Category Archives: From Our Collections

Stories about content found within ASC; more person or item-specific than other categories.

‘Lil Orphan Annie Attends Purdue

Did you know that Harold Gray, the creator of ‘Lil Orphan Annie, was a Purdue grad?

Harold Lincoln Gray was born near Kankakee, Illinois, on January 20, 1894, to Ira Lincoln Gray, a farmer, and Estella M. Rosencrans. As a child, his family moved to a farm near West Lafayette, Indiana. Gray graduated from West Lafayette High School in 1912. After graduation he entered Purdue University. Due to losing both parents before he graduated high school, Gray had to serve as a construction worker to pay his college tuition. During college he also worked for the Lafayette Morning Journal creating cartoons and selling advertising.

Gray’s activities while a Purdue student. 1917 Debris yearbook

Gray was assistant art editor for the Debris yearbook for three years and art editor during his senior year. He drew political cartoons for the yearbook and also for the Exponent student newspaper. He served briefly as a reporter for the Exponent as well. Gray graduated from Purdue in 1917 with a Bachelor of Science degree. As was customary in yearbooks of the era, his name was listed along with nicknames such as “Grace” and “Cart.” Below his entry in the yearbook is the phrase “Oh! what a noble mind.”

Gray, 1917 Debris yearbook

Gray’s early student artwork published in the 1916 and 1917 Debris yearbooks speaks to Purdue life from the student perspective, and provides a glimpse of the artistic style for which he would later become known. It has been said that his artwork “cast a spell that enhanced his story. Filling his drawings with solid blacks, heavy shadows, and darkly shaded nooks and crannies.” (Harvey, 2013)

From the 1916 Debris

Gray’s artwork from 1916 Debris

Artwork done by Gray for a Purdue Student Handbook

Gray’s artwork from the 1917 Debris (his senior year)

MSA 255, Collection on Harold Gray, Karnes Archives and Special Collections, Purdue University Libraries

A week after graduating from Purdue, Gray accepted a job as a reporter for the Chicago Tribune, at a salary of $15 a week. He soon transitioned to the art department. Gray left the Tribune to enlist in the Army during World War I. He became a bayonet instructor, and rose to the rank of second lieutenant. After a short period in the Army he returned to the Chicago Tribune where he began a 5-year apprenticeship as an assistant to Sidney Smith on the comic “The Gumps.” Gray appreciated the training he received from Smith and began to develop some of his own ideas. At first he created a prototype boy hero and named him “Little Orphan Otto.” At the suggestion of an influential friend from his days at the Tribune, Joseph Medill Patterson, Gray drew a dress on the figure and renamed the character “Annie.” Part of this was because there were 50 boy comic strips at this time and only 3 girl comics. Both the Tribune and the New York Daily News launched “Little Orphan Annie,” on August 5, 1924. The main characters, “Annie,” her dog “Sandy,” and her billionaire foster father, “Daddy Warbucks,” soon took a growing number of readers on adventures, many with a slant toward social commentary.

Gray did not forget his Indiana and Purdue roots. Some of the strips from 1927-1929 featured adventures in Lafayette, Indiana and the vicinity, including Purdue University. Since Gray enjoyed exploring Happy Hollow Park as a boy, his comic strip often mentioned a fictional Happy Hollow Seminary.

In the comic below, Little Orphan Annie prepares to go to Purdue.

MSA 255, Collection on Harold Gray, Karnes Archives and Special Collections, Purdue University Libraries

In the following cartoons from 1928 and 1929, Annie again interacts with Purdue. Note the Purdue pennant in the first frame, and mention of “Happy Hollow” in the 3rd. Please click on the comic strips to get a better view.

MSA 255, Collection on Harold Gray, Karnes Archives and Special Collections, Purdue University Libraries

In these comics, Annie studies hard, while Gray reflects on his college days.

MSA 255, Collection on Harold Gray, Karnes Archives and Special Collections, Purdue University Libraries

Annie has a touch of spring fever, is happy Purdue beat its rival Indiana University, and learns about some famous Purdue alumni. Note the Purdue pillow that is prominently displayed.

MSA 255, Collection on Harold Gray, Karnes Archives and Special Collections, Purdue University Libraries

Bob Kriebel, a columnist for the Lafayette Journal and Courier newspaper wrote that Gray’s character, Annie, in many ways “reflected Gray’s personal convictions that all Americans should act with honor, independence of thought and industry; mind their own business and remain true to the traditional pioneering virtues.” (Kriebel, June 3, 2016)

The “Annie” cartoon took on a more political color in the 1930s. Eventually, the comic strip incorporated subtle commentary from Gray on income tax, organized labor, communism, left-wingers, food and fueling rationing, and public welfare. In regard to the latter, he named one of his characters Mrs. Bleeding Heart.

MSA 255, Collection on Harold Gray, Karnes Archives and Special Collections, Purdue University Libraries

By the late 1930s, hundreds of U.S. newspapers presented “Annie” to tens of millions of readers. Gray was sometimes criticized for his use of the comic strip to voice his conservative Republican political and social views. When he died of lymphatic cancer on May 9, 1968, in La Jolla, California, Gray was a millionaire, owing much of his wealth to his creation of “Annie.” Other artists later tried to draw “Annie,” but not with the same success. In the fall of 1979, Leonard Starr began writing and drawing new adventures under the title “Annie.”

In October 1995, the U.S. Postal Service chose “Little Orphan Annie” as one of 20 “Comic Strip Classics” in a series of commemorative stamps. Gray was also part of a select group of artists inducted into the Hall of Fame of the International Museum of Cartoon Art.

“Little Orphan Annie” as one of 20 “Comic Strip Classics” in a series of commemorative stamps from 1995.

Article by Mary A. Sego, Purdue Archives Processing Assistant.

References:

MSA 255, Collection on Harold Gray, Karnes Archives and Special Collections, Purdue University Libraries

Harvey, R.C. (2013, May 13). “The Orphan’s Epic.” The Comics Journal. Retrieved from http://www.tcj.com/the-orphans-epic/

Kriebel, Bob. (2016, June 3). ‘Annie’ cartoonist got his start in Lafayette. Journal & Courier. Retrieved from http://www.jconline.com/story/news/2016/06/03/annie-cartoonist-got-his-start-lafayette/84825770/

Thomis, Wayne. (1968, May 10), “Harold Gray, Orphan Annie’s Creator, Dies in West at 74.” Chicago Tribune. Retrieved from http://archives.chicagotribune.com/1968/05/10/page/3/article/harold-gray-orphan-annies-creator-dies-in-west-at-74

Remembering Amelia Earhart’s Round-the-World Flight: The 80th Anniversary of Her “Shining Adventure” (Part 2 of 2)

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Amelia Earhart kept notes from the different legs of her flight, and those notes are part of her papers in the Archives and Special Collections at Purdue. Some pages of her notes exhibit oil stains or other indications that she made them while in flight. The New York Herald Tribune had exclusive rights to her story, and Earhart remained in contact with the paper throughout her flight, sending telegrams from the various locations where she stopped to refuel.

MSP 9, The George Palmer Putnam Collection of Amelia Earhart Papers, Archives and Special Collections, Purdue University Libraries

To read the entire telegram, please click on image.

Purdue Exponent, March 16, 1937

Purdue Exponent, March 17, 1937, p.1

The New York Herald Tribune shared Earhart’s account of the flight with the Purdue Exponent.

