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125 Year Archival Retrospective

Welcome to the Main Event: The Von Erich family legacy

Posted by & filed under 1970's, 1980's, 1990's.

In this story, hailing from Lake Dallas, Texas, the University of North Texas’ heavyweight champions, the immortal Von Erich Family!

One of the storied names in professional wrestling, the members of the Von Erich dynasty have been in the ring since 1953, when patriarch Fritz Von Erich (real name Jack Adkisson) made his debut in Dallas. Eight members, three generations, of Adkissons have wrestled under the Von Erich name. Though Fritz himself had attended Southern Methodist University, two of his sons—Kevin and David—attended North Texas State University during the 1970s.

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Lost campus buildings

Posted by & filed under 1900's, 1910's, 1920's, 1930's, 1940's, 1950's, 1960's, 1970's, 1980's, 1990's, 2000's, 2010's.

Over the 125 year history of North Texas many buildings have served the needs of the faculty and students. A few, such as Curry Hall and the Power Plant, have stood on campus since the 1900s. Others are remembered by alumni and faculty, but they ceased to grace the campus as new and larger structures took their place. Below is a list of buildings that exist only in photographs and the memories of those that passed through them.

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The McConnell Tower

Posted by & filed under 1950's.

The Administration Building (now known as the Hurley Administration Building) was constructed at the north end of the original football field in 1955-1956. The structure was placed on Chestnut Street and Avenue B, just west of the Union Building. President Emeritus McConnell took great pleasure in the construction of the new Administration Building. President Matthews stated that McConnell “watched this longtime dream of the college come true-and looked upon it as an accomplishment which he, faculty members, students, and ex-students had long anticipated.”   

Dr. McConnell started as a faculty member at the North Texas State Normal College in 1916. McConnell rose to become a dean in 1923 before becoming the school’s president in 1934. He would serve until 1951. President McConnell died on November 24, 1955. His administration was noted for the expansion of the campus with the construction of 22 new buildings. Some of the structures that were built during McConnell’s time in office were: Marquis Hall, the Library (now known as Sycamore Hall), Chilton Hall, Terrill Hall, Bruce Hall, the Journalism Building (also known as Scoular Hall), and the Chemistry Building (also known as Masters Hall). McConnell was the President Emeritus from 1951 until his death.

In January, 1956, while the Administration Building was under construction, an announcement was released that the administration and the Board of Regents would name the building’s tower the President W. Joseph McConnell Memorial Tower. Matthews went on to say that “it is fitting that one who has had so much to do with developing the physical plant of the college should be memorialized in this symbol of the college’s growing stature. The administration and Board of Regents felt it uniquely fitting that the tower should be named the W. Joseph McConnell Memorial Tower.”

A tower in the center of campus, with chimes, had been a long time dream of the North Texas community. The first proposal, in 1928, called for chimes to replace the curfew bell and the installation of an electric clock in a tower. Other proposals failed to find funding. Money raised for the tower and carillon were used instead for the building and decoration of the first union building. Plans for a new administration building would finally bring the dream to reality. Friends of President McConnell, students, and alumni were encouraged to donate toward the purchase of a carillon for the tower. The first contribution was made by the chairman of the Board of Regents, Ben Wooten. Mr. Wooten, president of the First National Bank of Dallas, had studied under Dr. McConnell as a student at the college.

The clock face was installed in October of 1956. Originally only one face, measuring 6 feet 2 ¾ inches in diameter, was installed on the north side facing the campus. The minute hand measured 36 inches with the hour hand at 24 inches long. The hands and letters are cast in bronze. Four floodlights were installed to illuminate the tower at night.

The carillon is a 32 note Deagan Celesta Chime. The source of the tone is a series of slender metal rods which sound by electronically activated strikers. Microphones enhance the sound and carry it across campus via loudspeakers. The carillon can be played manually or with record rolls. Plans originally called for the carillon to be played each evening and for special events. Westminster chimes provide notice of the time every hour on the hour.

