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UNION COLLEGE

1879-1954

Union College

1879-1954

Written in Commemoration

of THE

Seventy-Fifth Anniversary

of Its Founding

ERWIN S. BRADLEY

Union College

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Published by

UNION COLLEGE

Barbourville, Kentucky
1954

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UNION COLLEGE

To
KATHERINE VAN DEUSEN SUTPHEN
and
ALDIS B. EASTERLING

Foreword

THE STEERING COMMITTEE of the Diamond Jubilee Cele-
bration Program strongly felt the need of a new and complete
history of the first seventy-five years of Union College. The desire
was to produce a history that will ever be authoritative, and that re-
quired exhaustive research into all available sources. The Committee
did not have to go afield in search of a competent historian, for on
the faculty was Erwin S. Bradley, Ph.D., Professor of History 1947-
who was eminently qualified to write this seventy-fifth anniversary
history of the college. On request of the Steering Committee, Dr.
Bradley was designated by the college administration historian on
part-time basis June to January 1953-54, and full time, February to
June 1954. The result is the thrilling story contained in this volume.
The reader will be fascinated with several impressive and delight-
ful qualities of the author's writings. His style is simple, direct, and
concise. He chooses the best words always to express his meaning and
never does he indulge in verbosity. He expresses his meaning and
leaves it there. The author also exhibits a rare mastery of detail which
makes his writings vibrant with life and enthusiasm. There is not
a dry page in the volume. The historical facts become windows of
insight into the active lives of Union's leaders and builders and into
the moving events of progress of an institution. The struggle and dar-
ing of men and women of faith will constitute an abiding inspiration
for the reader. The author has a knack at selecting human interest
material that is almost uncanny. He recites incidents, for example, that
I have known so well during my years on the campus, which in my
experience never impressed me as worthy of incorporation into the
written story, but, after reading such incidents I then felt they could
not have been omitted from the record without certain loss. Then
again when the reader has finished the volume, there will linger in
the mind a feeling of gratitude to the author for his rare sense of
significance of events in the story he recites. For example, in his chap-
ter titles there is in each an appraisal of the significance of that period
to the entire history of the institution. All along, there is this master-
ful work of evaluating the meaning of events and this is all done so
well that the reader imbibes a sense of the dignity, bigness, and far-
reaching influence of the on-going movement of a college, small if

Union College

measured by statistics, but big if seen in all its chain of human sig-
nificance.

The private institution of higher education on the American scene
in 1954 faces a most critical situation. These colleges are fighting for
their existence and no one will hazard a guess as to the outcome. This
crisis relates to the financial security of this large group of several
hundred private colleges. Most of these are related to religious bodies.
The high cost of operation, the low income from invested funds, the
problem of plant expansion at excessive building costs, a temporary
enrollment decline, serious disadvantage in personnel salary standards
in a competitive market of salary inflation, and the drying up of most
sources of large gifts through an almost confiscatory taxation — these,
with others, threaten to drive private colleges out of the business of
education of our American youth today. Certainly hard times are
upon our independent colleges, but it must be remembered that they
were born in adversity and struggle has been their atmosphere.

A crisis means both a danger and an opportunity. This opportunity
of crisis is beginning to develop in our times regarding the plight of
private education. Among the Churches which maintain colleges of
Christian learning there is a renaissance of responsibility for their
colleges. Financial support is on the climb, and the end is not yet.
The logic is taking hold of church people that they must adequately
support their colleges. Also an entirely new source of financial support
of these private colleges is developing. The business world is mulling
over the relation of private enterprise and private education. The
conviction is growing that one is essential to the other in a free so-
ciety. Corporation executives are sensing a corporate responsibility
for maintaining private higher education in this country in order
that public education may have the salutory check of the dual system
of education and thus a democratic society may be preserved. Express-
ing this new hope for corporate support of private college education,
groups of colleges in thirty-three states have associated together in
organized effort to promote corporation investments in their operating
budgets. This movement is in the beginning stage and may ultimately
bring a new day for this large group of struggling, yet strategic, private
colleges.

Subsequent history will recognize the middle of the twentieth cen-
tury for two significant developments. One is science's masterpiece —
the splitting of the atom and harnessing atomic energy. We stand at
the threshold of mankind's mightiest achievement on the physical
level and watch the breath-taking changes for war or peace, for good
or evil, in the next few years. In our generation, there is the growing

Foreword

feeling that the mighty atom will drive the human race to a new
destiny, whose character is unknown. The second significant develop-
ment of middle twentieth century is twin to the first. It is a wide-
spread dissatisfaction with man's achievement in history, a crushing
sense of failure, and feverish search for a new basis of security. There
is a swing toward the conviction that moral fitness is basic to security.
Disturbing questions are being asked whether secular education can
produce moral fitness of the individual. We have just about exhausted
our efforts in trying to lift ourselves into moral character by our boot-
straps. We have become weary with the struggle and a new means to
the end is being sought. The place of religion in moral growth is
the explosive idea which contemporary thinkers are pondering. The
high moral purpose of man is so exalted that God must be brought
into the picture and His power joined to man's efforts. All this means
that the Christian faith-way is increasingly winning favorable atten-
tion, and will probably become the center of experimentation in to-
morrow's educational laboratory.

This strong trend of contemporary thought toward the indespensa-
bility of dynamic Christian faith confirms the historic position of
Christian higher education, — viz: Only that education which makes
experiential Christian religion basic to growth of moral character
can be trusted with the responsibility of preparing a society capable
of survival. All this places the college of Christian higher education
at the center of the process of producing that superior life adequate
for these times. The Christian college is becoming the hope of more
and more people in our day and discriminating parents in increasing
numbers are looking to the strong Church college for the education
of their children.

I recall a few years ago the executive secretary of a great corporation
said to me that in his opinion if the Church colleges should dare be
loyal to the purpose of their existence they would lack neither students
nor financial support. Over past many years sensitive Christian leaders
have been feeling that many Church colleges have been engaged
more in aping the secular state colleges and universities than in mak-
ing themselves genuinely Christian. The struggle to become academ-
ically sound has often dimmed the vision to become distinctively
Christian. The typical Church college in our day rarely is discern-
ably different from any other college except in material equipment.
There is lacking the daring spirit of frank investigation of Christian
results of its own program. It is a common observation that the usual
campus practices of Chapels, meetings of student Christian Organiza-
tions, Religious Emphasis periods, and the like are superficial and

Union College

rarely exhibit that evangelical probing into heart needs of youth and
pressing of the insistent and disturbing claims of Christ on the in-
dividual. Are we able to staff our faculties with positively Christian
men and women? Or do we hesitate to hope for more than a faculty
that will tolerate and not interfere with the Administration's efforts
in Christian leadership? Are we capable of the heart searching neces-
sary to full spiritual commitment?

Are the Christian colleges prepared to take advantage of the deepen-
ing disgust of our atomic generation with material satisfactions and
with empty religious platitudes? For such a day as this, the Church
may need to launch great campus revivals of vital religion if it is to
stay in the business of education. It may well be that the answer
to the "crisis" in the Church colleges today is an all-out effort of
loyalty to the distinctive purpose of their existence.

President, Union College
July 1954

Contents

Page

FOREWORD EY CONWAY BOATMAN 7

I. THE SUCCESSFUL FAILURE 13

II. UNION RESCUED FROM OBLIVION 31

III. IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF PRESIDENT STEVENSON,
1897-1905 47

IV. RETRENCHMENT AND EXPANSION, 1905-1910 . . 57
V. THE YEARS OF INDECISION, 1910-1915 69

VI. ON THE ROAD BACK 78

VII. GENERAL GROWTH AND ACTIVITIES, 1915-1928 . 93

VIII. UNION FINDS ITS PLACE 109

IX. STRUGGLING THROUGH THE DEPRESSION

YEARS 120

X. UNION MOVES FORWARD, 1938-1954 137

XL UNION SERVES 156

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE 177

APPENDIX 179

Chapter I
THE SUCCESSFUL FAILURE

THE BARBOURVILLE of the post-bellum decades differed little
in appearance from other numerous small southern towns nestled
in the western hills of the Appalachian divide. This "metropolis" of
southeastern Kentucky boasted a population of approximately 450
souls, three brick buildings, a new courthouse, and at least two
churches. Dust governed the summer and fall seasons with king mud
reigning the remainder of the year. What passed for sidewalks con-
sisted of parallel planks or split logs thrown lengthwise in the oozing
mud; and street crossings were built of steppingstones set on edge
which only the nimble and daring could use. A few kerosene street
lamps, rarely lighted, threw a few meager beams for those willing
to accept the hazards of night excursions. Communication by telegraph
or telephone had not yet been established with the outside world.
People still had to travel many miles to hear the scream of the iron
horse and transportation could be had only by hack, sled, horseback,
or on foot.

However, Barbourville did differ from many small towns in one
striking respect — the unusual character of its citizenry. No town in
southeastern Kentucky could match the quality of its leaders or the
eloquence of its bar. For years its citizens had occupied the leading
legislative and judicial offices of the region. "The recurring election
day never failed to arouse to high pitch the followers of opposing
candidates for office. The men would fight for their political faith, and
they often did. They loathed the cowards, and so did the women, but
the women did not fight." J

From one of its small law offices, there had gone forth Silas Wood-
son, later to become governor of Missouri, and Samuel Miller, an ap-
pointee to the highest court of the land. Green Adams served as circuit
judge, congressman, and as an assistant treasurer of the United States.
Judge James H. Tinsley rose to become a judge of the circuit court
and federal district attorney for eastern Kentucky. Richard Herndon
and Steve Golden were prominent members of the bar. Seated in the

1 James D. Black, "Founders Day Address," MSS., President's office.

Union College

editorial office of the Barbourville Mountain Echo was James Henry
Wilson, later to represent the area in Congress.

Here lay a small town, isolated and deprived of the cultural and
educational opportunities possessed by the larger centers of population.
Its leaders were self-made men — individuals who had achieved dis-
tinction mainly through ambition, energy, and self-education. Could
their children possibly maintain the leadership which had been theirs;
or would the flood of progress see them stranded and by-passed, with
Barbourville reverting to the status of a culturally barren isle?

It is true that a public system of education had been in vogue many
years in Kentucky, and advances were made when the public school
system was converted into a free school system in the decade before
the Civil War. Changes in the mode of taxation had not improved
conditions, if anything, they were worse. Without adequate support, the
many public schools became in reality, ephemeral, transient institu-
tions, manned by underpaid, discouraged and poorly prepared
teachers.

Barbourville, along with many other communities shared this cul-
tural barrenness. An old log building had long been serving double
duty as the "old Baptist church," and as the "free School." 2 This
building was sold in 1876, and the free school again began making
its rounds. Sometimes subscription schools were opened after the free
school closed, and functioned until such time as their patrons failed
to make further contributions.

Besides the unsatisfactory features already enumerated, the people
of Barbourville had another reason to feel dissatisfied. At best, the old
system provided only the elements of a desirable education. No work
approaching the academy level was offered and young folk who aspired
to get ahead and "make something of themselves," found for the
future, only frustration. Both college and preparation for it must be
sought at some distant center of culture — something which few could
afford in the depression years of the 1870's. H. C. Faulkner, one of
Union's earliest students, gave an adequate picture of the situation
when he said:

... it had always been difficult to obtain a liberal education in
southeastern Kentucky, and the difficulties were seemingly multiplied
after the war. The old academies, at best a makeshift, were no more.
The private tutor and good private schools were almost a thing of the
past; and die public schools, while improving from year to year, failed
to keep pace not only with odier sections of the Republic, but failed to
keep pace with other sections of Kentucky. The generation diat grew up

* This log building was located in the rear of the present Universal Garage.

The Successful Failure

during and next after the Civil War found itself left behind in the
march of progress, from every point of view.*

Caught in their dilemma, the citizens of Barbourville attempted to
solve it by bringing into the town not only a satisfactory elementary
and secondary school, but also a program of studies on the collegiate
level. For five years they talked without doing much about it, but
these years were not spent in vain, because when the opportune mo-
ment arrived, the seed which had been sown, bore fruit, and it seemed
as if the child was to spring forth full grown.

Apparently, the first public notice of this determination of Barbour-
ville's leaders for something better was inserted in an 1874 issue of
the Central Methodist, under the heading, "Barbourville College." The
article pointed out the town's advantageous position as the "metropolis
of twelve counties in Kentucky, Virginia, and Tennessee," all destitute
of a college, and also that the normal department needed for training
teachers of the area would in itself sustain a college. The article went
on to describe other apparent opportunities in glowing terms: "There
is a property in Barbourville for sale at low figure, adapted to the oc-
cupancy of a family and thirty to forty female boarders. We want a
professional educator to come here and purchase or build, with the co-
operation of its citizens, and establish an institution for the mountains.
. . . We are satisfied that the enterprise will pay readily. It is the best
opening for a college we ever saw." 4

All persons interested in the educational project were requested to
contact the Reverened W. B. Godby of Highland, or the Reverened J.
W. Sageser, pastor of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, of Bar-
bourville. Although this advertisement was repeated several times dur-
ing the year, the ministers failed to find anyone with the initiative re-
quired for starting such an enterprise.

Almost a year later, W. B. Godby, the presiding elder of the London
district, announced triumphantly:

... we had the signal picture to cultivate an acquaintance with the
accomplished Prof. Wilson of Carlisle, Pa., who having visited Barbour-
ville and being favorably impressed, readily acquiesced in our solicita-
tions to rent and fit a suitable room and open a High School department
September next anticipative of erecting or purchasing a suitable build-
ing for regular operation of a number one college at Barbourville. Come
to Barbourville. September next." 5

This first attempt to establish an institution of secondary grade in

s H. C. Faulkner, "Message for Founders Day," MSS., President's office.
* Barbourville Mountain Echo, March 13, 1874, quoting Central Methodist.
8 Barbourville Mountain Echo, Apr. 23, 1875.

Union College

Barbourville led by ministers of the Methodist Episcopal Church,
South, proved to be abortive. Professor Thomas Wilson of Carlisle,
Pennsylvania, did come south as he had promised; but the reason for
his inability to open his school in Barbourville as scheduled is likely to
remain a mystery. When J. M. Clyde, the new principal of the Laurel
Seminary at London, Kentucky, failed to appear, Wilson was elected
to the position.6

This failure spurred the efforts of another religious group, the Bap-
tists. At meetings held in October, 1875, at Flat Lick and Barbourville,
suggestions were made to erect a college at the former place because a
free site had been offered, but no decision was reached regarding its
location.7 Within a month's time, the Grangers were quoted as willing
"to aid in building and sustaining a college in the county." 8 After
the foregoing attempts came to naught the editors of the Echo sug-
gested rather facetiously, the calling in of Catholics, if necessary, in or-
der to get a college started in Barbourville. A college, there must be in
the town, regardless of cost to civic pride.

After several years of fruitless discussion and futile attempts, the
school had failed to become a reality. This did not lessen the discontent
which continued to grow as restless ten-dollars-a-month teachers quit
their jobs in disgust and school sessions were cut to two and one-half
months. School commissioners were accused of incompetence in their
management of public schools and in the examining of prospective
teachers.9 Nevertheless, in the autumn of 1879, "Soda Water," the
Echo's correspondent, announced the opening of a free school in Bar-
bourville.10

In this same fall of 1879, the well known educator, Prof. T. C. H.
Vance of Carlisle, Kentucky, fresh from holding a successful teachers in-
stitute at London, arrived in Barbourville, September 20, to take charge
of Knox County's institute. Formerly, the annual institute had been
held in the new courthouse but this year it met (Sept. 23) in the Chris-
tian Church with John O. Davis one of the county school commis-
sioners presiding. Roll call brought responses from sixty-five teachers
or prospects, of whom forty-nine possessed certificates to teach. After
music by a choir, and class drill in vocal music, a "Prof." Harriett [sic],

• Russell Dyche, The Laurel Seminary, 17.

1 London Mountain Echo, Oct. 8, 1875.

8 Ibid., Nov. 12, 1875.

•Ibid., Sept. 5, 1879.

10 The persistent legend that Barbourville had no free school in 1879 is, of
course, erroneous. Neither is it true that Thaddeus Burkett was the town's school
master at that time. Burkett had already retired from teaching, first going on a
farm at Richland Creek and later becoming a traveling book agent for a firm
in Baltimore. See London Echo, Jan. 7, 1876.

The Successful Failure

reputedly from Cincinnati, was introduced to the institute. The profes-
sor presented a difficult problem, and proceeded to solve it for the
group's elucidation.11

Abraham H. Harritt, a traveling salesman for a school supply com-
pany, was in the habit of visiting institutes over the state, and of making
himself known to school men, teachers, and school commissioners, as
"guest instructor." He was a tall, dark haired, rather heavily built in-
dividual who wore a pointed professional cut beard to enhance his ap-
pearance.12 He seems to have been a glib speaker — one who could
answer questions directed at him, in a quick and confident manner.

Harritt, having made the acquaintance of James T. Gibson, one of
the school commissioners and a leading merchant of Barbourville, en-
gaged him in conversation regarding the deplorable school situation and
suggested the launching of a subscription school in Barbourville. The
story goes that Gibson agreed to furnish the space and buy the desks
from Harritt on condition that the latter take charge of the school.13
This is very likely true, but there was much more involved than the
planning of just another elementary subscription school. If not so,
it meant a precarious day by day existence, dependent upon the capri-
ciousness of the school's clientele.

First, it must be noted that Harritt was not the type of man to sud-
denly settle down to become an obscure small town school master;
secondly, one is confronted with the astounding fact that in exactly
one month from the time Harritt appeared in town, a corporation, or-
ganized and signed by the leading citizens of Barbourville, had been
formed under the title, "Union College Corporation." According to a
traditional account, Harritt had informed his wife before leaving home
of his intentions to give up his travelings when he stumbled upon the
"right spot" suitable for a college.14

The new school at Barbourville was conceived from the first as a col-
lege, and its quick acceptance by Barbourville's citizenry is a tribute
first of all to those who laid the ground work in the preceding years,
1874-1879. Harritt's ability to talk, and willingness to assume leader-
ship quickly brought him the community's recognition as the man
best fitted to make a dream come true.

Details were worked out at meetings held at Judge Tinsley's office and
at the residence of W. W. Sawyers, where at the latter's home, it is

" Ibid., Oct. S, 1879.

18 James Tuggle to writer, April 30, 1953.

13 "Affidavits" of C. H. Gibson and B. E. Gibson, May 22, 1945, regarding the
founding of Union College as related to them by their father, James T. Gibson.

14 James P. Faulkner, "50th Anniversary Address." President's office.

Union College

said,15 the name, Union College, was adopted upon the suggestion of
James D. Black. "Judge Black, in writing about this incident, states
that he was led to make this suggestion because of the fact that the
movement was receiving the unanimous support of the citizens of
the town and county regardless of church or political differences, and
he wanted the name to negative any thought of sectarian or party
division." 16

No doubt the well known legal talents of Tinsley, Sawyers, Dishman
and Black were utilized in the drawing up of the Articles of Incorpora-
tion (Oct. 18.) , which included ten clauses. These Articles provided
for the issuance of $20,000 worth of capital stock to be sold in shares
of $20 each; and the life of the corporation was set at 25 years. Its af-
fairs were to be conducted by a seven-man Board of Directors, to be
elected after the first year by the stockholders. Thirty-five names were
listed as subscribers.17 Officers elected for the first year were A. H.
Harritt, president; W. W. Sawyers, vice president; James D. Black,
secretary; Green Elliott, treasurer; and John Dishman, attorney.

The London Echo of December 12, 1879, carrying its first announce-
ment of Union College, listed the Corporation as having stock of
$70,000 and of being "designed to fill a long felt want in Eastern Ken-
tucky, East Tennessee and Western Virginia." Plans were announced
for the "erection of suitable college buildings" expected to be finished
at an early date. The term, Union College, was used to designate the
combining of three departments; i.e., classical, business, and normal.
This co-educational school was declared to be free of all political or
sectarian control, and members of all denominations were invited to
attend. A semi-annual session of the new college was announced for
January 5, 1880.

The announcement of a session beginning in January, 1880, has led
to no little confusion as to the date of the first session of Union College.
Semi-annual announcements were quite common so no conclusions
may be reached from this information. James P. Faulkner was quite
certain that a session was held in 1879, but if so, it must have been
late in the year as Mr. Gibson's desks had to be ordered, shipped, and
installed in two rooms on the floor above his place of business. Mr.
Gibson's investment in these desks must have been considerable, but
no doubt it was understood that the desks should be sold to the cor-
poration when the new building was completed. Gibson graciously

16 Mrs. Hattie Edwards to writer, April 15, 1953, as related by her grandfather,
W. W. Sawyers.

18 J. P. Faulkner, "50th Anniversary Address."

1TKnox County Deed Book, "J," 1874-1881, 492. The "Articles" are dated Oct.
18, 1879, but were not acknowledged until Oct. 21.

The Successful Failure

charged no rent for the use of his rooms, and in addition raised money
among his merchant friends in Louisville.18

Contrary to Faulkner's contention of a session in 1879, there is
evidence to show that the school did not open until 1880. Mrs. Harritt,
who is always listed as one of the first teachers by those who attended,
did not come with her husband in September, but remained at her
home in Indianapolis. Sometimes before December 12, 1879, Harritt
passed through London, Kentucky on his way to Indiana. He evidently
stopped at the office of the Echo and had a chat with the editor who
referred to Harritt as the one "who is to take charge" of Union Col-
lege and quoted Harritt "as being well pleased with the present pros-
pects of his school," and his intentions of going there to stay.19 From
the context of such a report, one would infer that Harritt was on his
way to Indianapolis to spend Christmas with members of his family,
with the intention of bringing them back for the January session. James
Tuggle remembered the school as opening "in the middle of the
[school] year." 20 A later notice in the London Echo, announcing the
"4th session of Union College to begin September 5, 1881," supports
Mr. Tuggle's view.

A formal opening of the school was held over Gibson's store 21 with
James D. Black delivering the address of the occasion. Two rooms
were found to be inadequate and a third one for primary grades was
established in an old store room 22 across High Street, belonging to
Mr. Pitzer, the postmaster. The first faculty consisted of A. H. Harritt,
Edwin O. Bland, Mrs. Josephine Harritt and Miss Jessie Chapman.
Bland, who allegedly held an M.A. from the University of Virginia,
had the reputation of being a fine Latin scholar. Besides the ordinary
common school subjects, instruction was offered in Latin and algebra.
It seems therefore, that Union's first session was on the academy
level.

One of the striking features of Union's curriculum throughout its
history is its offerings in the fine arts. Piano lessons were given by
Miss Chapman of Richmond, Indiana, who is still remembered as a
vivacious, flaming red-head. As the school possessed no piano, instruc-

18 Lilian G. Spahr to writer, Nov. 15, 1953. Mrs. Spahr is a daughter of J. T.
Gibson.

19 London Echo, Dec. 12, 1879.

20 James Tuggle to writer, April 30, 1953.

21 Later known as the Miller and Ball building.

22 This building was near the end of what was formerly known as Buzzard's
Roost — a row of squalid shanties extending south on Main Street from the location
of the present Gulf Service Station.

Union College

tion was carried on at the home of Mrs. M. S. Costellow where Miss
Chapman boarded.23

The citizens of Barbourville hospitably opened their doors to both
faculty and students. Upon the arrival of Mr. Harritt with his wife
and two sons, Burt and Frank, Mrs. Martha Costellow welcomed them
into her home, for the "munificent monetary consideration of . . .
$10.00 per week for the four — room and board."24 Colonel Dishman
showed equal hospitality to Professor Bland.

And when students from out of town began to arrive, nearly every-
body took boarders. They simply had to if the school was to succeed,
and the prices ranged from $2.00 per week down to nothing in some
instances. Even the Methodist circuit rider, S. L. Kelley, carried in beans,
potatoes, and occasionally a ham from McClellans, Trace Branch,
Fighting Creek, or Friendship, the currency in which his salary was paid,
in order to meet the deficit, at the end of a week, of a table of eight or
ten. This was the spirit of Barbourville in the 70's and 80's — a people
united in the great purpose — the founding of a school that would give
their children and their neighbor's children a better opportunity than
their fathers and mothers had known.25

It is not known exactly how many students attended Union's first
session in the Gibson building and annex, but at least ninety-six were
known to attend between January and June, 1880. In 1929, James
P. Faulkner, with the assistance of former students and friends, com-
piled a list of these pupils. At least twenty from outside Knox County
were boarding students. The Howard family from Harlan and the
Whites from Manchester had several in attendance.26

A group of thirty-six citizens signed their names to the Original
Articles of Corporation.27 This list does not include some who later
bought stock in the Corporation. On the other hand, some of the ones
listed as original subscribers never bought any stock — or at least their
names do not appear on any of the stock certificate stubs. A total of
140 shares of stock was sold during the period from May 5, 1880
through January 26, 1886.28 At $25 per share, the amount raised
should have equaled $3,500 but there is no way of knowing how much
was paid on each share when it was issued, because the Articles of

83 Mrs. Annie Albright to writer, April 16, 1953. Mrs. Albright is the daughter
of Mrs. Costellow. The original piano is now on the second floor of the Corner
Drug Building.

14 James P. Faulkner, "50th Anniversary Address."

»» Ibid.

■■ In 1954 three of these first students, Mrs. Annie Albright, George W. Tye, and
Sallie Hoskins, were living in Barbourville.

,T This list is not identical with the one given in the Articles of Corporation.

■• Union College Corporation stub-book. The Articles established $20 per share as
the rate, but they were printed as $25 certificates.

The Successful Failure

Corporation allowed the directors to decide on the mode of collection.
Seven shares were sold on the first day of issue, May 5, 1880. These first
subscribers were Mrs. Harritt, Green Elliott, W. W. Sawyers, and
W. E. Grimstead and Company of Louisville.

The six leading stockholders were W. W. Sawyers, James H. Tins-
ley, James T. Gibson, John A. Black, the Harritts, and Green Elliott, in
the order named. While much credit is due to the ones named above,
who purchased almost one-half of all the stock, it must be kept in
mind that many of the stockholders who bought only one share were
likely investing to the extent of their financial ability.

The founders had signed the Articles with the idea of selecting a
site, and erecting a suitable building thereon. As it happened, Union's
first building was erected in an old apple orchard bordered on two
sides by "burying grounds" — the favorite rendezvous, so it was ru-
mored, of goblins and ghosts. One cemetery began at the corner of
what is now Coyt and College Streets and extended in the direction
of the Methodist Church. The Anderson — Dowis graveyard ran along
the curve of what is now the road leading from the east end of Steven-
son Hall to the Memorial Gymnasium.29 On trees along the lane
leading to Manchester Street, criminals had been hanged and al-
legedly buried on the spot. During the Civil War, a recruiting station
was established in front of what is now Pfeiffer and Speed Halls, for
the purpose of enlisting newly escaped Union sympathizers. "Old-
timers" told Elmer Decker, the local historian, about graves near the
rows of tents.30

Only two buildings existed on what is now the main Union Campus.
One was a four-room dwelling, known as the Stickley house, located
near the present site of Speed Hall, the other was the small Dishman
cottage where Baldwin Place is now located. On the opposite side of
the lane (College Street) , W. W. Sawyers had his stables.31

After the Corporation was granted its charter by a special act of the
legislature, February 7, 1880, Union received its first grant of land
from Thomas J. Wyatt, a son-in-law of W. W. Sawyers. Wyatt did not
possess an unencumbered deed to the plot and this was purchased
at a cost of $132 to the Corporation.32 This strip fronting approximate-
ly 100 yards on College Street extended northeast to the edge of a
pond. Early the next year, the Corporation bought two small additional
tracts from Sally Hinkle and Mrs. Mahala P. Dowis for $53.33 and

89 Elmer Decker to J. P. Faulkner, July 2, 1942, Orange and Black.

80 Ibid.

81 J. P. Faulkner to Virginia Tye, May 22, 1942, Orange and Black, July 27, 1942.
88 J. P. Faulkner, "50th Anniversary Address." No record of this transaction has

been found in the Knox County Deed Books.

Union College

$75, respectively. The first plot of about one-half acre lay on the east
side of the Wyatt tract; the second plot, slightly larger, had a front-
age of about 50 feet on College Street and ran parallel to the original
Wyatt grant.33

Some time after February 7, 1880, a little pamphlet issued by the
Corporation announced the erection of a "new and commodious build-
ing." W. W. Sawyers, the leading stockholder and vice-president of
the Corporation, stopped work on his own residence and began con-
struction about April l.34 Two sturdy men, set to work on the campus,
burned several thousand brilliant red bricks in a day.35 The new type
steam sawmills of John and Isaac Catron, only two miles away on
Smoky Creek turned out the finest grade of yellow poplar for inside
construction.36

Subscribers of stock were failing to make payments and the first
of Union's many financial crises loomed for solution. Without suf-
ficient funds to pay for materials and the wages of workmen, it looked
as though construction must be suspended. W. W. Sawyers, as agent
for the Union College Corporation, arranged for a loan of $3,000
from a bank at Stanford, Kentucky. Elbert E. Sawyers, his son, made
the three-day trip to the bank on horseback and returned with the
badly needed cash; thereupon construction was resumed.37

The building as first erected had a long wide corridor on the first
floor leading from the tower to the rear. As one entered, there were two
class rooms on the left and a large one on the right, the latter becom-
ing known as the "normal" room. The second floor contained a long
chapel or auditorium, located above the normal room, and two rooms
on the left. The interior of the third floor remained uncompleted.
There was no inside plumbing or water. Coal stoves served for heating
and kerosene lamps for lighting. A coal house and two "privies" were
erected at a respectable distance in the rear. The narrow front campus,
devoid of grass, boasted one or two stunted trees. A few planks thrown
across the muddiest spots supplemented the narrow path leading from
the front lane.