Paul Mantz, Amelia Earhart, Harry Manning, and Fred Noonan being photographed in front of Earhart’s plane, Oakland Airport, California, March 17, 1937. MSP 9.

Paul Mantz, Amelia Earhart, Harry Manning, and Fred Noonan standing in front of the nose of Earhart’s plane, Oakland Airport [?], California, March 17, 1937. MSP 9.

The takeoff of Earhart’s Lockheed Electra plane from the Oakland Airport in California, March 17, 1937. This was the last test-hop of the flight before heading out over the Pacific. MSP 9.

The long anticipated flight had begun, and the Purdue Exponent shared the excitement with the Purdue community.

Purdue Exponent, March 18, 1937.

All three clips are from one front page Purdue Exponent article.

With 900 gallons of gasoline on board, Earhart finally takes off from Luke Field for Howland Island. Earhart’s first attempt resulted in disaster and a damaged plane.

Purdue Alumnus, March 1937, Vol. XXIV, No. 6, p. 3

Paul Mantz, members of the United States Army Air Corp, and others observing the wrecked Lockheed Electra plane after Earhart crashed while attempting to take off from Luke Field, Hawaii to Howland Island, March 20, 1937. MSP 9.

People watch as mechanics work on repairing the wrecked Lockheed Electra plane after Earhart crashed while attempting to take off from Luke Field, Hawaii to Howland Island, March 20, 1937. MSP 9.

The following are accounts from Last Flight, which was compiled from Earhart’s logs and journal writings by George Palmer Putnam after her death. It was to be titled World Flight.

“There was not the slightest indication of anything abnormal. Ten seconds later the airplane which brought us so gallantly to Honolulu lay helpless on the concrete runway, a poor battered bird with broken wings.”

“As for the crew, only our spirits were bruised when this sudden disaster overtook us. By good fortune, Harry Manning, Fred Noonan and I emerged without a scratch. But the plane, her landing gear wiped off and one wing damaged, was a sad sight to see. At that, the comparatively slight damage was a fine testimonial to the sturdiness of Lockheed construction – such an accident might well result in a total wash-out.”

“Witnesses said the tire blew. However, studying the tracks carefully, I believe that may not have been the primary cause of the accident. Possibly the landing gear’s right shock absorber, as it lengthened, may have given way.” “Watchers on the ground saw the wing drop. Suddenly the plane pulled to my right. I reduced the power on the opposite engine and succeeded in swinging from the right to the left. For a moment I thought I would be able to gain control and straighten the course. But, alas, the load was so heavy, once it started an arc there was nothing to do but let the plane ground loop as easily as possible.”

“With the excessive weight, the landing gear on the right was wrenched free and gasoline sprayed from the drain-well. That there was no fire was surely the result of the generous good wishes which had come from all over the world. No one of the three of us on board was even shaken, a testimony to the safety of a modern metal plane such as mine.”

“In retrospect, I am thankful that the failure occurred where it did rather than in some isolated corner of the world far from help.” “And I must say a good word for Fred Noonan and Harry Manning. They were both as game as could be. In fact, when the first when reached the plane and opened the cabin door, they found Fred Methodically folding up his charts. He said that when I flew again he was ready to go along” (Last Flight, 70-72).

From March – May, 1937 the Lockheed Electra was back in California being repaired.

Again, in Earhart’s words:

“Like broken bones which Nature knits slowly in her own special process, the injured parts of an airplane must be painstakingly restored.” There is no short cut to full usefulness in either case if perfect healing is desired. In addition to “healing,” a strengthening of certain members to withstand the excessive strain to which overloading subjects them was in order in my Electra. This meant some actual redesigning, another process which could not be hurried. As to the precious engines, they were already in the Pacific Airmotive shops at Burbank being thoroughly checked. After the plane and engines were together, some time would have to be allowed for testing.”

With the rebuilding of the plane in hand, our next task was to appraise the effect of delay upon our flying plans. We had picked mid-March as about the best time for the flight from standpoint of weather – so far as one could expect consistent “bests” on such a long route. Setting back the date three month would see seasons relentlessly progress. In some places progress would be with benefit to pilots, in others the reverse. Here rains began, there they abated, here winds were favorable, there monsoons and choking dust storms were due. So we set to studying again the weather maps of the world and consulting with meteorologists who knew the habits of fogs and rains with temperatures around the long equator.”

“The upshot of those consultations was that I decided to reverse the direction originally chosen for the flight. Earlier it had seemed that the advantage lay in passage to the west; at the later date the contrary appeared true. After all, for practical purposes and disregarding Mr. Einstein, the world measures the same distance from west to east, as east to west, on any given route” (Last Flight, 75-76).

Stay tuned, as we relive Amelia Earhart’s Round-the-World Flight, in celebration of the 80th anniversary…

Sources:

Earhart, Amelia, and George Palmer Putnam. Last Flight. New York: Harcourt, Brace, 1937. Print.

MSF 450, Amelia Earhart at Purdue Collection, Karnes Archives and Special Collections, Purdue University Libraries

MSP 9, The George Palmer Putnam Collection of Amelia Earhart Papers, Archives and Special Collections, Purdue University Libraries

Vertical Files, Karnes Archives and Special Collections, Purdue University Libraries

Purdue Student Publishing Foundation, and Purdue University. The Purdue Exponent (1889). Print.

Editor’s Note: Writer Mary A. Sego is an archival assistant and processing specialist within Archives and Special Collections.

Remembering Amelia Earhart’s Round-the-World Flight: The 80th Anniversary of Her “Shining Adventure” (Part 1 of 2)

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Eighty years ago Amelia Earhart attempted to become the first person to fly around the world at the longest distance, along the equator. She disappeared during this flight, and the mystery of what happened to Earhart, her navigator Fred Noonan, and her Lockheed Electra airplane continues to fascinate and intrigue us. During that fateful summer of 1937, the Purdue Exponent student newspaper, with the co-operation of the New York Herald Tribune, kept readers updated on Earhart’s flight progress. In this post, we will relive her amazing 27,000-mile journey by sharing features from the Exponent, a first-hand account from one of Earhart’s friends, and handwritten notes that Earhart took to summarize each leg of her flight, which she subsequently shared with the news media and planned to compile into a book.

Letter to Amelia Earhart from President Elliott, thanking her for accepting the position at Purdue in the fall, dated June 4, 1935. MSP 9.

Amelia Earhart and Purdue’s paths first crossed in September 1934 when she addressed the fourth annual “Women and the Changing World” Conference sponsored by the New York Herald Tribune. Purdue President Edward Elliott was at the same conference to speak on “New Frontiers for Youth.” He stayed to listen to Earhart speak on aviation’s future and the role of women in its advancement. Elliott, intrigued by her speech, arranged to meet her and her husband, George Palmer Putnam. Elliott and Putnam hit it off. After they dined at the Coffee House Club in New York, Elliott got right to the point, letting Earhart know that he wanted her to work at Purdue, where she would be in a role to inspire Purdue’s approximately 800 women students to seize new opportunities in America’s changing society.

MSP 188, Collection of Amelia Earhart Related Materials, Archives and Special Collections, Purdue University Libraries

Elliott and Earhart sat down and worked out the details. Due to Earhart’s busy schedule, she could not be a full-time faculty member, but she would attempt to spend at least one month at the university during the school year as a careers consultant for women students. Purdue in turn would pay her a $2,000 salary (Boomhower, 38). Along with guiding women students toward new careers, she also served as a technical adviser in aeronautics to Purdue, which was, at that time, the only university in the country equipped with its own airport. The connection between Amelia Earhart and Purdue University had begun. It would later expand in ways they could not have imagined.