The dedication of the tower, which rises 189 feet above ground level, and carillon was held on December 16, 1956. President J. C. Matthews presided at the ceremony. Ben Wooten dedicated the tower. Dr. A. M. Sampley, vice president of the college, delivered the invocation. June Albright, of the J. C. Deagan Company, performed as part of the dedication ceremony. Recognized as one of the top carillonneurs in the nation, she performed “Adeste Fideles,” “What Child is This?”, and “In Dulci Jubilo” among other songs. The performance ended with the college alma mater.

During his speech Wooten stated, “He [McConnell] was a great administrator, and the Board of Regents thought it was fitting that this tower, standing as it does at the center of the campus overlooking the 22 major buildings which were built during his administration representing the culmination of a dream of student, ex-students, faculty, and Board of Regents, should bear his name.”

— by Perri Hamilton, Assistant to the Archivist

 

The Texas Academy of Math and Science (TAMS)

Posted by & filed under 1980's, 1990's, 2000's, 2010's.

The Texas Academy of Math and Science program, popularly known as “TAMS,” began in 1987 when a bill was signed by Governor William B. Clements, Jr. that established the program at North Texas State University. The early admission program offers students in high school the opportunity to get a head start in college during their last two years in high school. Students receive two years of college credit for participating in the tuition-free program. The last two years of high school and the first two years of college are completed simultaneously.

The program has been ongoing since its inception, with over 3,500 graduates who specialize in math, science or related courses. Only two hundred applicants are allowed into the program every year in accordance with their college entrance examination scores, grades, interviews, reference letters, as well as their level of commitment and motivation. A 1990 TAMS pamphlet stated that students were expected to score at least 1000 total on the SAT, with a minimum of 550 in math. Students are selected as sophomores to attend college beginning their junior year of high school and as one might imagine, getting into the academy is very competitive.

TAMS was created to address a shortfall in the math and science test scores of American students, who fell below international averages in the 1980s. The program has been an effective means of preparing students for the more accelerated college or university-based math and science courses.

Through the program, students are encouraged to seek out science and engineering-based studies at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. The academy is structured this way to address a growing technological infrastructure across the state which requires knowledgeable individuals in these fields as the number of jobs increases. TAMS also addresses the need for more math and science teachers in the state of Texas. Students are also encouraged to take humanities courses in addition to other offerings during this time for a broader educational experience.

In 1992, TAMS received the Excellence in Higher Education Award from the Association of Texas Colleges and Universities. That same year, Elizabeth Morales, an El Paso graduate, was selected for the National Science Foundation Youth Scholars Program on an Antarctica research expedition during the summer.

Students from the program get accepted into advanced programs at other universities, like Harvard, Rice, Johns Hopkins, Georgetown, Boston University, New York University, as well as Texas A&M and others. Many students involved in the TAMS program have also received scholarships and other honors, which have enabled them to further their studies at UNT or elsewhere.

In 2013, TAMS celebrated the 25th anniversary of its first class. 79 students were part of the first program with 67 of these students graduating in the academy’s first class of 1990.  Today, TAMS graduates 170 students annually.

— by S. Ivie, Associate Processing Archivist

Roy Orbison, the UNT Roots of “Ooby Dooby,” and Denton Versus the Borg

Posted by & filed under 1950's.

Before Roy Orbison was topping the charts, he was studying geology at North Texas State. His stay was brief; he is absent from the school’s yearbooks, but his time in Denton did a great deal to launch his career as a singer, particularly where a well-known rock ‘n’ roll classic is concerned: Unbeknownst to most listeners, numerous threads of Denton’s and UNT’s musical history are woven into the two minutes and fifteen seconds that are “Ooby Dooby.”

Orbison and two fellow musicians from the town of Wink, Texas enrolled at North Texas in the fall of 1954. A song from members of the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity caught his ear: “Ooby Dooby” was said to have been written in 15 minutes on the fraternity house roof by the songwriting duo Wade Lee Moore and Dick Penner. Moore and Penner recorded a handful of rockabilly selections for Sun records as “Wade & Dick – The College Kids,” together with Don Gililland, an early One O’Clock Lab Band guitarist.

According to the biography Dark Star: The Roy Orbison Story, Orbison later recounted first hearing Wade and Dick performing “Ooby Dooby”: “It knocked me flat … I was astounded because they made more music than the whole orchestra.”