The ceremony of laying the cornerstone of the building was com-
bined with the closing exercises for the year 1879-80. James P. Faulkner
remembered the occasion as one of the most "notable school exhibitions
ever staged in Barbourville or Eastern Kentucky." 33 Advertisements

83 Knox County Deed Book, "J," 607.
"London Echo, April 9, 1880; May IS, 1881.
85 George Tye to writer, April 29, 1953.
80 J. P. Faulkner, "50th Anniversary Address."

87 "Remembrances," Barbourville Advocate clippings, Abigail E. Weeks MSS.

88 J. P. Faulkner, "50th Anniversary Address."

The Successful Failure

were inserted in the papers of the surrounding territory by local busi-
ness men. For example, "Boss Anderson" advised the folk from London
to be sure to stop at his hotel where both man and beast would be
cared for in the best style.39 Announcement was made that great prep-
arations were being made by the people of Barbourville and
Union College of that place for the commencement exercise to be
given June 4, and for the "laying of the cornerstone of the new col-
lege now in course of construction." 40

Shortly before the great day arrived, a temporary stage was erected
on the campus at the front of a natural amphitheater. A leafy taber-
nacle composed of freshly cut tree boughs enclosed the area on three
sides. On the appointed day, June 4, 1880, while preliminary speeches
were in progress, John R. Hicks, the town's favorite stone mason, sat
at the footsteps of the platform, mechanically polishing his trowel
in preparation for his important part on the program. When the
time arrived for the Honorable David Lyttle of Manchester to deliver
the main dedicatory address, he could not be found. The large crowd
was becoming impatient and only quick action could save the day.
Suddenly, some member of the audience cried to young Ben Herndon,
Union's premier orator, requesting him to give his literary oration on
"Education." Others took up the cry and Ben was ushered to the plat-
form, where he acquitted himself nobly. Just as he descended from the
platform, the distinguished Mr. Lyttle pushed his way through the
crowd and made his way to the rostrum. The "man of the occasion"
must have performed in great style, but the loud guffaws and knowing
looks which greeted his address should have told him something was
in error — because he had delivered Ben Herndon's address verbatim.41

Officers of Mountain Lodge 187, F & A Masons of Barbourville, of-
ficiated at the cornerstone laying. Among the articles contained in a
little black walnut box to be sealed within the stone were a certified
copy of the act chartering Union College and signed by the governor,
a copy of the by-laws of the Lodge, and seven coins.42

Union's first commencement program was composed of orations, read-
ings, tableaus, and a farce. The salutatory and valedictory addresses
were delivered by Ella Culton and W. L. Engle, respectively. "Just be-
fore Ada Helton rose to give her reading, a townsmen rushed on the
stage asking whether or not a certain man and his wife were in the
audience; he announced that the daughter of this couple had just been

89 London Echo, May 7, 1880.

40 Ibid.

41 This amusing anecdote was related to the writer, July 8, 1953, by two eye
witnesses of the occasion, Judge Jessie Tuggle and James Tuggle.

43 Barbourville Advocate, June, 1907.

Union College

burned to death at home. This was an impressive introduction to Miss
Helton's reading, for the reading told a story of child-tragedy." 48
The highlight of the literary program was a farce, "A Regular Fix."
The preceding evening, a pathetic drama, "Out in the Streets," pro-
duced the desired effect of bringing tears to almost every member of
the audience.44

In preparation for Union's first year on the new campus a bulletin,
"Union College, Male and Female," was distributed. The chief aim
of the course of study "as far as possible [was] to secure a full develop-
ment of all mental faculties, thereby qualifying the student to grapple
with the problem of life." The bulletin listed collegiate, normal, busi-
ness, music, and primary departments; and two preparatory "courses,"
classical and scientific. The primary department was introduced for
the "time being," in order to prepare pupils for the preparatory work.
The classical course offered the standard four-year academy curriculum,
including higher algebra, spherical trigonometry, calculus, ethics, and
political economy of which college students of later generations might
well stand in awe. No degrees were offered and it is doubtful, if at that
time, any students in attendance were capable of doing work of college
grade. Pupils were admitted to the college on the basis of written exam-
inations given biannually.

Tuition fees, depending upon the department, ran from $12.50 to
$20.00 per session. Board and room could be obtained from "good
families" at $1.25 to $1.50 per week. It seems that a boarding student
could attend school for a little more than $100 per year.

Although the college catered to no particular sectarian group, the
religious life of the student was given proper consideration; all pupils
being required to attend "Chapel exercises each morning through
the week and Bible class [on] Sunday afternoon." In addition, all
"scholars" were expected to attend the Union Sabbath School in the
village.45

Literary and debating societies formed the core of Union's extra-
curricular activities. Two literary societies, "one by young ladies and
one by young gentlemen," were organized in the autumn of 1881.4fi
It is doubtful whether these societies had any particular names — if
so Union College's correspondent of the Echo would likely have named
them. According to Mr. A. M. Decker, one of its members, Union's first
playlikers club organized in the school year, 1879-1880.47 A program

*3 Reprint of program, Orange and Black, May 29, 1929.

" Ibid.

48 "Union College, Male and Female, 1880-81." Union College safe.

"London Echo, Nov. 26, 1881.

*T "Echoes from Anniversary Banquet," Orange and Black, May 29, 1929.

The Successful Failure

of this club for 1881 announced "dramatic entertainment" by members
of the Thespian Society. This play, "Not So Bad After All," was fol-
lowed by a concluding tableau, "Rock of Ages." 48

From the first, the school was a cultural and civic center for the
community. Public debates were held on the campus, and Teachers
Associations, organized by Harritt, received instruction from him.
Entertainment was provided by Miss Lillian B. Mayes,49 Union's
"beautiful and accomplished" music teacher. A Christmas entertain-
ment was staged for the benefit of the Union Sabbath School which at
that time met in the Methodist Church.

With about 100 students from eight counties in attendance, the
school year, 1880-81, may be considered a successful one. The new
college was boasting of its "eight-thousand-dollar building" and 1540
pound bell,50 the clear and mellow tones of which could be heard in
Flat Lick, six miles distant. Its professors were reputedly "finished
scholars," who promised to make Union one of the "best [schools]
in the state." B1

At the opening of the third year of school, storm clouds were al-
ready appearing on the horizon. Only 50 students enrolled on Septem-
ber 5, 1881, fewer than the free school enrolled at the Christian
church.62 President Harritt found himself the mounting center of a
controversy which not only affected the life of the college, but the en-
tire religious and social life of the community as well.

This controversy, beginning as a journalistic feud, ended in Harritt's
total embarrassment and exodus from the community. Sometime in
February, 1881, Harritt published the first issue of his weekly, the
Cumberland Chronicle. A few weeks later when numerous subscribers
complained of not having received their copies, the editor placed
the blame for non-delivery of papers on Pitzer, the village postmaster.

Thomas J. Pitzer, who was not the type of man to allow such attacks
to continue unanswered, replied to Harritt with a withering blast
in the London Echo, after he found the "P.M." (himself) , character-
ized in the Chronicle as Haman. The postmaster responded as follows:

Sir, you have in your great stretch of mind misconceived your object,
and your father . . . and your kinsman, Bellzabub [sic] would blush to
own you as a legitimate offspring, and you, holding yourself in this com-
munity as the Professor of Union College, with all your labored efforts
of three solid months, it has been a tissue of false words and scandals

48 "Program," Union College Museum.
"London Echo, Nov. 26, 1881.
'°Ibid, Aug. 6, 1880.
slIbid., April 9, 1880.
"Ibid., Sept. 9, 1881.

ZXX&%

Union College

to injure innocent men. You came into this community with all the
unblushing effrontery of a mule. . . You have brought young ladies into
this community and represented them as competent teachers which no
one doubts, and you have turned them off without pay. I have never
broken open the private letter of a lady teacher and sought to destroy
her reputation as a music teacher by denouncing her in public houses
as disqualified and an imposition and a squab . . .

You have proven to be a traitor to the community."

The editor of the Echo, accusing Harritt of shielding himself be-
hind the college, took up Pitzer's cause and insisted that the president
either reform his character or go. After Harritt likened the editor's
appearance as something like "Moonshine on stilts," the latter found
that Harritt's appearance was certainly "by no means prepossessing."
His legs were shaped "precisely right to clamp sheep," and all were
satisfied that Harritt was a good shearer from the way he had "fleeced
the people in these parts." 54

Probably Harritt suffered his greatest embarrassment when the Lon-
don editor questioned the president's right to call himself a Master of
Arts. Harritt dodged the issue and failed to announce publicly wThich
university had conferred that honor upon him. The London editor slyly
suggested Harritt's retaining of the title A.M., if it meant "After
Money."

With the president under fire from all directions conditions de-
teriorated rapidly. Professor Edward Bland, Union's most popular
professor took up his new duties as principal of Laurel Seminary at
London, Kentucky. Apparently three music teachers were on Union's
campus within a period of one year. The London journalist reported
with glee the resignations of Professors Greathouse, Harris, and Frasey,
all within twelve months. He "wondered" why young ladies were quit-
ting Union, and also, why Harritt's Sunday school class had greatly
diminished in size.

Harritt gave up the fight in the spring of 1882. His paper suspended
publication about March 1, and a month later the college "suspended
operation." President Harritt left Union about the first week in April,
allegedly, because of urgent "business" in the "cities," 5B and apparent-
ly, he never returned.

Members of his family left Barbourville the following summer to
make their home in Indianapolis. His defunct printing establishment
was sold at a commissioner's sale about a year later in order to satisfy
the claims of creditors. So departed a man who had "executive ability,"

Ibid., June 24, 1881.
1 Ibid., August 12, 1881.
Ibid., April 14, 1882.

The Successful Failure

and a "vast amount of energy." 56 In spite of all his apparent faults,
Union will always be grateful to its prime mover, Abraham H.
Harritt."

In spite of the disheartening state of affairs in the spring of 1882,
what with a mounting debt, unpaid teachers, a closed school, plus
a demoralized community, the Board of Trustees decided to keep the
college open. James D. Black, the Board's attorney recommended for
president, T. C. Poynter, a graduate of Kentucky Wesleyan College,
who had a reputation as a fine teacher. Poynter was a brother of Dr. W.
T. Poynter, a Methodist clergyman who had lately purchased Science
Hill Academy, the oldest school for girls in the old southwest.58 Thus
it was through the influence of Mr. Black that Poynter was elected
Union's second president.59

Thomas Clay Poynter, a native of Frankfort, Kentucky, brought
with him his sister, Mrs. Sara Griffing and her daughter, Blanche.
Mrs. Griffing acted as Poynter's assistant and a Miss Mary Hultz had
charge of the primary grades. The family stayed at Black's, a small
hotel run by John Brogan and wife.

In line with a tradition already established at Union, it was de-
cided to provide proper instruction in music. A large Emerson square
piano transported from London in a wagon, was installed in the chapel
and Miss Sara Gordon of Winchester began instruction in music.60

About 100 pupils were in attendance during the year, which seemed
to have been rather uneventful except for an epidemic of mumps
and "high waters," which temporarily isolated Barbourville. Major
Mat Adams, one of Barbourville's leading citizens, succumbed to the
charms of Miss Gordon, married her, and afterwards succeeded in
getting himself elected to Congress.

At the mid-June commencement, visitors from as far away as Rose
Hill and Abingdon, Virginia came to hear the Honorable J. Proctor
Knott deliver the principal address, but he did not appear because
of his wife's illness and there was no Ben Herndon to take his place.
At the end of the school year, Poynter was hired to give county exami-
nations for teaching certificates. Annie Costellow, Union's star pupil,
only 14 years of age, took the exam just for fun and "received a first

86 J. P. Faulkner, "50th Anniversary Address."

BT Little is known of Harritt's activities after he left Union. Mrs. Annie Albright
located his grave in Indianapolis.

58 George S. Savage, Historical Sketches of Institutions of Learning Within the
Bounds of the Kentucky Annual Conference of the Methodist Church, South, 18.

59 Blanche Griffing to writer, July 14, 1953.

90 This piano is now in the possession of Miss Blanche Griffing of Perryville, Ken-
tucky.

Union College

class certificate." She made a much higher grade than teachers with
many years of service.61

The second term of the school year, 1883-84, saw the biggest enroll-
ment to date. Over 155 students were reported in January and more
enrolled later. As a goodly proportion of students came from a distance,
one can see that the boarding facilities of a village of only 400 people
must have been taxed. At the closing exercises on May 28, 29, "en-
tertainment" was given; Miss Katie Craig read the "Maidens Martyr"
and Annie Costellow delivered the valedictory.62

In June, 1884, the Board of Trustees decided to use a different
method of running the school in order to make it pay by offering
the property for annual rental. Evidently Poynter did not care to bind
himself in any way and the lease was granted to a new man, H. P.
Grider, who obligated himself to pay $250 in rent and to assume lia-
bility for any damages to the college property.63

Hartford P. Grider born in 1858 at Germantown, Pennsylvania, had
graduated from Centre College (1881), as valedictorian of his class.
This powerfully built man, over six feet in height had gained a repu-
tation as an athlete, musician, and orator, at his alma mater.64 Before
coming to Union he served two years as head of Riverside Seminary
in Kentucky.

Besides his wife, Mollie, who had charge of the primary department,
Grider secured the services of J. H. Clagett and his sister Annie
Clagett, who organized a class in drawing and painting. Annie Clagett
later became a missionary to China. J. H. Clagett married the music
teacher, Miss Northcott and left at the end of the year 1884-85 to be-
come head of Laurel Seminary at London.65 J. P. Faulkner remem-
bered Clagett as a "splendid teacher" and his leaving was a blow to
the college.

At the beginning of the school year, 1885-86, the whole community
was excited over the coming of Professor Francis Goetz to Union.
Goetz, who came South hoping to improve his failing health, was a
graduate of the famous Berlin conservatory of music. His wife, also
an accomplished musician, assisted him, and organized a cornet band.
Later in the year, Professor H. P. Grider's brother, John, came to
replace Mrs. Grider in the primary department.

John P. Grider has written an amusing tale of his first coming to

n London Echo, June 22, 1883
•■ Ibid., June 6. 1884.

" Copy of "Petition" of Union College Corporation against H. P. Grider. Union
College Library.

•* Mrs. A. D. Grider Hewitt to writer, Feb. 23, 1954.
•• Dyche, The Laurel Seminary, 18.

The Successful Failure

Barbourville before the advent of the locomotive in this section. Al-
though pulled by four sturdy horses, the rig in which he was riding,
bogged down in the mud after leaving Woodbine. The driver had
to wade through the mud, procure fence rails for the exodus of his
passengers, and finally succeeded in extricating the axle which had
caught on a hidden rock.88

The school under Grider was popular and attendance again rose
to 150 students. Grider renewed his contract for another year and
the London Echo announced the community's satisfaction under the
"present Corpse" [sic] of teachers.67

The Union Literary Society had continued its work under Poynter,
giving a "public entertainment" which was pronounced a "smasher." fl8
Its success under Grider seems due chiefly to the efforts of John C.
Eversole of Perry County. Literary and musical programs still con-
stituted the bulk of Union's extra-curricular activities — athletics had
not yet made its appearance at Union.

The period from the ides of March until April 1, 1885, proved
to be the most exciting one of the era. Students turned out with
smoked glasses to enjoy an eclipse of the sun and about a week later,
John Sexton was hanged for murder. Perhaps the condemned man
taught a more impressive lesson on his gallows, than any professor at
Union has succeeded in doing. Sexton must have presented a grue-
some spectacle as, seated on his rough coffin, and surrounded by fifty
picked men, he was slowly drawn to the gibbet. Over 3000 people
listened to his long harangue, in which he exhorted the boys "to obey
their parents and let cards and whiskey alone." 69

Union was now at the end of its first era of existence. Professor
Grider had financially been unable to fulfill the terms of his contract
to the Trustees. At the end of two years, he had been able to pay
only $80 of the $500 owed the corporation, W. W. Sawyers, now
president of the Union College Corporation, presented a petition T0
in Knox Circuit Court against Grider but as the defendant had no
tangible assets, the matter was dropped.

Grider had tried hard to make the school a success but failed finan-
cially, and was glad to leave. The following year he served as principal
of Ayers Academy under the supervision of the Board of Education of
the Kentucky Methodist Episcopal Conference. He did not like teach-
ing and after one year became associated with the old Ft. Scott and

••John P. Grider to writer, Feb. 2, 1954.

"May 15, 1885.

••London, Echo, March 13, 1885.

••Ibid., April 3, 1885.

T'Copy of "Petition," of Union College Corporation against H. P. Grider.

Union College

Memphis Railroad. Later he entered the grain business in Kansas
City. His father, Frederick Grider, was a famous Methodist minister
who later served a pastorate at Barbourville and greatly strengthened
the local church with his evangelistic services.

In Barbourville the harried Board of Trustees saw no way out of
its dilemma. Income had not been sufficient to pay half the interest
due, stockholders were failing to pay their subscriptions and the
bank at Stanford was pushing for collection of its notes. For almost
two years rumor had it that the college building would be sold. At
one time a movement was on foot at the local Methodist Church
to raise a fund to buy it. As late as January, 1886, John A. Black
made a final attempt to sustain the corporation with his purchase of
twelve shares of stock. All these efforts proved unavailing and it
looked as if nothing could stay the auctioneer's hammer.

It is in line with later developments — the coming of Dr. Stevenson
to Union which makes it possible to describe Union's first epoch as a
"Successful Failure." J. P. Faulkner gave an excellent exposition of
this interpretation:

Union College, under the original charter had no distinctive religious
purpose or appeal. Its Founders never intended it to be irreligious but
so-called "schooling" was its major aim. The sheriff's sale, therefore
proved a blessing in two respects, it cleared the way for emphasis upon
that alone which makes education worthwhile — religious instruction —
and at the same time gave better equipment for the "schooling" func-
tion ... It was the failure of the first that made the second possible,
and it is the success of the latter that has rescued the original from
oblivion.71

71 J. P. Faulkner, "Address" on the coming of Dr. Stevenson, 1936.

DR. DANIEL STEVENSON

Chapter II
UNION RESCUED FROM OBLIVION

ALMOST ANYONE with a slight knowledge of Union's history
j[\. can recite glibly that Dr. Daniel Stevenson bought the property
of a bankrupt college corporation in Barbourville. Actually the facts
cannot be stated in such simple fashion, and the story of its purchase
must include the names of the Reverend Samuel L. Kelley, Green
Elliott, Mrs. Mahala Dowis, and Fanny Speed, along with Dr. Steven-
son's. It is doubtful whether Union's property would have been ac-
quired by the Kentucky Conference of the Methodist Episcopal
Church if any of the foregoing individuals had failed to play his or
her little part in the drama.

Samuel L. Kelley, a veteran of the Union army, became converted
at the end of the war and united with the Methodist Episcopal Church.
He was received on trial into the Conference * at the same time that
Professor Harritt was opening the school in Barbourville. Kelley
came to Barbourville in the autumn of 1880 as pastor of the Method-
ist Episcopal Church. The local church had been organized at the
end of the Civil War and the struggling congregation had succeeded
in erecting a small sanctuary on the site of the present Methodist
Church. Its members in the 1870's included some of the town's promi-
nent citizens — T. J. Pitzer, W. W. Tinsley, T. J. Wyatt, W. B. Ander-
son, J. D. Black and Mrs. Mahala Dowis.

The richest person in Barbourville in 1885 was probably the widow,
Mrs. Dowis, whose husband had accumulated a considerable fortune
during the war. At church she occupied a prominent seat apart from
the pews, in a position where her rich gowns and fans might be ad-
mired by the less fortunate ladies of the congregation. Green Elliott,
who ran the local drug store "looked after" the affairs of Mrs. Dowis
— often escorting her to business and social engagements. Her husband
was buried on the site of Union's campus in the cemetery which bore
his name.2

During his three-year pastorate at Barbourville, Kelley became ac-
quainted with the problems of the struggling college and no doubt

1 "Obituary of the Reverend Samuel L. Kelley." Kentucky Conference Minutes,
1925.

8 Mr. and Mrs. James Tuggle to writer, July 8, 1953.

Union College

it was his influence which persuaded the small congregation to hope
that it might be able to buy the school property when it was sold —
a gigantic task for a village church with less than seventy-five members.
When Kelley left Barbourville in September, 1883 to become pastor
of the Williamsburg charge, he still retained his interest in the Bar-
bourville church, often returning to assist in revivals. After retirement
from the ministry, Kelley made Barbourville his home and when he
passed to his reward in 1925, President E. T. Franklin and Dr. John
Owen Gross assisted in conducting his funeral services.

In the autumn of 1883, the Annual Session of the Kentucky Con-
ference was held at Barbourville. This furnished the Reverend Kelley
the occasion for pointing out to Dr. Stevenson, the leader of the
Board of Education, the probable opportunity for acquiring a school
for the conference. Dr. Stevenson remembered this particular assem-
bly at Barbourville as the one where "a prominent layman" succeeded
in preventing him from being elected to the General Conference
showing "that a present interest is with ordinary man more patent
than a great principle." 3

At the Annual Conference of 1886 held in Lexington, Kelley called
the Board of Education's attention to the advertised sale of Union's
property at public auction the third week in October,4 and urged
Dr. Stevenson to buy it for the Conference. The decision rendered by
the Board of Education presented Dr. Stevenson with a most distress-
ing dilemma. He was "instructed" to attend the sale "without authority
to assume any financial obligation on behalf of the conference." 6
Obviously, it would be of little advantage to Dr. Stevenson to stand by
helplessly, simply as an official eyewitness to the passing of a great
opportunity. He saw no promising future for his school at Augusta,
and realized that he must make an immediate decision on his own
responsibility.

With magnificent courage, Stevenson decided to confront the Con-
ference with an accomplished fact, trusting to the better judgment
and common sense of its members to vindicate and relieve him of
his charge. The Reverend J. G. Bruce, who had been appointed to go
along with him to the sale, could not attend, and Stevenson, with little
time on his hands made arrangements through Judge J. H. Tinsley, a
Methodist advisor, to have Green Elliott do the bidding while Mrs.

■ D. Stevenson, Journal II, 45. MSS copy in President's office.

* "Obituary of the Rev. Samuel L. Kelley, Kentucky Conference Minutes, 1925;
statement of A. M. Decker, Orange and Black, Sept. 30, 1922.

• "Report" of Stevenson, Kentucky Conference Minutes, 188S.

Union Rescued from Oblivion

Mahala Dowis furnished the financial backing.6 It is hard to believe
that Stevenson would have taken this bold step without some nod of
approval from his good friend, Mrs. Fanny Speed of Louisville.

On the day of the sale, October 25, 1886, the property was "cried
off" to Green Elliott for the sum of $4,425. At first the public did
not understand the significance of the sale, it being supposed that
Green Elliott had plans for use of the building. In his Journal, Dr.
Stevenson related: "At once I drew up a paper, wherein it was agreed
that the school . . . should be reopened . . . under my direction, and
under the patronage of the Kentucky Conference." 7

It was further agreed that the Conference should have two years to
take the property off the hands of the buyers. The Conference still
trod cautiously, being very careful not to become involved in litiga-
tion or to accept a heavy financial obligation. Under state law the
right of redemption remained for one year, because the sale had
amounted to less than two-thirds of the property's appraised value of
$7,500. About three weeks before the date of the redemption sale, the
Conference, upon the recommendation of the Board of Education
authorized Stevenson to raise money in order to pay for the purchase
in case the redemption right should be cried off to him.8

On October 24, 1887, Dr. Stevenson purchased the right of re-
demption for one dollar and gave his personal note to Green Elliott
and Mrs. Dowis. He set to work at once to raise the money. The Con-
ference agreed to sell some bank stock and apply the proceeds to-
wards the purchase. As agent for the Board of Education, Stevenson
had the authority to solicit money, make necessary repairs, and to
conduct the school.

In the surprisingly short time of five months, Stevenson had raised
the full sum and satisfied all creditors, including himself. On March
18, 1888, the Judge of the Circuit Court sitting in Knox County
ordered that a deed be made for the Board of Education.9 It is said
that W. F. Costellow presented the deed to Dr. Stevenson in open
court. Dr. Stevenson in turn presented the deed to the Conference at
its Annual fall meeting. "That event marks the beginning of what
has become a most significant adventure in Christian education." 10

The new regime did not find the same sleepy town which A. H.
Harritt had entered in 1879. In 1886 Barbourville's "Modern history"

* Stevenson's Journal, II, 45; J. P. Faulkner, "50th Anniversary Address"; Ken-
tucky Conference Minutes, 1888.
7 Journal, II, 45.

8D. Stevenson, "Report," Kentucky Conference Minutes, 1888.
6 Ibid.
10 President Gross to Board of Trustees, Board of Trustees, Minutes, 1936.

Union College

began. This new era was ushered in with the coming of the railroad.
In October, work began near Barbourville on the extension of the
Louisville and Nashville Railroad from Corbin.11 Two years later
the line extended through Pineville with an extension projected
through Cumberland Gap.

For two short periods of time, Barbourville became a boom town.
With the coming of the railroad over 60 houses were built within two
years. A huge structure, christened the Queen City Hotel, rose on Al-
lison Avenue but transient clientele failed to maintain it. In the late
nineties the town experienced another boom when oil was struck.
Some work on the paving and grading of streets began in 1890 and
contracts for electric lights were let.12 Barbourville soon possessed a
poorly managed bank and the publishers of the London Echo de-
cided to set up a branch organ, the Cumberland Valley News. The
year 1890 saw also the coming of Barbourville's famed street railway
which continued until that nostalgic day in July, 1919, when "Uncle"
Ike Golden unhitched old Dob from car 288 for the last time. Dr.
Stevenson had reasons for feeling sanguine over the possibilities of
his purchase.

Dr. Daniel Stevenson, agent for the Board of Education, was one
of Kentucky's best known educators. In 1786 his grandfather, Thomas
Stevenson, migrated with his wife and children from Maryland to
Kentucky via a flatboat on the Ohio River. His father, Daniel Steven-
son, had moved to Versailles, Kentucky, where Daniel Junior was
born on November 12, 1823. The timid, sickly lad grew into young
manhood unhappy and discouraged, doubting his ability to find his
rightful place in society.

A Methodist minister was responsible for pointing the way which
rescued young Stevenson from oblivion. He took the discouraged waif
along with him to attend the commencement exercises at Augusta
College. Here he viewed "the life beautiful." One thing was settled —
he would go to college. Using what little spare time was available to
an apprentice, Stevenson studied Latin and other subjects in prepara-
tion for college. Entering Transylvania College poorly prepared, he
forged to the front and delivered the Greek oration at the commence-
ment exercises — an honor reserved for the finest scholar in that field.
Stevenson later became proficient in the Hebrew and so it was told
proudly by his friends that the scholar could read the Bible in four
languages.

After graduation he taught in three states within three years. In

11 London Echo, Oct. 29, 1886.
"Ibid., March 7, 1890.

Union Rescued from Oblivion

1849, Stevenson married Sarah Corwine, a sister of one of his college
chums. The new Mrs. Stevenson could boast of an ancestry running
back to John Winthrop of early New England fame. The following
years Stevenson combined teaching with the duties of a circuit rider.
Now twenty-eight years of age he reached the decision to give himself
"wholly to God," and was admitted into the Kentucky Conference of
the Methodist Episcopal Church, South.

The coming of the Civil War had its terrible effects on the churches
of Kentucky as well as upon its other institutions. Stevenson cast his
lot with the Unionists and in 1863 became the candidate of the Union
Party for the office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. He served
in that capacity until 1867 when he was defeated for re-election.

During the conflict, Stevenson remained within the M. E. Church,
South. At the war's end in 1865, he became a leader of the famous
"Eighteen" — the nucleus of the new Kentucky Conference. This group
withdrew from the southern branch of the church because of the bit-
ter opposition to its proposal to reunite with the M. E. Church in
order to help heal the wounds opened by slavery and the Great Re-
bellion.

Stevenson served a three year pastorate in Louisville as minister of
Trinity Church where he captured the lasting friendship of Fanny
Speed. Later Stevenson spent four years in New England and when he
returned to his native Kentucky in 1879, it was for the purpose of ad-
ministering Augusta — the school which made a lasting impression
upon him in his youth.

For many years, Daniel Stevenson had fought vigorously for an edu-
cated ministry. Opposed to him within the conference was a strong
group which believed that consecration to God's service enabled any-
one to preach the gospel properly. Stevenson determined to secure an
educational institution for the training of young ministers in the
new Kentucky Conference. He would achieve his aim by reviving old
Augusta College.