Vertical Files, Amelia Earhart.

Although she spent only a short amount of time at Purdue, Earhart’s ties to Purdue played a key role in securing the money and equipment necessary for attempting her round-the-world flight. On April 19, 1936 the university announced the establishment of the Amelia Earhart Fund for Aeronautical Research. With contributions totaling approximately $50,000 from J.K. Lilly, Sr. and David Ross, and later donations of cash and equipment from companies such as Bendix, Western Electric, Goodrich, and Goodyear, Earhart purchased her “flying laboratory,” a twin-motored Lockheed Electra 10E airplane that would allow her to attempt her greatest long-distance flight yet, to circumnavigate the globe.

Letter from Amelia Earhart to Edward Elliott acknowledging receipt of letters concerning her leave of absence from her position as Consultant in Careers for Women, and the use of the Purdue University Airport in connection with her flight, May 8, 1936. MSF 450.

The Purdue Research Foundation established the “Amelia Earhart Fund for Aeronautical Research” and Earhart purchased a new “flying laboratory,” April 21, 1936.

Purdue Exponent, April 21, 1936

Financial statement in regard to Lockheed and flight expenses, provided by George Palmer Putnam to President Elliott, September 26, 1936. MSF 450.

The plane was constructed at the Lockheed factory in Burbank, California, and included special features, such as extra gas tanks for long-distance flights, automatic pilot, deicing equipment, a radio homing device, and a two-way radio.

Close-up view of Amelia Earhart standing in the cockpit and looking over plans prior to finished construction on her Lockheed Electra plane, Burbank, California. MSP 9.

Vertical Files, Amelia Earhart.

Amelia Earhart sitting atop her Lockheed Electra plane with group of Purdue students, September 20, 1936. MSF 450.

Preparing for the world flight was a huge undertaking. During preparations, Earhart was asked numerous times why she decided to attempt this flight. Her answer was always “because I want to.” She called the trip a “shining adventure, beckoning with new experiences, adding knowledge of flying, of peoples, of myself” (Boomhower 41). She also noted that with the flight behind her, she would become more useful to herself and to the aeronautical program at Purdue (Earhart, Last Flight 55). She called the Electra her “flying laboratory” because her intent was to use the plane to conduct research on the effects of long-distance flying on pilots . Once the flight was accomplished, the plane would be returned to Purdue where it would be used to further pure and applied scientific research in aeronautics. Royalties from the book Earhart planned to write about her flight would also support this research.

Bo McNeeley, Earhart’s mechanic, Amelia Earhart, and Captain L.I. Aretz inspecting the Lockheed Electra plane at the Purdue University Airport, circa 1936. MSF 450.

Earhart was to attempt her world flight twice. Originally, her flight team included Fred Noonan and Harry Manning. The original plans were for Noonan to navigate from Hawaii to Howland Island, a particularly difficult portion of the flight; then Harry Manning would continue with Earhart to Australia and she would proceed on her own for the remainder of the project.

As Earhart prepared for her world flight, anticipation continued to grow both on campus and in the minds of the public. Americans wanted to keep up to date on the progress of Earhart’s latest adventure. Purdue students claimed her as one of their own, and waited anxiously to hear of her progress.

Amelia Earhart and Fred Noonan with map of the Pacific showing the route for their world flight, circa 1937. MSP 9.

Earhart is ready for flight, March 11, 1937.

Purdue Exponent, March 11, 1937, p. 1, c. 2-3

Earhart is ready for flight, March 11, 1937. MSP 9.

To be continued…

Sources:

Boomhower, R. “Amelia Earhart at Purdue: The aviatrix and the university.” Traces, Summer (1994): 36-41.

Earhart, Amelia, and George Palmer Putnam. Last Flight. New York: Harcourt, Brace, 1937. Print.

MSF 450, Amelia Earhart at Purdue Collection, Karnes Archives and Special Collections, Purdue University Libraries.

MSP 188, Collection of Amelia Earhart Related Materials, Karnes Archives and Special Collections, Purdue University Libraries.

MSP 9, The George Palmer Putnam Collection of Amelia Earhart Papers, Karnes Archives and Special Collections, Purdue University Libraries.

Vertical Files, Karnes Archives and Special Collections, Purdue University Libraries.

Purdue Student Publishing Foundation, and Purdue University. The Purdue Exponent (1889). Print.

Editor’s Note: Writer Mary A. Sego is an archival assistant and processing specialist within Archives and Special Collections.

Looking Down, Looking Out, and Looking Up: Maps and the Human Experience

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The latest exhibit in Archives and Special Collections explores the history, art, and science of maps and their interaction with the people who create and use them. “Looking Down, Looking Out, and Looking Up: Maps and the Human Experience” will be open until June 23, 2017, in the Purdue University Archives and Special Collections. Populated entirely with maps from our collections, this exhibit highlights the wide variety of uses and styles of maps and their applications in many aspects of modern society. This blog post will highlight just a few of the maps and artifacts in the exhibit.

Navigantium atque Itinerantium Bibliotheca…by John Harris

One of the earliest items on display is a large volume published in 1744, Navigantium atque Itinerantium Bibliotheca. Or, a Complete Collection of Voyages and Travels… by John Harris, a compilation of travel notes and discoveries of more than 500 writers. The text includes extensive analyses of geography, science, and culture. The book, which is dedicated to King George II, also includes a world map in the front. Especially notable is the “Parts Undiscovered” over the area now known as Alaska and the northwestern regions of Canada.

John S. Wright’s history notebook, 1889, MSA 27

In 1889, Purdue student John S. Wright illustrated and colored historical maps to accompany his history class notes and assist him in his studies. Multiple maps are pasted into this notebook, illustrating wars and political boundaries from the Ancient Roman Empire to nineteenth century Europe. The notebook must have served Wright well; after graduating in 1892, he became an executive of the Eli Lilly Company.

Canal map from A General History of Inland Navigation… by J. Phillips

This foldout map shows extant and planned canals throughout England, designated by pink or green lines. The map is part of A General History of Inland Navigation, Foreign and Domestic; Containing a Complete Account of the Canals Already Executed in England, with Considerations on Those Projected, by J. Phillips, published in 1792.

Wilmer Stultz flight plan, 1928, MSP 38

In 1928, Amelia Earhart became the first woman to fly across the Atlantic Ocean. The pilot of that flight was Wilmer Stultz, and this is his hand-notated map with extensive navigational notations and charting of multiple possible flight courses for that famous trip. The exhibit also includes maps from the planning of Earhart’s final flight in 1937, during which she disappeared.

Cloth maps used by Ralph Schneck, MSP 123

During World War II, cloth maps could be crucial to the survival of downed Army Air Force pilots. These cloth maps were distributed to pilots and sometimes secretly passed into prisoner of war camps by concealment in books or games. The maps in the exhibit belonged to Ralph Schneck, pilot in the 8th U.S. Air Force, and were carried in a waterproof bag marked “MAPS ONLY.”

Lunar surface maps used by Captain Cernan, MSA 288

This book of lunar maps was used on the surface of the moon by Captain Gene Cernan during the Apollo 17 mission, the last human mission to the moon. The book contains 24 segments of the Taurus-Littrow Valley along with a larger overview map of the valley.

