Type: Exhibition case

Name: Rutgers College

Detail: Long before the foundation of Mason Gross School of the Arts, Rutgers University’s liberal arts colleges developed their own music departments and traditions. Although each school has a unique history ―Rutgers College was founded to train ministers for the Dutch Reformed Church, New Jersey College for Women was established to provide higher education for women, and Livingston College formed in response to the socio-political changes of the 1960s ― a shared passion of music united these various student bodies. This portion of On the Banks of the Raritan: Music at Rutgers and New Brunswick focuses on students and professors who participated in music from 1871, when the Rutgers College Chapel Choir formed, to 1981, when the music programs at Rutgers, Douglass, and Livingston College transferred to Mason Gross School of the Arts. Ultimately, it explores the history and tradition of music at Rutgers University and examines how music constructed a shared identity among the colleges.


When Queen’s College was chartered on November 10, 1766. Due to a lack of funding, a depressed economy, and the War of 1812, the college closed in 1795 and again in 1812. In 1825, Queen’s College reopened for good and was renamed Rutgers College in honor of trustee Colonel Henry Rutgers. In subsequent years, new degree programs in liberal arts, the sciences, mechanical arts, and agriculture were instituted to prepare students to live and work in a nation changed by the Industrial Revolution. The music department at Rutgers College was established in 1919 and headed by Howard D. McKinney. Classes were offered in instrumental and vocal studies as well as music theory, history, and appreciation. Additionally, a number of music clubs provided students with the opportunity to practice, hone, and enjoy their crafts with peers. These groups performed on campus, throughout New Jersey and the United States, and often collaborated with New Jersey College for Women music groups.

Type: Exhibition caption

Detail: The Rutgers College Band formed in 1916 under the aegis of the Military Department. Although the group initially provided music for the Rutgers College Cadet Corps weekly drills, they soon began performing at football games and other college events to “to pep up rooters and players and lend color to the affair.” Because their spirited performances were so popular, the band separated from ROTC and became its own group in 1923. By 1928, the band resembled a modern day marching band – members wore straw hats and blazers and played music while making formations on the field. When Scott Whitener was hired to improve the band program in the late 1960s, the ensemble grew, became known as the Marching 100, and performed pre-game and halftime shows using the the Big-Ten high step marching style.

In addition to playing at sporting events, the Rutgers College Band also functioned as a concert band. For example, in 1948, the band gave a Christmas Concert with the Rutgers University Glee Club, a winter radio concert with the New Jersey College for Women Weeping Willows, and its own spring concert.

In 2013, the Rutgers College Band is strictly a marching and pep band known as the Rutgers University Marching Scarlet Knights and the Rutgers University Pep Band. The group performs during sporting events and at several marching band competitions. They are directed by Timothy Smith.