Upon his arrival in Kentucky from New Hampshire, Stevenson found
himself disillusioned. The Trustees of Augusta had failed in their
promise to make suitable repairs to the plant. Stevenson decided not
to wait until repairs were completed and reopened the old school in
the middle of September, 1879. Historic Augusta College had suffered
the full impact of the slavery controversy. It closed in 1844 and lost
its charter five years later. Other schools bearing slightly different
names were opened in its buildings in 1851 and 1863. The Method-

Union College

ist Episcopal Church, South, was bargaining for Augusta's buildings
when Stevenson secured a five-year lease.13

Stevenson purposed from the first to have the Kentucky Conference
accept Augusta as a Conference school. In September, 1882, at the an-
nual conference held in Louisville, Stevenson presented the matter
and a year later the contract became effective. Stevenson's dream had
come true; the Kentucky Conference now had a higher institution of
learning useful for the preparation of ministers — the Augusta Col-
legiate Institute.

Dr. Stevenson left posterity no direct evidence as to why he decided
to leave Augusta and embark upon a new project to revive the school
at Barbourville; but J. P. Faulkner gives as his reason "the conclusion
that success was impossible at the revived or new Augusta College
. . ." 14 However in his report for the school year, 1886-1887, Stevenson
listed enrollment at Augusta as greater than either of the past two
years, and described the "general condition" of the school as good.15

The Board of Education gave no hint of relinquishing Augusta
while Stevenson was bargaining for Union's property. In October,
1886 it resolved "that we will do all we can to sustain this institution
[Augusta] by speaking in its favor, and endeavoring to secure to it
the patronage of the members and friends of our church." 16 Steven-
son's resignation as president at a meeting of the Board of Education
held at Augusta, June 4, 1887,1T placed the situation in an entirely
new light. The contract between the Conference and the Trustees of
Bracken Academy at Augusta was to be effective only during the
period of Stevenson's presidency.18 Upon his resignation, the Board
decided to adopt Union as the Conference college, if possible, and
to allow Augusta to revert into the hands of the Bracken Academy
Trustees. The same year Augusta became a public grade and high
school.19

For many years, the statement that "Union College is a continuation
of Augusta," has gone unchallenged. No evidence has been found to
sustain the idea that the school at Augusta had simply moved into
new quarters. If such had been the case, why did the Board of Edu-
cation not adopt the name "Augusta" for the school at Barbourville.
What actually happened is this: — Augusta College collapsed for the

13 William Hanson, "A History of Educational Institutions in Augusta." (M.A.
thesis, University of Cincinnati, 1951).

14 J. P. Faulkner, "Address on the Coming of Dr. Stevenson," 1936.
16 Kentucky Conference Minutes, 1887.

10 Ibid., 1886.

" "Report" of the Board of Education, Kentucky Conference Minutes, 1887.
18 Hanson, "A History of Educational Institutions in Augusta." Kentucky.
l* Walter Rankins, Historic Augusta and Augusta College, 26.

Union Rescued from Oblivion

want of a sponsor when the contract expired in 1887. Union College
was re-opened in Barbourville under new management and with
added objectives.

Certainly, W. W. Sawyers, Union's heaviest stockholder and presi-
dent of the defunct Union College Corporation must have thought of
the transaction in terms of a revived Union. In spite of heavy losses
already sustained, Senator Sawyers donated five rooms of desks to the
new Union,20 bringing his gratuity to approximately $3000.21 It
would be hard to believe that one of Union's original founders had
unwittingly contributed so much to another institution without real-
izing it.

Again it is dangerous to assume that Union's re-opening depended
entirely upon Stevenson's actions. The need for educational facilities
in Southeastern Kentucky was greater than ever. Possibly some other
sect or group would have purchased the bargain for a similar purpose.
In 1891 a short lived "college," Union Normal School College was
opened at Flat Lick, and in 1899, the Barbourville Baptist Institute
was organized in Barbourville.

In December of 1886, the London Echo proudly announced the
reopening of Union College "last Monday [December 13,]." 22
Stevenson was still president of Augusta and he found it necessary
to send one of his professors, George H. Dains, to take charge at Bar-
bourville. Other members of the faculty were Emma Dykes, Francis
Goetz the famous musician and, Dains' stepmother. Stevenson's hurried
trip for commencement exercises in June, 1887, had unfortunate results.
An inebriated sot at Corbin almost broke his leg, requiring him to use
crutches for several weeks.

Stevenson was present part of the school year 1887-1888, but it
was not until September, 17, 1888 that he was officially made president
of Union College and "Conductor of Ministerial Institutes," with the
added title of "member of Barbourville Quarterly Conference." 23
As president, he served as his own bookkeeper and stenographer, ad-
ministered college affairs, and taught up to five periods a day, none
of which seemed dull to J. P. Faulkner.24

The account which Mrs. Delia Rankin has written of her life at
Union during Stevenson's regime is so vivid that any attempt to para-
phrase it could result only in loss of its flavor and setting. She relates:

80 Elmer Decker in Orange and Black, April 12, 1939.

81 J. P. Faulkner, "50th Anniversary Address."
» Dec. 17, 1886.

83 Kentucky Conference Minutes, 1888.

84 "50th Anniversary Address."

Union College

My earliest recollections of Union College are of some sixty odd years
ago when as a little tot I was in the primary grades under a most be-
loved teacher — Miss — Gardner. Nothing much except the usual school
day memoirs of a happy childhood stands out — except that she was tall
and gray haired, remarkedly gentle and sweet, and that one day before
the terrified eyes of a roomfull of children she sank to the floor and as
I have always thought died there in our presence — Union College in
those days was a somewhat unique institution, in that it not only set
the pattern of our scholastic life, but in an almost unbelievable measure
dominated the mores of the little community, and pretty well regulated
every phase of our (the students) lives. The teachers of those early
years I recall as persons highly dedicated to a cause in which they were
whole-heartedly interested. The school had something of the missionary
aspect, for that section of the state was then quite "primitive" (tho'
we didn't like the "furriners" to tell us so) . Certainly it could not have
been for financial gain that those teachers came. The then president
was Dr. Stevenson — "old Doctor" we called him, not in disparagement
for everyone respected him, and many of whom I was one, loved him.
I always (and so did everyone else pretty nearly) stood in awe of him,
and many is the time I have skittered across the street to keep from
meeting him as I knew he would ask where had I been — or where was
I going — and what for etc., etc., and he took it as his privilege to stop
our mothers at any chance meeting and give them little counselling talks
on how they were to raise us — discipline and the like and no one thought
of him as a meddler in something not his business, but rather as a
patriarchal overseer of his domain. Among some of the restrictions im-
posed upon us as students were — no dancing, no card playing (these
were prohibitions of most of the churches then) no gum chewing,
and of course no drinking and on Monday morning roll call in chapel
we must answer either "present" or "church." The latter was the ac-
ceptable answer and meant we had attended a minimum of two services
the previous day (Sunday) . It could be any two, as Sunday School &
one church service. If the answer was "present" we had to report
immediately after "chapel" to "old Doctor's" private office and give
a good reason why'. That "chapel" gathering is one of my most impres-
sionable memories. The college at the time I attended consisted physically
of one administration Bldg. and a small frame cottage (known as the
President's home.)

The administration Building was a rather austere red brick building
with a large centre hall running full length, on each side of which were
class rooms and a bell tower sticking up at the center front — this college
bell was quite a feature of local life.

The large assembly room where "chapel" was held each morning
extended over the North (I believe) side of the second floor — music
lessons and occasional other classes were held in it too. Miss Ella Tinsley
(later Mrs. Fred Rector) a very beautiful young woman, and the
"Belle," of the town, was the music teacher, and after assembling in
our classrooms we marched up to chapel to the rather militant marches
she played for us and afterwards marched down again to the stirring
music, in perfect order. Chapel exercises, as did much of our school life

Union Rescued from Oblivion

then, had definite religious overtones. There was always responsive
scripture reading, singing, not necessarily a hymn. I recall one special
favorite of "old Doctor's," — Felicia Hemoris "The Breaking Waves
Dashed High — On a Storm and Rock Bound Coast." I could still sing it
for you — after all these years, were you present and had the courage
to listenl On Monday morning we had to recite the ten commandments
(no peeping in the book, either!) Then followed a talk, usually by Dr.
S. — of an inspirational nature. In one of his favorite themes he would
quote Pope (I believe) "Vice is a monster of so frightful mien — etc.,
etc.," and I am sure all of us of that period can quote the passage ver-
batim. How profound an influence those talks had on our characters
and subsequent lives I am sure we also appreciate. Sometimes a student
participated maybe with a "recitation" of something original or a musical
feature. The stage sat very high and I am sure mine were not the only
spindly legs that knocked together as we mounted it. "Old Doctor"
as I remember him was a small man in stature — but mighty in his
personality. He had rather heavy iron — gray hair, very keen eyes (that
saw everything!) and I believe wore a pointed beard (you can verify
from pictures) . He had a little habit of sniffing his nose and twisting it,
with his mouth from side to side. This always meant he was displeased —
probably had seen someone misbehaving in class or whatever — and his
little mannerism was often the only expression of his displeasure — but
the culprit was wise enough to straighten up and behave himself. He was
a firm believer in the value of the "dead" languages (Greek and Latin)
in education. He, himself, taught a beginners "oral" class in Latin.
When I was 10 years old he passed my desk, tapped me on the shoulder
and said, "I want this little girl in my Latin class." Quaking in my shoes
I went. It turned out to be fun. Doctor's method must have been original
with him. He drew a sort of "hop-skotch" diagram on the floor — and
I can see him now hopping and tapping with his cane and in a sing-song
rhythm going thro the declensions and congugations Hic-haec-hoc — tap-
tap-tap — huius,-huius-huius — tap-tap-tap- huic huic huic, tap, tap, tap;
hunc, hanc, hoc, tap, tap, tap; Hoc, hac, hoc; tap, tap, tap; and so on,
and we learned it so that it stuck with us. The date of Dr. Stevenson's
death which I do not recall, is a matter of record. In his going, Barbour-
ville lost one of its truly great citizens. A man whose rather brusque
interior had a heart that was warm with kindly and human impulses.2"

The rigid code of moral and religious conduct prevailing at Union
was not peculiar to that institution alone, but merely reflected the
standards accepted by society as a whole. For instance in Knox county
court a bench warrant was issued for William Fore who "maliciously
engaged in a game of cards for profit and amusement on the Sabbath
day — the same not being a work of necessity or charity." From the
school's first days the better citizens of Barbourville had thundered
in vain against the town's saloons. Under the sponsorship of Senator
W. W. Sawyers, of Barbourville, a state law was passed making it

aB Delia J. Rankin to writer, July 12, 1953.

Union College

"unlawful to sell liquor in any quantities less than half a barrel within
four miles of Union College." 26 This special legislation was somewhat
nullified by the issuance of Federal licenses permitting the hawking
of liquor in the area.

The absence in the early Union College Bulletins of official bans
against drinking indicates but one thing — it was taken for granted
that no tipplers would be tolerated on the campus. No student was
admitted who used tobacco unless he first pledged himself to discon-
tinue its use.27 This effort to enforce rightful conduct on the part of
students extended into the realm of speech; "all profanity, all vul-
garity" were "kept as far away from the college as possible." 28

As Mrs. Rankin has previously written, attendance at chapel and
church was rigidly enforced, because "secular knowledge is not enough
for the duties of life." The Bible was held to be "the standard of
truth, and the fear of the Lord, the beginning of wisdom." Daily
chapel consisted of "reading of the Sacred Scriptures responsively, of
singing and of prayer." Each Monday morning all students were re-
quired to "repeat the Ten Commandments." 29

The social life existing on the campus found its place in religious
and literary activities. Literary societies had existed since 1880, but
the coming of the college curriculum to Union brought about a new
awakening. Under the leadership of William E. Shaw, a really great
teacher,30 two literary societies were organized, the Philonikean and
the Invincibles. Dr. Stevenson thought the latter title hardly suitable
for a female organization and it was changed to Fanny Speed Society.
The girls countered by making "Invincible" their motto. Presumably
the male Philonikeans were lovers of strife.31 They took for their
motto a Greek saying, which translated meant, "Find a way or make
one."

The purpose of these two societies was to enable their members "to
practice without restraint, the lessons they had learned in the class
room, thereby making college less theoretical and more practical."
There was great rivalry between the two societies, but naturally the
feeling was not bad — one was composed of girls; the other boys.

The Philos "stuck their necks out" by offering to debate the sub-
ject:— "Resolved that women should have equal rights with men."

88 Chapter 426 of the Acts of the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of
Kentucky.

8T Union College Catalog, 1896.

"Ibid., 1894-95.

■• Ibid.

80 Shaw achieved great success after his days at Union. See Who's Who in
America, 1942-43, 1980.

"The Greek original means a lover of strife or one eager to control.

Union Rescued from Oblivion

The Fanny Speeds accepted the challenge and upset the carefully laid
plans of the opposition by choosing the negative side of the proposition
— and they won. The Philos wore a gold button on their lapels as a
distinguishing badge, while the Fanny Speeds wore pins.32 After
the third floor of the administration building was completed about
1892, a nice room known as "Speed Memorial Hall," was "commodi-
ously furnished and set aside for the use of the societies." 33

Although there were no series of lyceum programs, special lectures
were delivered by faculty members and guest speakers. In 1891, Dr.
Stevenson's son Richard, gave a series of three lectures on "Old Rome
in New Italy," "Shakespeare as a Moralist," and "Clive." The next
year, B. D. Mansfield presented a series of lectures on Wolfe, Living-
ston, Gordon, and Stanley. Special lectures, societies, and clubs were
undoubtedly of great value and interest, but the focal point of the
school's activities lay elsewhere — in the classical college curriculum.

Dr. Stevenson's coming to Union marked the beginning of class
work on a true college basis, and the granting of degrees. The best
Union could offer during the years, 1879-1886, was college preparatory
in nature. In fact, when the school closed in June of 1886, it was
little above a grade school, though special tutoring was given to stu-
dents on the academic level. Stevenson's plan was to begin classes of
academic (college preparatory) grade and when he had a freshman
"class" ready, to follow through year by year with a college program.

The curriculum as listed in 1893-94 consisted of four grades; pri-
mary, intermediate, academic, and collegiate. These levels took two,
four, three, and four years respectively to complete. Besides prepara-
tion in the classical languages, grammar, and mathematics, the aca-
demic program includes today's grade school subjects of reading,
history, arithmetic, and geography.

The first year of the collegiate level overlapped the academic level.
Three years of Greek, Latin, and mathematics were required, and
two terms each of Bible, philosophy, and political science. One term
each was devoted to astronomy, geology, botany, physics, and logic. The
college curriculum consisted of one course, the "old time classical
course" — leading to the Bachelor of Arts degree. Beginning in 1895-
96, an advanced degree of A.M. in cursu was offered. Students aspir-
ing to this degree must take one year of advanced work and submit
an original thesis of not less than 3000 words. J. P. Faulkner (1896)
and George E. Hancock (1900) were the only recipients of this degree.

88 This interesting information on the clubs was contributed by Mrs. Rankin of
San Diego, and George Wilson of Philadelphia.
83 Union College Catalog, 1898.

Union College

An improved course of study was announced for 1895-96, with the
intention of bringing courses into conformity with the requirements
of the University Senate of the Methodist Episcopal Church. In 1896-
97, the primary department was lengthened to three years, and two
years later, was increased to four years.

The year, 1893, marked an important milestone in the history of
Union's academic progress, when on June 8, President Stevenson con-
ferred the A.B. degree upon Union's first college graduates, James
Perry Faulkner, and John Elbert Thomas.34

Dr. Stevenson's carefully prepared address, delivered in Latin, con-
gratulated the two upon receiving the rewards of their labor and
admonished them, as Union's "first grown sons," to set an example
"for all her younger children." 35 An examination of the lives of
Union's first two college graduates reveals that they did not betray
their trust. On this same day, Union's first honorary degree — that of
Mistress of English Literature, was conferred upon Miss Wesleyana
Gardiner, a member of the faculty.36

The Commencement week program of June, 1894, furnishes an
example of Union's early exercises. On Sunday morning, June 3, the
president delivered his "Annual sermon," followed by the "Love
Feast" in the afternoon. From June 4-6, examinations were the daily
schedule with nightly programs of literary societies, entertainments,
addresses, and exhibitions. Graduation on Thursday morning con-
cluded the exercises. The A.B. Degree was conferred upon Charles H.
Byrley, Charles Gibson and James S. Lock. Charles W. Sutton received
the honorary degree of Master of Arts.37

This carrying through of a college curriculum successfully brought
with it heavy financial burdens. President Stevenson's account for
1892, reporting the college free of debt seems almost miraculous when
one considers that the total assets of the Board of Education in 1887
consisted of eleven shares of bank stock in Covington in addition to
$130 in cash.38 Stevenson, as agent for the Educational Fund, reported
receipts totaling $7,571.76 for the year 1888. Of this amount, SI 300
was contributed by pastoral charges — the Barbourville church alone
contributing almost $400. The Board of Education's share amounting
to over $2000, probably was raised through the sale of its bank stock.
Mrs. Fanny Speed of Louisville was by far the heaviest contributor.

s* There were originally four members in this class. The other two were S. C.
Steele and Mrs. James Brittain Tuggle.

35 For English translation of Dr. Stevenson's address, see Appendix.
80 Board of Education. Record, 1892-1903, MSS, President's office.

37 "Remembrances," Abigail E. Weeks, MSS.

38 Kentucky Conference, Minutes, 18S7.

Union Rescued from Oblivion

As already stated, Dr. Stevenson would probably not have dared to
assume such heavy financial responsibility in 1886, had not some in-
dividual given him assurance of underwriting the project. This could
have come only from Fanny Speed. On the very day in 1887, when
Dr. Stevenson redeemed the sale of Union's property, Mrs. Speed gave
$1000. Within the next seven months her donations totaled over $7500,
about half of which was applied on the building debt. The records
of Dr. Stevenson and the Kentucky Conference for this period listed
contributions from Mrs. Speed amounting to $14,647, not counting
her gifts for ministerial students, Stevenson's salary and preachers in-
stitutes. By 1895, Union had a small endowment of $7400 of which
$5200 had been donated by Mrs. Speed. This early endowment be-
came known as the Fanny Speed Fund. After Mrs. Speed's death, a
member of the Board of Education estimated her total gifts during
Stevenson's administration as amounting to $60,000.39

This relatively easy income of Dr. Stevenson's administration also
made possible some growth of the physical properties of the college.
During this period, 1886-1897, this growth consisted of repairs, com-
pletion of the main college building, a president's residence, and the
acquisition of added acreage to the original campus.

The total cost of grounds, buildings, bell, interest, insurance, and
all improvements up to September, 1888, amounted to $6571. At
the same time the total estimated worth of Union's property was set
at $1 0,000. 40 The main building had never been completed — the
"chapel remained unwainscoted and unplastered." No work had been
done on the third floor interior. Within two years the chapel was com-
pleted, damage was repaired, two flights of stairs were run to the third
story, new windows were cut, and five usable rooms were added. In
addition a piano was purchased and a well was sunk. A total of over
$2000 had been expended on repairs and improvements.

The first addition to Union's campus after 1886 was brought about
wholly on the initiative of President Stevenson. Upon coming to Bar-
bourville he had taken up quarters at the Anderson hotel. Afterwards
he lived with his family in a little cottage on High Street alongside
the site of the present Christian church.41 Desiring to live closer to
his place of work, Stevenson, in 1892, purchased the "Stickley proper-
ty," a small tract of land about 60 feet wide lying northwest of the
college plot, for the sum of $330 and one share of Cumberland Valley

39 Memorandum by a member of the Board of Education, 1903, President's office.

40 "Report" of D. Stevenson, Kentucky Conference, Minutes, 1888.

41 Mrs. Annie Albright related how Mrs. Stevenson, a very lovable lady, would
sit on her porch and throw kisses to her friends as they passed by her residence.

Union College

Bank Stock.42 On this plot, Stevenson erected a five room dwelling
known at first as the President's home but in later years as "Campus
Cottage." 43 The following year the Board of Education agreed to
buy the property and made Stevenson agent for raising the amount
set at $1600. In 1896, Dr. Stevenson was paid in full and the deed
transferred. The president had given $100 toward payment on his own
residence and Fanny Speed contributed $732.49.44

The most striking difference between the administration of the new
Union College, and that of the old, was in its aims and objectives.
The charter or corporation school had for its goal a well rounded
education for the individual; and while religious instruction was in-
cluded, the school's primary objectives were not Christian in nature.
The new Union under Stevenson retained all the old aims and placed
the goal of Christian education for Christian living in the forefront of
its objectives.

These Christian goals were sought through the media of class room
instruction, the training of prospective Christian workers, ministerial
institutes, chapel exercises, participation in church work, and daily
Christian living as exemplified in the lives of the faculty and student
body.

One of Union College's first advertisements called "special attention
given to the training of young men for the ministry, and of young
women for usefulness in the church." The Board of Education of
the Kentucky Conference emphasized repeatedly the opportunities
at Union for those preparing for the ministry. Although no theologi-
cal department was established at Union until shortly after Dr. Steven-
son's death, special classes were conducted by him during his regime.
His first class consisted of J. P. Faulkner and J. Elbert Thomas. "It
increased gradually and later there were eight or ten. Sometimes
other students came in for certain lectures, and occasionally a faculty
member. The courses were all of a practical nature and the talks or
readings interesting and inspirational. After a while a few of us were
given instruction in sermon building." 45 In 1895, Union had seven
students preparing for the ministry. President Stevenson extended
these ministerial services to different districts of the conference. As
previously noted, all these ministerial institutes were financed by
Fanny Speed. Frequently these institutes failed because not many
students could afford to attend, and often, the ones who could have
benefitted most were the least concerned.

ts Knox County Deed Records, Book "T," 12.

43 This is now the residence of the superintendent of grounds.

41 Kentucky Conference Minutes, 1894; 1895; 1896.

48 J. P. Faulkner, "Address Celebrating the Coming of Dr. Stevenson. . .

Union Rescued from Oblivion

After four years of hard work on behalf of his college, Stevenson
determined to spend a much needed vacation in Europe. His party
of thirteen included his son Richard, and Mrs. Belle Speed, an aunt
of his daughter-in-law. Their itinerary included Britain, France, Italy,
Switzerland, Germany and Holland. Richard Stevenson lost his wallet
containing 2500 francs and Dr. Stevenson likewise his letter of credit,
whereupon the party retired to Westminster Abbey to hear the
Reverend Robinson Duckworth preach on the text, "Blessed is he
that considereth the poor." 46 Stevenson returned in September in
time for the opening of the new school year.

During Dr. Stevenson's tenure of office, a total of fifteen students
received the A.B. degree. The class of 1895, six in number, was not
exceeded in size until thirty years later.47 The attendance through
the years, 1891-96, varied from 93 to 105 students. The maximum
number enrolled in the college and academic curriculums were 18 and
30 respectively. About one-third of the school attended primary grades.
The early interest in musical instruction continued throughout the
years.

On November 13, 1893, Dr. Stevenson made the last entry in his
Journal. He wrote, "Yesterday was my birthday, I have now reached
the age of seventy, but it is hard for me to realize it, as I feel as if I
were not more than forty or fifty years of age." But Stevenson's body
had never been strong and four years later, after an attack of erysipelas,
he weakened rapidly and died on the second day of the new year, 1897.
His faithful wife followed him the next year and was laid to rest by
his side in Lexington, Kentucky.

All the tributes paid to Dr. Stevenson would fill many pages — much
more than this work can devote to him. The following are illustrative
of the love and esteem in which this great and good man was held:

In the death of Daniel Stevenson, D.D., the Board of Education of
the Kentucky Conference, Methodist Episcopal Church has lost its most
faithful member. Ever watchful, ever faithful and every working. In his
integrity and energy in business he has left to his co-laborers and suc-
cessors on the Board ... a life to imitate.48

He was above all else a teacher of men. He had an ambition to ed-
ucate a strong class of young men for the church he loved. The Kentucky
Conference was very dear to him and he returned to it with a devout

48 Daniel Stevenson, Journal II, August 24, 1890.

47 At this writing, March, 1954, only three members of the early classes survive.
They are Mr. and Mrs. George Wilson of Philadelphia and Dr. William C. Black of
Lexington.

48 Board of Education, Record, March 22, 1897.

Union College

purpose to give it his last as he had given it his first efforts to promote
its higher interests.*9

When I entered Union College forty years ago, it was small with but
meagre equipment but it had Dr. Daniel Stevenson — a virile person-
ality, distinguished in appearance. Courtly, radiating good humor, full
of wisdom, rather austere but extremely just and kind, a Christian edu-
cator and leader, who recognized as his responsibility all who came with-
in his environment, either in school, church, or community. He had
supreme respect for human personality.

He was clean in his life, pure in heart and mind, cultured, intellectual,
a scholar, a wonderfully high type of the consecrated follower and worker
with the Lord Jesus in his Kingdom's enterprise. I do not remember
many new facts I learned there — there were some of course — but the
spell of his character led me, very soon, to want to give my life to the
same service in which he had enlisted. The sermon he preached at our
graduation was from Philippians IV, 8-9 and it seems to me now as it
did then that he was a superb example of the result of following Paul's
suggestions.50

But what of his work? Shall it end with his death or shall it continue?
I ask you the question. You know it is sometimes said that the youngest
child is the most loved of all. Union College was the last and youngest of
all his works; and so, we think, the dearest to his heart. What shall be its
history? Shall it be dear to us because loved by him? Let me answer the
question for you, for I think I know your minds in this matter. I say,
no, it shall not die; it shall live and shall continue to grow and shall
add luster to his name.51

Such are the tributes paid to this servant of the Almighty who said:
"No man is fit to preach that does not tremble [before God] as he
enters the pulpit."

*" "Biographical Sketch of Daniel Stevenson," Kentucky Conference Minutes,
1897.

60 J. Elbert Thomas to "Founders Day" Committee, May 14, 1929, President's
office.

51 J. P. Faulkner, "Memorial Address," MSS, President's office.

Chapter 111

IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF PRESIDENT SI EVEN SON

1897-1905

THE BOARD OF EDUCATION found itself unprepared for such
a blow as the passing of Dr. Stevenson. To many it seemed that
Union, shorn of its great captain, was bound to be broken upon the
surrounding rocks of adversity. In this period of gloom, the Board
turned to its patron saint, Fanny Speed, for her opinion on continu-
ance of the school, and for some reassurance of financial support.

Her answer came as a great relief to all concerned. She was quite
willing to "continue her aid to the school in its present condition,"
but could not contribute as heavily to student aid as she had in the
past. She was also willing to pay Faulkner's salary should he be re-
tained permanently as president. Dr. Stevenson's death had brought
Mrs. Speed much distress, but her prayers were asking for the "carry-
ing out of his great purpose of doing good to the Kentucky Confer-
ence." J

Judge J. H. Tinsley, who had served as Stevenson's legal advisor at
the time Union's property was sold, was now president pro-tempore
of the Board of Education. In this capacity he became the principal
"spokesman for the policies of Dr. Stevenson in the trying days follow-
ing his death. . ." 2 In the opinion of J. P. Faulkner, Judge Tinsley
performed his greatest services to Union at this period.

On March 22, 1897, the Board of Education elected J. P. Faulkner
president of Union College for the balance of the school year 1897-
98. The Board placed entire financial responsibility upon the young
new president. From the income paid for tuition he was to remuner-
ate the instructors, carry the insurance and $125 annual rent, which
might be paid "in necessary repairs and improvements." Faulkner's
salary was set at $700 per annum in addition to use of the president's
house.3

James Perry Faulkner, upon whom these burdens fell, was a native
of Knox County, Kentucky, an alumnus of the college and assistant

1 Fanny Speed to J. D. Walsh, Feb. 6, 1897, President's office.

9 J. P. Faulkner, "50th Anniversary Address."

'Board of Education, Record, 1892-1903, MSS, President's office.

Union College

to the president at the time of Stevenson's death. His Virginian an
cestors were among the early Methodists of America. He was born in
a one room log cabin at Swan Pond (near Barbourville) in 1869,
the youngest of five children. Born into poverty and sickness, and
deprived of parental care at an early age, the youngster was received
into the home of an aunt for rearing. The scant fare of education re-
ceived in the public and subscription schools of the period served to
whet his appetite for more learning. His first contact with Union
took place when he visited the school over Gibson's store in 1880.
Later, on his trips to the grist mill, he "had seen the walls of the college
building rise to completion," and during the Grider administration
had "been to college" as he termed it.4

When Union reopened in 1886, Faulkner could see little hope of at-
tending because of financial difficulties. "In 1887 he became acquainted
with Dr. Stevenson, who, perceiving him to be a young man of more
than ordinary promise, succeeded in persuading him to attend col-
lege." 5

Faulkner had joined the Methodist Church under the Reverend
S. L. Kelley during the days when that pioneer evangelist was serving
as a circuit rider, and it thrilled him to be able to attend a school
sponsored by leaders of his faith. He was received into the home of
Gordon G. Bain, one of Union's founders, was the recipient of a
ministerial grant from Fanny Speed, and helped to earn his own way
by performing janitorial services after school in addition to clerking
in the local drugstore. It is said that he laid Union's first brick walk
and planted trees which now form part of Union's beautiful campus.
As he progressed in his studies, Faulkner became student assistant and
upon his graduation in 1893, was made an instructor in science and
mathematics. He continued his studies at Union while teaching and
in 1896 took the A.M. degree in cursu. At the time of Dr. Stevenson's
death he had worked up to the vice-presidency. Faulkner's succession
to the presidency of Union was in fulfillment of Daniel Stevenson's
wishes.