Map pins owned by Lillian Gilbreth, MSP 8

Among the map-related items in the exhibit are these map pins owned and used by Lillian Gilbreth, Purdue professor and expert in efficiency and organizational management. Pins like these were stuck into large wall maps for various purposes; the variety of colors and shapes allowed for the owner to create her own identification system using the pins.

You can see these items and many more in the exhibit, open until June 23, 2017.

HAPPY 60th BIRTHDAY PURDUE PETE!

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Celebrating 60 Years of Purdue Pete

1940 University Bookstore “Pete”

When Purdue Pete ran out onto the football field September 24, 2016, he was 4 days shy of his 60th birthday. Pete was actually born in 1940, as a logo for University Bookstore. University Bookstore owners Doc Epple and Red Sammons hired artist Art Evans to create Pete as an advertising logo. He appeared on different products and dressed to portray the different majors.

Vertical Files, Karnes Archives and Special Collections, Purdue University Libraries. Original copies courtesy of University Bookstore.

The logo became popular, and Pete made his way from University Bookstore to the pages of the 1944 Debris student yearbook. He also became officially known as “Pete” at this time, when Doc Epple was asked what his name was. Pete may have also served as an image of strength for Purdue during World War II.

1944 Debris http://earchives.lib.purdue.edu/cdm/ref/collection/debris/id/23509

1944 Debris http://earchives.lib.purdue.edu/cdm/ref/collection/debris/id/23516

Purdue Pete took on human form in 1956 when athletic director Guy “Red” Mackey gave the go-ahead to create a sports mascot to inspire fans at home football games. Larry Brumbaugh (ME ’57) was selected to be the first Pete by the Pep Committee. Brumbaugh was tasked with creating a costume for Purdue Pete. After doing research and contacting various costume companies, he was still at a loss as to what Pete should look like. Mrs. John Keltner from Brumbaugh’s hometown of Union City, Indiana, made a head out of chicken wire and papier-mache. The head weighed 36 pounds, and the chicken wire made it cumbersome to move. Purdue Pete made his first public appearance on September 28, 1956, at a pep rally before the Missouri game.

Two other students donned the first version of the Purdue Pete costume, David Hull (AAE ’58) and John Knote (LA ’59).

http://earchives.lib.purdue.edu/cdm/ref/collection/puhistphot/id/47

http://earchives.lib.purdue.edu/cdm/ref/collection/puath/id/2352

Tragedy struck in 1962 when Pete’s head flew out of the Boilermaker Special on the way back from the Iowa State game and was never found. This led to a makeover in 1963.

1976 Debris, page 252

The new Pete had a larger head, rosy cheeks, and a smaller open-mouthed smile. This Purdue Pete costume was in use circa 1963-1976. His big head limited the movement of the student portraying him, and his head even served as a target for snowballs at a Michigan game.

1976 was the dawning of yet another Purdue Pete. This Pete was created by Van Betulius (A ’76) with the help of an artist from Evansville. His head was all fiberglass, and his look was more boyish and less like something from the pages of a cartoon strip. Unfortunately, the head weighed 50 pounds.

Boyish Pete

Photo courtesy of http://hailtopurple.com/av/photos_1970s_newspaper.html

Purdue Pete saw a few more changes in 1977, his hat got bigger, his eyes were bolder, and his ears were less flat. Pete’s head was five feet high, and still weighed around 50 pounds. This Purdue Pete costume was used circa 1977-1980.

1979 Debris, page 121 http://earchives.lib.purdue.edu/cdm/ref/collection/debris/id/47487

1980 Debris, page 73

A new decade in 1980 saw the creation of a scowling, meaner Pete with thick eyebrows and furrowed brow. The new head, weighing only 10 pounds, was a welcome relief for those who wore it. Keith Butz, art director in the Telecommunication Center, worked with Donald Carter, a designer in the office of publications, to create the tougher Pete. This Purdue Pete would be around 1980-1983.

1981 Debris http://earchives.lib.purdue.edu/cdm/ref/collection/debris/id/48062

Debris 1983 http://earchives.lib.purdue.edu/cdm/ref/collection/debris/id/43853

In 1983 Purdue Pete sprouted hair and a construction hard hat. His scowl was replaced with a slight smile. The chin strap made his eyebrows wiggle up and down. This head weighed 12 pounds. This Pete costume would remain in use until circa 1989.

MSP 160, Purdue University Athletics Collection, Karnes Archives and Special Collections, Purdue University Libraries

In 1989, the Aviation Technology Composite Manufacturing Laboratory created a 5 pound head that was easier to move around in. They continue to make several heads out of composite materials over the course of a year and fix any damages that occur. Starting in 1995 the individuals who were selected to portray Pete were allowed to paint their own hats. This version of Purdue Pete continues to this day.

Purdue Pete doing research in the Purdue Archives and Special Collection, September 2012. We welcome all researchers!

PeteNow

Image courtesy of http://purduefootball.weebly.com/purdue-pete.html

There was an attempt to replace Purdue Pete in 2011 with a softer, more kid-friendly Pete. He donned a one piece suit, and big bulky shoes. Fans made it known that they were partial to the current Pete and demanded that the Purdue Pete they had known and loved be returned!

In 2014 Purdue fans rallied to help Purdue Pete win the Chicago Tribune’s Big Ten best mascot contest. Purdue Pete won with a landslide 5,422,716 votes: 74% of the total.

2004 Debris http://earchives.lib.purdue.edu/cdm/ref/collection/debris/id/65831

Over the years Purdue fans have made it known that Purdue Pete is an important member of the Purdue family. Kids flock to him, he pumps up the fans at sporting events, and he is a loyal ambassador for Purdue in general. We in the University Archives wish Purdue Pete a Happy 60th! Boiler Up!

If you would like further information on Purdue Pete, please see:

Purdue Alumnus

Purdue Alumnus, January/February 2011

http://www.purduealumni.org/alumnus/2011_jan_feb/player/files/pdf/publication.pdf

Aviation Technology Composite Manufacturing Laboratory

Purdue University ECN

https://engineering.purdue.edu/ECN/Support/KB/Docs/PurduePeteHistory

The Virginia Kelly Karnes Archives and Special Collections Research Center would also like to thank Tom Frey, Manager of University Bookstore, for sharing his file on the original “Pete.”

Submitted by Mary A. Sego, Processing Assistant, Purdue Archives and Special Collections.

The Women’s Health Movement Comes to Purdue: Discovering the Sisters for Health Education Records

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In 1979, at the height of the Women’s Movement, three women at Purdue University formed the Sisters for Health Education (S.H.E.), a student organization founded on the principle that “every woman has the right to understand and control her own body” (“History of S.H.E.,” Box 1, Folder 1). For the next few years, they set out to single-handedly educate themselves, and the women of Purdue, about their bodies in an effort to put back into the hands of women the knowledge to care for themselves, their children, and their communities.

In 1981, Purdue had no gynecologist on staff and lacked express resources for its women students in the areas of birth control, unwanted pregnancy, and sexual assault. In a letter to Ms. Dunkle, Director of the Health Equity Project, dated June 18, 1981, S.H.E. founding member Marcia Whisman relates several stories of women who came to S.H.E. in search of support and information after bad experiences with the sole nurse on staff at the student health center who handled “sexual matters”:

She should have her certification to practice taken away from her….[she] is opposed to abortion, doesn’t seem to have a very good attitude about sexuality in general, doesn’t like to deal with sexual matters, and is very inept with examinations to the point of hurting a friend of mine when she was examining her.