Orbison’s hit recording of “Ooby Dooby” on Sun Records was the culmination of several prior versions which feature essentially the same presentation, but with variations in tempo and slight hitches in timing. Orbison’s group back home, the Wink Westerners, recorded it, and Orbison recorded it at the famed Jim Beck Studio in Dallas in 1955, and again in Clovis, New Mexico in 1956. He was not, however, the only Denton claimant to the tune: Sid King & the Five Strings, whose sound became a template for later rockabilly acts, also recorded the tune at the Beck Studio.

Ultimately, however, Orbison’s 1956 Sun Records version became the authoritative version of the tune, on which later versions were based. With that title, a little piece of Denton boldly went where no Dentonite had gone before when it was featured in a bar scene Star Trek: First Contact, in a moment of respite from fighting the Borg.

— by Maristella Feustle, Music Special Collections Librarian

A “demo,” possibly the Dallas recording:

Clovis, New Mexico recording of “Ooby Dooby”:

An alternate take from Sun, 1956: 

“Ooby Dooby” makes an appearance in the 1996 film Star Trek: First Contact:

Sid King & Five Strings’ version of “Ooby Dooby”:

“Hey Miss Fannie,” the “B” side to the Wink Westerners’ 1955 version of “Ooby Dooby”: 

Student protests at North Texas State University

Posted by & filed under 1960's, 1970's.

The University of North Texas has had several name changes since it was established in 1890. However, when it was known as North Texas State University, it experienced a cry out for social change at a high level among the student body especially around the 1960s. The country was surrounded by images and discussions about the Vietnam War, the draft, inflation, The Civil Rights Movement, Women’s Rights, the death of Martin Luther King and many other events that called out for a response and many did respond by going into the streets with picket signs.

The Vietnam War occurred from 1954-1975. It was discussed in every major and local newspapers and news stations around the United States. It was greatly opposed by the American citizens, especially the youth.

Many anti-war demonstrations occurred around the nation. One anti-war demonstration was known as Moratorium Day. The demonstrations designed for Moratorium Day were to put pressure on the Nixon administration to withdraw troops from Vietnam. The activities were planned for approximately 400 schools across the country. The day was set by the Vietnam Moratorium Committee, who were mainly young people who worked in the presidential campaigns of Senator Eugene J. McCarthy and Senator Robert F. Kennedy. Moratorium Day was held on October 15, 1969, across the United States. Students, faculty, and community members gathered on campuses and a few high schools to listen to speakers and attend demonstrations.

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Armadillo Ale Works

Posted by & filed under 2000's, 2010's.

Armadillo Ale Works was founded by two North Texas alumni, Yianni Arestis (2008, 2011, M.B.A.) and Bobby Mullins (2007).

Arestis and Mullins met during college while on their way to see a performance by a band and remained friends throughout college. After graduating from UNT with an RTVF degree, Mullins decided he was ultimately more interested in brewing and eventually e-mailed a brewing company mentioning his interest in any available positions. After doing some filming which utilized his RTVF experience for Houston’s Saint Arnold Brewing Company, Mullins got a job there and was promoted to brewer after a few years. At this time, Mullins contacted Arestis and they made plans to start their own business. Using Arestis’s business expertise, they soon had a model for their company.

The business partners have been brewing beer since 2009. Mullins says that brewing takes a lot of practice and experimentation to get the right recipes. He says Arestis actually has a better sense of what makes a well-flavored brew and he frequently consults with him when mixing ingredients for a specific taste.

Two of the beers that the company is known for are Greenbelt Farmhouse Ale and Quakertown Stout. Quakertown Stout is made with oats, maple syrup and malts, while Greenbelt Farmhouse Ale is made with grapefruit peel and coriander-spiced wheat.

The men say they want to brew a distinctive beer that is reflective of Denton. They feel that Denton is unique and it deserves a beer which represents its singularity.

Arestis and Mullins also created a non-alcoholic honey lemonade for an event – the lemonade was such a success that they are pursuing the production of these drinks as a secondary, less-regulated product line for their business.

