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The two residence halls that were
the first to open were named for
Henry F. Burton, professor of Latin,
and George N. Crosby, a selfeducated
Rochester businessman who
had left a substantial legacy to the
University. Each cubby of a room
came equipped with washbasin,
wooden wardrobe, and maid service.
The first occupants were members of
the Class of 1934 attending Freshman
Camp and some uninvited
housemates-furtive, nocturnal
visitors displaced by the construction,
who left teeth marks on the bars of
soap in the washbasins. George Darling
'34 theorizes that this was the
origin of the nickname River Rats,
given to those who had abandoned
Prince Street for the new campus.
"Though the campus was completely
new and very plain, there was
great exhilaration upon leaving dark
and moldy Anderson Hall and the
rest of the old and shabby plant
behind," Richard Greene says.
Not much shade was provided by
the newly planted elms, but generous,
terraced lawns interspersed the
limestone-trimmed brick and slate
campus.
"Happy is the university that has
no history," Professor Greene
paraphrases, noting that the years he
taught (English) at the University
(1930-42), and was resident dorm
adviser, were "as utopian as any college
scene I've been in." And he's
been in a number in the course of a
long and distinguished academic
career. There was strong feeling for
tradition on this new campus, which
enjoyed a student body characterized
as responsible and cooperative, a fine
faculty, a well-running plant, and an
absence of theft, vandalism, graffiti,
congestion, and campus police. There
was even ample parking on the site
where the library addition now stands
and in a long-gone garage beneath
the stadium. Dorm rules were quaint
but rarely in need of enforcement:
1. No alcohol.
2. No disturbances after 8 p.m.
3. No women after 6 p.m. (No
exceptions for mothers or
sisters.)
About the only misdemeanors The
Campus found to scold about were
towels deposited on the locker room
floor and failure to remove hats upon
entering Todd Union. The traditional
undergraduate proclivity for furniture
Pioneer "Sons of Rochester," members of the class of 1934 during the first Freshman Week
on the new campus.
smashing was taken elsewhere.
George Darling recalls an incident
when sophomores broke up a
freshman banquet at a downtown
restaurant with the resulting damages
to the premises assessed at the sum of
$750. (That may not sound like
much, Darling writes, until you
remember that a year's tuition in
1930 amounted to $250.)
"Gracious living" was the hallmark
of both campuses in the early
1930's. The fraternity houses were
beautifully furnished and initially well
kept. Todd Union offered cafeteria
service at noon and full-service
dining in the evening, as would
the soon-to-be-built Munro Hall for
the women at Prince Street.
The Faculty Club, on the other
hand, housed on the main floor of
Burton, ran into financial difficulties
because so many members were
brown-bagging it-an accurate
measure, Charles R. Dalton '20 says,
of faculty incomes.
To foster a feeling of tradition,
Glee Club director Ted Fitch
gathered students on the steps of
Todd Union for a twilight sing of
"old" University songs. ("The
Genesee" was written in 1894, thirtysix
years before the campus was
nestled in the arm of that river.)
In the words of those who have
shared their reminiscences about
those days, the River Campus was a
"very pleasant" place to be. Much of
the euphoria, one suspects, relates to
the unusual leadership qualities of the
undergraduates in the early 1930's.
Dick Greene cites a sampling:
Xerox's Joe Wilson, Kodak's Gerry
Zornow, Sybron's Don Gaudion,
Rhodes Scholar Bob Babcock, Congressman
Sam Stratton, and the
University's Harm Potter (successively
head of admissions and alumni
affairs and now University Secretary).
All were marked as campus
leaders headed toward future achievement.
So was Henry Brinker, a fine
athlete who later became president of
A.O. Smith; Robert Wells, who
was to be head of Westinghouse
operations in Europe; William F.
May, future chairman of American
Can Company (now retired and dean
of the College of Business at NYU);
Robert Brinker, future editor of Sports
Illustrated; and William P. Buxton,
future vice president for advertising
at The New Yorker; and many others.
Of this list, which could be further