Another student was referred to the staff nurse for vaginal infections and was told to “quit fooling around” though she was not sexually active. Yet another requested a pregnancy test but never heard back from the staff nurse regarding the results. When she finally called, the nurse scolded her: “I have known for several days that you were not pregnant, but I thought I would let you worry—have you learned your lesson?”

In relating these stories, Whisman reveals the difficulties that women students faced in attempting to access unbiased healthcare in order to make informed decisions about their bodies – decisions that would also impact their education. Letters and articles describe the pushback encountered by Purdue staff who had previously advocated for a women’s center (one was short-lived, but the campus currently lacks one). Knowing this, S.H.E. proceeded with caution when petitioning the university for funds as a student organization, choosing their words carefully to “sanitize” their mission to counsel women on matters of birth control and abortion.

An early flyer distributed by the Sisters for Health Education invites Purdue students to a feminist consciousness raising meeting focused on women’s health (Sisters for Health Education Records [S.H.E.], MSP 150, Box 1, Folder 1).

“KNOWLEDGE IS POWER”

Despite institutional resistance, S.H.E. was operational by 1980; eventually they acquired a space in the Wesley Foundation and opened their “clinic” on March 2, 1981. They were soon busy hosting educational workshops, advising women over their hotline, and disseminating calls to action to protect women’s reproductive rights at the national level.

A collection of pamphlets addresses puberty, sexism, and teen pregnancy, and advises parents how to talk to their children about sex (Sisters for Health Education [S.H.E.] records, MSP 150, Box 3, Folder 11).

Fed up with the ways that sexism and racism shaped interactions between medical professionals – almost exclusively men at that time – and their patients, the Women’s Health Movement aimed to put medical knowledge directly into the hands of women. S.H.E. correspondence captures a national dialogue among feminists working to put knowledge directly into the hands of diverse women and questioning the epistemological assumptions inherent in healthcare practices of the time (see Wendy Kline’s “’Please Include This in Your Book’: Readers Respond to Our Bodies, Ourselves,” Bulletin of the History of Medicine, Spring 2005).

A cartoon in a copy of Lesbian Health Issues brings a queer perspective, and some humor, to the Women’s Health Movement (Sisters for Health Education [S.H.E.] records, MSP 150, Box 2, Folder 32).

Inspired by the movement’s motto, “Knowledge is power,” S.H.E. researched not only debates surrounding the Pill’s safety, but also mental health, fat-shaming, lesbian women’s sexuality, the beauty industry, and food additives and natural remedies for common ailments like menstrual discomfort and bladder infections. They corresponded with feminist organizations and women’s health clinics in solidarity around the country and ordered speculums directly from medical supply companies to distribute at workshops where they taught women how to view their own cervices.

In addition, they brought together local resources for victims of rape and sexual assault, including a brochure (shown below) from the Indianapolis Police Department advising women to “Trim bushes and shrubbery” around their homes “so no one can hide in them” (Box 2, Folder 22), advice that now seems comically outdated.

A booklet doles out advice to women on how to protect themselves from rape contemporary anti-violence activists and educators would now characterize as victim-blaming (Box 1, Folder 7).

Brochures, Sisters for Health Education (S.H.E.) records, MSP 150, Box 1, Folder 7.

A booklet (front and back) doles out advice to women on how to protect themselves from rape; contemporary anti-violence activists and educators would now characterize this as victim-blaming (Sisters for Health Education [S.H.E.] records, MSP 150, Box 1, Folder 7).

S.H.E. members compiled and circulated lengthy lists of recommended reading that covered topics ranging from feminist theory to a history of midwives. Oft-referenced throughout is the Women’s Health Movement bible, Our Bodies, Ourselves, a self-help guide to women’s health first published by the Boston Women’s Health Book Collective in 1970. Updated and reissued every four to six years and now available in more than thirty languages, the text remains the gold standard for many feminists and health educators today.

Brochures collected from women’s reproductive rights organizations offer information about U.S. eugenics programs targeting women of color under the guise of eliminating poverty (Box 2, Folder 34).

Brochures collected from various women’s reproductive rights organizations offer information about U.S. eugenics-like programs targeting women of color under the guise of eliminating poverty (Sisters for Health Education [S.H.E.] records, MSP 150, Box 2, Folder 34).

What unfolds in this collection is nothing short of a dynamic portrait of a nation’s healthcare practice under radical reform. Grassroots feminist health activists raised crucial questions about medical epistemology and literally rewrote how women understood and cared for their own health and for each other. This history, told through the correspondence and clippings of a small but dedicated group of Purdue feminists, continues to impact our healthcare today. Though the revolution may be incomplete, we see echoes of it in contemporary debates for reproductive justice and in renewed activism around home birth and midwifery, for example, the Big Push for Midwives campaign and Ricki Lake’s hit documentary The Business of Being Born.

THE GROWING BACKLASH

If the collection reveals the progress made by grassroots women activists, it also foreshadows a growing conservative backlash that would carry through the 1980s. S.H.E. members actively advocated for women’s right to access safe and legal abortion and protested the Human Life Amendment, wrote to prominent politicians at the state and national level, a precursor to today’s fetal personhood amendments. Though member’s letters are not included in the collection, the responses they received are, including letters from prominent politicians such as Richard Lugar and Dan Quayle. Newsletters penned by the then newly-founded Moral Majority defame the content of Our Bodies, Ourselves and “the feminist agenda” as a threat to the nation.

A copy of the proposed Human Life Amendment, annotated by a S.H.E. member (Sisters for Health Education [S.H.E.] records, MSP 150, Box 2, Folder 6).

Senator Richard Lugar’s response to a letter sent by a member of S.H.E. (Sisters for Health Education [S.H.E.] records, MSP 150, Box 2, Folder 6).

For contemporary readers, reproductive rights debates often seem a clear-cut dichotomy, a war between pro-life or pro-choice advocates. But the S.H.E. records expose much more nuanced and complicated perspectives on the issue than we might now imagine. Among proponents of the Women’s Health Movement, many were involved in other causes, including the anti-war and burgeoning environmental movements. Feminist small presses exploded across the country in the 1970s, capturing the conversation of the Women’s Movement and its intersecting discourses with other social movements for justice and equality – and the members of S.H.E. were tapped in.

A copy of the feminist small press magazine Win demonstrates the growing intersectionality of causes (Box 3, Folder 17).

A copy of the feminist small press magazine Win demonstrates the growing intersection of causes (Sisters for Health Education [S.H.E.] records, Box 3, Folder 17).

A political cartoon accompanies a New York Times article on abortion from 1980, its critique surprisingly contemporary (Box 2, Folder 6).

A political cartoon accompanies a New York Times article on abortion from 1980, its critique surprisingly contemporary (Sisters for Health Education [S.H.E.] records, MSP 150, Box 2, Folder 6).

UNTIDY ENDINGS

Ultimately, the collection ends abruptly and offers no explanation of what became of S.H.E. and its inspiring members. After the last materials dated 1982, there is silence. Earlier articles and letters hint at a struggle to maintain the flow of funds necessary to keep the resource going – the phone bill their largest expense. Marcia Whisman continued to send postcards and letters to her feminist sisters at S.H.E. even after she moved to Maryland to pursue graduate work. In a letter, she shares her intention to establish a similar resource at her next university, anticipating that women everywhere were in need of the knowledge to understand and care for their bodies.