In the 2010 New Venture Creation Contest sponsored by UNT’s Murphy Center for Entrepreneurship, the men were granted an award for $10,000 that went towards the financing of Armadillo Ale Works.

The men have found that working with brewing companies (some of which could be considered their competitors) has actually been beneficial to their own business and they were surprised to find out how helpful other people in the beer community are.

From 2012-2015, their recipes were distributed across the Dallas-Fort Worth region and throughout the state of Texas to Austin and Houston by Deep Ellum Brewing Company in Dallas. With their contract expiring with Deep Ellum, Mullins and Arestis decided to move forward with plans to open up a brewery in Denton.

In 2011, the two generated $30,000 from 350 backers on Kickstarter, which went toward the funding and construction of the business that will be located at 215 S Bell Ave where the old Stanford Muffler and Automotive Space once was. The facility is scheduled to open in the summer of 2016 in Denton.

In 2014, Armadillo Ale claimed the gold medal in the Great American Beer Festival, which is the largest national beer competition held in the United States. Quakertown Stout, named after Quakertown Park in Denton, won the award for the Imperial Stout beer-style category.

— by S. Ivie, Associate Processing Archivist

 

 

ArtWear and the fashion design program at North Texas

Posted by & filed under 1960's, 1970's, 1980's, 2010's.

 

Archivists hard at work in Special Collections have unearthed a fascinating video of “ArtWear ’83,” the 4th annual juried fashion exhibition put on by fashion design students at North Texas State University. Those of us who grew up in the 1980s will enjoy flashbacks to the hot fashions of our youth (can you say …shoulder pads?). Project Runway fans should appreciate the time and effort involved in conceptualizing and designing an entire clothing line within a short time frame and then seeing those months of hard work walk down the runway on professional models.

ArtWear is the annual juried exhibition for exhibiting graduating senior student work in the Fashion Design program at UNT. The first ArtWear show was held at Papagayo, a disco club in Dallas on May 3rd, 1980, with help from art faculty members Betty Marzan and Henry Swartzand, and the annual event is still being held today. Artwear ‘80 was a significant show because it was the first time the senior fashion design show was held off campus, increasing its notoriety and stressing it as a professionalization exercise for the students involved.  Fine line graphics, a studio operated by UNT Art students, came up with the Artwear name and logo for the 1980 show, and designed the tickets, promotional materials, and event advertising.

For over 30 years, this event has introduced students to many aspects of Dallas’s bustling fashion industry. In many years, students’ designs were displayed by professional models who donated their time in support of the event. The garments were then juried by industry professionals. Judges were often established fashion designers, retailers, and manufacturers. Noted American fashion designer Todd Oldham was one of the judges for the 5th annual show, Artwear ‘84, along with Eric Kimmel, notorious fashion bad boy and past-editor of the avant-garde fashion magazine Haute. For many of the exhibitions, submitted designs were required to be completely original, and students couldn’t use commercial patterns. Some students went so far as to print their own fabrics. Each student prepared between 8 and 15 fashions for the show.

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The Story of The Story of North Texas State University

Posted by & filed under 1960's.

FADE IN:

EXTERIOR NORTH TEXAS LANDSCAPE – DAY

An aerial shot of our beloved US Interstate 35. As we hover over, we notice that it’s rush hour and there are at least 5 vehicles on the interstate. The bustle bursts through the screen. PAT BOONE’S signature smooth voice addresses the audience.

PAT BOONE

This is Pat Boone and you’re about to get a glimpse of my alma mater, North Texas State University.

 

PAT BOONE introduces the film and later JOHN SWANEY will narrate through the duration of the film. JOHN SWANEY is a national debating champion and fellow NTSU alumnus. Together, their voices will accompany images of NTSU. The campus is bright and inviting. The students look studious, eager to learn, and they move from building to building with purpose.

CUT TO:

INTERIOR NORTH TEXAS STATE UNIVERSITY USNT SENATE MEETING – DAY

During the 1960s two movies were filmed in Denton, but only one was meant to highlight, “…student life in classes, social activities, athletic events and dormitories.” This film would eventually become, The Story of North Texas State University. The idea for this film came about during a United Students of North Texas Senate meeting when the suggestion for something other than a typical photo-based promotional project. The idea quickly gained backing from various organizations with an estimated production cost of $300. Once the USNT senators began asking around, they found their initial estimate needed to be reevaluated. After talking to both freelance and professional companies, the financial burden came into better focus with costs ranging from $3,500 to $10,000.

