Tag Archives: WKU Archives

WKU Archives Intern

Ryun Warren

Ryun Warren, center, reviewing architectural drawings with fellow members of American Institute of Architecture Students.

My name is Ryun Warren, and I am a junior at WKU majoring in Architectural Sciences. This semester (Spring 2015) I had the opportunity to research, process, and catalog over two hundred sets of construction drawings pertaining to several projects on campus dating from the 1930s to the 2000s (UA30/1/1). Within these documents I was able to see how the design and drafting process has evolved over time, especially in regards to major technological advancements in the field (i.e. Computer-Aided Drafting (CAD) software). The art of hand drafting has almost become a lost art with the efficiency of computer software in a fast-paced society. However, the majority of these sets of construction documents were hand drawn and reveal the level of detail and thought given to each building that is or has been a part of The Hill. From Van Meter Hall to the original Ogden College buildings, from iconic Cherry Hall to Diddle Arena, I was fortunate enough to be able to not only study architectural history but to study the history of our college campus, its story throughout time as told through its construction.

The importance of preserving this story was impressed upon me throughout my stay in the WKU Archives. Proper storage is the only way to ensure that these beautiful drawings withstand the test of time and are available for future generations to study and admire.

With over two hundred sets of drawings stored in various locations, a detailed catalog must be kept. I was trained to enter these drawings into PastPerfect – the cataloging database software used by WKU Library Special Collections to easily sort and process all of the documents, photographs, and manuscripts within its possession. These are available online through KenCat. In addition to PastPerfect, I created and maintained a detailed spreadsheet specifically for the construction documents containing such information as project title, associated buildings, drawing dates, architect(s) of record, and references to the PastPerfect photo entries where applicable (UA1C9).

1D3815This experience has truly been informative as both a study of architecture and a study of my WKU home. The history of this campus as told through its buildings is arguably as telling as any other means of relating the history of how The Hill came to be. Likewise, the proposed buildings and the thought of what WKU could have looked like if a different design won a bid provokes thought as to why a certain bid may have won and how people would interact differently with campus and with each other.

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#May4Matters

Protest March

We were recently contacted by the May 4 Visitors Center at Kent State University to participate in the 45th anniversary of the Kent State shootings. According to the email WKU was one of 1250 universities and colleges that held protest demonstrations in the week that followed that Monday tragedy.  And indeed on Tuesday, May 6th WKU students joined the nationwide protest against the shootings and the escalation of the Vietnam War.   That protest began a two week sparring match between students and WKU administration. Continue reading

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Happy Earth Day!

As you ponder the health of our habitat and our role in it, today, some local context may be useful to you. The online catalog for Special Collections, KenCat.wku.edu, can lead you to a variety of resources. Many of these, such as WKU publications, are available online.

For example, a KenCat search for “energy” will produce results on topics including the energy crisis, coal, conservation, solar energy, and past Earth Day activities. You may also want to search for conservation, recycling, environment, sustainability and other topics.  You can also perform a truncated search by adding an * to words such as environment to expand the search.

Environment* will return:

  • environment(s)
  • environmental
  • environmentalist(s)
  • environmentally
F837-8

This solar collector is a project to be entered in a competition according to Bobby Hunton and T.J. Moyers, both members of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. They said the winner will be judged by the amount of temperature change recorded when water runs through the collector. 1977-1978

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Post written by WKU Archives Assistant April McCauley.

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March Out of the Box

Chapel – students on the steps of Van MeterStudent Nurses

Elevator 3/1915 – student happenings 100 years ago

Fanlight, Spring 1990 – Kentucky Museum happenings 25 years ago

Gender & Womens Studies – collection inventory, records available for research

Health Clinic Report 1965

Potter Hall – building history which answers the question, “Who was Potter?”

Softball – a variety of sources on a favorite spring sport

University Center Board – Meeting 3/28/1990

Volleyball – a variety of sources on Volleyball

WKU Map 1965 – could you find a parking place in 1965?

WKU vs Austin Peay – men’s basketball program 2/22/1965

Womens Basketball – photos through the years

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WKU Archives Video Digitization Project Update

filmYesterday we received 31 more videos from our digitization vendor. Many of these are short advertisements created by WKU Public Affairs in 1974 and 1975.

We will be uploading these “new” videos to our WKU Library Special Collections YouTube Channel.  Let us know if you can identify students and faculty included in the videos.

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February Out of the Box

Board of Regents 2/1/1947Step Show

Championship Effort

Dignitaries & Visitors

Diversity Programs

Felts Log House

Fraternities

Integration

Integration at WKU

Minorities

Philosophy & Religion

Sorority System Report

Tops Beat Cats

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Pet Rattlesnake, Heartbroken, Dies

The Biology Department is mourning the loss of its pet rattlesnake. Death came stealing in on Sunday night after Homecoming and claimed it for her own. Some seem to think that the rattler was so disappointed over Western’s loss to Murray that it felt that future life was not worth while, even if that life was to be devoted to science.

None of the other depart[ments] was affected, as no one but Death and the Biology Department would want a rattlesnake or care what became of it.

Yes, we are digitizing more College Heights Heralds.  I do enjoy reading through them and coming across tidbits like the one above from the Nov. 10, 1933 issue.  The October 27th issue had reported the 20 to 6 homecoming game rout.  Apparently it was too much for a devoted Hilltopper rattle snake to take.

The latest issues to be digitized are 1933-1941, 2005 & 2006.  Check them out in TopScholar – search by date.

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WKU Archives YouTube Channel

This is just one of the many 2-inch quadruplex videotapes housed in WKU filmArchives.  These tapes were first created for use in television production in 1956.  Quads were phased out in the early-1980s and replaced by smaller videotapes. WKU no longer owns playback equipment for these tapes.

WKYU-TV recorded many programs using quad tapes that are being digitized through a $7500.00 WKU Libraries grant.  In September 59 quad tapes were shipped to Transfer Media in Indianapolis for digitization to DVD.  The second shipment of DVDs arrived at the Kentucky Building last week.

Theses titles are now available to researchers, some are now available on YouTube:

BRADD Legislative Report Senator Walter “Dee” Huddleston, 4/15/1977, CD884, Senator Huddleston reporting on legislative activities impacting the Barren River Area Development District

B-Roll of Chemistry Department & Various Campus Locations, 2/24/1971, CD894, a student conducting experiments in a chemistry lab and video of campus showing buildings on campus including Downing University Center

Continue reading

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January Out of the Box

Board of Regents 1/1915

WKU Winter Scene

WKU Winter Scene

Charles Crume Papers

Class of 1940

Elevator 1/1915

Green & Gold 1905

Master Plan 1965

Old Fort Bridge

Oral History Committee

Peggy Keck Interview

Sociology

Teachers College Heights 1/1940

Winter Images

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WKU Alum – Charles Napier

Charles NapierCharles Napier is pictured here as Captain Striker in 1984, click on the image to visit the official Charles Napier website, which includes images of his watercolor paintings.

Charles Napier, a Scottsville native and WKU alumnus, is the tough military officer/ cop/cowboy that was the bad guy on everything you saw in the 70s, 80s, and 90s.  The list of his acting credits is extensive and much too long to include, here, but please check it out on imdb.com. Continue reading

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