In fall of 2015, Purdue hit another major milestone in caring for its women students: after years of student activism amid a growing national discourse surrounding sexual assault on college campuses, Purdue University announced the establishment of C.A.R.E., the Center for Advocacy, Response, and Education, a relationship violence and rape crisis center slated to open at the start of the 2016-17 academic year.

As one of the students who spent four years writing to university administration, organizing and speaking at Take Back the Night rallies, and talking with local media about the need for this resource, I cannot help but wonder what the members of S.H.E. would think of this newest result of grassroots feminist efforts at Purdue.

And I wonder, where did their feminist rabble-rousing take them and were they thanked enough for the work they did?

The struggle continues, sisters. Fight on.

P.S. Look for a newly donated collection on the years of student activism and advocacy that went into getting the Center for Advocacy, Response, and Education in the near future.

Editor’s Note: Dana Bisignani is a graduate assistant working in the Women’s Archives and an anti-violence activist and educator. A two-time recipient of the Berenice A. Carroll Award for Feminism Peace, and Social Justice, and former graduate instructor in Purdue’s Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Program, Dana left her doctoral program this year in order to pursue anti-violence education and prevention work full-time.

All the Best and 73s!: A Record of Amateur Radio Aboard STS-45 Preserved within the David C. Leestma Papers

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This is the QSL card that NASA sent out to HAM radio operators who made a contact with the Space Shuttle Atlantis.

Astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) today perform a number of objectives ranging from scientific experiments, station maintenance, to studies on the physiology of the human body in micro-gravity environments. With a rigorous schedule of experiments, little time each day is reserved for recreation. That said, recently the astronauts aboard the ISS viewed the newly released science fiction film, The Martian. This widely publicized event may not seem as bewildering as one would think as lately, astronauts on the ISS have been able to stay in constant contact with the public on Earth via social media. Astronaut Scott Kelly recently completed a year-long mission aboard the ISS as part of a study of the effects of long duration space flight on the human body. He regularly used Twitter.com to post images and updates to his more than 869,000 (Twitter) followers. Perhaps the first to garner the social media public’s attention was Canadian Astronaut Chris Hadfield who made headlines in 2013 when he posted pictures to his Twitter page and uploaded videos to the Canadian Space Agency’s YouTube Channel, documenting the day-to-day routine of the astronauts (YouTube). Public involvement and participation was enormous during this time, with Hadfield alone getting over millions of views on his posts, especially with his YouTube video covering David Bowie’s hit song, “Space Oddity,” while floating in the ISS. This video alone had six million views within days of its upload and now has over thirty million views (YouTube). The social media public is now actively involved with astronauts. Yet, the rather direct public interaction and exchanges with spacefarers 155 miles above the Earth is not really new. In fact, direct public interaction with astronauts took place years prior to the existence of Twitter and YouTube. People communicated with astronauts during space flights through the use of Amateur Radio.

This QSL card comes from Indiana and features the Space Shuttle. 4/1/1992

Amateur Radio, or HAM radio is a way for people with proper training to legally operate powerful radios to communicate with other operators. The term HAM is not an acronym, but instead it is a derogatory term that commercial radio operators gave to amateurs in the early 20th century when they were frustrated with amateur radio operators clogging the airwaves. A HAM radio is different than a typical AM/FM radio because HAM radios allow for two-way communication either through voice or Morse code. Amateur Radio operators, colloquially referred to as HAMs, use their radios to speak to people all over the world through different radio frequencies. The different frequencies allow for varying lengths of physical distance between radios. A 2-meter frequency is best for talking around town while a 10-meter frequency is best for long distances. This changes, however, if you increase the power of the radio. A standard hand-held HAM radio operates around one to five watts power. Increase the power to fifty watts, and the signal will travel much further. The same radio frequencies used by HAM radio operators to talk to one another locally and around the globe were even used by NASA to stay in contact with astronauts in their spacecraft and on the surface of the Moon.

Here is an example of a QSL card. Pictured is a HAM radio operator and his radio shack, along with his feline friend. 4/1/1992

After a two-way communication is made, called a QSO, both HAM radio operators will send each other a QSL card. The term QSL and QSO are not an acronyms, as they are taken from early maritime Morse code communications that used a system of “Q” codes to convey long messages. These “Q” codes were three characters long starting with the letter Q. “Q” codes are no longer used, but the QSL and QSO codes have found a place within amateur radio as a way to describe a two-way communication. A QSL card, similar to a postcard, is a fun way to physically represent the contacts that a HAM has communicated with. Amateur radio operators’ call signs are also not acronyms. These are assigned to the operator after they pass a licensing test given by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Printed on the card is usually the operator’s call sign, the Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) of the communication, information about the radio used, their geographical location, and sometimes a picture of the operator sitting in front of their ‘radio shack,’ (their HAM radio setup). The reverse side of the card is where one would find the technical details of the contact, such as the operator’s name, their address, a short message, type of radio, antenna, or other radio specifications. HAMs even use unique language when talking to one another. For example, saying, “73” is a friendly way to say goodbye and if a HAM says they are “workin’ DX” that means they are using their radios for worldwide contact. These two colloquialisms emerged from Morse code, and similar to the “Q” codes, have stuck with HAM radio. (Click here for a link to a glossary of HAM radio terms.)

This QSL card shows two call signs that of a husband and wife team from Alaska. 3/30/1992

This is the reverse of the QSL card from Alaska. 3/30/1992

During NASA’s Space Shuttle program, astronauts used the Shuttle Amateur Radio Experiment (SAREX) to communicate with amateur radio operators on Earth. These contacts were short conversations usually just long enough to hear each other’s call sign. In most cases, the operator on the ground would only hear the Shuttle and not be able to communicate with it. The length of these conversations depended on many different things, such as radio properties, geographical location, and the Shuttle’s location in relation to the radio operator on Earth. The purpose of SAREX was to engage the public in space flight. NASA created the program so that students, children, and the general public could have the chance to talk with the astronauts without an intermediary. For more information on SAREX, click here.

Crew of STS-45. (L-R Back Row: Byron K. Lichtenberg, Michael Foale, David C. Leestma, Kathryn D. Sullivan, Dirk Frimout. Front Row: Brian Duffy, Charles F. Bolden, Jr.) 6/11/1992 (Courtesy of NASA)

HAM radios flew on twenty-five Space Shuttle missions total, from 1983 until 1999. In 1992, four of the seven astronauts on STS-45 Atlantis were licensed HAMs. Kathy Sullivan (N5YVV), Brian Duffy (N5WQW), Dirk Frimout (ON1AFD), and David Leestma (N5WQC) operated the Space Shuttle radio and made roughly 1,804 contacts with people from thirty-one different countries, including three contacts from Antarctica. David Leestma recalls, “I just had a QSO with a K1OIQ on Palmer’s Station Andrew’s Island, Antarctica…That was really a thrill to be able to get Antarctic[a] on the radio,” (David C. Leestma papers, Box 27, Folder 4). Leestma used the term QSO, which is another “Q” code for a two-way communication. The majority of these contacts, 1,067, were made with HAMs in the United States. The country to make the second-most contacts was Belgium with 314 QSL cards, as STS-45 Atlantis was the first time a Belgian citizen, astronaut Dirk Frimout, was launched into space.

