Holiday Greetings, Stocking Stuffers, and a Golden Anniversary

The Lycoming College Archives currently has two displays set up on campus. Now through January a collection of holiday cards and jewelery may be viewed on the main floor of Snowden Library. Over in Honors Hall, on the second floor, there is memorabilia commemerating the fifieth anniversary of the Class of 1960. These items will be in the case until November of 2010.

Holiday Greetings and Stocking Stuffers

Snowden Library is currently featuring a display of Presidential holiday cards and jewelry artifacts from the College Archives.

Class of 1960 display in Honors Hall

The display in Honors Hall memorializes the Class of 1960 with yearbooks, photographs, sports programs, and the freshman "dink."

To view other collections and photos, please visit the online Lycoming College Photo Archives.

Archery Season

Seven female archers practice on the lawn between the stone gate and steps leading to Old Main, and the railroad tracks. Old Main and the 'bridge' leading to Bradley Hall can be seen in the background. Cars are parked in front of the building.Two girls have bows pulled and ready to shoot, and five others observe. Girls are dressed in skirts that fall below the knee and blouses or sweaters. The photo was taken in the fall or early spring, since the trees are bare of leaves. The woman with the glasses may be Minnie V. Taylor, who was the Dean of Women at the Junior College in 1932.

Students pose near an archery target. Back of photo reads: 1942, James Ames, Kay Greenfield/Right/Secretarial course 1 year, Miriam Baugh.

To view other collections and photos, please visit the online Lycoming College Photo Archives.

Homecoming Past

Homecoming 1965

Theta Chi's Winning Float

Campus Queen, Lynn Bailey

Homecoming 1973

Joanne Ostrowski

1973 Homecoming Queen, Melissa Rougex being crowned by 1972 Homecoming Queen, Barbara Lovenduski

To view other collections and photos, please visit the online Lycoming College Photo Archives.

The Freshman Class of 1944

On back: 'Freshman Class at Dickinson Jr. College. Names recognizable on signs: (front row) Mildred 'Millie' Smith, Martinsville, NJ; Anna 'Annie' Marie Bouslough, Hollidaysburg, PA; Ruth Myers, Hughesville; Norma 'Haney' Lee, Jersey Shore; Jeanne 'O'Dell' O'Dell, Hughesville; Dorothy 'Dot' Peach, Williamsport; Joyce 'Butch' Myers, Hughesville; Mary 'Cleve' Cleveland.' Published Oct 29 1944.

This photo is part of our Lycoming College Campus Past and Present photo collection.

To view other collections and photos, please visit the online Lycoming College Photo Archives.

Old Main Falls

The cupola on the west wing of Old Main comes down. According to the Winter 1969 Lycoming Alumni Bulletin, "Hopes of removing the west wing cupola intact were doomed; the 80' boom was inadequate to preserve this symbol of the past. Instead, the contractor decided to put a cable around the base of the tower and pull it down with a Caterpillar tractor." This photo appears on page 5 of the Alumni Bulletin with the caption "A fraction of a second later the weathervane impaled the driveway."

This photo is part of our Lycoming College Campus Past and Present photo collection.

To view other collections and photos, please visit the online Lycoming College Photo Archives.

Play Ball!

Pictured is the Williamsport Dickinson Seminary Baseball Team of 1924. On back: 'Row 1, l. to r.: Herman A. Stackhouse, George Gray Hoover, Richard Todhunter, Leonard H. Rothermel, Ernesto or Pedro Lay, Robert Ellis ; Row 2, l. to r.: team assistant, Hugh, Jr. Downs, ____, Schwab, Guy M. Houck, George Nye and Howard Swartz.'

This photo is part of our Williamsport Dickinson Seminary collection.

To view other collections and photos, please visit the online Lycoming College Photo Archives.

May Day 1956

The May Queen Court of 1956 processes through Brandon Park.

Pictured is the May Queen of 1956, Elizabeth E. Hickey ('56).

For other photo viewing options, please visit the Archival Photo Gallery which can be accessed from the Lycoming College Archives' homepage.

The History of Lycoming College

As we move ever further into the digital age, Lycoming College Archives is excited to be participating in several digitization projects. Upcoming projects will include the digitization of our yearbooks (already in progress) and, eventually, past issues of the alumni magazine (Lycoming College has made some of the more recent issues available for viewing online).

An early pilot project included the digitization of an historical look at Lycoming College from its inception as the Williamsport Academy in 1811 to its early years as a four-year college in the 1940s and 1950s.

