When philanthropist Andrew Carnegie visited Princeton, he was appalled by the injuries suffered by football players and he desired that rowing should surpass football in popularity. He gave Princeton funds to dam Stony Brook and Millstone Rivers and excavate a 3.5-mile long artificial lake, thereby creating an excellent crew facility. Woodrow Wilson, hoping for a more academic gift, joked to Carnegie that "We needed bread and you gave us cake."

Lake Carnegie
(Courtesy Princetoniana Committee)