President Faulkner had been steeped in the philosophy of his
"spiritual father," Dr. Stevenson, and it was his determination to fol-
low in his predecessor's footsteps. The school should continue to
maintain a collegiate curriculum, to foster Christian education, to take
care of the needs of prospective teachers, to add courses of a utilitarian
nature, and to go forward with a building program.

The collegiate curriculum underwent a slight revision in compliance

4 J. P. Faulkner, "Anniversary Address on the Coming of Stevenson."
8 Western Christian Advocate, May 19, 1897.

In the Footsteps of President Stevenson, 1897-1905

with the wishes of the University Senate of the Methodist Episcopal
Church in order to enable Union's graduates to stand "on a level
with those of colleges of like grade." 6

President Faulkner added the normal department in 1900 in ac-
cordance with the need of a teacher training program. Its three
courses of instruction were the county certificate, the commercial, and
the preparatory. The first mentioned led to a teaching certificate in
the common schools; the second qualified one for admission to the
collegiate course; and the third, a three year course, granted a Normal
Diploma provided one held a first class certificate. The county course
consisted mainly of common school subjects with the addition of
civil government and Kentucky History.7 Because the long room
on the first floor was used mainly by the Normal department, it be-
came known as the normal room.

The cost of attending Union had gone up considerably since its
founding. Board and room now cost from $2.50 to $3.00 weekly and
a year's tuition on the collegiate level cost $45. The total yearly cost
for a year came to approximately $150.

A definitely organized college library was one of the achievements
of Faulkner's regime. Dr. Stevenson had a small private library near
his office on the second floor of the administration building but it
was not available for general use by the students.8 In 1898 the long
"library room" on the second floor was furnished with tables, desks,
chairs, and bookcases. This combination library and waiting room
was christened the "Speed-Stevenson Library," in honor of Fanny
Speed and Mrs. Daniel Stevenson. The three leading contributors to
Union's first library were Fanny Speed, Mrs. Daniel Stevenson, and
Professor George H. Dains. The latter who had served as acting presi-
dent in Stevenson's absence, had married Emma Dykes, one of Union's
instructors, and gone to Middlesboro to enter the newspaper busi-
ness. The first year over 1000 books were catalogued and labeled
bearing the names of the donors and 150 more volumes were added
the following year.9

Later a room was furnished on the third floor for use of the literary
societies. This room was known as Speed Memorial Hall. A Union
College catalog of the period described the societies as the "pulse of
the school since they are . . . indicators of its condition." They were
reputedly the "centers of its best elements, moral and intellectual," but

• Kentucky Conference Minutes, 1899.
7 Union College Catalogue, 1901.

•Mr. and Mrs. W. D. Faulkner to writer, March 11, 1954.

"Union College Catalogs, 1898, 1898-1900, 1901; "Report" of the Committee
on Education, Kentucky Conference Minutes, 1899.

Union College

an examination of some of their programs indicate an interest in the
lighter side of life. A Philoneikean program for April, 1899, listed such
subjects as "A Boys First Love," "How it Feels to be in Love," and
"Advice to Persons not in Love and About to Get in Love."

The literary societies paid for their own lighting bills. One finds
such items as 15^ spent for oil and 20^ expended for a lamp chimney.
Treasuries were maintained by fining each member 5^ for each un-
excused absence. No student was allowed to enter the society hall
unless he could give the secret password, which was changed each term
for reasons of security. "Excelsior" was a password for one term.10
The societies were supposed to be under faculty supervision but once
during the term of Dr. Stevenson, he entered a Philoneikean meeting
unannounced to find a "Kangaroo" court in session.11 Evidently
hazing established itself early in Union's history.

The facilities of the one building college were now becoming strained
by the swelling enrollment. At the turn of the century, Union enrolled
184 students — the largest number to date. But dangerous symptoms
were already appearing. The collegiate department had shrunk to only
6 students while the newly organized normal department numbered
53. The academic department was also falling while the lower gram-
mar and primary departments were swelling. Although 200 pupils
were enrolled at the end of Faulkner's administration, the combined
collegiate and academic departments counted only 25 students.

With no housing available on the campus for the out of town
"Young ladies," the administration was compelled to make arrange-
ments for properly supervised rooms in town. An apartment over the
Cumberland Valley Bank (now the residence of George W. Tye) , was
secured for use as a boarding hall. Mrs. Ellen Thomas, president
Faulkner's sister, acted as matron, and now the parents of the young
ladies no longer had any fears that their daughters would not "have
proper restraints thrown around them."

Added advantages were advertised by the college in order to lure
prospective ministerial students. By 1899 eight scholarships were be-
ing offered to worthy students and the Kentucky Conference was en-
couraging prospective ministers to avail themselves of these unusual
opportunities. The direction of ministerial work at the college had
formerly rested exclusively in the hands of Presidents Stevenson and
Faulkner. President Faulkner was relieved of this added burden in
1898, when John Elbert Thomas, his classmate at Union, returned
from Boston Theological Seminary to take charge of this work. Union

Philoneikean Society Minutes. MSS, President's office.

Mr. and Mrs. W. D. Faulkner to writer, March 11, 1954.

In the Footsteps of President Stevenson, 1897-1905

now had, for the first time, a full time teacher and director of re-
ligious education.

Faulkner and Thomas were not the only Union graduates serving
their Alma Mater during this period. George H. Wilson, May E. Lock,
and Daisy C. Tinsley, also taught. This is the only period in Union's
history when the faculty was composed mainly of Union graduates
and natives of Barbourville. With the coming of a new regime in
1905, an entire new faculty was selected with one exception. Union
can be justly proud of her early graduates, several of whom rose to
places of high distinction.

During the period 1897-1904, a great deal was heard of a proposed
new dormitory for women, and the part Fanny Speed would play in
its erection and completion. This lady's name has already been
mentioned frequently in this work and it behooves us well at this
point to learn more about Union's patron saint.

Fanny Henning Speed was born near Louisville, Kentucky, in 1820.
She was descended from some of the first families of Virginia. As a
young woman she attended a boarding school for young ladies con-
ducted by the Reverend John Tevis at Science Hill. Her selection as
the school's Queen of the May was a tribute to her girlish charm and
beauty. But alas, her majesty never reigned — for even monarchs fall
prey to measles — and a proxy mounted the throne for that auspicious
occasion. At twenty-five years of age, she married Joshua Speed, lately
returned from establishing his intimate friendship with Abraham
Lincoln, and the couple settled down for a quiet life on a country
estate. Later, Joshua moved to Louisville and acquired a sizeable for-
tune in real estate and stocks.

It was Fanny Speed's decision of 1865 to follow the "Loyal Eight-
een," and her association with Dr. Stevenson when he was her pastor
at Trinity Church, that paved the way for her long period of Chris-
tian service to the Kentucky Conference and Union College. Her
interest in Dr. Stevenson's projected buying of Union's property in
1886 made possible the fulfillment of his dream of establishing a
Methodist college in the area he considered in the greatest need of
service. As previously noted, she helped to pay for Union's original
building, assisted needy students, paid the salaries of Stevenson and
Faulkner, maintained ministerial institutes, and started Union's first
endowment.

However, this good woman was yet to perform her greatest service
to Union College — the establishment of a large endowment sufficient
to guarantee some degree of permanence to the college. In addition,
she donated and promised additional funds to make possible the

Union College

completion of the first important building program set in motion
since the founding of the college.

The first positive move to provide a girls' dormitory for Union
took place (June 7, 1897) , only a few months after Dr. Stevenson's
death. At a meeting of the Board of Education, J. H. Tinsley and
President Faulkner were made a committee "to secure additional
ground upon which to erect a dormitory for girls," and Faulkner
was "authorized to raise funds by solicitations from individuals and
congregations." 12 The Board decided to solicit the aid of Fanny
Speed and wrote her a letter to that effect.

Fanny Speed's reply, read at a Board meeting held in the early
spring of 1898, was most disheartening — she "could do nothing on a
new building." 13 At this critical stage, the courage manifested by
President Faulkner, J. G. Tinsley, A. M. Decker, and others, will stand
as a testimony to the indomitable will of Union's leaders and sup-
porters in Barbourville. Encouraged by the urging of these gentlemen,
the Board, after a waiting period of two years, determined to go ahead
without the aid of Mrs. Speed. In September, 1900, Faulkner was
given authorization to solicit funds for the proposed dormitory. A
year later a building committee was appointed to "purchase grounds,
secure funds, and build a dormitory." Two of the committee resigned
because they could not see how purchases of any kind could be made
without funds.

At a Board meeting held September 26, 1901, President Faulkner
presented the deed to a "small parcel" of land adjoining the college
property, for which he paid $62.50.14 At the same time Faulkner was
requested to buy the Stickley property if it could be acquired for not
more than $1000. On December 3, 1901, this plot, about 650x100
feet, bordering on College Street was purchased from J. G. and Manda
Stickley at the maximum price set by the Board.15 This was the tract
on which Speed Hall was later erected. One more addition to Union's
campus was made near the end of Faulkner's administration with the
purchase of five acres acquired at auction for $901. This acquisition
later became the site of the dairy farm and a portion of the athletic
field.™

When the Kentucky Conference met in the autumn of 1901, the
Board of Education gave an enthusiastic report on the progress made
to date. Over $8,000 in "bona fide" pledges had been secured. In the

"Board of Education, Record, 1892-1903.

13 Ibid.

14 Ibid.

18 Knox County Deed Book, No. 4, 554.
"Ibid., No. 10, 33.

In the Footsteps of President Stevenson, 1897-1905

meantime, Mrs. Speed, having changed her mind regarding her ability
to help, had contributed $2,500 and orally promised President Faulk-
ner to give $2,500 more.17 It is very likely that Mrs. Speed's $5,000
was included in the $8,000's worth of "bona fide" subscriptions men-
tioned in the report. Construction was to begin as soon as the full es-
timated cost of $10,000 was subscribed.18

The passing of Fanny Speed in August, 1902, precipitated a crisis.
The Board of Education attended in a body to hear the reading of
her will, under the terms of which, the Board of Education fell heir
to one-half of her estimated $500,000 estate. The Henning heirs took
steps at once in the courts to have the will declared void.19 The
Board, faced with a long drawn out period of litigation, hired (Oct.
16) , the law firm of Helm, Bruce and Helm at a maximum fee of 10%
of the net proceeds should the firm be successful in establishing the
validity of Fanny Speed's will.20

In the meantime, President Faulkner and the Building Committee
had prepared plans, awarded contracts for construction of the domi-
tory, and work had begun. The Board of Education, irked by what it
considered unauthorized assumption of authority on the part of the
committee, passed a resolution of censure against Faulkner and his
associates. This resolution disclaimed "any liability for the construc-
tion of said Building [on the part of the Board] and direct [ed] Mr.
Faulkner and the said Building Committee to report at once . . . the
amount and nature of the work and contracts entered into, and to
discontinue work on said building until further action" was taken by
the Board.21

In a letter to the Board the following day, President Faulkner coun-
tered by asking for his release at the end of the school year in June,
1903, allegedly because of Mrs. Speed's death and the question of
his salary.22 Faulkner considered his annual stipend of $700 inade-
quate compared to that of $1,500 paid President Stevenson. The
Board voted with alacrity to grant Faulkner's release, and at its next
meeting on February 4, 1903, appointed a nominating committee to
secure a new president for Union. This committee's report (March
3) , recommended no one — merely stating that Faulkner could be
secured under new terms.

After acepting Faulkner's resignation, the Board gave permission

17 Kentucky Conference Minutes, 1904.

"Union College Catalog, 1901.

"Board of Education, Record, 1892-1903.

10 Ibid.

81 Ibid., Oct. 7, 1902.

" Ibid., Oct. 16. 1902.

Union College

to the Building Committee to proceed according to the erstwhile "un-
authorized plans." Evidently the Board was now ready to sanction
construction without waiting for the outcome of its litigation with
the Speed heirs. President Faulkner now proved to be recalcitrant
and let it be known that he would not accept a new contract until
an additional $1,050 had been subscribed — the minimum sum be
considered necessary to insure completion of the dormitory.

This amount set by Faulkner was reached by April, 1903. The
former drive had actually netted about $500. Faulkner's new drive
of 1902-03 added about $2,000. Fanny Speed's old church, the Trinity
of Louisville, contributed $1,000 and Faulkner raised $500 among
the citizens of Barbourville. In addition, the Building Committee was
authorized to mortgage the new dormitory and the Stickley lot up
to $3,000.

It must be kept in mind that in this period following Mrs. Speed's
death, the school was deprived of its annual payments from her.
Speaking many years later of this crisis of 1903, Faulkner said:

There were two elements of danger in this instance — the possibility
that the school would have to close to await the outcome of the court
proceedings, in which case the morale and accomplishments of the past
would be quickly dissipated; and secondly, the danger that the will would
be broken. In this event, the friends of the institution could hope for
no better fate than that which awaited the original founders. The neces-
sity of closing the school was averted by contributions from a number
of the citizens of the town, which, with the income from tuition, made
it possible to pay all the faculty salaries except that of the president; he
agreed to stand at his post without salary in case the court decision was
adverse, but in the event of a favorable decision the salary was to be
paid with interest. This was a year when not much consideration could
be given either to the past or the future. The present status was all
engrossing.28

Announcements made at the annual meeting of the Kentucky Con-
ference held at Union College, September 28, 1904, were among the
most momentous in Union's history. The Barbourville Mountain
Advocate recognized this in its October 3 issue. The main announce-
ment as given to the conference ran as follows: "We are glad to report
that after litigation extending through county, circuit, and court
of appeals, the validity of the will of Sister Speed was sustained, and
we are happy to announce that the dormitory known as 'Fanny Speed
Hall' will be completed by January 1, 1905." 24

On June 30, 1904, the assets of the Fanny Speed estate were set at

*8 Faulkner, "50th Anniversary Address."

** "Report" of Board of Education, Kentucky Conference Minutes, 1904.

In the Footsteps of President Stevenson, 1897-1905

$544,736. At the final settlement agreed upon with the heirs, August
15, the Board of Education was to get $262,372.02. This was $10,000
less than the original estimate. According to the agreement made
with Helm, Bruce, and Helm, $25,000 would go for attorney's fees.

Work, which had been suspended since early summer, was again
resumed on Speed Hall, but it was not ready for occupancy on January
1, 1905 as scheduled. Not until the beginning of the next administra-
tion under President Easley was it available for use. A central power
and heating plant was likewise started in the last days of the Faulkner
regime but were not completed.

Faulkner again resigned at the end of the school year, 1903-04.
The Board promptly elected George H. Wilson, the vice-president as
his successor, but that gentleman declined the honor. The Board then
made arrangements for Faulkner to stay one more year.25

George H. Wilson ranks among Union's top graduates. Before his
birth in Barbourville, the local Echo, partly owned by his uncle, John
H. Wilson, was agitating for a college, along with Thomas Wilson,
his father. Wilson spent long years at Union as a student, graduating
in its fourth class, that of '96. He served as a tutor at Union before
graduation and became a regular member of the faculty, occupying
the chair of Latin, English, and American Literature, and the vice-
presidency. His alma mater honored him with two additional degrees
after graduation — that of A.M. in 1902, and LL.D. in 1938. After
leaving Union he graduated from Harvard Law School and practiced
his profession in several states. In the meantime he married Sarah
Lock, one of his classmates at Union. In 1910 he became general
counsel of the Fidelity Mutual Life Insurance Company in Philadel-
phia. He has worked himself up to a vice-presidency and directorship in
the company. He belongs to numerous clubs and societies. His resi-
dence is in Philadelphia.

Although Faulkner was re-elected president in 1905, he again re-
signed, wishing to enter divinity school. Also "he came into some dis-
favor with the church by embracing some of the newer ideas which
were branded as heretical . . . and being perhaps too frank about
it." 26 In September, 1905, Faulkner left with his wife and baby,
Maureen, for Boston to enroll in the divinity school. He transferred
to Harvard and graduated in 1908. Faulkner had long wished to do
work in adult education among the folk of eastern Kentucky. He
presented his plan to Berea College, had it accepted, and received an

SB George H. Wilson to writer, Aug. 3, 1953.

S6 Delia J. Rankin to writer, July 12, 1953. Mildred Johnson, Faulkner's first wife
was a sister to Mrs. Rankin.

Union College

appointment as field instructor. Equipped with a stereopticon, slides,
rope, wire, lantern, horse shoes, hatchet, and hand ax, he traveled
about in a wagon, lecturing on sanitation, health, education, and
various religious subjects. In 1913 he organized a state campaign
against tuberculosis and in 1915, was called to direct the Raoul Foun-
dation in Georgia. For thirty years he served as executive director of
the Georgia Tuberculosis Association besides filling the position of
state Director of Public Welfare.

For twenty-five years Faulkner worked on "his philosophy" — his
great opus. At his death it was still undergoing revision. "Reactions
by . . . readers range from excessive praise to amazement that this
mild-mannered, quiet man had been harboring theories that tantalized
him almost to the extent of an obsession." He was the universal schol-
ar to end; interested in everything — his Greek or Hebrew, Ein-
stein's theory of relativity, a radio, an old apple tree, or a new de-
sign for a dormitory window.

It was one of his dreams to develop a memorial park or forest re-
serve for Union College. Before his death he deeded his tract of land
in Knox County to the college, hoping it might at some time fur-
nish funds for a professorship.27 He performed another great service
to Union College by collecting historical data on its early history. This
work on Union owes a larger debt to him than it does to any other
person.

The building of Speed Hall and the large endowment left by Fanny
Speed constituted the major achievements of Faulkner's administration.
Behind it all, however, one can see the kindly guiding hand of
Daniel Stevenson. Had there been no Dr. Stevenson, it is hard to see
how there could have been a Speed Hall or a Speed endowment. There
is good reason to believe that before Dr. Stevenson's demise, Mrs.
Fanny Speed had already given him assurance of a major bequest. In
a letter written to J. G. Walsh, shortly after Stevenson's death she
wrote: "All I promise will be provided for should I pass away from
this earth." 28

21 All this information on Faulkner's life after he left Union, was contributed by
Miss Maureen Faulkner, Berea, Ky. It is of interest to note that Faulkner's sister,
Ellen, was the mother of Dr. Raymond Allen, Chancellor of U.C.L.A.

88 Fanny Speed to J. D. Walsh, Feb. 6, 1897.

Chapter IV
RETRENCHMENT AND EXPANSION, 1905-1910

IN 1904 IT WAS generally known that President Faulkner would
not remain at Union for another school year and consequently
early in the following year, the Board of Education sought a succes-
sor. Late in January, 1905, Faulkner announced Dr. W. I. Watkins, the
man of his choice, as the new president of Union College.1

Dr. Watkins visited Union a week later, delivered an address to
the students, and announced plans for the new year. The primary
department would be turned over to the town, the faculty increased,
and modern foreign languages added to the curriculum. The most
important question — his acceptance of Union's presidency, remained
unanswered.2 After Watkins' rejection of the position some time
later, the Board of Education again set to work to select Faulkner's
successor. On May 5, 1905, the citizens of Barbourville learned of the
new president, J. W. Easley of Wilmington, Delaware.3

The details of Easley's coming to Union are unknown, but un-
doubtedly he had made contacts during his early life in Kentucky
which now stood him in good stead. Some members of the Kentucky
Conference called his abilities to the attention of the group and
Easley was approached with the offer of a five year contract, and the
power to select an entirely new faculty.

James Warren Easley was born at Eminence, Kentucky, in 1853.
The young lad helped to support the large family during the later
years of the war, while his father was serving in the Union forces.
Using the same methods of many self-made Americans of the period
he prepared himself by arduous study for entrance into college. He
graduated from Eminence College and received his Bachelor of
Divinity degree a few years later from Drew Seminary, followed by a
Master of Arts from Dickinson College granted him "for distinction
in Languages and Liberal Arts."

In 1885, following his chosen profession, he entered the Wilming-
ton Methodist Conference, serving eleven churches prior to his coming

1 Barbourville Advocate, Jan. 27, 1905.
* Ibid., Feb. 3, 1905.
8 Ibid., May 5, 1905.

Union College

to Union. Of his ministry, Dr. Henry G. Budd said: "Mr. Easley was
a forceful man in every field he entered. His goodness was never
questioned. Sinners accepted his instructions in matters religious, and
saints loved him for what they saw at the weekly ministry and the
daily living." He married Joanna Matthews, a Louisville teacher,
and reared a family of seven. Two of his sons followed the ministry
and a third served on the faculty of Syracuse University. Two daugh-
ters became teachers in the Philadelphia public schools.4

President Easley has been remembered as a tall, well built man,
with greying hair. Although possessed of an affable manner he al-
ways retained a certain amount of reserve. He was of the school which
believed in the old time methods of dealing with "recalcitrant
scholars." At his first faculty meeting, teachers were admonished to re-
quire "strict obedience" from the pupils.5 It was also his intentions
to uphold high scholastic standards.

President Easley wished to continue the Christian aims and goals
established by his predecessors. The first college catalog published
during his regime stated: "The aim of Union College has for its pur-
pose the development of life and formation of character. Right
standards of life are placed before the student, and Christian princi-
ples of living are given emphasis which is their due and will give
force in character building." The college assumed responsibility for
"the preservation and developing of the moral life." Although no
sectarian principles were taught, the Bible was "believed in and used
as a text book." 6 We find first mention of the Y.M.C.A. in 1906,
when over one-half of the young men belonged. This new Christian
organization fostered evening Bible study classes and Saturday eve-
ning devotional meetings.7

President Easley's administration is generally remembered as a
period of physical expansion. Speed Hall was made ready for oc-
cupancy, a new administration building was erected, and a very
pressing need — a men's dormitory, was built. In addition, central
heating and power plants came into existence, and a new well was
sunk. It was Fanny Speed's bequest which made it possible to com-
plete this program, part of which had been projected during Faulk-
ner's term of office.

Speed Hall, the much publicized women's dormitory was finally
made ready for the opening of the school year, 1905-06. Work on

* All of this information on President Easley was contributed by Miss Joan
Easley of Philadelphia.

6 Union College Faculty Minutes, Sept. 7, 1908.
0 Union College Catalog, 1906-07.

7 Ibid., 1907-08.

Retrenchment and Expansion, 1905-1910

this structure had previously progressed in direct ratio to the added
probabilities of receiving the Fanny Speed inheritance. The three-
story building, from the outside, did not have the aspects of an
austere dormitory, but resembled rather a mammoth residence of the
nouveau riche. It is said that Fanny Speed requested the erection of
a homelike residence for girls.

For years, beginning with Dr. Stevenson's regime, the administra-
tion building had undergone steady improvements and repairs. In
1905, the third story was completely redone with the idea of using
this space for science laboratories and the use of the literary societies.
In addition, a new slate roof was added.8

An "Act of God" decreed that the newly finished edifice should be
reduced to ashes. On August 24, 1906, a fire, caused by lightning, con-
sumed the structure. Two letters written by eye witnesses on the very
day of the catastrophe, have survived. They read as follows:

Mr. Faulkner:

Some one has sent you a telegram about the burning of the college,
but I will write you a few of the particulars. It was struck by lightning
about 3:30 p.m. today and is now burning to the ground. A dreadful
storm came up; it rained for a while, then stopped, but the electrical
storm continued. The lightning was very keen and finally one fearful
crash came and we knew something was struck. We ran out and found
many running up the street saying "Union College has been struck."
It was only a little puff of smoke on the very top edge of the cupola.
We said it could be easily extinguished, and so it could, had there been
the least means of throwing just one bucket of water on it: Of those
present, 19 out of every 20 just stood and would not offer to carry even
a book. Mr. John A. Black offered money to them, to no purpose. Most
of those refusing to help were men from the country. J. W. Black, Ernest
Faulkner, Prof. Reibold, Mr. Sevier, Ed England, Mr. McDerMott and
many others, whom I cannot mention, worked like three men in one;
they begged piteously for more water, but could not get it carried.
President Easley and Mr. Decker were both out of town. Mr. Decker
getting in on the evening train.

I must omit much that you would like to know, for I have only a
few minutes to write. The building is valued at more than $20,000, but
the insurance is only $4,500. Both pianos, church organ, church table,
and Library, and most of the college books were saved, but the books
were tossed out windows and badly damaged. Most of the benches were
tossed out of windows and badly saved. The Laboratory was destroyed
and perhaps that kept many from helping, as a report had spread that
it contained many deady explosives, and I think a slight explosion was

• Barbourville Collegial Journal, Sept. 1905.

Union College

what threw the walls down. It is still burning. It was a great blow to
us, for we feel that it could have been saved.*

My Dear Miss Weeks:

Union College is no more. Lightning struck the tower this afternoon
and the building is now in ashes. Most of the furniture was saved.
Vernon Faulkner and Alex Tinsley came near losing their lives; they
were working in the chapel and had just reached the ground when the
second floor fell. Several men were burned but not seriously.

The County Fair is in full blast and it was therefore almost impossible
to get help on the grounds until too late to save the building.10

The loss of the administration building created the third of
Union's crises within a few years. The first was the doubtful outcome
of the litigation to establish the validity of Fanny Speed's will; and
the successful conclusion of this contest led to the second crisis, be-
cause Mrs. Speed's will bequeathed the endowment to the Kentucky
Conference, rather than specifically to Union College. There was a
strong movement within the Conference to close Union and use the
funds for the establishment of a new college in Louisville. In Januarv
of 1905, at a meeting of the Board of Education held in Covington,
it was decided to use the funds for Union and to erect a men's
dormitory.11 Plans were also under way to add a wing to the admin-
istration building.12

The crisis of 1906 was greater than that of 1905, because of the
loss of Union's major building. "There followed nearly a year of
doubt and agitation for the removal of the school to some location
near the central part of the State. This movement was frustrated,
however, largely by the citizens of Barbourville and the local mem-
bers of the Board, Judge James D. Black introducing the resolution,
which, being approved, finally fixed Barbourville as the seat of the
College." "

The Board of Education drew up what amounted to an ultimatum
regarding the terms on which a new administration building would
be constructed, and the college retained at Barbourville. According
to its terms, $10,000 must be raised by popular subscription within a
set period of time.14 This amount together with the insurance would
constitute approximately one half of the amount required to erect the
new building.

• Mayme Johnson to J. P. Faulkner, Aug. 24, 1906, reprinted in Orange and
Black, Nov. 19, 1926.

10 Grace Howes to Abigail Weeks. Aug. 24, 1906. Ibid.

11 Barbourville, Advocate, Jan. 27, 1905.
11 Ibid., Feb. 3, 1905.

14 J. P. Faulkner, "50th Anniversary Address."

14 Ex-governor Flem D. Sampson to writer, March 20, 1954.

Retrenchment and Expansion, 1905-1910

The citizens of Barbourville primarily under the leadership of A. M.
Decker, Judge Flem D. Sampson and John A. Black, responded
immediately to the call for help. A group of about thirty men sub-
divided into minor committees to canvass Barbourville and the sur-
rounding area. Judge Sampson and James Black each contributed
$350, and John Black gave $500. Speeches were made at the court-
house in order to arouse the citizenry of Barbourville.15 The $10,000
was subscribed 16 and work begun on the new administration building.

In the meantime, President Easley announced the opening of school
as usual. Newly constructed Speed Hall proved a godsend. Easley
had moved his family into Speed Hall, and Stevenson cottage was con-
verted into a classroom building. Two rooms on the first floor of
Speed Hall served as quarters for girls and some faculty members. The
boys had a little "dormitory" of their own down town in Dishman
Flat. Oscar Wesley related of life at Dishman's: ". . . there was a fine
spirit among the fellows. We made our own rules about keeping clean
and took turns in sweeping in the hallway. We used small dirty coal
stoves. Toilet facilities [were available] across the street." 17 Grade
students were taken to the town schools because there was no room
for them on the campus.18 There was much discontent among both
faculty and students, but strangely this was more apparent at the end
of 1906-07, when the building program was under way, than during
the period of indecision. Students were discouraged and many did
not return when school opened in September, 1907.

The cornerstone of the new administration building was laid with
appropriate ceremonies on June 29, 1907. Now that twenty-seven
years had passed since the historic laying of 1880, it is little wonder
that the small black walnut box had almost been forgotten. A few
days previous to the ceremony, the old cornerstone was opened, the
box removed and its contents noted. Professor Ports approved the
new list of articles to be deposited which included a small Bible, cur-
rent issues of the Mountain Advocate and Union College Catalog, and
a few coins.19 After the Rev. T. B. Stratton of Barbourville, and
President Easley placed the stone, appropriate short talks were de-
livered by Judges Faulkner, Dishman, Sampson, Black, and others.
Many who had witnessed the impressive ceremonies of 1880, re-
turned to exchange reminiscences of "Ye Olden Days." This celebra-

16 Both Governor Sampson and George W. Tye concur in agreeing that Mr. A.
M. Decker was the leading spirit in this great fight to save Union.

18 "Report" of the Board of Education, Kentucky Conference Minutes, 1908.