QSL Card from Palmer Station, Antarctica

This is the only QSL card to come from Antarctica. 3/30/1992

This is one of the 314 QSL cards that came from Belgium during STS-45. 3/29/1992

This card comes from California and features an operator and his shack. 3/29/1992

Below you will find two graphs, one detailing all of the QSL cards received by state and one detailing all of the QSL cards received by country, as well as an interactive world map with pin points located where a QSL card was sent to by the crew of STS-45 Atlantis.

Click on the map below to see if anyone from your hometown made contact with the Space Shuttle!

This graph shows the number of QSL cards received from each state.

This graph shows the number of QSL cards received by country.

Click on this image to view an interactive map of the QSL cards!

All of the QSL cards pictured here come from the David C. Leestma Papers. This collection contains the personal papers of Astronaut David C. Leestma from his time as a pilot in the Navy, a Space Shuttle astronaut, and his work in NASA’s administration offices during the Mir and ISS programs. Also, included in this collection are Leestma’s personal journals from 1981 to 2014. While Leestma’s papers offers some great insight into the daily workings of an astronaut and a NASA administrator, his collection of QSL cards are eye-catching. The cards offer a unique, visual look into the HAM radio tradition. They also show a segment of national and international enthusiasm that existed for the space program during the 1990s. HAM radio allowed for astronauts to be accessible to the entire world. From Alaska to Antarctica, and thirty other countries in between, HAM radio allowed for public participation in the space program long before astronaut Chris Hadfield released his music video from space on YouTube in 2013.

References:

Editor’s Note: Co-author Max Campbell is a second-year graduate student in the Purdue University Department of History. Co-author Hannah Vaughn is a senior at Purdue, majoring in History.

The Purdue University Buildings Project, Part I: Beginning the Research Process, Challenges, and Unfolding Histories

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In April 2015, I began working as a graduate student archival assistant on the Purdue Buildings Project. The project, a comprehensive research endeavor of the entire structural history of the West Lafayette campus, is funded by Richard Funkhouser, a former Purdue University Libraries faculty member for over 44 years. As Funkhouser states, “As a librarian and researcher, I understood the importance of documenting campus buildings, interiors as well as exteriors, before that information disappears.” Additionally, information regarding the Purdue University campus buildings is one of the top inquiries received by the Libraries’ Division of Archives and Special Collections. For many years, Archives faculty, namely David Hovde, have been compiling data on the structures of Purdue. Now, thanks to Mr. Funkhouser, a team of staff and students is working to create a robust online resource for the campus and beyond.

1890 Purdue West Lafayette campus map

Once complete, the colloquially-named Buildings Project will include a detailed description of every building that has ever been at Purdue. This content will be available for interested parties via an interactive website containing georeferenced maps, photos, and historical information. Indeed, once the information is online, researchers not only at Purdue but around the world will be able to directly access historical documents and data concerning the growth of one of the preeminent research universities in the U.S., thus increasing the depth and scope of scholarly communication at Purdue University and beyond.

Until the formalization of the university archives in 2009, research into the history of the Purdue West Lafayette campus has been decentralized and quite challenging. Even now, researching campus history remains an exercise in patience. In the first months on the project, I engaged in trial and error as I looked for a way to gather information in a way that seemed the least time consuming. Over time, my plan has morphed to gather materials by decades instead of finding one building at a time. Early Purdue building financing, construction, renovation, and use data is often not documented until years after the building was in use. In one example, a building built in 1905 had little to no information recorded in university records until noted in the 1915 Annual Register.

Purdue ladies in colonial costumes on stage of Ladies Hall

Other challenges include inconsistent or erroneous source materials; in some cases, building names and usage descriptions differ depending on the source. Nevertheless, through documentation and analysis of the data, I have been able to ascertain probable, if not certain, data about most structures. And the research continues. Indeed, I suspect the discovery of information in this manner will continue during the life of the project.

Personally, so far this project has been very insightful and fun to research. As a graduate student I actually don’t engage with the university history as much as I would have as an undergraduate taking the various school tours or courses across the breadth of campus. However, this project has allowed me to learn Purdue history and explore the campus in new ways. I have found it enriching to learn about old customs at the university and to learn what features were once a part of the campus and what features remain decades after their construction.

Purdue Hall, circa 1911

Over the course of the year I have been working I have learned a great deal about the beginning of the University and some of the issues with the first buildings. For instance, the Men’s Dormitory, built in 1872, was first created without chimneys, leading to heating issues. It was also interesting to learn about the Ladies Hall, built in 1874, where women were required to be chaperoned by a female faculty member. Furthermore, researching buildings leads one to learn a great deal about past campus culture, programs, and attitudes. Of note, Purdue in its early years was very concerned about the integrity of the agricultural program and, as a land grant institution founded to promote the mechanical arts, was hesitant to place emphasis on the humanities as a program of study.

Ladies Hall, 1929

One of the most interesting facts concerning the history of university buildings surrounds World War I. The book Purdue University: Fifty Years of Progress states that under the terms of its contract with the War Department, the University agreed to house, subsist, and train 1,500 men in Section A near the end of the war. The Government pledged itself to one dollar per man per day for housing and subsistence, and twelve cents for tuition. Buildings put into use for men in training included living quarters and sheds for equipment. Fraternity houses also took in family members, mostly wives, until they could find a more permanent living situation. At the fraternity homes dances and other social affairs were often given for the soldiers.

R.O.T.C. and Military barracks during World War I

Each day on this project brings its own challenges, yet the team at the archives has been able to research, compare, and combine multiple sources to ensure a detailed description of the buildings. To date I have identified approximately 100 buildings, dating up to 1935. In the coming months and years, Purdue Archives and Special Collection will continue to document the buildings history of Purdue. As Purdue is always growing and changing, so too will this project.

Editor’s Note: Margaret Sheble, a Medieval Literature graduate student within the Department of English, has been a graduate assistant in Archives and Special Collections for nearly two years.

The Purdue Seal: Symbol and Synergy…

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The Purdue University seal has evolved over the years, and upon close observation, the history of the University is reflected in this evolution. The first Purdue University seal was designed by Bruce Rogers in 1890, and there have been nine significant changes over the years. The present three part shield, designed by Al Gowan in 1968, reflects Purdue’s three permanent aims of the university: education, research, and service.

In today’s information age, people are constantly bombarded with many visual images and messages. The seal provides a strong visual identity that is recognized instantly and positively by key audiences around the world. Many alumni take pride in Purdue’s seal, and instant memories and emotions are evoked when the seal is seen on various documents and memorabilia.

Today the official university seal is used only for formal and official communications such as diplomas, letters of acceptance and communication from the Board of Trustees and the University president.

The following provides a look at how the seal evolved and those who took part in its design.

The First Purdue Seal

1890, First Design
Bruce Rogers designed the first Purdue seal for the cover of the Annual Register of 1890-91. Rogers was a Purdue undergraduate student at the time. His design emphasized the curriculum offered at the University. His inexperience is evident by the fact that the design was unsuitable for the letterpress printing process of the day. The design was never officially adopted by the University.

The Second Purdue Seal

1894, Second Design
Bruce Rogers also drew the second Purdue seal, which first appeared on the cover of the Exponent’s October 1 issue of 1894. This design remained loyal to the original concept but was better suited for reproduction. However, he added a caduceus to represent the new School of Pharmacy, which created a problem of too many symbols. By this time Rogers had graduated from Purdue, and in 1895 he moved to Boston.

