The body of missing Princeton University junior Lauren Blackburn was recovered from Lake Carnegie on Friday morning, April 25, 2025, ending a nearly week-long search for the 23-year-old student.
Blackburn, an English major at the prestigious New Jersey university, was last seen near the college’s Firestone Library around 6 p.m. on April 19 before vanishing. School officials reported him missing on Tuesday, April 22, through a campus-wide alert.
“I am deeply saddened to share with you that the body of Lauren Blackburn ’26 was found at Lake Carnegie this morning. Our hearts are heavy and we share our deepest condolences with Lauren’s family and friends,” Dean of Undergraduate Students Regan Crotty wrote in a letter to the school community.
Authorities pinged Blackburn’s phone in the area of the man-made reservoir around midnight Tuesday, which prompted officials to begin a water search. His body was discovered three days later.
Lake Carnegie sits just south of Princeton’s campus, near the university’s athletic complex, but is located approximately a mile from the library where Blackburn was last seen. The reservoir spans 263 acres with a uniform depth of nine feet at a 35-foot distance from the shoreline.
The lake was a gift from steel industrialist Andrew Carnegie, constructed at a cost of $450,000 in the early 1900s—equivalent to approximately $9.5 million today—according to university records.
Princeton’s Department of Safety confirmed the discovery of Blackburn’s body but did not immediately reveal a cause of death. The investigation was conducted by the Department of Public Safety with assistance from regional law enforcement agencies.
Blackburn was a former features writer for the Daily Princetonian, the student newspaper, and had recently received recognition as the winner of the 2024 Sam Hutton Fund for the Arts. This prestigious award is given to one student in the Lewis Center for the Arts annually to support undergraduate summer study, travel, and independent research.
Before attending Princeton, Blackburn graduated from Corydon Central High School in southern Indiana, where he built an impressive academic record. He made local headlines in 2019 as a high school senior when he was awarded both a National Merit Scholarship and a Gates Scholarship.
Former teachers from Blackburn’s high school remembered him fondly for his exceptional academic abilities and personal qualities. His English teacher, Kate Robinson, noted that Blackburn possessed what appeared to be a photographic memory, telling local media that he could read a book and retain everything in it. Science teacher Karen York emphasized his kindness, stating that she had never heard him speak negatively about anyone.
Blackburn’s academic journey led him to Princeton, where he was expected to graduate in 2026.
The search for Blackburn had intensified in the days following his disappearance, with campus security and local law enforcement focusing their efforts on Lake Carnegie after the phone location data was discovered.
According to campus publications, Blackburn’s death marks the sixth undergraduate student death at Princeton since 2021. Reports indicate that the previous five student deaths during this period were ruled as suicides, though university officials have not drawn connections between these incidents.
Princeton University has experienced what some publications have characterized as a concerning pattern of student deaths in recent years. Some reports indicate that as many as nine Princeton students have died since 2021, with varying classifications of the causes.
The university has not released additional details about the circumstances surrounding Blackburn’s disappearance or death. Students, faculty, and staff have been offered counseling and support services as they process this loss within the campus community.
Funeral arrangements and memorial services for Blackburn have not yet been announced by the university or his family.