17 Oscar Wesley to writer, Dec. 9, 1953.

18 Mrs. Myrtle Minton to writer, Apr. 20, 1953.

19 Percy L. Ports to writer, March 29, 1954.

Union College

tion had something the first had lacked — a cornet band composed
of members of the Noble Order of Red Men. James P. Faulkner said
that this ceremony had linked the new with the old, "giving the in-
stitution a continuous historical background and justifying the faith,
the foresight, and the sacrifices of the Founders of 1879.20

Early in January, 1908, the Board of Education together with 200
loyal citizens of Barbourville joined in a great banquet at the new
administration building wtih the young Judge Flem D. Sampson pre-
siding as toastmaster.21 These friendly ties were again demonstrated
in the fall of 1908, when the people of Barbourville gave a reception
to the ministers of the Kentucky Conference.

The following description of the new administration building ap-
peared in the 1911-12 Union Catalogue:

This is a magnificent and spacious three-story building, constructed
of brick and concrete, and trimmed with Tennessee marble. The build-
ing is steam-heated and lighted by electricity . . . and is scientifically
ventilated to insure plenty of good fresh air. In it are the classrooms,
the library, the President's office, the chapel, and laboratories. The
classrooms are fifteen in number. Each is equipped with single desks
and slate blackboards of ample size. From the President's office are
speaking-tubes to each room, and also electrical connections, so that
a modern program clock situated in the office rings automatically in
each room the bells for the change of classes and other signals. The
chapel is commodious and is seated with comfortable opera chairs.
There are three laboratories — Chemical, Physical, and Biological. These
are equipped throughout with modern apparatus and enable the student
to do unusually thorough work in science.

In the same bulletin, Fanny Speed Hall was described as a three-
story building of unique design with spacious halls and parlors. The
rooms were "elegantly furnished" and the hall was possessed of
every advantage for the work of the student.

A new men's dormitory was the most pressing need on the campus
in 1905-06. Plans were formulated for one and announced in January,
1906. The loss of the administration building in the summer of 1906
stopped any further progress on the project until the Board of Educa-
tion announced its intention of rebuilding the administration build-
ing. During the summer of 1907 work was pushed on both the
administration building and Stevenson Hall, the former being rushed
to completion first. Construction was awarded to contractors and both
the bricks and lumber were imported, mostly from Knoxville. About
three or four bricklayers were kept busy together with the same num-

30 J. P. Faulkner, "50th Anniversary Address."
Sl Barbourville Advocate, Jan. 24, 1908.

Retrenchment and Expansion, 1905-1910

ber of carpenters. Erection was uneventful on either building, every-
thing working out according to plan.22 When school opened in
September, 1907, boys were quartered in the unfinished edifice. The
dormitory was erected on a lot newly purchased in 1904.

This "men's College Home" answered the following description:
"It is a fine brick structure, three stories high. It has a large number
of finished rooms, accommodating two students each. Nothing is lack-
ing for convenience, comfort, or health. . . . The furniture is equal to
the best in use among boarding-schools. This building is fitted with
toilet-rooms and ample baths with cold and hot water."

Other worthwhile improvements of the period were the heating
plant, a generating plant, a campus water supply, and proper sewage
disposal. The heating plant which was begun in 1905, first furnished
steam heat in Speed Hall and the old administration building. The
electric power plant came next and then followed the huge standpipe
insuring water pressure on the top floors, and finally, the college
sewerage system which carried the waste to the Cumberland river.23

Old Stevenson Cottage served a multiplicity of purposes. In the fall
of 1905 President Easley took up his new quarters in Speed Hall and
the revered cottage was newly christened, "Music Hall." After the fire
of 1906 it was used for classrooms, and in 1908, again became Music
Hall. This was Union's first fine arts building — serving also for art
classes.24

Another building program related to Union College was progressing
in Barbourville during the years, 1906-07. The old wooden Methodist
Episcopal church building, which had seen service since 1865, was
razed and replaced with a brick edifice. The cornerstone was laid on
June 2, 1906, but the sanctuary was not dedicated until spring of
the next year. When first opened for service under the Reverend
T. B. Stratton, all but $1,700 of the required $8,000 had been sub-
scribed.25

Union's building and refurnishing program of 1906-08 cost a
huge sum for that day — perhaps a total of $68,000. Newly completed
Speed Hall had already cost in the neighborhood of $20,000. The cost
of the new administration building and the men's dormitory was ap-
proximately $30,000 and $20,000 respectively. The heating, power,
water, and sewage improvements added another $10,000. This large
expenditure confronted the Board of Education with two alterna-

a* Thomas Fuller, carpenter, to writer, March 19, 1954.

23 The city of Barbourville did not begin to install a sewerage disposal system
until 1953.

14 Union College Catalog, 1908-09.

is "Program" of dedication, May 19, 1907, President's office.

Union College

tives: either a portion of the Fanny Speed estate could be sold, or
the Board of Education could borrow, offering the bequest as se-
curity for a loan. At that time the Kenyon Building, valued at
$208,000 was producing an annual income of $12,000.26 It was there-
fore decided to keep this valuable asset in Louisville and borrow
$50,000 from the Fidelity Trust Company. Unfortunately for the
future years of Union College, the Fanny Speed endowment was
handicapped almost from the first with a large encumbrance which
annually consumed about a quarter of its income. The "running ex-
penses" of the school from 1907-10, averaged $9,000 27 yearly, but
tuition was producing only $3,000 annually.

Although school costs were constantly mounting, the administration
slashed the expense of attending the college in an attempt to attract
more students. College tuition was reduced $4.00 per year while board
and room totaled only $2.50 weekly. In addition, incidental and
small laboratory fees were charged. In 1908, the college took the un-
precedented step of offering free room rent, including "light and
heat." 28

In spite of these added inducements, the trend begun during Presi-
dent Faulkner's administration continued. Fewer students enrolled
at the collegiate level and only five graduates received degrees during
the two school years 1905-07. About 200 pupils were enrolled in
1905-06, almost all of them in the academy, normal, or the elemen-
tary curriculums. Beginning in 1908, after the college curriculum was
dropped, the academy, normal, and grammar groups counted 72,
53, and 25 respectively.

When President Easley came to Union it was his desire to broaden
the college curriculum in line with trends prevailing in other liberal
arts colleges. Beginning with the school year 1905-06, two baccalau-
reate degrees, the Ph.B., and B.S., were offered in addition to the
classical A.B. The Latin-scientific course leading to the Ph.B. degree
was the same as required for the A.B. except biology or German was
substituted for Greek. The scientific B.S. degree placed more em-
phasis upon biology, geology, chemistry, and astronomy, and allowed
12 or more electives.29 At the same time, the discontinuance of "any
grade work of a primary or intermediate character," at the end of
the school year 1906-07, was announced.30

President Easley brought with him an entirely new collegiate

18 Kentucky Conference Minutes, 1907.

17 Board of Education, Minutes, 1910-1926.

*8 Advertisement of Union College, Kentucky Conference Minutes, 1908.

" Union College Catalogs, 1905, 1906.

*° Barbourville Collegial Journal, Sept., 1905.

Retrenchment and Expansion, 1905-1910

faculty of well prepared instructors, three of whom were graduates of
Dickinson College in Pennsylvania, and three were graduates of
Ohio Wesleyan. Among the new teachers were Miss Abigail E. Weeks
and Miss Katherine V. Sutphen both of whom gave many years of
service to Union College. The old faculty, several of whom wished to
continue their graduate studies apparently resigned en masse. Regard-
ing this exodus, the town paper merely commented: "No reason has
been made public for the action of the teachers." 31

President Easley's forward plans came to naught. In 1905, no col-
lege student registered beyond the sophomore year. What with an
enlarged college faculty to pay, a reduction in the number of college
students, a broadened college curriculum to maintain, a huge building
debt, and an inadequate income, his whole program collapsed. The
college curriculum was entirely discontinued in 1907-08 32 and Union
reverted to a college preparatory and normal school. In addition, the
grades were reintroduced after the completion of the new administra-
tion building.

In order to compensate for the loss of a college program, President
Easley continued the fine arts,33 strengthened the normal course and
added a high grade commercial department. The new four-year
normal course was offered with the object of meeting "the growing
demand for skilled teachers" and of answering the crying question
of county boards, "Where can we get well equipped teachers for the
public schools." After a prospective teacher qualified for a first-class
certificate, he was to be admitted to the second year of the normal
course. Upon graduation the student received a normal diploma en-
titling him to complete the curriculum of the Liberal Arts in three
years. The idea that a collegiate curriculum might some time be re-
instituted had not been lost, and when that day arrived, fully prepared
freshmen and sophomore classes would be available to initiate the
program.

The new commercial department consisted of two courses of study:
the business, and the shorthand-typing. It aimed "to develop busi-
ness men and women, and to prepare them for immediate entrance
into the business world." Graduation from these departments was de-
pendent upon achieving a standard of skills rather than upon the time
required.34

The erection of a "men's" dormitory brought new disciplinary

81 Barbourville Advocate, May 5, 1905.

12 One student, a senior, was carried through the year and graduated.
*8 Union College's music department graduated one student in each of the years
1908 and 1909.

"Union College Catalog, 1907-08.

Union College

problems to the campus. The building was occupied by a group of
immature adolescent lads of academic grade who required close su-
pervision. At one time three faculty members were on assigned duty
in the hall to help maintain order. From faculty minutes one can
cull such amusing items as the case of the three rogues that purloined

wine from Mrs. Dishman's smokehouse; or the intractability of

,35 who was "reprimanded for having in his possession a pistol,

for carelessly handling it and accidently discharging the same during
chapel exercises." After two more incidents of "pistol discharging" in
the dormitory, the president issued an ultimatum requiring all fire-
arms to be checked at his office. So marked was the reign of bedlam
during chapel periods, that three faculty members were deputized to
sit on the platform each morning "for the purpose of disciplining
disorderly or inattentive students." Seven incorrigible students were
expelled in one school year.

Student life was somewhat regimented. At 6:30, the ringing of an
old fashioned hand bell aroused everyone for breakfast served
promptly at 7:00 in the basement of the administration building. Boys
and girls entered the room from different ends and ate in separate
groups. Following breakfast students were expected to "tidy their
rooms" and prepare for class. At the end of the school day, boys could
do "pretty much" as they pleased, but girls were not allowed to leave
the campus. Not long after the evening meal all students must be in
their rooms for study. Permission to go into another room could be
granted only by the faculty member in charge. Girls were allowed out
one night per week — chaperoned of course. Only girls with a straight
"A" average could spend time with a young man or have any kind of
special privileges. Mrs. Myrtle Minton remembered having been
called into the president's office for the offense of waving her hand at
a boy. The famous walk extending from the administration building
to the street served as a dividing line between male and female since
the days of President Stevenson.

Oscar Wesley related an interesting account of his life at Union:

Because of the strict rules about courtship, there were many cases
of "boy meets girl" on the QT. Smoking was not allowed and we had
but few cases. Some of us were shocked when we learned that even some
of the faculty "played cards." There was a great deal of swearing and
rough talk among the students. There was some unpleasant rivalry be-
tween town boys and dormitory boys. One night I was severely stoned.
A large gash was cut in my head, I supposed by a group of town boys.
The police come into the dormitory die next day to see me and get

8B For obvious reasons, the name of this culprit is omitted.

Retrenchment and Expansion, 1905-1910

leads on the guilty, when to my great surprise, some of the dormitory
boys admitted that they were guilty, just trying to scare me. They were
arrested right in the class room and a trial was held in police court. Since
they pleaded guilty a light fine was imposed then suspended.

One Mountain boy was asked about his ancestors. It was quickly seen
that he did not know the meaning of ancestors. He thought it was some
kind of disease. So the fellows concocted a remedy made of shoe-polish,
bay rum, salve and several other ingredients and had him taking "doses"
till the faculty found out what the trouble was.88

Life was not entirely droll during the late collegiate days. The
literary societies continued their activities and a new one, the Photoze-
tean, appeared. And an entirely new feature arose at Union — the ap-
pearance of organized athletics in the form of football, basketball,
baseball, and tennis. t

Much of this new interest may be attributed to a young faculty
member fresh from college. Percy L. Ports entered Union in 1905 as
head of the science department. He was a man of many hobbies —
athletics, photography and music. Although no money was available
for subsidizing football, Ports sent out a call for practice and Union's
first football team was born. The boys bought their own uniforms
with orange and black jersies.37 This seems to be the first recognition
of Union's school colors. None of the members had ever participated
in a game except Mr. Ports and little could have been expected of
them, but morale was running high. The first game was played
October 16, with Williamsburg Institute on the present site of Steven-
son Hall; the second, a week later, was played at Williamsburg,
Union losing both games 37-0, and 49-0. Union had its revenge, beat-
ing Williamsburg, 27-0 on November 4.38 In April of 1906, call went
out for spring training but the fire of 1906, the discontinuance of a
collegiate program, and the injury of Ports early in the fall of 1906, all
were factors which led to the discontinuance of football. In 1906-
1907, men's basketball was substituted.

During the winter of 1905-06, the girls organized Union's first
basketball team. Frank Hunsinger was manager, Lena Wilson, captain,
and Mrs. Percy Ports was the coach. Miss Katherine Sutphen, a
faculty member, played on this team. Two tennis courts were laid
out in the spring of 1906, but there is no record of intercollegiate
competition in tennis at this date. This same spring marked the be-

38 Oscar Wesley to writer, Dec. 9, 1953. Dr. Wesley is Professor of Sociology at
Drexel Institute.

87 A. M. Decker, Jr., to writer, March 17, 1954.

88 Barbourville Advocate, Nov. 7, 1905. Union's first football team was composed
of William Dishman, Vader McDonald, Jack Hale, Ben Dishman, Woods, Remarks,
Andrew Decker, Jr., Ray Fellows, Clarence Faulkner, Prof. Ports, Ernest Faulkner;
Substitutes, Robert Howes and Van Hoose. See Collegial Journal, Nov. 1905.

Union College

ginning of Union's second baseball team which suffered a 11-0 defeat
from Williamsburg. All athletics were "carefully fostered under the con-
trol of a student and faculty organization known as the Athletic as-
sociation." 39

President Easley completed his five-year contract in 1910. In his
semi-annual report of 1909, the president expressed his desire to
change his work and in line with that statement tendered his resigna-
tion to become effective at the end of the college year, 1909-10. The
Board of Education regretfully accepted his resignation and took im-
mediate steps to fill the office. On January 18, 1910, a list of six candi-
dates was presented for the Board of Education's consideration.
Heading the list was Judge James D. Black of Barbourville, whose
name was presented through a petition of the leading citizens of
Barbourville.40 The Reverend F. C. English of Cincinnati also re-
ceived favorable consideration. On March 11, 1910, the Barbourville
Advocate announced Black's election.

President Easley returned to a regular pastorate in the Wilmington
Conference, serving until his retirement in 1919. He died in Phila-
delphia, November 25, 1935. "Mr. Easley was an instinctive teacher
with lofty standards in both his educational pursuits and in his way of
living. He possessed the ability to recognize high potentialities in
young people and at all times followed their successes with deep
gratification. This interest in his former students endured to the very
end of his life." 41

The era, 1905-1910, presented an anomaly — a period of retrench-
ment but at the same time, one of expansion. Not until thirty years
later did Union embark upon a program of physical expansion eclips-
ing that of this epoch. This expansion was more than physical, ex-
tending into fields of added service. But Dr. Stevenson's dream of a
full collegiate program which he had inaugurated and seen realized,
had passed away and none could foretell its return. Union was entering
its "dark ages" a period of indecision and of uncertainty, but still
one of great service.

30 Union College Catalog, 1906-07; Union's first baseball team was organized
under President Faulkner.

40 Board of Education, Minutes, 1910-1926.

41 Joan Easley to writer, Sept. 1, 1953.

Chapter V
THE YEARS OF INDECISION, 1910-1915

JAMES DIXON BLACK, Union's president from 1910-1912, and
one of its original founders, was born (1849) on Big Richland
Creek in Knox County, Kentucky. His grandfather, Alexander Black,
who was of Scotch-Irish lineage, migrated to America, settled first in
South Carolina, later in Tennessee, and finally in Knox County. As
a lad, James attended rural and subscription schools in and near
Barbourville. In 1872 he received his A.B. degree from Tusculum
College. Almost forty years later, his Alma Mater conferred the LL.D.
degree upon him in recognition of his distinguished public services.

After graduation from college, Black taught school, using his spare
time for the study of law. In 1874 he was admitted to the Kentucky
bar and worked his way to a place of acknowledged leadership in his
profession. He took an early interest in politics, serving in the lower
house of Kentucky's legislature. Black recognized the great educational
needs of southeastern Kentucky — always working for the betterment
of its schools. His services in connection with the founding of Union
have already been noted.

Immediately upon taking office as Union's president, Black listed
the deficiencies in the administration of the school, and attempted to
create more interest on the part of the Board of Education. His argu-
ments followed in logical sequence. Union could not hope to survive
permanently even as a high school, because as free public high schools
grew in the territory, students would be weaned away from Union's
Academy. Secondly, because Union did not possess any legal status,
it could not borrow money or act as a legal person. Only the Kentucky
Conference Board of Education had a right to act in this capacity
for the college. The dangers of this system had already been demon-
strated when the Board of Education came into possession of Fanny
Speed's bequest. Obviously it was unfair not to allow gifts to be made
directly to the college. However, Black's great plea for Union's in-
corporation fell upon deaf ears, and this great need remained unful-
filled for a dozen years.

President Black had already requested all members of the Board
of Education to use their influence in securing one student each for

Union College

the school. When he failed to receive responses from any of them,
the new administrator naturally concluded that a lack of interest in
Union was being manifested by the Board. Although the people of
Barbourville, stated Black, had given $10,000 toward a new building
they had "very little voice at Union College." * Using a phrase which
to him must have been a truism, Black concluded: "Union College
must be made a college in the true sense."

Black also pointed out the need for additions to the physical
plant. Union must have three things: land, a library, and a gymnasium.
Basketball was conducted as an open air sport until the old Christian
church was secured, but this was a poor substitute for an athletic
building. The library was housed in a room of the administration
building.

The Board made no response to Black's cry for physical expansion.
In March, 1912, near the end of Black's regime, Abigail E. Weeks
sought to whip up enthusiasm for a new gymnasium by making the
first donation — 27^. 2 However, some work was done on improving the
grounds. Almost $1,000 was spent for new concrete walks, two of
which ran from College Street to Speed Hall and to the men's
dormitory. A. M. Decker and Percy Ports gave much of their time in
assisting with these projects. The latter donated part of his summer
vacation to painting and superintending repairs.

The Board of Education on its part reminded President Black of
the "shameful call for money from Barbourville," and stated flatly
that repairs could not be made on the valuable Kenyon Building in
Louisville because of "enormous and unwarranted bills payable at
Barbourville," and set $6,000 as the maximum amount to be paid by
the Board of Education during the school year 1910-1 1.3 A year later,
President Black surprised the Board by refunding to it $1,000 which
represented the amount "over and above the expenses" of conducting
Union for the year, 1910-1 1.4

During these years, approximately $15,000 was required annually
to support the school. Income from tuition and board varied from
eight to nine thousand dollars. Salaries for the faculty including the
president totaled about $7,300. The better paid teachers residing on
the campus received $600 annually in addition to board and room.
At the end of his second year, Black reported another small surplus.

In line with Black's resolve that Union must eventually become

1 Board of Education, Minutes, 1910-1926. MSS.. President's office.
1 These original coins, five nickels, and two one-cent pieces are in the college
museum.

s Board of Education, Minutes, 1910-1926.

* "Report" of treasurer, Kentucky Conference M inutes, 1911.

The Years of Indecision, 1910-1915

a true college, junior college work was offered for the year, 1911-12.
Starting only with the freshman year, it was hoped that the sophomore
year could be added. Completion of two years of work would entitle
the student to a Junior College Diploma. Two students enrolled as
freshmen under the new program.5

Much had been expected of the new business course offered under
President Easley, but lack of student response had forced the closing
of this department.6 The Black administration turned to a new field —
that of domestic science. In 1911-12, this department was introduced
with the understanding that it would be continued only if tuition
rates were sufficient to maintain it.

The normal and Academic departments continued as the main-stay
of the school, the former undergoing considerable growth. Desire was
expressed to offer courses in the history of education, psychology and
methods of teaching. Over 100 students were enrolled in the normal
department, and about 65 in the Academic curriculum. Instruction
was continued in the primary and intermediate departments but
students of lower grades were not considered mature enough to room
on the campus. A total of 256 pupils enrolled for the year 1911-1912.

These years brought an added interest in musical extra-curricular
activities. Tor the first time we hear of the famous mandolin club of
12 pieces, and also of a college glee club. The busy Professor Ports,
who was already directing athletic activities, organized Union's first
band 7 of about twenty pieces. The administration supported Port's
efforts with the purchase of 14 Conn band instruments.

When Professor Ports found himself unable to maintain his football
team, he concentrated on baseball. In 1910 he had a successful season
and the following year for the first time, an athletic team from Union
went "on the road," winning seven games and losing three.8

Early in 1912, President Black became interested in the position of
assistant attorney-general for the Commonwealth of Kentucky. In
February, 1912, he notified the Board of Education of his willingness
to continue as president of Union contingent upon an advance in
salary to $2,500. This was $500 more than he had received the previous
year. A committee of the Board of Education commented on President
Black's frequent absences from the campus and hesitated in giving a
reply; thereupon Black (February 20) declined the presidency for
another year.9

5 Union College Catalogs, 1911-12, 1912-13.

8 During the summer of 1912, Ports was "authorized" to restore the business de-
partment.

7 Percy L. Ports to writer, Feb. 26, 1954.

8 Barbourville Advocate, May 26. 1911.

•"Report" of Committee on Education, Board of Education, Minutes, 1910-1926.

Union College

After leaving Union, James D. Black served as first assistant at-
torney-general of Kentucky. In 1915 he was elected lieutenant-gov-
ernor, and succeeded to the office of the governor four years later. In
1920 he was made chief prohibition officer of the state. He continued
to maintain his interest in Union College the remainder of his life.10
During his presidency he had strongly urged the only path possible
for Union, should it hope to eventually survive.

Within a month after President Black's resignation, the Committee
on Education met to select his successor. Although half a dozen names
were presented for consideration, Percy L. Ports received every vote
except one. At the time of his election, Mr. Ports was serving as vice-
president.

The new president was born in Sunbury, Ohio, in 1878. After
graduation from the local high school he worked in a store for three
years and then entered Ohio Wesleyan University from which he
graduated in 1905. He had the unusual experience of working at both
the Pan-American Exposition at Buffalo, and the Louisiana Purchase
Exposition at St. Louis. Shortly before coming to Union, (1905), he
married Bessie E. Wood, a local acquaintance. As head of the science
department, he worked hard arranging the laboratories in the newly
refurnished quarters on the third floor of the administration building.
After the disastrous fire of 1906, he had the whole work to do over
again in the new administration building. From the first, Ports showed
a great deal of initiative, pioneering in both athletics and music at
Union. His work in promoting these extra-curricular activities has
already been noted. He had seen seven years service on the faculty in
the capacity of teacher of natural science, and two years as vice-
president.

The strength of Union's new biology department was recognized
by the Kentucky State Board of Health and Mr. Ports consented to
cooperate in the Board's fight against hookworm and pellagra. As a
result, the first hookworm clinic in the state of Kentucky was estab-
lished in Union's laboratories. Ports also assisted James P. Faulkner,
who was representing the Russell Sage Foundation, "in a campaign
against tuberculosis and other pulmonary diseases. Mr. Ports pre-
pared lantern slides for him and operated the college stereopticon
when Dr. Faulkner lectured at Middlesboro, Pineville and other places
where he needed a more powerful projector than the one he carried
with him." n

10 For biographical sketch of James D. Black, see Charles Kerr, ed., A History
of Kentucky, IV, 3-4.

11 Percy L. Ports to writer, Feb. 26, 1954.

The Years of Indecision, 1910-1915

Before the end of Port's first year of office, Union College was con-
fronted with its worst crisis since the closing of the school in 1886.
At a meeting of the Committee on Schools, held February 3, 1913,
C. B. Nordeman, of the Board of Education, recommended the closing
of Union (September 3, 1913), for an indefinite period. One un-
acquainted with the true financial picture would question such a move
in light of a "productive" endowment of $400,000, and an accustomed
annual income of over $12,000.

The total indebtedness of the Board of Education amounted to
$45,000 on which an annual interest of $2,250 had to be paid. This
amount included $28,000 owed the Fidelity Trust Company, $4,000
on Sandy Valley Seminary, and $10,000 to the Callihan estate. The
amount owed the Fidelity Trust Company came about as a result of
the building program of 1907-08. The Board of Education found the
Sandy Valley Seminary a white elephant and had agreed to pay
$4,000 in order to have the West Virginia Conference take it off its
hands. It appears that the Callihan payments resulted from a court
decree invalidating a $10,000 inheritance which the Board had al-
ready spent.

The Kenyon Building of Louisville had been the Board's chief
source of income. Erection of new buildings in Louisville had lowered
rentals and reduced the income by one third. The Board could expect
a total surplus of only $2,000 annually and this would be needed for
insurance. Nordeman closed his arguments with the following state-
ment: "It seems to me that there is but one course open and that is
to close the school at Barbourville at the close of the present contract
for a period of two years or until such time as the income of the
Board is such to justify your again resuming operations at Union
College." 12

The Committee then passed a resolution not to take any action in
the matter of contracts with the teachers of Union College for the
next school year, until it received further instructions from the Board
of Education. A call was issued for an early meeting of the Board.
When the Board met on February 12, 1913, it accepted Nordeman's
recommendations of February 3, and appointed a board of five mem-
bers to see if sufficient funds might be raised to continue the college's
operations.

Again the citizens of Barbourville responded in order to keep the
school in operation. A petition with 26 signatures affixed requested
that the Board of Education enter into a written contract with five

11 C. B. Nordeman to Committee on Schools, Board of Education, Minutes,
1910-1926.

Union College

of its members, granting the local committee the right to operate the
school for one year. The petition listed as its reason the action of the
Board of Education in making it known that it was not able to main-
tain and finance the college during the school year, 1913-14.13

On June 26, the Board of Education signed a contract with J. D.
Black, J. M. Robsion, George W. Tye, A. W. Hopper and A. M.
Decker, with the understanding that the Board "is not now and will
not be in condition to finance" the school for another year. The con-
tract empowered the local committee to have full use of the college
properties, to accept subscriptions, pay salaries, and handle all fees
secured from students. It was also bound to maintain and conduct
said school on the proper Christian and educational lines. . . M Be-
sides the local committee, 21 other citizens of Barbourville were bound
by the contract.

The committee went to work raising the amount needed to open
and maintain the school. Subscriptions did not have to be paid in a
lump sum but were spread out over a period of one year. A total of
$2,117 was subscribed by sixty-six persons. A. M. Decker, John A.
Black, and T. J. Asher led with $100 each; and $75 was subscribed
by J. E. Golden and by J. H. Turner.15 When the Board of Education
met at the annual conference on September 3, it commended the local
trustees for their action and rejoiced in the announcement that
Union College was "to continue its noble mission of furnishing en-
lightment and equipment to our worthy young people." It also
recorded its appreciation of the liberality of the people of Barbour-
ville.^

The treasurer's report for the year 1912-13 showed a deficit of
$5,581 in the accounts of the Board of Education chiefly because in-
come from the Kenyon Building had fallen to $4,551. Interest, in-
surance, and payments to the Fidelity Trust Company amounted to
over $6,000, and Union College received $5,926. It looked, therefore,
as if the $2,000 raised by the citizens of Barbourville would prove in-
sufficient to enable Union to pay its own way.

Ports had continued to serve as president under the direction of the
local board and when the Board of Education indicated its intention
of reassuming responsibility for the administration of the school dur-

ls "Petition" of citizens of Barbourville, June 7, 1913, Union College Museum.

14 "Agreement," between Board of Education and local committee, June 26. 1913.

16 Subscription Sheet, Union Museum. Others who gave $50 or over were J. R.
Jones, W. H. McDonald, Alex Sevier, Read Black, C. S. Nield, John H. Lawson.
P. D. Black, W. H. Davis, F. D. Sampson. George W. Tye. A. D. Smith, Percy
L. Ports, William Tye, S. B. Dishman and the citizens of Camp Ground in Laurel
County.

18 Kentucky Conference Minutes, 1913.

The Years of Indecision, 1910-1915

ing the coming year, it was understood that the president should
remain in office. When the annual conference met in 1914, the treas-
urer's report showed a disbursement of $2,908 to Union, evidently
the amount needed to cover the deficit. At the same time the Board
made no promises of accepting financial responsibility for the school
year, 1914-15.

Under these circumstances it is little wonder that confusion arose
as to the exact position of the Board of Education. It is doubtful
whether the members themselves were in agreement. According to
E. R. Overley and A. M. Decker, the outgoing president of the Board,
Dr. Boreing, told them he would sign contracts for teachers for the
year 1914-15. President Ports and A. M. Decker then proceeded to
hire faculty for the coming year thinking that the Board of Education
would sign the contracts. To their amazement, Dr. Boreing denied
having made such a statement and G. B. Bunton, the new president of
the Board asked for Port's resignation (October 1) on the basis of
assumption of authority. Ports immediately resigned with "good grace
and spirit." 17 An examination of the Board's Minutes leads one to
conclude that the Board was interested primarily in getting rid of
Ports and used the charge as a pretext. At any rate, after Port's resigna-
tion, the Board signed the contracts.