A searchable flip book can be viewed below right from this webpage or you may click the link at the bottom of the page. Use the arrows at the far right of the page to turn the flip book pages and with the online version, there use the search box to search for names or topics of interest.


Click here to view the flip book online.
A link to this document can also be found on
Snowden Library's Archive page.

The College Mace

Snowden Library is currently featuring a display on the history of the college mace

on the main floor of the library.

THE LYCOMING COLLEGE MACE

The hand-carved Lycoming College Mace was presented to the college as a gift of the Lycoming College Class of 1963. The mace was created from walnut and cherry woods by a local craftsman, Joseph Winton. It bears the inscriptions 1812-1963, Williamsport Academy, Dickinson Seminary, Dickinson Junior College and Lycoming College in ascending positions from the bottom to the top of the intricately carved 42 inch commemorative piece. According to 1963 class vice-president Julie Bell Martin, President D. Frederick Wertz had requested a mace for the school. The mace is carried in all official academic functions of the College at the head of the procession as the symbol of academic authority.

Originally the faculty member with the longest period of service on the faculty was designated to be the mace bearer. That person retained this prestigious honor until he/she retired. As years progressed and the mace bearer aged, it became difficult in some cases for that person to fulfill the duty.

The Academic Bulletin #9 of August 27, 1999 reports a proposal to the faculty offered by Professor Owen Herring that the mace be borne by the Chair of the Faculty. The reasoning stated was that the faculty elects the chair as their leader, thus giving added significance to the role of mace bearer and to the faculty chair. Another advantage would be that the job would involve more members of the faculty. The proposal was accepted, and became effective in the fall of 2000.

From our photo collection:

Dr. Milton Skeath (1963-1967)

Phillip G. Gillette (1968-1971)

John P. Graham (1972-1982)

John (Jack) G. Hollenback (1979-1988)

Dr. Eduardo Guerra (1989-1999)

Dr. Melvin C. Zimmerman (2001-2002)

Sue K. Beidler (2003)

Dr. Mehrdad Madresehee (2008)

Voices of Lycoming: Chapel Tape Series

The Voices of Lycoming Collection includes audio files of speakers in Clarke Chapel. These public addresses give listeners a first-person view of significant people and events in the life of the college.

The six Voices of Lycoming selections were chosen out of a series of reel to reel recordings, primarily of the Chapel Series Lectures that punctuated the late 1950's through the early 1970's, for their unique relationship to Lycoming College.

Sol "Woody" Wolfe was a surprise find because the tape was not marked as being him and he speaks extensively on former President John W. Long. Bishop Corson discusses the transition of Dickinson Seminary and Junior College to Lycoming College, an accredited four year institution—a transition in which he played an instrumental role. Dr. Wertz is featured in both his first lecture as president and in his consecration ceremony to become a bishop, which marked the end of his presidency here at Lycoming. President Detwiler's recording was also a surprise find because not only was it not listed with the other recordings, but it is a public address to the student body during a time of distress and unrest on campus of which there is still much speculation and rumor. Dr. Hutson's recording is the only available piece of its kind in the College Archives that brings his voice back to life.

In his "Architects of Success" series, local broadcaster Sol "Woody" Wolfe tells the story of John W. Long, president of Lycoming College from 1921-1955.
Click here to listen to the Sol Wolfe recording. [Time=17:35]

Bishop Fred Pierce Corson addresses the Lycoming Associate's Meeting of April 14, 1964. His talk focuses on resistance and success in the college's history.
Click here to listen to the Bishop Corson recording [Time=43:6].

Dr. D. Frederick Wertz presents the mid-year convocation address on January 31, 1961, as one of the first acts of his presidency at Lycoming College. Many references are made to the "weather forecast" that was part of President John F. Kennedy's State of the Union address the preceding day.
Click here to listen to Dr. Wertz's convocation address. [Time=30:15]


This recording is of the Service of Consecration for the installation of Bishops D. Frederick Wertz and Roy Nichols, Northeastern Jurisdictional Conference, July 27, 1968.
Click here to listen to the installation of Dr. Wertz as Bishop. [Time=30:20]

Lycoming College (acting) President John G. Detwiler responds to student concerns about the resignation of Dean Marshall at an open forum sponsored by the Student Government Association, February 8, 1969.
Click here to listen to the Detwiler recording. [Time=51:44]

Dr. Harold T. Hutson discusses religion vs. relevancy in his February 10, 1970 lecture.
Click here listen to the Hutson recoriding. [Time=34:10]