor of brass, copper, brick, and wood--even the nails were brass or copper. The bricks were Philadelphia's renowned pressed bricks, often favored at the time because they were hand made in a striking burgundy color. The building was torn down in 1909 when electrical engineering moved to Palmer Physical Laboratory.
Historical Subject Files, Grounds and Buildings Series (AC105), Box SP05, Image No. 1208.