President Ports followed a distinguished career after leaving Union.
He attended graduate school, supervised the administration of public
schools in Ohio, did special war work for the government during the
war years, and in 1920 prepared a special government report on oil
reserves in Texas. Shortly afterward he worked as geologist seeking
oil prospects in Bolivia. From 1938 to 1948 he served as a conferee
on the commissioner's technical staff with the Bureau of Mines. Since
1948, Mr. Ports has been pursuing his hobbies, shop- work and
photography, together with leadership in civic affairs at Arlington,
Virginia.18

In view of the financial crisis, the Board wished to have a "business
man" in active charge of administration. Under a rather peculiar
arrangement, the Reverend E. R. Overley was elected nominal head
of Union and field agent, with no administrative responsibility, while
B. C. Lewis, former head of the normal department, acquired the title
of vice-president and business manager, with direct administrative
responsibility. For this reason, the period, 1914-15, is remembered as
the regime of Overley and Lewis.

Emery R. Overley, Union's nominal head, was serving at the time

1T Board of Education, Minutes, 1910-1926.
18 Percy L. Ports to writer, Feb. 26, 1954.

Union College

of his election as vice-president and as professor of Bible at the col-
lege. In addition he was filling a pastorate at the Barbourville Meth-
odist Episcopal Church. He had entered the Kentucky Conference in
1908, served a pastorate at Maysville and came to Barbourville as min-
ister in 1912. At the end of the school year 1914-15, Reverend Overley
became superintendent of the Covington District and later of the
Ashland District in 1926. He devoted twenty years of service to
evangelistic work.19

The Board of Education now proceeded to take responsibility from
the local trustees. It "estimated" that it could give $ 1,000 for the year
1914-15 and that the New York Board would contribute the same
amount. In addition $1,000 in pledges was expected from Barbour-
ville. G. W. Bunton, the president of the Board reported: "If we do
not make good at Union this year, then I am in favor of closing in-
definitely." 20

In the meantime school had been going on much in the same
fashion. The attempt to revive the business department proved tem-
porarily successful. Largely through the influence of A. M. Decker, a
branch of the Bryant and Stratton Business College was established at
Union beginning September, 1913. This department enrolled almost
100 students its first year, but fell to 47 in 1914-15. Registration in the
normal and grammar departments continued to rise, while the acade-
my lost ground with only about 50 enrolled. The Junior College de-
partment enrolled only 4 students in 1913-14, and was discontinued
the following year. Only one student, Charles L. Howes, graduated
(1913) from the Junior Collegiate department. Only four faculty
members were employed above the normal or grammar grades.

Extra-curricular clubs and activities continued to function. The
old Philos and the Fanny Speed Societies put on programs for the
last time in 1914-15. A new one, the Kiadelphic, organized in 1914,
had an ephemeral existence. The school still had its basketball and
baseball teams but competed of course only on the Academy level.
The basketball team had been able to practice only in the outdoors up
to 1914. In that year the old Christian church was moved back of its
former location and used for a few years as the college "gymnasium." 21
The first formal physical education classes for women were being
taught in a course listed as "Expression and Physical Culture." 22

During these years of adversity, the primary objectives established
by Dr. Stevenson were not forgotten. Efforts were always made to assist

19 At this writing, 1954, Reverend Overley is still active in evangelistic work.

20 G. W. Bunton to Board of Education, Oct. 1, 1914.
"Abigail E. Weeks, MSS.

" Union College Catalog, 1913-14.

The Years of Indecision, 1910-1915

worthy students and especially those expecting to enter the ministry.
In 1911, the Conference, realizing that many needy and deserving
students did not have sufficient funds to enter Union, resolved "That
we, the preachers of the Conference seek, by collections and personal
gifts, to procure a fund each year to be used by said Board of Educa-
tion to assist worthy young people to obtain their education in said
college." 23 The preceding year the Reverend J. Taylor donated the
Joshua S. Taylor Fund of $1,500, for the purpose of aiding worthy stu-
dents studying for the ministry.

Union College was nearing the end of its period of indecision but
the struggle was far from over. The Reverend Overley took office with
the understanding that a new man would be selected in 1915. The
General Board of Education of the Methodist Episcopal Church be-
came interested in the college, and Union's catalog interpreted this as
an omen of brighter days: "The darkest hour is just before the dawn.
The outlook . . . for the future is the brightest in its history."

Kentucky Conference Minutes, 1911.

Chapter VI
ON THE ROAD BACK

IN THE SPRING of 1915, Union College reached the nadir of its
existence. The Academic faculty which had been teaching without
pay since the preceding October resolved to leave. The Kentucky
"Annual Conference had next to no interest in the school." * At a
meeting of the Board of Education held April 20, Dr. Walsh offered
the resolution and C. B. Nordeman seconded it that Union be closed
because "no one stands ready to assume the burden of financing the
school as the people of Barbourville generously did two years ago.
This Board does not see how it can afford to do it now. . . ." 2 This
resolution, one of the most momentous in Union's history, was de-
bated hotly for several hours before being withdrawn. Perhaps only
the arrival on the scene of Dr. Thomas Nicholson, Secretary of the
General Board of Education of the Methodist Episcopal Church, who
had already manifested his interest in Union's welfare, saved the day.
Dr. Nicholson immediately presented five points for discussion, all of
which were related to Union's future. Among several plans studied,
one was adopted calling for the selection of a field agent to raise
$2,500 annually in cash. In addition, the General Board of Education
could be expected to make yearly contributions. A local committee,
the "Prudential" of five members, was to have "detailed supervision
of the school." 3 Dr. Nicholson let it be known that he was willing
to furnish counsel and aid through the New York Board on condition
of his approving the nomination of Union's new president. The Board
of Education readily agreed to accept Dr. Nicholson's terms.

The Board's next problem was to find an able man willing to accept
the challenge offered by precarious circumstances. Such an individual
the Board found in the person of E. T. Franklin, vice-president of
Asbury College. E. R. Overley interviewed Franklin regarding his
interest in the presidency, and after a visit to the college together
with "careful and prayerful consideration," Franklin indicated his
willingness to accept. Thereupon the Board promptly elected him
president.

1 President's "Report" to Trustees, 1925.
3 Board of Education, Minutes, 1910-1926.
» Ibid.

On the Road Back

About two months after assuming his new position, Franklin was
called to Cincinnati to confer with Dr. Nicholson and several members
of the Board of Education. Here for the first time the new president
learned of the agreement between the Board and Dr. Nicholson —
most embarrassing information for an executive who had already, as
he thought, assumed office and entered upon a definite program.
Worst of all, Franklin's program for Union was directly adverse to
that of the secretary's. It was Franklin's bitter experience to learn
that Dr. Nicholson envisaged nothing higher for Union than an aca-
demic (high school) program. It was the secretary's "carefully formed
judgment that an effort to establish a college in that remote moun-
tain section was a waste of time and money — that all one could hope
for; all that was needed by such a community was a good high school
with a commercial department." 4

This historic Cincinnati conference upon which the future of
Union lay hanging, as it were, from a thread, can best be told in Dr.
Franklin's own words:

Dr. Nicholson began by asking what kind of program I had in mind
for Union College. I replied that I proposed to establish a four year
accredited College of Liberal Arts and Sciences with the object of
furnishing leadership for that section of the mountains with many of
the graduated becoming teachers, ministers, doctors, lawyers, government
leaders and directors of business. He looked at me in utter astonishment
and began trying to let me down with as little shock and humiliation as
possible.

Dr. Nicholson had been a college president. He had studied carefully
a recent educational survey of the Kentucky mountains made by the
Rockefeller Foundation. Based upon that survey and upon his own
study he said that the most that should be attempted in addition to the
Academy would be some commercial subjects such as bookkeeping, type-
writing and stenography. When he explained his ideas and ideals of such
a school, I replied that I was not interested in so limited a service since
I believed the larger service could be developed. I had thought it through
and had dedicated myself to the task.

At this point I waited to hear him say, "we cannot use this man. His
proposed program is both impracticable and impossible." But he didn't.
All who knew Dr. Nicholson knew him as a most thorough interviewer,
open-minded, and eagerly seeking to get the full picture and significance
of the things as seen and felt by those whom he interviewed. He never
belittled an honest soul.

For the next hour and a half Dr. Nicholson covered every important
step in the development of a standard college, asking how it could be
done at Barbourville. He went into great detail. I answered all questions
as the answers seemed clear to me, never doubting the supreme impor-

* Dr. E. T. Franklin to writer, March 3, 1954.

Union College

tance of the proposed program, nor the possibility of its achievement.
When the probing was over, Dr. Nicholson turned to the members of
the Board and he said: "Well, I like the young man. He knows what he
wants to do and I am going to let him try it." *

This young man, Ezra T. Franklin, who had just received permis-
sion to attempt the "impossible" — the converting of Union from a
high school into a bona fide institution of college grade, possessed
an excellent educational and professional background for his difficult
task. He was a native Kentuckian, born at Glensboro, February 24,
1881. He received the two baccalaureate degrees of A.B. and B.Pd.
from Asbury College and Valparaiso University respectively. At In-
diana University two more degrees were conferred upon him, the
A.B. and A.M. He continued his graduate studies at Columbia during
summer sessions and the school year, 1913-14, as a research scholar.

He began his teaching career in the graded schools, and later
served as a city superintendent of schools. In 1908 Franklin went to
his alma mater, Asbury College, as dean and professor of philosophy.
He transferred to Olivet for two years and then went back to Asbury
in 1912 as vice-president and professor of philosophy and systematic
theology. Franklin came directly to Union from Asbury in June, 1915.
Before Franklin had completed his first year at Union, the Board of
Education awarded him a five-year contract.

President Franklin's delayed inauguration program ran through a
three-day period, February 4-6, 1917. Bishop Bristol and others spoke
on the first day, the academic procession took place on the second, and
the inauguration proper, on the third. Greetings were extended by
Lieutenant-governor Black, and Professor J. T. C. Noe, representing
Kentucky's Colleges. On Tuesday evening, February 6, the Board of
Education concluded the festivities with a reception to the new presi-
dent and his lady.

Long before his inauguration, Franklin was working hard on plans
to achieve his goals. He sat down at his office for the first time in the
summer of 1915 without a dollar's worth of operating assets. Besides
the presidency he inherited the positions of treasurer, bookkeeper,
dean, registrar, together with an overdrawn bank account. Money
was needed at once to publish catalogs, to buy stamps and stationery
and for other operating costs. A. M. Decker, Union's faithful friend,
lent $20 for stamps and W. S. Hudson did the printing on credit.
Traveling had to be done at Franklin's own expense. At the opening
of the school year, the Board of Education set an appropriation of

•Ibid.

On the Road Back

$2,500 as the limit of its contribution to the school budget. Although
his predecessors had experienced deficits from appropriations over
twice this amount,6 Franklin hung Fanny Speed's portrait across from
his desk, accepted the realities of the situation and set out to place
Dr. Nicholson's carte blanche in motion.

In January, 1916, at a meeting of the Board of Education, Franklin
argued for the first concrete move in the direction of a "real college."
He pointed out that in 1916 there were over 100 four-year high schools
in Kentucky, whereas in 1906, there were less than a dozen. In Bar-
bourville a public high school was being developed, and the Baptist
Institute was offering work on that level. Here was Union's oppor-
tunity to offer service beyond the high school level. President Franklin
concluded his arguments with a request "that a college course of stand-
ard grade be put on one year at a time, and that every effort be made
toward building a real college ... if, after two years have been put on,
the income will not carry more, than let it run as a first class Junior
college until further help can be secured and the other two years
added." 7

The Board consented to Franklin's suggestions on the same day
they received them; but unfortunately, the rebuilding of Union into
a college involved something much vaster and infinitely more com-
plex than the mere addition of college classes. In order for Union to
become a "real" college, it must become an accredited one. To achieve
this accreditation, President Franklin inaugurated a long range pro-
gram including the following six points: (1) Restoration of the college
curriculum; (2) A building program which must include a gymnasi-
um; (3) Improvement of library and laboratory facilities; (4) Addi-
tion of $200,000 to the college endowment; (5) Removal of the grades
and academy; (6) Incorporation of Union College.

The people of "quality" in and around Barbourville had long been
in the habit of sending their children to a private school, securing
excellent instruction for them at low cost. They could not harbor
the thought of sending their sons and daughters into the squalid,
crowded, and poorly equipped schools of the town and country — there
to mingle with the unclean progeny of the common herd. Mrs. Frank-
lin, the president's wife admitted her reluctance to send her children
to the public schools.8 Nevertheless, Franklin began at the bottom
by lopping off the first six grades. A local committee composed of
Franklin, A. M. Decker, J. D. Black, and L. W. Harrop, prepared the

• President's "Report" to Trustees, 1925.

7 Board of Education, Minutes, 1910-1926.

8 Mrs. E. T. Franklin to writer, March 17, 1954.

Union College

way by conferring with the citizens "concerning the elimination of the
grades." Two months after this action, President Franklin in a letter
(November 13, 1917), to the Board of Education, reported the move
as wise because it met the "approval of all the people of Barbourville,
and it has made room for the extra classes that we have due to the
increase in the student body." Even with the dropping of 60 primary
and intermediate students the enrollment would "probably surpass"
that of last year.9

The next cutting from the bottom did not take place until 1923,
when the seventh and eighth grades were dropped. They had been re-
tained because of their usefulness in preparing retarded students for
the academy. The final lopping, that of the Academy, began in the
fall of 1926 when no academic freshmen were admitted. This was
necessary if Union were to receive recognition from the University of
Kentucky as a grade "A" college. The last academy class graduated in
1930. This was a blow to the total enrollment as the Academy had
increased from 39 in 1915-16 to 247 in 1925-26. Beginning with
September, 1926, the Academy dropped to 177. Fortunately this loss
of 70 students was mostly offset by an increase of 57 in the college
department.

When Samuel P. Franklin graduated in 1919, Union conferred its
first degree since 1908. 10 Because this one-man "class" had finished
its work in three years with an average of 94 per cent, it petitioned
the faculty for exemption from all final examinations and the privilege
was granted. The new freshman class which entered in September,
1916, with 8 members, graduated as a class of 3 in 1920.

The second battle which President Franklin had to fight was not
directly connected with the reestablishment of the college curriculum,
but concerned rather, the spheres of service which the college might
offer. For many years the Normal department at Union functioned in
turning out teachers for southeastern Kentucky by preparing students
for state examinations. In 1916-17, county and state certificates might
be acquired in the foregoing manner.

With the coming of the state normal schools, and the normal
certificates which they granted, not on a basis of examination, but
upon completion of a specified curriculum, the picture changed. No
liberal arts college could hope to compete with state schools in the
training of teachers unless their graduates were likewise certified by
the state upon completion of normal courses. This battle was fought

•E. T. Franklin to Board of Education, Nov. 13, 1917.

10 Samuel P. Franklin, a brother of President Franklin's, later became Dean of
the School of Education, University of Pittsburgh.

On the Road Back

in the state legislature; and a furious one it was, as the proponents
of the state institutions fought zealously to preserve a monopoly on
the issuance of normal diplomas. The fight presented two phases:
first, the passing of general legislation which would allow private
institutions to have their graduates certificated; and secondly, the in-
dividual fight of each institution to secure recognition under the gen-
eral law.

Speaking of the terrific struggle which was won only through "great
skill and strategy," President Franklin relates: "The first thing was the
securing of the approval of the State Board of Regents to do standard
Normal work and have our graduates certified the same as those
graduating from the State Normal. In the first place, it took a long
and hard fight to get the law passed making it possible; in the second
place, the private schools had to fight for their rights under the law,
and there were many very interesting battles in which, if you will
excuse the apparent boast, your president played a prominent part." 1X

In 1921 Union's graduates could qualify only for the elementary
normal certificates. By 1925, the Kentucky state department of educa-
tion had added its approval to the issuance of teaching certificates at
the intermediates and high school levels. Union was now fully ac-
credited to issue teaching certificates for all grades.

Union could qualify as a teaching training institution only if pros-
pective teachers could engage in practice teaching and undergo ob-
servation under properly trained supervision. This brought on a
local struggle in Barbourville when Union College applied for use
of the city grades as a "model school." At that time there existed like-
wise in Barbourville another institution of learning operating under
sectarian auspices. At first proponents of this school were afraid that
Union was seeking to gain an unfair advantage over it. But after the
situation was thoroughly explained, the privilege of establishing a
model school for Union's purpose was granted; and apparently all
parties concerned were well satisfied with the results.

Another important phase of Franklin's program leading toward
recognition was a drive for expansion of the physical plant. Now that
Union was already possessed of an administration building and
dormitories for both boys and girls, it was apparent that a gymnasium
constituted Union's most pressing need — although at this time over
fifty girls were "jammed" into Speed Hall,12 and the president was
citing the need for four additional buildings.13

11 President Franklin to Board of Education, Jan. 24, 1922, Board of Education,
Minutes, 1910-1926.

12 "Report" of Committee on Schools, May 28, 1918.

18 President's "Report," Kentucky Conference, Minutes, 1918.

Union College

The need for a gymnasium had long been recognized but funds had
never been available. Abigail E. Weeks had sought to work up en-
thusiasm with her token contribution of twenty-seven cents but this
move likewise came to naught. In his first annual report (September
5, 1916), President Franklin named the gymnasium as Union's first
need, estimating its cost at $20,000. In addition more land would have
to be acquired on which to lay out an athletic field. The Board of
Education agreed with the President but no action was taken.

The following spring (May 31, 1917), at a special meeting of the
Board, A. M. Decker introduced a resolution authorizing the Property
Committee to buy an athletic field. The motion was carried and C. B.
Nordeman was authorized to negotiate with Alexander Sevier for
rent or lease of his property until such time as a permanent field
could be secured. In February, 1918, a committee was authorized to
rent a field at not over $100 per annum. On May 28, the committee
reported that a field had been secured for $50 rent which could
"partly be repaid by rent as a pasture field." 14

Almost three years passed by and still no direct action had been
taken toward building a gymnasium. The student body, exasperated
at what it considered criminal procrastination on the part of the
powers that be, descended like a plague of locusts upon the Board of
Education as it sat in the President's office on Union's campus, and
presented that board with a petition signed by virtually every mem-
ber of the student body. This direct action led by Horace Barker
produced immediate results.15 President Franklin was authorized to
contact an architect in Knoxville for plans.

Breaking of ground for the gymnasium took place during com-
mencement week, May 28, 1919. The Board of Education requested
all of Barbourville's merchants to close their stores from 2:00 — 3:00
P.M., "incident to the breaking of ground," and promised to serve
refreshments. On the appointed day, following speeches by President
Franklin, Dr. Walsh, and A. M. Decker, who reviewed the history of
Union College, a plow was set in motion by the four Reverends.
"F. W. Harrop made the motion that the new gymnasium be a
memorial to the soldiers and sailors of Knox county, and the service
men of the M. E. Church," for the state of Kentucky.16 To help defray
the expense of erection, each charge was asked to donate $5.00 for
each enlisted man serving from its local circuit. In addition a sub-
scription campaign was set in motion by students, faculty and friends
of the college.

14 Board of Education, Minutes, 1910-1926.

15 MSS. by unknown author. President's office; The Stespean, 1921.
M Barbourville Advocate, May 30, 1919.

On the Road Back

The contract for the gymnasium was let on August 9, to Mr. Perkins
of Woodbine for the sum of $34,829. This did not include plumbing,
wiring or inside furnishings. The total was expected to come to
|45,000, or over twice as much as the original estimate.17 Thanksgiving
Day, 1919, was the occasion for another round of festivities when the
cornerstone was laid. The building was not finished in every detail
until late in the fall of 1920.

It is said that the gymnasium had been "a thing of imagination"
so long that the students could hardly believe their eyes when it came
into being. It was reputedly the finest building of its type in the
state, constructed of brick and Bedford stone. A college catalog of
the period describes the interior as follows: "The basement has a
swimming pool, showers, toilets, lockers, and dressing rooms. The
playing floor is 90x60 feet and gives ample room for all kinds of in-
door athletics and physical exercises. The balcony is fixed for a run-
ning track. The whole building is well equipped."

Along with the gymnasium, came a financial crisis. Besides the
building program, President Franklin and the Board had to cope
with the problem of raising the endowment sufficiently to secure
recognition. In his first message to the Board of Education in January,
1916, President Franklin discussed financial needs and the basis on
which he should appeal for funds — that is, a keynote. A loosely con-
ceived policy meant failure, or only partial success at best. In order
for one to ask for help, the school's mission must be succulently set
forth. Franklin's survey of the situation had convinced him that
Union "must be fostered wholeheartedly by Kentucky Methodism if
she is to be a source of blessing in any large measure;" and should it
"lose its church connection it would with the greatest probability pass
away as fifty or more other private schools have done in Kentucky
within the past twenty or thirty years." All should agree "that Ken-
tucky Methodism owes the State, the Church, and the world a good
college of first class standing." 18 The Conference responded with a
resolution "calling upon the various members of the Conference and
the people of their charges to make a contribution for the current
expenses of the college." 19

Union's position was definitely defined but that did not alleviate
the immediate acute financial distress. In September, 1916, the family
of R. T. Miller presented Union a check for $5,000 to be used as
needed. This saved Franklin much embarrassment during the school

17 Ibid., Aug. 13, 1919.

18 Franklin to Board of Education, Board of Education, Minutes, 1910-1926.

19 Ibid.

Union College

year, but it was always his hope to replace the amount and use it for
an improvement fund. In addition, $1,000 was raised in Barbourville,
one-half of it coming from the local Methodist church.20

When the annual Kentucky Conference met at Maysville in the
autumn of 1917, its leaders awakened to the distressing financial
situation. Franklin expressed his doubts as to whether another college
year could be added unless a larger source of income was found. His
plan of the past year calling for each individual charge to raise a set
amount, had not been carried out and he had been forced to spend
a great deal of time visiting these charges.

Under the leadership of Dr. Hancher, who addressed the Conference
(September 3, 1917) at length on the subject, the Conference voted
to put on a drive known as the Educational Jubilee Movement, which
was expected to net $200,000 less 2i/2% for the General Board of
Education.21 This was the first time in Union's history that the
Kentucky Conference had backed a great drive for Union College and
was indicative of its new interest in the college's welfare.

The Educational Jubilee Movement had barely begun when two
factors temporarily brought about its abandonment. Its greatest mov-
ing spirit, Dr. Hancher became ill, and in addition, concentration on
the war effort — the subscribing of war bonds diverted public attention
from the movement. In February, 1918, the Board of Education
voted unanimously to postpone the Jubilee drive because of the war
effort. Mr. A. M. Decker, one of Union's ardent supporters through
50 years of its history, revived the question of the drive at a Board
meeting in May, 1918, and urged a new drive with a goal of §100,000.
Decker's motion was carried and September, 1918, set as the starting
date of the new drive. When the Conference met in September, Presi-
dent Franklin made a strong appeal to it for immediate action. Again
the Conference voted to sustain a drive for $100,000, with a reminder
to its members that "this task is the present task of every preacher
and church in our Conference." 22

Before much progress could be made on the drive, two other prob-
lems loomed which made the task much more formidable and threat-
ened to kill the Jubilee Movement. The building of the gymnasium
called for an immediate outlay of $25,000, and at the same time the
Boards of Home and Foreign Missions inaugurated their Centenary
drive throughout the forty-eight states. Because it was virtually im-
possible to put on two drives within the Kentucky Conference at the

20 President's "Annual Report," Sept. 5, 1916, Board of Education, Minutes, 1910-
1926.

11 Board of Education, Minutes, 1910-1926.
la Kentucky Conference, Minutes, 1918.

On the Road Back

same time, the promoters of the Centenary requested "that all other
proposed finance compaigns in the church be sidetracked for the
Centenary." 23 The members of the Board of Education were reluctant
to accede to the request and under the leadership of President
Franklin determined to have Union included in the Centenary drive.

The ensuing struggle marked another milestone on Union's road
back. Inclusion of Union, or of any private college for that matter,
was contrary to the policy laid down by the Centenary's manager.
The Board members, under constant pressure from top people of the
church yielded regretfully one by one but President Franklin con-
tinued the struggle. "In great anguish and argument," Franklin in-
sisted that to delay the college program would mean "the sacrifice of
the proposed standard Union College." 24

The victory, according to Franklin, was a hard one and "was gained
through much hard persuasion and continued insistence that Union
College be included in some way in the Centenary campaign, and were
taken in for one-fifth of the total subscriptions from our conference." 25
The total expected to be realized by Union from the drive was
$35,000,26 which was much below the goal set by the Jubilee Drive.
The actual amount subscribed, $80,000,27 far above Franklin's esti-
mate, was expected to be applied on the endowment. In the mean-
time, Union's productive assets had fallen from $296,000 to $266,000
in two years due to disposal of the Kenyon Building. This drop, had
in advance, the effect of largely nullifying the recent gains.

Realizing the inadequacy of the returns expected from the Centenary
movement, the Board of Education recommended another drive with
the object of raising $750,000. Enough was to be set aside from its
proceeds to increase the endowment to $500,000. The remainder was
to be applied to physical expansion, maintenance of the yearly budget,
and to cover the expense of the campaign. The Conference accepted
the challenge, authorized the drive, and asked Governor Black to
assume (September 19) the chairmanship.28

President Franklin realized that $300,000 was the minimum that
dared be applied to the endowment; at the same time, there was good
reason to believe that $300,000 represented the total that could be
raised for any purpose. Franklin's solution for this dilemma was to

23 E. T. Franklin to writer, March 3, 1954.

24 Mrs. Grace Franklin to writer, March 17, 1954.

25 E. T. Franklin to Board of Education, Jan. 24, 1922, Board of Education Min-
utes, 1910-1926.

29 Ibid.

27 Union College Catalog, 1923-24.

28 Board of Education, Minutes, 1910-1926: Barbourville Advocate, Sept. 30,
1921.

Union College

have the General Board of Education promise $200,000, should the
Kentucky Conference raise the $300,000 for endowment purpose in
five years. President Franklin knew this was an unusual request and
gave his reasons in a special paragraph: "We understand that the
General Board does not ordinarily assist institutions that are not al-
ready well established as colleges, but Union College is in a section
far removed from a good college of Liberal Arts and the topography
is such that it is difficult to get any appreciable number of people
over the mountain ranges into Tennessee or out into the blue-grass
for higher education." 29

Although Franklin's plea struck no responsive chords on the part
of the General Board, it did have the effect of calling the Board's
attention to Union's needs; and helped to insure a small annual
contribution from the New York Board. Actually the local Kentucky
campaign results exceeded the expectations of its leaders. True,
$750,000 had been set as the goal, but hardly half that amount was
expected.

The Kentucky Conference was scheduled to hold its annual meet-
ing that year (1922) at Barbourville. This furnished the opportunity
for celebrating the successful completion of the drive. On the second
night of the conference, E. R. Overley, president of the Board of
Trustees, spoke on the results of the campaign recently closed and
announced the subscription of $452,000 up to July, 1922, when the
campaign closed.30 A. M. Decker, treasurer of the Board of Education
of the Kentucky Conference, requested President Franklin to stand
"so the audience could see the man who said 'We can do it,' when
most, if not all the board didn't know whether it could be done or
not." Other addresses were delivered by the Reverend F. W. Harrop
and President Franklin. John Owen Gross, pastor of the local church,
addressed the conference on September 27, "In commemoration of
Union College's successful endowment endeavor."

In 1924 the Conference expressed its gratitude first to the Board
of Education "for the assistance it had rendered in both council and
finance," and secondly, "to our people and constituents for their
subscriptions to the endowment fund, which, if collected in full, will
enable the college to hold to the program laid out for it the next few
years. . . ." 31 The fears expressed by the Board regarding collection
of pledges were realized. As late as 1927, the Board was considering

29 Annual "Report," 1921-22, of the President, Board of Education, Minutes,
1910-1926.

30 Orange and Black, Sept. 30, 1922. This paper lists Barbourville's subscription
as equal to one-fourth of the total. Certainly, this statement must be in error.

31 Kentucky Conference Minutes, 1924.

On the Road Back

the cases of seven people who had given estate pledges, or subscrip-
tions, some as high as $500. Various excuses were offered by the
people themselves or their heirs.32 At any rate this drive put Union
within "shooting distance of its four-year college rating with the Uni-
versity of Kentucky." 33

Another great victory for Union College simultaneously with the
completion of its great drive in 1922, was its recognition as a legal
entity — in other words, a corporate person. Governor Black had
pointed out the legal dangers under the system, whereby a gift in-
tended for Union College could be given only to the Board of Educa-
tion of the Kentucky Conference, which acted as a kind of guardian
or godmother for the college. It must be kept in mind that the
original Board of Trustees had passed out of existence when the
Corporation became defunct in 1886. The local Board of Trustees
instituted in 1914 when the Board of Education withdrew financial
support from the college had only such powers as were delegated to
it by the Board of Education and was of course only immediate in
nature.