Third Purdue Seal

1895, Third Design, Introduction of the Griffin Abby Phelps Lytle was asked by the University administration to design the third seal while head of the art department at Purdue. She introduced the slanted shield, Uncial lettering and the winged griffin. This design was used for nearly fifteen years. The intricate design, though aesthetically pleasing, was difficult to clearly reproduce.

1905, Fourth Design This fourth design was probably a study attempted by some engineering students. It is actually a bronze casting and is not suitable for reproduction. The image printed here is a graphic rendering of the three-dimensional piece. The image appears on the cover of a photo album of campus buildings from around that time period. It may have been a stimulus for the Benjamin design which came a few years later.

Fourth Purdue Seal Design

Fifth Purdue Seal

1909, Fifth design
Charles H. Benjamin, Dean of Engineering, designed the fifth Purdue seal. This design first appeared in the Purdue University Catalogue of 1909-10. The University wanted the Lytle design simplified and selected Benjamin, who was considered to be an artist as well as an engineer, to do the job. He worked from a sketch by Mrs. Marion Woodbury, the daughter of the Dean. The shield was reduced in size and the symbols reduced to three. The griffin now held a Roman lamp of learning. The design was used for the next sixty years.

1924, Sixth Seal Design

1924, A Variation
This variation, the sixth design, appeared in the Semi-Centennial Alumni Record of 1924. It was probably intended to present a more printable piece, which it does. The variation separates the griffin, the shield, and the banner from their positions on the Benjamin version. In doing so, the continuity of the images is lost. This design has appeared in Memorial Union publications from time to time. The designer is unknown.

Seventh Seal Design

1947, Seventh design
The seventh design was by Bruce Rogers. His suggestion for this design to the new university president, Fredrick L. Hovde, was never considered. Though Rogers’ seal designs did not meet with approval, his career was internationally distinguished by his work in type and book design. Many of his original works can be found in Archives and Special Collections at Purdue.

Eighth Purdue Seal Design

1947, Eighth Design
The eighth design, commissioned by Robert W. Babcock, was an attempt to simplify the Rogers design. Babcock was the editor of Campus Copy, a university publication. He printed the commissioned work along with the Rogers and Benjamin designs in the March 1947 issue of the Campus Copy to elicit faculty opinion. In the end the University continued using the Benjamin seal.

1968 Design

1968, Ninth & Current Design
Al Gowan was an Assistant Professor of the then new School of Creative Arts when he received a grant to develop a new University seal. His research resulted in a more stylized design. He redefined the seal’s concept, yet maintained a faithfulness to the calligraphic style of the Lytle seal of 1895. Rather than defining the curriculum, which is subject to change, Gowan felt the seal should represent the three permanent aims of the university: education, research, and service.

References:

MSP 119, Collection on the Purdue University seal, Karnes Archives and Special Collections, Purdue University Libraries

MSF 474, Albert J. Gowan papers, Karnes Archives and Special Collections, Purdue University Libraries

Horoho, M. (1993). Purdue Crest: a visual history. Valparaiso, IN: Sandlin’s Books & Bindery

Taming Electricity: A Purdue Student’s Career in Electromagnetic Compatibility

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Electricity, or the flow of electric charge, is arguably the most important invention behind the spectacular advancement in technology witnessed over the last century. It has truly revolutionized our lives on planet Earth, and the way we explore other worlds in the universe. Today, as we sit in our comfortable climate-controlled buildings talking to people on the other side of the globe, we take electricity for granted. We also tend to overlook the hard work of countless engineers and scientists for harnessing the power of electricity. Donald Heirman is one such electrical engineer who worked on some fundamental problems in electrical circuits.

The EMC “can of worms”

One interesting problem faced by engineers early on was the relationship between electricity and magnetism: they are intertwined, each is a by-product of the other. When an electrical circuit is powered up, it produces a magnetic field. This can create “disturbance” in a nearby (or even in the same) circuit, and cause performance degradation. If this seems too technical, recall experiencing cross-talk on a 90’s landline telephone, or static noise-lines on a TV. The phenomenon is known as Electromagnetic Interference (EMI), and becomes of greater concern as electronic devices shrink in size. Lots of electrical components are in close proximity of each other, and hence prone to electromagnetic interference.

Mr. Heirman working in a “noise-free” environment c.1979

“Taming” electricity is hard work but vital for the smooth functioning of our modern lives. That is exactly what Donald Heirman dealt with during his career at AT&T spanning more than three decades. Having graduated with BS (1962) and MS (1963) degrees in EE from Purdue, Mr. Heirman joined AT&T Bell Labs as a young electrical engineer. Over the years, he worked on some of the most important and exciting projects at AT&T including the development of an Open Area Test Site facility, and a Transverse Electromagnetic (TEM) cell for the Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC) analysis of devices. His work focused on electromagnetic interference testing and compliance, and stretched to a range of systems including computer processors, early telephone systems, antennae, road vehicles, and medical devices. Mr. Heirman was also the founding manager of Lucent Technologies (Bell Labs) Global Product Compliance Laboratory. In this role, he was in charge of the company’s major EMC and regulatory test facility, and its participation in national and international EMC standardization committees.

Mr. Heirman started his EMC career at a time when there were few legal limits on EM emissions from electronic devices (the FCC did not have EMC standards for electronic devices until 1979). His passion led him to join (and later lead) international efforts towards EMC standardization. He continues to work with all major national and international standards organizations including ANSI, IEEE and IEC. His many contributions to global electro-technical standardization in the field of EMC have been acknowledged in the form of some of the highest awards in the area.

Click to see the Bicycle Water Race c.1961

Mr. Heirman’s papers (http://collections.lib.purdue.edu/heirman/) provide a fascinating peek into the life and career of an EMC engineer. In addition, the papers offer an unparalleled insight into the history and evolution of EMC standards. The collection also includes some of Mr. Heirman’s amateur videos showcasing life at Purdue University during the early 1960’s. These videos are a rare glimpse of some of the events (sports at Purdue, the Purdue grand prix, ground breaking of the Purdue Airport, and the 1961 visit of President Eisenhower), and traditions (pie throwing, Iron Key, bicycle water race) at Purdue University. The video clip on the right shows just one such tradition (now forgotten): the bicycle water race.

Mr. Heirman currently runs a training and consulting business by the name of Don HEIRMAN Consultants. He continues to be a key player and educator in the field of EMC. His papers are part of the Donald N. Heirman Collection in the Virginia Kelly Karnes Archives and Special Collections Research Center at Purdue Libraries. The collection is open for research.

Memoirs & Memories

Tales From Purdue University Archives and Special Collections

Category Archives: From Our Collections

‘Lil Orphan Annie Attends Purdue

Remembering Amelia Earhart’s Round-the-World Flight: The 80th Anniversary of Her “Shining Adventure” (Part 2 of 2)

Remembering Amelia Earhart’s Round-the-World Flight: The 80th Anniversary of Her “Shining Adventure” (Part 1 of 2)

To be continued…

Looking Down, Looking Out, and Looking Up: Maps and the Human Experience

HAPPY 60th BIRTHDAY PURDUE PETE!

The Women’s Health Movement Comes to Purdue: Discovering the Sisters for Health Education Records

All the Best and 73s!: A Record of Amateur Radio Aboard STS-45 Preserved within the David C. Leestma Papers

The Purdue University Buildings Project, Part I: Beginning the Research Process, Challenges, and Unfolding Histories

The Purdue Seal: Symbol and Synergy…

Taming Electricity: A Purdue Student’s Career in Electromagnetic Compatibility