Things looked grim and hopes for a promotional film being made began to wane. That is until two alumni and current employees of the WBAP-TV television news station came into the fold. Cameraman Robert Welch and Editor Doyle Vinson offered to shoot a 28-minute promotional movie on 16mm film for $800. The USNT senate quickly met to vote on the acceptance of the offer and once accepted, the pieces began to swiftly fall in place. The advisory board for the film comprised of Dr. James L Rogers (Director of the News Service), Dr. A. Witt Blair (School of Education), and Dr. Stanley K. Hamilton (Speech & Drama) and shooting began during the 1962 University Day celebrations which included the burial of the now unearthed time capsule. Filming progressed throughout the beginning of the fall semester and moments like freshman registration, orientation and counseling and a Slab Dance were captured. Production kicked into full gear by October after securing Pat Boone and John Swaney to lend their vocal prowess to the film and Welch continued to roll film at events like the Angel Flight, the USNT Senate, and intramural football games.

In May 1963, the film finally began post-production with Vinson and Welch ready to cut the film with plans to include the film in a promotional panel to be presented at high school career days in the area. The final product can be seen here and the result is a little slice of NTSU/UNT life that depicts exactly what it set out to capture. In between established shots of buildings and events there are shots of students looking anxious during registration day. The crowd of students fanning themselves during orientation. One student is shown waking up from what appears to be an impromptu nap in a study space. It’s an interesting yet familiar look into what life was like on campus in 1962.

— by Steven Guerrero, Media Circulation Manager, UNT Media Library

Eagle Park

Posted by & filed under 1920's, 1930's, 1940's, 1950's, 1960's, 1970's, 1980's.

The Eagle Park and recreation grounds area on the North Texas campus occupied land on what was formerly Scoular Hall (originally the Journalism Building), Stovall Hall, the Willis Library, and a number of other structures. The recreation area extended beyond what was replaced with the Laboratory School (now known as the Music Annex) to the west and stretched out to the east even before the current Administration Building was constructed.

Eagle Park was a recreation area where croquet, volleyball, tennis, horseshoe and other activities could be enjoyed. It included a football field, a practice field for soccer and hockey, tennis courts, a men’s and women’s gymnasium, basketball courts, volleyball courts, an outdoor stadium, horseshoe courts, a shaded playground with trees, and, to the east, an archery area. It also included buildings such as the Men’s Gymnasium and the Women’s Gymnasium. A bowling alley was located behind the swimming pool to the west.

Originally, benches were part of the area where students could gather around the bandstand and watch theatrical performances, listen to music or, with the addition of a projection booth, watch films. The bandstand was an open air theater designed by architect O’Neil Ford. The stage of the bandstand was active throughout the 1920s and up until the late 1940s, when the Journalism Building took its place.

A swimming pool was part of the area behind the benches of the open air theater. When classes were not in session, the pool was open to the public, as were many of the areas on the grounds. The outdoor swimming pool was one of the last remaining structures of the recreation area, lasting even up through the 1980s and the early years of the Willis Library.

For many years, up until 1969, the current location of the Willis Library was occupied by the Willis Library. In photographs dating back to this year, early construction of the A.M. Willis, Jr. Library is visible in aerial views. Prior to this, this patch of land was the largest of the remaining pieces of Eagle Park.

Gradually, through time, every piece of the Eagle Park area has disappeared. Aerial photographs illustrate a progression of the land’s development up to the present day. None of the land or structures that were once an integral part of the North Texas community do not exist anymore except in memory. If it were not for photographs and aerials, clippings, yearbooks, old maps and documents, no one would even realize the space now occupied by the Administration Building, the Willis Library, Music buildings, University Union, and the recently demolished Scoular Hall and Stovall Hall had such a rich history of activity and recreation throughout the 1920s and up through the 1960s.

— by S. Ivie, Associate Processing Archivist

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