Regarding the "battle of incorporation," Dr. Franklin wrote: "I
began early to point out that in order for the college to be successful
it should be incorporated and given full corporate rights within itself
to operate as a college. This was an educational process. . . . This
proposal to incorporate the college carried with it the proposition to
transfer the Speed properties to the college. This required a lot of
persuasion based upon sound procedure. Patience and reason finally
prevailed." 34

E. T. Franklin presented his resolution for incorporation at the
annual meeting (September 24, 1921), of the Kentucky Conference,
and had the great satisfaction of seeing it adopted. His resolution
called for a group of twelve men, assisted by "one or more experts,
to be designated by our General Board of Education, . . . [to] in-
corporate Union College, at Barbourville, Kentucky." 35 The resolution
included two provisions with respect to the trustees; First, two-thirds
of the Trustees of Union College were to be members also of the
Board of Education of the Kentucky M. E. Church; secondly, the
Board of Education was to transfer all of its "property, lands, build-

32 "Minutes," Executive Committee, Board of Trustees, Minutes, June 4, 1927.

33 Dr. E. T. Franklin to writer, March 3, 1954.
84 Ibid.

35 Kentucky Conference Minutes, 1921. The twelve men authorized to incor-
porate Union were E. R. Overley, A. S. Bennett, E. P. Hall, James D. Black, J.
M. Literal, A. M. Decker, W. W. Shepherd, C. B. Nordeman, A. B. Cornett, F. W.
Harrop, H. E. Bullock, and E. T. Franklin.

Union College

ings, and equipment ... at Barbourville," to the Trustees of Union
College.36

According to the third article of incorporation, the purposes of such
incorporation are "to make and constitute Union College a legal
entity and corporate person, that it may . . . manage, operate and
administer Union College . . . for the promotion of liberal education,
devote its efforts and being to the interests of Christian education
and to qualify and equip men and women to engage in the several
employments." The college was authorized to confer collegiate and
honorary degrees, to make contracts, to acquire property, to accept
gifts and to borrow money.

As a non-profit organization, not being "used or employed for gain,"
or for "any private pecuniary profit," Union College was exempt from
taxation as provided by Section 170 of the constitution of Kentucky.
The Seventh Article limits indebtedness to $100,000, and exempts
the private and individual property of the Trustees from corporate
indebtedness. It also provided that in case the College should "cease
to function," all properties of Union shall revert to the Board of
Education.

The trustees, rather than the president, had authority to run the
school. They may appoint the faculty, fix rates of tuition and other
college expenses, fix all salaries, and "make rules for the general
management of the affairs of the college and for the regulation of the
conduct of the students. . . ." The Board of Trustees is to consist of
not less than 18 or more than 27 members. Two-thirds of them are
elected by the Conference from the Board of Education and the other
one-third by the Alumni and Board of Trustees; namely, Conference,
Alumni, and Trustees at Large.

The first Board of Trustees of Union College, appointed by the
Board of Education, met at Union Church in Covington, April 26,
1922, for the purpose of organizing the Board. E. R. Overley was
elected president, and A. M. Decker, treasurer.37 Less than two weeks
later, (May 8, 1922) , the secretary of state of the Commonwealth of
Kentucky issued a certificate authorizing Union College Corporation
to do business under its charter subject of course to restrictions im-
posed by Kentucky state statutes.38

Near the end of Franklin's administration, at a meeting held in
Pikeville, (September 23, 1927) , Article III of Union's charter was

80 Ibid.

,T Board of Trustees, Minutes, 1922-1934. MSS, President's office.
88 Sillous G. Hembree, "A History of Union College" (M.A. thesis, University of
Kentucky, 1938) , 14.

On the Road Back

amended to permit the issuance of "annuity bonds and to pay annuity
thereon. . . ." 39 The Articles were amended again in 1931. The Board
of Trustees was divided into the Executive, Finance, Education,
Endowment, and Building and Grounds committees.

The last important step on the way back was accreditation. It was
extremely difficult to ask students to attend a college, the credits of
which were not recognized, and at the same time secure enough
students to achieve recognition. In 1921 the President stated that with
a heavier endowment, entrance could be had at once into the Uni-
versity Senate. He predicted recognition from the Kentucky College
Association within two years if the campaign proved successful. A
year later Franklin said the time had come to ask for admission into
the Association of Colleges and Universities of Kentucky and into the
University Senate of the Methodist Episcopal Church. As it happened
however, first recognition came from the University of Kentucky in
1925, when that institution granted Union the rating of a standard
four-year college.40 This meant Union's graduates were accepted on
condition.

In May, 1927, Franklin appeared before the University of Kentucky
Accrediting Committee to prove that Union deserved the rating of a
grade "A" college. First the committee was told that the Academy
and college faculties were entirely separate,41 and that 135 students
were enrolled in the college department — more than the minimum
number required. Next he had to show that Union's graduates were
already proving their worth. This Franklin did by presenting statistics
showing how about one-half of Union's graduates since 1919 had
earned advanced degrees or were working on them — two already had
Ph.D. degrees. Union's faculty were represented as being well prepared.
Franklin related how he spent two hours before the committee using
five points as the basis of his arguments. At the conclusion of his
arguments the committee agreed to grant grade "A" accreditation on
condition that the library be enlarged. On the following day, May 18,
1927, Ezra Gillis, the Registrar, wrote President Franklin as follows:
"I take pleasure in reporting to you that the committee on Accredited
Relations of the University of Kentucky at the House Meeting of May
17, rated Union College as an "A" grade four-year college. Graduates
of Union beginning with the class of 1927 will be admitted to our
graduate school the same as our own graduates." 42 It was wonderful

"Ibid., 15.

*° "Report" of President to Trustees, June 2, 1925.

" This was started in 1926-27.

48 Barbourville Advocate, June 3, 1927.

Union College

to know that Union's graduates could now enter unquestioned into
the largest graduate school in the state.

President Franklin likewise realized that recognition could not be
had from the Kentucky Association nor the Southern Association as
long as the Academy was located on the same grounds and in the
same buildings as the college. Union could not afford a new campus
with new buildings for the Academy and that meant it must be sacri-
ficed for the sake of complete accreditation.

Although the college had been moving logically in that direction,
the Board of Trustees hesitated when the fateful time arrived. The
members were "not enthusiastic, perhaps some were even opposed to
the idea, but having committed themselves to the plan of building a
college far in the past, agreed to go ahead." Almost none of the
faculty, related Mrs. Franklin, approved the plan to abolish the
Academy. Likewise many business men in town opposed it — seeing
a falling off in their trade. Following his announcement that no
Academy freshmen class could ever again be admitted to Union,
President Franklin found himself perhaps the most unpopular man
in town. But the last great battle on the way back had been won and
before Franklin left Union in 1928, he had the satisfaction of seeing
the College gain admission to membership in the Association of Col-
leges and Universities of Kentucky.

The course had now been set. There could be no retrenchment.
Most of President Franklin's 6-point program had been realized with
13 years of hard labor, and only a few more years would be needed to
reach the ultimate goal. In 1928 President Franklin stood upon Mt.
Nebo looking into the land of Canaan.

JAMES P. FAULKNER, 1897-1905 JAMES D BLACK, 1910-1912 EZRA T. FRANKLIN, 1915-1928

JAMES W. EASLEY, 1905-1910 PERCY L. PORTS, 1912-1914 JOHN 0. GROSS, 1929-1938

UNION'S PRESIDENTS, 1897-1938

Chapter VII
GENERAL GROWTH AND ACTIVITIES, 1915-1928

FINANCE WAS certainly the most confusing problem during this
whole period. It is next to impossible to ascertain the real assets
of the Board of Education at a given time. The Kenyon Building
juggling brought confusion during the early period and during the
later period it was brought about by the stock market boom which
spiraled merrily upward until the crash of 1929.

Out of approximately $250,000 received from the Fanny Speed
estate, $200,000 of that amount was represented by the Kenyon Build-
ing at Louisville. Although this building continued to decrease in
value and income over a period of years, at the end of the fiscal year,
1915-16, it was listed on paper as worth $206,000 out of a total "produc-
tive" endowment of $290,000. During President Port's administration,
C. B. Nordeman had begged for authority to sell the building when
an opportune moment presented itself — this the Board refused to
grant.1 For years the Board had proposed to dispose of the building
and invest the receipts in stocks. At first (January 29, 1918), the
minimum price was set at $90,000,2 but when an offer was made at a
much lower figure, C. B. Nordeman was authorized to sell at a mini-
mum net price of $75,000.

In March, 1919, Walter S. Adams, agent, agreed to pay $28,000 for
the Kenyon Building within 5 years and a balance of $50,000 within
10 years, or a total of $78,000. The Board accepted the offer and
borrowed $25,000 from the Lincoln Savings Bank and Trust Company
to pay off the Kenyon Mortgage owed the Fidelity and Trust Company
of Louisville. It will be remembered that the Kenyon mortgage
originated because of the building program of 1907-08.

Although the Kenyon "notes" were listed in 1919 as worth only
$48,000, (a loss of over $150,000), the treasurer of the Board of
Education reported Union's productive endowment at $266,000, or
only $30,000 less than that reported in 1916, when the Kenyon Build-
ing was "worth" $206,000. This meant that sometime between 1916
and 1919, the Board of Education had mysteriously acquired $120,000.

1 Percy L. Ports to writer, May 31, 1954.
* Board of Education, Minutes, 1910-1926.

Union College

The mystery deepens further when one finds in 1921, the "productive
assets" of Union set at $163,000 3 or $100,000 less than 5 years before —
this after a drive that is supposed to have netted $80,000, (not includ-
ing $25,000 subscribed for the gymnasium) . Seventeen years after
Fanny Speed's death, Union's productive endowment had decreased
by $100,000.

Further study of fiscal reports throws little light on Union's financial
labyrinth. The financial report for 1925 lists productive endowment
at almost $360,000, including $200,000 worth of Louisville Cement
Stock. But by July, 1922, over $450,000 had been subscribed for
Union's endowment in a single drive. Counting off $25,000 for the
gymnasium, and $20,000 for the President's home, Union's assets
should seemingly have been worth over $200,000 additional or at
least $560,000. When one discovers that the Louisville Cement Stock
had a face value of only $53,333,4 he is left further confounded.

This same year (1925), the total indebtedness of $46,000, of which
$30,000 remained on the gymnasium, was reduced $11,000, and the
president's new residence was completed and paid for. Starting out
with an annual budget of $10,000, Franklin gradually increased the
amount to $20,000 when he began hiring a full college faculty and
tripled the amount by the end of his administration.

As the income from the Kenyon Building gradually decreased
annually from $12,000 to a deficit of $2,000, other sources gradually
took its place. The chief "God-send", proved to be the Louisville
Cement Company's stock which netted $6,500 in 1917-18. The income
from the Seelback Realty Company, the Southern Pacific Railroad,
and the Louisville Hotel Company, totaled about $2,500 annually.
In addition, the New York Board of Education of the M. E. Church
usually contributed $1,500 to $2,000 each year. After completion of
the president's home and the gymnasium, Union's property was
valued at $300,000.

The chief bequests of the period were the Miller fund of $5,000,
already mentioned, the John D. Hearne estate valued at $23,000,
and the Wilson and Baldwin contributions which will be discussed
later. Union's income from the Conference and outside sources gradu-
ally increased from $3,000 in 1916, to about $20,000 in 1927"-28. The
Louisville Cement Company, alone, was netting $9,000 annually. At
the end of Franklin's administration, income from tuition exceeded
$14,000 per annum compared with $3,500 in 1915-16.

Student costs doubled during the same period. Within a dozen

3 Treasurer's "Report" to Board of Education, Sept. 21, 1919.
* Kentucky Conference Minutes, 1925.

General Growth and Activities, 1915-1928

years, board and room at the college increased from $85 a year to
$180. The Academy student's tuition had increased from $30 to $50.
Tuition for college students usually amounted to about $20 more
than that of the academic. In 1915-16, a boarding student in the
Union Academy could attend one year for $125; in 1927-28, it had
risen to $265.

In order to arrive at an understanding of this extraordinary rise
in costs one must think in terms of national growth. The period of
the 1920's following the first World War was one of inflation and
rising prices. Another factor in the increased costs was the maintenance
of a full collegiate faculty. Before the war, most of the boarding
faculty was working for $450 per annum plus board and room — or
exactly the same salary paid in 1905 to the "professors." Better paid
instructors like Miss Weeks were earning $600. The number on the
faculty from 1915-28, varying from 12 to 20, fell to its minimum during
the war years. Following the war when Union was offering four years
of training in both the academy and the college with expanded cur-
riculums, the faculty increased to its maximum. When the Academic
program was dropped, the faculty decreased to 15 or approximately
the same size as when the collegiate program began.

Restoration of the collegiate program called for a better trained
faculty and after the war there was a sparse sprinkling of professors
with Ph.D. degrees. This rarity of advanced degrees was quite common
to small colleges of the period. The Academic faculty was unusually
strong for the era — most of those teaching had acquired the Master of
Arts degree — a situation one was not likely to find in many Kentucky
high schools of the 1920's.

The duties of the faculty were not limited to the dissemination of
knowledge in the secular world; but extended also into the moral and
spiritual realms as well. This they exercised in their capacity as
spiritual leaders, teachers, advisers, and custodians of morals. With
the reestablishment of the college curriculum, and the increased
number of "young ladies," coming to Union as boarding students, it
was imperative that the school accept the responsibility for upholding
the strict moral codes and mores common to Kentucky and the South.
Parents of the period would have been extremely reluctant to send
their daughters away from home to a school where promiscuous mix-
ing of the sexes was permitted.

Franklin's administration had inherited many rules and customs
regarding boy -girl relations. In the spring of 1915, three girls were
punished for playing tennis with boys while unchaperoned and for
going on the boys' side of the campus. At the same time a faculty

Union College

resolution read "that thereafter in accordance with a long established
precedent in the school the girls shall not be allowed to go to the
boys' side of the campus for any purpose whatever." 5

Girls under eighteen could not receive calls from the boys except
by "written request from the parents addressed to the preceptress."
Under the new president, Franklin, girls were allowed two "social
evenings" per week, in Speed Hall, on Wednesday and Saturday
evenings. These were known as "informal socials." In 1923-24, we find
the first recorded "open house." At the first one held in September,
1923, the girls were "at home" to the Stevenson Hall boys from 7:00
to 8:00 P.M. A program of "pieces," dialect stories, singing, piano-
playing and games for all, "Bird, Beast, or Fish," were presented. At
the second in January, 1924, the boys "inspected" from 6:00 to 7:00
o'clock. "They were ushered into the parlor where, after being divided
into three groups, their explorations began under competent feminine
guides. A hostess in each room received the guests and 'shooed' them
out when they had stayed long enough." 6 In 1925 girls were allowed
to go down town during the daytime, unchaperoned, provided they
"checked out." They were likewise allowed dates to "appointed func-
tions," if chaperoned.

Before 1920 the school did "not care to adopt uniforms for girls
to insure economy and balance" if it could secure these results other-
wise. Girls were asked to wear "coat-suits or blouses and skirts for
church and school wear." Fancy dresses could not be permitted for
school wear, and at no time were "extreme low necks and sleeves
above the elbows" permitted. In the early 20's correct dress for young
ladies was more clearly defined: "1. Dresses and waists in the neck
must not be lower than one and one-half inches below the collar-bone
in front and correspondingly low in the back and should be near
the neck on the shoulders. 2. Sleeves must be long enough to come
at least to the elbow." 7 During the late 1920's, dress specifications for
girls were dropped and the young ladies were admonished only to
dress in a simple manner — "not elaborate or faddish." 8

Boys were naturally given more freedom than girls but even they
were required to be in their rooms by 7:00 P.M. They could get
special permission to stay out "week nights" and were always allowed
to stay out until 10:00 or 11:00 on Saturday nights. In the middle
1920's, Sunday night privileges were considered debatable.

8 Faculty Minutes, April 16, 1915.

9 Orange and Black, Oct. 2, 1923; Feb. 5, 1924.
T Union College Catalogs, 1920-21, 1923-24.
'Ibid., 1927-28.

General Growth and Activities, 1915-1928

Throughout the regime of President Franklin, regulations against
the use of tobacco and intoxicating liquors were in force. One has
only to glance at the faculty minutes to realize how frequently these
rules were broken. When a student was caught drinking, he was
usually severely reprimanded for his conduct, perhaps temporarily dis-
missed from the campus, and the faculty made haste to pass a resolu-
tion providing for expulsion from school in the future in such cases.
Rather amusingly enough, the faculty would repeat this process year
after year, with the idea that somehow they were establishing prece-
dents for future action in such cases. Actually, very few students were
permanently expelled for drinking. The fight against the use of
tobacco was a losing one — at least, apparently so to one willing to face
the realities of the situation. Smoking (covertly of course) had long
been going on in the men's dormitory. In 1923 the faculty voted to
expel students for smoking after the first offense. The next year, at a
special meeting, the faculty changed its mind and decided to try fines;
$10 for the first offense and $25 for the second. In the late 1920's the
situation was compromised by permitting smoking off the campus.
Other prohibitions included the breaking and defacing of property,
profanity, obscene language and the reading of "trashy" literature.

There was nothing approaching true student government although
student councils were organized by the dean and representatives of
the students consulted with the deans in regard to regulations. Under
Dean Vogel, the Academy had its own separate council apart from
the collegiate. Student government for the girls of Speed Hall under
the leadership of Abigail E. Weeks, was announced for 1918, but this
seems to have been short lived. In 1925 an administration demerit
system was in force. Twenty demerits for a campus student and fifteen
for a day student meant automatic dismissal.

The large study hall kept for academic students always presented
disciplinary problems. A "self controlled" study hall underwent experi-
mentation in 1922, with a committee of two from each class establish-
ing the rules. According to an article in the Orange and Black, the
study hall was failing in its noble object of exercising self control.
The school paper asked for a study hall so well conducted that when
"a professor looks in he will not have to dodge to keep from getting
his head cracked with chalk." The paper issued a warning — it might
be necessary to have the faculty control it once again.9

One of the best examples of the ideas on discipline prevailing at
Union, was the case of Robert Peters, editor of the Orange and Black

Orange and Black, Oct. 17, 1922.

Union College

during the school year, 1924-25. In an editorial dated April 29, 1925,
Peters asked several questions: Why there was no school spirit, why
four-fifths of Union's students were new each year, and why students,
almost without exception were dissatisfied with Union. Peters then
proceeded to give the answers to his own questions. All academy study
hall students had been punished because a few had broken the rules,
work had to be done on the Orange and Black at night, and social
privileges were looked upon as a "necessary evil." He could see no
reason why boys and girls should be separated so completely, or why
a girl had committed a crime by talking to a boy "around a tennis
court." Peters concluded his editorial by castigating first, the faculty
for looking upon "dates, twice a week," as a waste of time; and secondly,
the administration for maintaining attitudes "ten years behind the
times." In order to grow, wrote editor Peters, Union "must change."
The editorial caused much excitement among both the faculty and
student body. By vote of the faculty, Peters was asked to resign as
editor of the school paper and the "Scribblers Club" accepted responsi-
bility for the Orange and Black. An editorial, evidently prepared by
a faculty committee refuted Peters under the caption, "A CAT
STORY." The article termed Peters' charges gross exaggeration and
pointed out that at the beginning of the past year, 60 per cent of the
college department returned and likewise, 50 per cent of the academy,
not withstanding the fact that many graduated or went into teaching.
In spite of all the restrictions on boy-girl relations, Dan Cupid
seemed to have held his own very well on the campus. President
Franklin's brother "lost his bachelor's degree" three days after gradua-
tion and the following year's class had 50 per cent "casualties." When
one speaks of such a high proportion of marriages for one class we
must keep in mind the smallness of the college classes in the period
1915-1928. From 1919 through 1927 the total number receiving degrees
was 38, an average of about 4 per year. Franklin's last commencement
in 1928 must have been a joy to him when he saw seventeen graduates
receive degrees — two more than received diplomas from the Academy.
When President Franklin first came to Union, "primary entertain-
ment" by the lower grades was a part of the commencement exercises.
Later the intermediate, and finally the grammer grades had this part
of the final program for the school year. Community receptions and
art exhibits were usually planned and during the 1920's, orchestra,
band, and voice recitals became a part of the commencement festivities.
Something new for commencement week was added in 1920 when 50
alumni appeared for the first "annual" alumni banquet.10 The alumni

10 Barbourville Advocate, May 28, 1920.

General Growth and Activities, 1915-1928

association although formed in 1894, remained dormant through most
of the years and in 1919 had undergone a revival due to the influence
of Abigail E. Weeks. Another interesting commencement took place
in 1924 when Union presented its first diploma in voice to Lila
Vincent, and the Reverend E. P. Hall, achieved the distinction of
being Union's first graduate to preach a Baccalaureate sermon at
Union.11 Three years earlier, (1923), the Academy senior class
established the precedent of tree planting. Other features of commence-
ment in the 1920's were dramatic productions, and exhibitions by the
swimming classes, usually under the direction of Cora Sevier.

The building of the gymnasium in 1919 brought with it an added
interest in athletics — especially basketball and swimming. In addition
the revival of the college curriculum meant eventual return of inter-
collegiate athletics.

During the thirteen years of Franklin's regime, basketball was the
major sport at Union. An Academy team was maintained at a time
when there was no gymnasium. In November, 1917, Franklin reported
the basketball team as "doubtless the best in the entire section." 12
Intercollegiate basketball was revived in 1917 and continued with
successful seasons through 1923. Union was especially proud of its
Academy teams of 1921 and 1922. In 1921 the Academy team was
undefeated in regular season play and was beaten only in the finals
of the state tournament by Manual Training High School of Louis-
ville. In 1922 the team won both the southeastern Kentucky champion-
ship and the state tournament. The girls' varsity team almost matched
the boys' record this same year. It captured the championship of
southeastern Kentucky and counted the University of Tennessee among
its victims.13

Baseball likewise was continued as a popular sport. Union had
winning teams from 1918 to 1921. Football had not been played
since its first season in 1905. Although Union's catalogues gave one the
impression that the administration was not sympathetic towards
intercollegiate athletics, it must be kept in mind that collegiate foot-
ball could not have been reintroduced until the twenties because of
the very small enrollment in that department. September, 1922, saw
Union's first football in 17 years. This team, under W. B. Trosper,
was green and most of the games were played against high school
teams. Within two years, Union was playing almost entirely a collegiate

11 Orange and Black, June 3, 1924.

12 President Franklin to Board of Education, Board of Education, Minutes,
1910-1926.

"The Stespean, 1922.

Union College

schedule. With the coming of coach John B. Wolfe in 1926, the caliber
of Union's teams improved, but college enrollment was too small to
support a first class team.

Two new sports, swimming and tennis, came to Union in the early
1920's. With the completion of the new gymnasium, equipped with
a swimming pool, all students of Union College were required to be
able to swim. The school boasted many expert swimmers and fancy
divers. Yearly swimming exhibitions were given from 1920-1926, under
the direction of Miss Cora Sevier.

Tennis for the first time in the history of Union became an inter-
collegiate sport in 1925 under the direction of Dr. John B. Rippere.
This first team played two matches with Williamsburg and split the
honors. The second year (1926), Union's mixed team of boys and
girls had a perfect season — five victories and no defeats. Again in
1928, the team won the Cumberland Valley Tennis Tournament.

If it is true that the period of the "Golden Twenties" was marked
by an increased interest in athletics, the same can be said for increased
interest in the fine arts. As has been already pointed out, Union, from
the first, offered instruction in music and often a goodly proportion
of all the students were taking music lessons. It seemed that Union
was "hitching its wagon to a star," when it aspired to contain a con-
servatory of music.

Union's conservatory opened in 1918. Its five departments were
piano, voice, violin, wind instruments and band, and theoretical work.
Graduates of the conservatory took the Bachelor of Music degree.
Since 1907, Union had graduated six students from her music depart-
ment.14 Although students still graduated from the departments,
none received the coveted degree in music. The interest manifested
in music is shown by a registration of 55 students in that department
for the year 1922-23.

Perhaps the school attempted too much in the way of musical or-
ganizations. It had a band, orchestra, saxaphone club, mandolin club,
the Treble Clef Club, Appollo Glee Club, besides an excellent girls
quartet — the Kentucky Cardinal which toured Eastern Kentucky on
behalf of the endowment drive.15 The moving spirit of the conserva-
tory was Charles E. Ahler who left Union in 1922. He was succeeded
by Francis A. Nunvar a graduate of the Berlin Conservatory, who re-
mained two years. With Nunvar's going, the conservatory became
defunct and only a music department remained. Near the end of his

14 The first graduate was Joan Easley, the president's daughter, in 1908.
16 Members of the quartet of 1922-23, were Thelma Morehead, Love Morris,
Jessie Stratton, and Margaret Wilson.

100

General Growth and Activities, 1915-1928

administration, President Franklin complained that the tuition from
this department was not sufficient to maintain a full time music teacher
because of the low rates offered by music teachers in town.16

If one seeks recompense for the nostalgic days of Union's conserva-
tory which are no more, he can find it elsewhere in the solid lasting
literary achievements of the period. Two "traditional" student
publications, the Orange and Black, and the Stespean rose almost
simultaneously in 1921. The latter has suffered many vicissitudes due
to war emergencies, rascally printers, and financial troubles; but the
former has been able to maintain an almost unbroken line of publica-
tion from its first issue. Strangely, the school catalogs of the period
gave no recognition to these two publications except to note that the
"Scribblers Club" contributed articles to the "school paper."

The Orange and Black owed its beginning to the suggestion of
George E. Ryder, a junior in the Academy. The first issue appeared
on Washington's birthday, 1921. A week earlier, Ben Haynes had
given a special talk in chapel concerning the new paper. The first
volume consisted of a four-page paper, 8"xll" in size, published bi-
weekly by the Junior Academy class.17 The first editor-in-chief was
Ben Haynes, with Miss Weeks as faculty censor. The purpose of the
new paper was explained in George Ryder's own words: "when we
put this paper into the hands of the public we hope to feel that we
are not only giving an account of the daily happenings on the campus
from the right point of view, but that we are giving a little paper
chuck full of articles of good literary value. . . . With this initial
edition of the Orange and Black we greet all and kindly ask your
loyal support for the Orange and Black for all time to come." 18

The paper's first motto, that of the Junior Class, Labor Omnia
Vincit, appeared under the title. Beginning with the second volume
in September, 1921, the paper was slightly increased in size and the
second number changed the motto to "We must not stop here; yonder
lies the port." Later, other mottos were used, and then finally dropped
altogether. In 1925, the Orange and Black became the college paper
rather than a class paper.

The Fledgling of 1920 represented Union's pioneer efforts in class
annuals. Portrayed on its front green paper was a newly born fledgling
drawn by Robert Blair. This first annual was dedicated to President
E. T. Franklin "as an expression of gratitude for the interest he has

19 President's "Report" to trustees, Feb. 28, 1928.

17 A. H. Harritt's Cumberland Chronicle, (1881) , and Professor Reibold's
Collegial Journal, (1905) , were not college publications, but were privately printed.

18 Orange and Black, Feb. 22, 1921.

101

Union College

shown in the upbuilding of Union College." Its editor was Anna Mae
Sloan, one of Union's four college graduates for that year. And so the
puny Fledgling set forth on its trial flight:

The Fledgling flieth forth!

Long live the Fledgling! 19

When the time came for publication of Union's second annual,
the editors were presented with the dilemma of selecting a permanent
name. The Fledgling was bound to grow into something — perhaps
"a Cardinal or Mocking Bird, but the Editors felt that in giving a
permanent name" to the Annual, "they should in some way do honor
to those who, years ago, did so much to make the Union College of
today possible." 20 The name, Stespean, was derived from the first
three letters of the names, Stevenson and Speed, with the suffix, an.
Violet Humfleet, associate editor of the first Stespean is credited with
the "happy coinage."

The first Stespean was dedicated to Abigail E. Weeks in appreciation
of the sympathy, good advice, high ideals, true friendship, help, and
other virtues as exemplified in her life. In this first issue, there
appeared photographs of the main buildings on the campus together
with useful historical sketches of each. This number also contained
the photographs of Academy seniors like Robert Blair, Kenneth Tug-
gle, Josh Faulkner, and James Blair, who became well known for
their later success in life.

The older literary societies were somewhat eclipsed by these new
literary efforts but some continued on their way and new ones rose
to vie for membership. The early years of Franklin's administration
were plagued with "delphic" societies. In 1915 the Kidelphic died
and the Diadelphic was born. Early the next year, President Franklin
discovered that no literary societies were functioning on the campus
and called the students together for the purpose of organizing one.
This organization known at first simply as the "Literary Society" of
Union College, was shortly rechristened the Adelphian Literary
Society, and allegedly merged with the Diadelphic which already had
ceased to function. The Utopian Society was then added as a competi-
tor to the Adelphian. Every student was expected to join one of them.
One can understand why interest might languish — meetings were held
in lieu of Saturday afternoon classes from 3:00 to 4:00 P.M.

The next year, seven alumni petitioned for the revival of the old
Philoneikean Society. Union's most famous society had died along

18 The Fledgling, 1920, on loan to writer by Mrs. Sallie (Frederick) Trcadway,
Academy, 1924.
10 Stespean, 1921.

102

General Growth and Activities, 1915-1928

with the Junior collegiate curriculum. S. P. Franklin, who had lately
returned from Northwestern University with an advanced degree to
serve on Union's faculty, was largely instrumental in bringing about
its reorganization. The resurrected club remained active through 1923-
24.

