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The campus is located on the land that made up the former Raritan Arsenal's residential area. Most, if not all, of the oldest buildings on campus were constructed for the Arsenal in the 1930s with funding and some labor from the Works Project Administration.

It included what is now North Hall, built to serve as the Arsenal's hospital. If you look at the back of the building, you should notice the remains of the opening that allowed ambulances to come in. The inside lower level had vestiges of the hospital, including cabinets and counter tops.

At start of classes in 1966, North Hall housed faculty offices.

During World War II, there were barracks for Italian prisoners of war (on the land that is now Parking Lot 2). It is unclear if these or some other Arsenal barracks (long gone) were the ones that Rutgers used to house students after World War II (there were severe housing/dorm shortages). They were still standing during the first year of classes at Middlesex but were leveled in the summer of 1967.

East Hall was the Arsenal's bowling alley. You can still see the crossed bowling pins above the front of the building. It also served as MCC Library's home during the first year (1966-1967) of classes at the college. (Main Hall, the original PE Center, and the current Library were being built and all opened in September 1967).

East Hall Annex was the Arsenal's PX (Postal Exchange). In September 1966, it was used by the college as the location for the College Union (student activity center, snack bar and lounge). 

Raritan Hall held some of the administrative offices for the Arsenal. Among the notable "events":

• A precursor of what would eventually become the Internet was begun in Raritan Hall in 1956 - a (telephone?) network linking the nation's arsenals and overseas depots to military bases throughout the United States and Europe, it became the model for other depots across the country.
• It also housed editorial offices of PS-Preventive Maintenance Monthly, a publication that was popular among field troops because of the humor-filled cartoons that helped explain complicated equipment maintenance procedures. Principle among the contributors to the publication was Will Eisner who was responsible for the very popular cartoon character of "Joe Dope."
• Once the college opened in September 1966, Raritan Hall was the major classroom building, with the Bookstore located in the basement, but Raritan Hall also housed the switchboard, data processing, cafeteria and Evening and Extension Division offices.
• The office of the college's new student publication, Quo Vadis, was in Raritan Hall 307.

The Center buildings were used as housing for the military and their families. At the start of the college, Administrative offices were in the Center I and II buildings, Admissions and Financial Aid in Center III and Counseling in Center IV.
 

West Hall (now West Hall Annex) was the Arsenal Officers Club.

Gone but not forgotten buildings:

• A barracks building that had once housed nurses during the Raritan Arsenal era, originally located between North Hall and the Hof Rd. residences became faculty offices during the early years of the college.
• South I was home to the college's Industrial Laboratories (engineering labs) and South II housed the college's science labs
• The water tower was a prominent feature of the campus. It was located near parking lot 5 behind L'Hommedieu Hall.
• Before the college opened, the underground garages located at the back of each of the Center buildings, were filled in.
• The Arsenal swimming pool was filled in before classes started. It was located beyond East Hall Annex between Hof Road and College Drive E. There is an electrical station now located on the approximate location of the former pool.
• Originally called the College or Campus Theater, then the Studio Theater, it was located next to the current Mill Gate bldg. During its years as an Arsenal Building, it was used for church services. "Come Blow Your Horn" by Neil Simon was the first play to be performed there on March 3 & 4 1967.

• The first event noted in the archives was a speech by Dr. Benjamin Spock (famous pediatrician and anti-war activist) held in the gym on April 25, 1968.
• October 16, 1968 in the gym: Gary Puckett and the Union Gap
• Author, Alex Haley spoke on April 14, 1970 in the College Union (not sure where it was located at the time)
• November 22, 1970 in the gym: The Grateful Dead and Riders of the Purple Sage
• The Byrds appeared in the gym on September 26, 1971

(Large scale pop concerts were eventually phased out,  possibly related to the increased availability of other venues in NJ as well as security issues and concerns over the use of student activities funds.)

This information was compiled by Elisabeth Oliu, reference librarian, in Spring 2021.