Other clubs tracing their origin or revivals to the 1920's were the
Demosthenes (1921), Philomathean (1922), Stevensonian (1924),
French (1924) ,21 Latin (1925), Three W. Circle (1926), the "U"
(1926), and the Playlikers (1927). The "U" Club appeared with
the revival of collegiate athletics. It was organized during the winter
of 1925-26 by Coach Funk for men who won their varsity letter in
any branch of athletics.22 Both the Stevensonian Literary Society and
the Demosthenes Debating Club ceased to exist with the passing of the
Academy.

Another club, the Playlikers, underwent a revival in the late
1920's. Such a club had been organized as early as 1881, and there
may have been various dramatic clubs after that time. One source23
states that the Playlikers revived in 1921, but there is no mention of
them in the college catalogues, Stespeans, or Orange and Black before
the middle twenties. In 1927, they became active and the club was
named the Playlikers.24

The revival of athletics, musical organizations, and dramatics did
not mean that the college was turning away from the ideals of its
new founders, Mrs. Speed and Dr. Stevenson. On the contrary no
president of Union has exceeded President Franklin in his strong
religious convictions, or the desire to further Christian education at
Union. The letterheads which President Franklin used were captioned,
"Union College — A School That Likes to Serve — Founded and
Sustained for Christian Education." In his annual reports he delighted
in reviewing the religious life of the school during the preceding
year and would usually list the number of conversions achieved
through semi-annual revivals. For instance in his first annual "Report,"
he noted "two gracious revivals" netting at least seventy-five con-
versions. He considered no part of the year's work "more encouraging
than this religious development among the students and faculty."

It was one of Franklin's goals to have Union College endeavor
"to do a class of work" justifying the support of the "Methodist
Church and Christian people in general as well as other philan-

21 In 1927 this club changed its name to La Societe Francois.

*2Stespean, 1926.

is Hembree, "A History of Union College," 190.

84 Orange and Black, Dec. 7, 1927.

103

Union College

thropists who want a specific moral and Christian atmosphere about
student life." 25 In his first catalog, President Franklin named as his
specific aim for Union College, "the development of life and the
formation of genuine substantial character. It [Union] interprets the
meaning of life and sets itself to the task of fitting young men for the
manifold and responsible duties the age demands."

Chapel was held five days a week from Tuesday through Saturday.
Attendance, of course, was compulsory. As a rule either President
Franklin or a faculty member delivered the address, although oc-
casionally there were guest speakers. During the early years of
Franklin's regime, chapel lasted forty minutes. For a period of one
year, divided chapel for the sexes was held two days a week. The new
dean, Francis E. Matheney had suggested such a move in order to
work on problems peculiar to the different sexes. At one of these
sessions, Mrs. Gunn gave a talk to the girls on the "Old-Fashioned
Virtues." 26

Besides chapel, students were also required to attend revivals, Sun-
day School, Sunday preaching services, and one weekly evening
worship usually held on Thursday. In 1923, compulsory night services
were discontinued by the President because of the "strain" and the
"unnatural attitude connected with them." 27 Each Tuesday at the
beginning of the chapel period individual cards were turned in report-
ing church attendance on Sunday.

Union's work in the preparation of ministers was still going forward.
When the Kentucky Annual Conference met at Barbourville in 1922,
it was discovered that about 25 of its members (almost half) were
connected with Union College at one time or another.28 Union had
been charging only one-half the regular tuition rates to ministerial
and missionary students and children of ministers. Beginning with
the fall term of 1919, ministerial students of the Methodist Episcopal
Church, and children of members of that church were given free
literary tuition.29 The Joshua Taylor fund was another source of aid
to ministerial students.30 Students of other faiths continued with
favored rates.

With the coming of Franklin, a "theological department" was
reestablished at Union. This was described as not intended to give

25 Union College Catalog, 1916-17.
20 Faculty Minutes, Sept. 20, 1923.
27 Orange and Black. Oct. 24, 1924.
"Ibid., Oct. 31, 1922.

20 Board of Education, Minutes, 1910-1926, May 29, 1919.

80 This fund as announced on May 31, 1921, amounted to $1,700. It was later
increased to $3,100.

104

General Growth and Activities, 1915-1928

a theological seminary course, but was offered in order to give training
which would meet the needs of one wanting "some help in Christian
work before going to a theological seminary." The course was also
recommended to any student as a "mind and character builder."

Since the days of President Faulkner, the presidents had shouldered
most of the burden of providing instruction in Bible and theology.
With the leaving of the Reverend Overley, President Franklin provided
instruction in Philosophy, Bible, and systematic Theology. During
the early years of Franklin's regime the local Methodist ministers
assisted him. Beginning in 1920, the college dean assumed this duty.

Up to this time no special fund, solely for the purpose of providing
instruction in religious education, had been established at Union.
In 1926, friends of the college were overjoyed to hear of a bequest of
$50,000 for the purpose of endowing "A professorship of Ethics, for
teaching by lecture, class instruction, or otherwise, the fundamental
principles of morality and good conduct." 31

The donor of this bequest, Mrs. Amanda Landrum Wilson of
Cincinnati, who had died recently at the advanced age of 94, at one
time was a student of Augusta College. The endowment was in honor
of her father the Reverend Francis Landrum, a trustee of Augusta.
Mrs. Wilson became interested in Union because of its historical
connection with Augusta College. The Reverend F. W. Harrop, a
former Union faculty member, "called on Mrs. Wilson a number of
times and furnished a great deal of historical information together
with things of personal interest to Mrs. Wilson. Bishop Anderson also
made a very effective and urgent appeal to Mrs. Wilson. . . ." President
Franklin finally persuaded Mrs. Wilson to include Union in her will
only two years before her death.32

On June 7, 1927, Union received the Mrs. Obed J. Wilson bequest
netting $46,362.50. The professorship so endowed became known as
the Francis Landrum Memorial Professor of Ethics and Moral Con-
duct. The first professor to occupy this chair was the Reverend Charles
Clark Smith, A.M., S.T.M., D.D., who at the same time was Dean of
Union College and Professor of Bible and Moral Philosophy.

There is no record of the number of ministerial students attending
Union from 1919 to 1927, or are there any ministerial or religious
groups featured in the school annuals, except in the Fledgling,33 but
in the fall of 1917, the number of ministerial students increased from
9 to 17, of which 4 had been recommended for entrance to the

81 Barbourville Advocate, Apr. 2, 1926.

82 President's "Report" to the Board of Trustees, 1926.

'* In this first annual, 14 "Christian workers" are pictured. Three of them are girls.

105

Union College

conference.34 During the next two years a dozen students are listed
in the college catalogs as ministerial prospects. Without question,
President Franklin was instrumental in attracting such students, and
made special efforts to induce them to attend Union.

In the preceding chapter mention was made of Union's main
physical achievement of the period — the new gymnasium. However
there was other growth of the physical properties during this period,
the most important of which was the president's home. After the
completion of Speed Hall, Dr. Stevenson's cottage was abandoned as
the president's home and thereafter the administrators had lived
generally in Speed or in the Stevenson Hall apartments. In 1916
President Franklin spoke of a president's home as one of Union's
"pressing needs." Three years later the college acquired the Dishman
cottage and property comprising about ten acres, at a cost of $7,7 75. 35
A portion of the gymnasium was built on this land.30 On January 23,
1922, the school received a check from Mr. F. E. Baldwin for $4,750.
This was applied to the debt on the Dishman lot and practically
freed it of all encumbrances.37

In 1923 the Board of Trustees took definite action to erect the
president's residence on the Dishman property. E. T. Franklin, W. W.
Shepherd and A. M. Decker, composed a building committee. The
contract signed on November 19, 1923, called for construction of the
building for the sum of $4,000. The Union College corporation was
required to furnish all materials.38 It was hoped to complete the
building for a total cost of $15,000 but as experience has proven in
almost all cases of like nature, the contractor's estimate of materials
was far below the actual costs. In addition, extras like water and
sewerage pipes had not been taken into consideration. Final estimates
brought the total costs to almost $20,000. It is amusing to note that
the edifice was listed in 1935 as being worth $7,364, although it would
cost $15,000 to replace it.3^

The Franklins moved into their new home early in 1925. On
February 9, 1925 they gave the first president's reception to faculty
members at present Baldwin Place. In 1934, almost a decade had
passed since the erection of the president's home and still it bore no
name of particular significance. Then an annuity of $12,000 from

84 President's "Report" to Trustees, Sept. 1917.

38 Hembree, "A History of Union College," 70.

86 Dr. E. T. Franklin to writer, April 27, 1954.

*7 Orange and Black, Jan. 24, 1922. The school paper gives the donor's initials
as M. C. instead of F. E. Mr. Baldwin first promised this money in 1916, at the
general conference. E. T. Franklin to writer, March 3, 1954.

88 Building contract, Nov. 19, 1923, President's office.

" Analysis of buildings and contents of Union College, MSS, President's office.

106

General Growth and Activities, 1915-1928

the Baldwin Family was announced. The Board of Education invested
the amount in securities and determined to show its gratitude by
naming the president's home Baldwin Place in honor of the two
donors, Francis E. Baldwin and Anna G. Baldwin.40

Franklin's administration achieved one more important item of
growth — that of the library. In the twenty years after its founding,
it had grown slowly, adding less than a thousand volumes to the
original one thousand housed in one room over the first floor of the
administration building. In 1917, the library received two important
contributions; one from Mrs. J. H. Good of Ashland and the other
from Mrs. E. J. Langdon, who contributed the late Professor Langdon's
private library. The following year, Dr. E. C. Wareing presented the
college with "several hundred splendid volumes." In addition, Mrs.
F. E. Baldwin of Elmira, New York and Mrs. Mary E. Means gave
$1,000 each, to be paid in installments for the acquisition of new
books. In 1925 the college received $5,000 to be used for the library
and science laboratories. Mention must also be made of the 200 valu-
able and out of print history books contributed by Dr. A. M. Hyde,
Professor of history at Union.

In 1927 Union's one room library was literally bursting. At that
time an additional adjoining classroom was utilized. In it were placed
the volumes seldom used, and the French collection. For this reason
the new library room was known as the French room. In one of his
last reports, President Franklin suggested the building of a combined
library — science hall. Speed-Stevenson Library had now grown to
contain 7,000 volumes together with numerous magazines.

The time of Franklin's stay at Union was now fast drawing to a
close. A few more years, and he could expect to get complete accredita-
tion from the Southern Association, but as his wife has aptly stated,
he, like Moses could not enter the promised land. Their eldest
daughter had developed an asthmatic and bronchial condition which
gave little indication of clearing up. So upon the advice of their
physician they decided in the summer of 1928 to leave Union.
Franklin found a new position in the fall of 1928 and resigned on
October 11, to take effect November 5, 1928.41 The news of Franklin's
resignation did not reach the campus until the third week in October.42
The Board of Trustees accepted his resignation on October 18, and
passed a resolution in his honor which read:

10 Board of Trustees, Minutes, Feb. 21, 1934.

"Ibid., Oct. 18, 1928.

4* Orange and Black, Oct. 24, 1928.

107

Union College

WHEREAS:

Thirteen years ago during a critical period in the life of Union College,
the Board of Education selected Reverend E. T. Franklin for its president.
The Wisdom of that choice has been fully vindicated by the develop-
ment of the institution during the past thirteen years. From a graded
school and academy with serious and financial problems to an "A" grade
college of liberal arts, now firmly established with growing endowment
is evidence sufficient of his wise administration and prophetic vision.

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED

That in accepting the resignation of President Franklin we deeply
regret his passing from us, are truly grateful to the beneficient providence
that brought him to our institution and wish for him divine guidance
and abundant success in his new field.43

The Franklins left the middle of November for Southwestern Col-
lege in Kansas. The following February, President Franklin was called
back to Union to become the recipient of Union's first honorary
doctor's degree.44

The Orange and Black has given an excellent summary of Dr. Frank-
lin's achievements at Union.

Thirteen years ago Union College was nothing more than a high
school with a very dark future. Its founders were no longer sure of its
possibilities; its teachers were never sure of its finances, and its board
of trustees were almost ready to become discouraged. . . .

The new president of the college evidently had a vision of the future.
. . . Soon the college course was reviewed, the grades dropped, and
Southeastern Kentucky saw a new beginning of an old institution.

During the past thirteen years under the careful leadership of President
Franklin, our College had received additional endowments which now
total well over $400,000, and the standing of the college has been raised
until our graduates are accepted as equal to those of the other colleges
of the states. ... Its present condition is due in no small way to the faith-
ful, earnest efforts of President Franklin. Union College has always had
first place in his thr ight and affection.*5

43 Board of Trustees, Minutes, 1922-1926. This resolution was submitted by John
O. Gross, James D. Black, and John Lowe Fort.
" Orange and Black, March 1, 1929.
45 Ibid.', Nov. 7, 1928.

108

FANNY H. SPEED

ANNA M. PFEIFFER

C. B. CAWOOD ARTHUR V. DAVIS

SOME OF UNION'S BENEFACTORS

Chapter VIII
UNION FINDS ITS PLACE

UNION'S NEW president, John Owen Gross, was no stranger to
Union's campus. For eight years he had served in the Barbour-
ville area, first as pastor of the local Methodist Episcopal Church and
later as district superintendent. He was born at Folsom, Kentucky,
in Grant County on July 9, 1894. He received his A.B. degree at
Asbury College in 1918, and the S.T.B. degree three years later from
Boston University. In addition, he had studied in the graduate schools
of the Universities of Kentucky and Cincinnati. The next year after
his elevation to Union's presidency, John O. Gross was called back to
his alma mater, Asbury, to have the honorary degree of Doctor of
Divinity conferred upon him.

Before graduation from college, Gross determined to follow the
ministry. He was received on trial into the Kentucky Conference in
1915 and accepted as deacon in 1921 — the same year he came to
Barbourville as pastor. While attending divinity school at Boston, he
had married Harriet Bletzer. During the 1920's, Gross often appeared
on Union's programs and his long association with the school pro-
vided him with an excellent key to the proper understanding of
Union's problems.

Following President Franklin's departure from Union, the college
had remained without a head for a period of two months. Finally,
when the Board of Trustees met at Union College (January 30, 1929) ,
the nominating committee, upon the motion of Governor Black,
decided to consider Gross' name for the presidency. After several
conferences that same day with Gross, the committee passed Black's
motion without dissent. The next day, Gross was elected unanimously
by the Board of Trustees and was instructed to begin his duties at
once, February 1, 1929.1

Completion of former President Franklin's drive for full recognition
was recognized by the new president as Union's immediate goal and
he set to work to attain it. With the graduation of Union's academy
class of 1930, work of high school grade was no longer taught on the
college campus or in the same buildings with that on the collegiate

1 Board of Trustees, Minutes, 1922-36.

109

Union College

level. This action cleared one major stumbling block toward full
recognition. According to President Gross, such recognition could be
secured by: (1) Securing a slight addition to the endowment; (2) Re-
organization of the library with employment of a full time librarian;
(3) Additions to the science equipment of Union's laboratory; (4)
Strengthening of Union's faculty.

All the foregoing obstacles were removed during the school year,
1930-31. Abigail E. Weeks was relieved of her duties as part time
librarian, and a full time librarian took charge of the library. At the
same time a drive was inaugurated to increase the endowment. New
science equipment was added to the laboratories and an additional
lecture room was added. For the second time in Union's history,
three professors holding the degree of Doctor of Philosophy appeared
on the faculty.

Union's first petition for membership in the Association of Colleges
and Secondary Schools of the Southern States was rejected in February,
1932, but this rebuff was somewhat softened by Union's recent election
into the American Association of Colleges at Cincinnati on January
2 1,2 and by the assurance that membership in the Southern Association
could be secured when deficiencies in standards were overcome. When
the Southern Association held its annual meeting at New Orleans
in late November, 1932, Union was again a candidate for accreditation.
President Gross presented Union's case at its sessions, and on December
1, 1932,3 the dream of many years came true — Union was elected to
membership in the Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools of
the Southern States. This insured full recognition of Union's credits
at any college or university in the United States.4

The students, faculty, and friends of Union planned a huge ovation
for President Gross on his return from New Orleans; and when Dr.
Gross arrived at the Louisville and Nashville railroad station in
Barbourville on Saturday afternoon, December 3, he was greeted by
an enthusiastic crowd. Seated upon the town's fire engine truck,
Union's president rode to the town square followed by a long line
of cars and marching students. Flowing pennants bearing the slogans,
"Watch Union Grow," "Union Fully Accredited," and "Union Second
to None," were attached to many of the cars.5

Upon arrival at the square, Mayor Jarvis, County Agent Mayhew,

s Orange and Black, Jan. 21, 1937.

8 Board of Trustees, Minutes, 1922-36.

* Union College Scrapbook, 1929-33. It is said that when President Gross'
telegram announcing Union's election into the Southern Association arrived, Union's
bell rang continuously throughout the day.

• Orange and Black, Dec. 13, 1932.

110

Union Finds Its Pl\ce

Governor Black, and the Reverend C. M. Thompson gave short talks
on what accreditation meant to Union and Barbourville. Dr. Gross
concluded the impromptu program with a long address on the late
happenings at New Orleans. The following Monday Chapel was de-
voted to a program celebrating the event of the year — full accredita-
tion. At the next meeting of the Board of Trustees, President Gross
reiterated the importance of Union's achievement of the year, 1932.

Three other important celebrations took place during the admin-
istration of Dr. Gross in 1929, 1931, and 1936. The first was held to
celebrate the 50th anniversary of the founding of Union College;
the second to dedicate a memorial to Union's founders; and the third
to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Dr. Stevenson's coming to
Union College.

Before the end of Dr. Franklin's regime, a motion was adopted by
the Board of Trustees to make plans for the celebration of a semi-
centennial at the proper time. Dr. Gross, who had presented the mo-
tion, was placed on a program committee along with President Frank-
lin, A. M. Decker, James D. Black, and J. L. Fort.6

This 50th Anniversary Jubilee Celebration took place from Satur-
day, May 25th 1929, to May 29, inclusive. The first day was used as
a combined founders and alumni day, the second for the Baccalaureate,
the third for the meeting of trustees and the historical pageant, the
fourth for the Academy commencement and the fifth for a special
address in the morning on Union's future, followed by commencement
exercises at night. James P. Faulkner delivered the principal Founders'
Day address and Mr. A. M. Decker gave a talk on Union's early history.

The historical pageant written by Professor James Watt Raine of
Berea, was divided into six episodes, each of which was directed by
a member of Union's faculty. None of the episodes were relevant to
the history of Union College except the last, "Union's Gift to
Appalachia." Other persons taking a prominent part in the celebration
besides the ones already mentioned were James D. Black, Governor
F. D. Sampson, Bishop H. Lester Smith, and the Reverends, Bovard,
Fort, and Hall.

J. P. Faulkner's lengthly address was a fine contribution to Union's
history; in fact it is the finest single source bearing on the early
period. Speaking of Barbourville's part in the building of Union he
said:

And now lest some one should think that I am playing favorites in
claiming that Barbourville built Union College, I am quick to claim, and

• Board of Trustees, Minutes, 1922-36; May 29, 1928.

Ill

Union College

justly, that Dr. Stevenson built it, with equal justice that Mrs. Fanny
Speed built it, and I believe that some of you know that it would not be
fair to my own and other administrations not to give them credit for the
part they have played in its development. However, this is Barbourville's
day in court and no one will dare now to question the original, the lasting
and the significant contribution made by her citizens — by such a large
number of her citizens that we are justified in not speaking of them in-
dividually but collectively — justified in speaking of Barbourville's con-
tribution— in saying that Barbourville built Union College.

Four of Union's original founders, E. E. Sawyers, John H. Catron,
James D. Black, and Gordon P. Bain were present for the impressive
ceremonies, but five other survivors were unable to attend the celebra-
tion. Some of Union's first students, A. M. Decker, T. F. Faulkner,
Mrs. A. M. Decker, Mrs. E. E. Sawyers, Sallie Hoskins, and Mrs. Annie
Albright, were in attendance.7

Although Union's founders had been honored with a special cere-
mony, it was felt that there should be more tangible and lasting
evidence of Union's gratitude — perhaps a memorial. As J. P. Faulkner
aptly described the situation, something was wanted that might not lie
hidden away in a library but rather a memorial "that would arrest
attention and keep alive the memory of their service, their sacrifice,
their vision and their faith. . . ." For years, Faulkner had "timidly
hoped" for such a memorial, but President Gross was the first to make
the suggestion.

By late summer of 1929, the type of memorial — a gateway, had been
selected, and a drive for contributing donors begun under the direction
of President Gross. The memorial was to consist of two entrance posts
of carved stone with the names of the founders inscribed on the
stone.8 Thomas D. Tinsley suggested a bronze plate rather than
cutting into the stone and his ideas were adopted with modifications —
marble plates being used instead of bronze. The marble plate on the
left pillar described the purpose of the memorial, and the one on the
right (as one entered) , listed the founders' names.9 Each pillar is
surmounted with a concrete slab and a large globe light. About 1500
bulletins were mailed to former students, graduates, and friends of the
college asking for contributions.10 Response was poor and at the end
of two years only $150 had been subscribed, over half of which had

7 From photographs appearing in Louisville Courier Journal, June 23, 1929.

8 The memorial gateway of Dickinson College, the alma mater of Miss Weeks,
was used as a model.

0 Strangely, the name of A. H. Harritt (which is misspelled) does not appear
near the head of the list, although he was president of Union College Corporation,
and together with his wife one of the heaviest stockholders.

10 Barbourville Advocate, Nov. 1, 1929.

112

Union Finds Its Place

been given by J. P. Faulkner, George S. Wilson, and Miss Katherine
V. Sutphen.11 The next year after its dedication, $75 of the total cost
of $450 remained to be paid.

The gateway Memorial Dedication exercises were held November
7, 1931. President Gross delivered the welcoming address, James P.
Faulkner presented the memorial, and Mr. A. M. Decker of the Board
of Education accepted on behalf of the seven surviving founders.12
Again James P. Faulkner was the orator of the day. An attempt, said
Faulkner, was being made to make amends for delayed appreciation of
the founders. Some gave more than others, but each had given
according to his ability. "The outstanding thought back of their
effort was the Union of purpose — a Union so evident and so strong
that it suggested the name which the institution still bears and perhaps
will ever continue to bear." 13

President Gross, wishing to pay annual tribute to Union's founders,
designated the first class week of October 23, as Founders Week. Its
first observance was held October 23, 1933, when six of Union's
founders attended Union's chapel services to hear Judge T. D. Tinsley
deliver an address on Knox County pioneers. Since that date, Founders
Week has not been observed every year at Union.

The year, 1936 brought with it the 50th anniversary of President
Stevenson's coming to Union College.14 This celebration was held in
connection with the commencement week program, May 24-28. On
May 27, James P. Faulkner gave the commemoration address, speaking
on the subject, "Dr. Stevenson as I knew Him." Dr. W. E. Shaw
followed Faulkner with a talk on the first commencement address
(1893) . The Union College of today said Faulkner, "is a growing
monument to the genius of Dr. Daniel Stevenson, hence this fiftieth
aniversary celebration." 15

When the Kentucky Annual Conference met at Maysville in Septem-
ber, another commemoration service was held in Stevenson's honor.
Among those participating were President Gross, Governor Flem D.
Sampson, Dr. E. P. Hall and James P. Faulkner, who delivered another
fine eulogistic address on Dr. Stevenson's character and services. The
Board of Education, meeting at the same conference, recorded the
following tribute to Dr. Stevenson: "The adventure made by Dr.

11 Founders MSS, President's office. Through the influence of the Honorable Hiram
Owens, a Knoxville firm donated the marble slabs. See President's "Report," May
31, 1932. The Senior Class of 1931 donated the concrete walk leading from the
Memorial.

12 Founders Memorial "Program," President's office.

14 J. P. Faulkner, "Founders Memorial Presentation Address," President's office.
14 President Stevenson did not actually come to live on Union's campus until 1888.
11 J. P. Faulkner, "50th Anniversary Address on the coming of Dr. Stevenson. . . ."

113

Union College

Daniel Stevenson in 1886 in the purchase of Union College for $4,425
is an epoch in the history, not only of our Conference, but of the
educational movement in Kentucky. For fifty years the college has
given itself to constant and efficient service for the people of the
conference. It has trained more than half as many ministers as now
compose the Kentucky Conference, as well as many teachers and other
professional men and women." 16 Dr. Gross suggested that a chair of
education be established at Union in Dr. Stevenson's honor, but no
action was taken on the proposal.

In addition to paying tribute to Dr. Stevenson, Union was called
upon to pay its last respects to two other great names associated with
the college, Andrew M. Decker, Sr., and James D. Black. Andrew M.
Decker's death on June 20, 1933 at the age of 72, was a blow to Union
College. For half a century this staunch friend of Union's stood at
the vanguard of those always ready to support Union in her times of
stress. While Andrew was still a young lad, his parents, Dr. Andrew
and Eliza J. Decker from Claiborne County, Tennessee, moved to
Stinking Creek, where the boy shortly became the sole support of
his widowed mother and three sisters.

Speaking of Decker's early contacts with Union College, President
Faulkner said:

Mr. Decker had a triple relation to the school. His connection began
with the session over the Gibson store when he was a student, who
accepted nothing as true or proved, on the word of the teacher. He had
to be shown. This was a habit that sometimes proved rather annoying
to professorial dignity. I am sure my authority for this statement, my
brother, was equally guilty and took equal pride in his teacher's dis-
comforture and got a great deal of enjoyment out of the many pranks
which they together played on any innocents. During the summer of
1880, Mr. Decker carried bricks to the masons, as the college building
was being erected, and, when the school opened in the fall, he entered
as a student and acted as janitor in order to pay his tuition. It %vas while
acting in this dual capacity that he was also assistant in the Primary
department. There is no further record but it is presumed that he left
the pranks to his former accomplice when he. was elected to the faculty."

During the winter of 1880-81, while attending Union, Decker met
Lida Sawyers, daughter of W. W. Sawyers whose services to Union
have already been noted, and not long afterwards made her his wife.
In June, 1883, Decker accepted a position with the Swann-Abram
hat company of Louisville,18 a firm with which he maintained connec-

10 Kentucky Conference, Minutes, 1936.

1TJ. P. Faulkner's "50th Anniversary Address."

18 London Echo, June 29, 1883.

114

Union Finds Its Place

tions for almost half a century and which appropriately dubbed him
"Andy — the Million-Dollar Salesman!" Actually during his lifetime
he sold almost two million dollars worth of his wares.19

Beginning with the early 1900's, Mr. Decker was elected to the
Board of Education, serving in the capacities of secretary and treasurer.
In 1922 he was elected to Union's first Board of Trustees for the long
term and later being reelected, served until his death. His home was
always open to faculty, students and friends of Union College. His
many services to the school have already been discussed. At its next
meeting, the Board of Trustees resolved that:

WHEREAS Andrew M. Decker was during his life time a student of
Union College and later by his staunch friendship to the institution and
service in its behalf merited and was elected to a place of responsibility
upon its Board of Trustees serving its interests more than a score of years
with untiring energy and zeal, having endeared himself to all the Board
members and proved of great worth to the faculty and student body
is greatly missed in this meeting. THEREFORE be it resolved that the
Board of Trustees of Union College assembled this 20th day of February,
1934 at Barbourville, Kentucky, express its sincere sympathy to the mem-
bers of his family and deep appreciation for his valuable service.20

Early in 1935, another of Union's leading founders, James T.
Gibson, passed away. In 1922 when the Kentucky Annual Conference
convened at Barbourville, Mr. Decker asked Mr. Gibson together with
the Reverend Kelley to stand so the conference might meet two men
who had helped "to build the first Union College." 21

The same conference which sent a note of sympathy to Mrs. Decker
in 1933, made James D. Black a life honorary member of the Board
of Trustees with the power to vote. Five years later on August 5,
1938, the best known of Union's founders, and one of its presidents,
passed to his reward. The same meeting which elected a new president
for Union College on November 4, 1938, also adopted a resolution
that "the Board of Trustees of Union College has suffered irreparable
loss in the death ... of James D. Black. His passing removes from our
ranks one of Union's best friends. We shall miss his wise counsel and
leadership. We shall think of him when we speak of Union College,
as being the one who insisted that it be called 'Union.' " 22 "The
name," according to Governor Black, "was not one selected at random

19 Circular of Swann-Abram Hat Company.

20 Board of Trustees, Minutes, Feb. 20, 1934.

21 Orange and Black, Sept. 20, 1922.

22 Board of Trustees, Minutes, Nov. 4, 1938.

115

Union College

but was very carefully selected. Through the years the name has
given the college direction." 23

During this same period in which Union was seeking to find her
place, and honoring her founders, she was also attempting to keep
pace with the trends current in the modern educational world. In
college educational circles it was beginning to be realized that the
average college freshman needed a great deal of guidance to help
him orient himself to his new surroundings. For the first time at
Union, a freshman orientation program was held in September, 1931.
This preliminary to the opening of the college year, and so very
important to its success, has become a regular established feature at
Union College.

When this freshman guidance program began there was only one
type of beginning student on the campus — the college freshman. With
the passing of the primary, intermediate, and academy curriculums,
which were often integrated with studies in the normal, business, and
music departments, the different plans of study became easier to
understand and the pessimists that had foreseen a big drop in enroll-
ment in the fall of 1930 because there was no longer a Union Academy
were disappointed; because in spite of the business depression, total
enrollment increased from 260 to 400.

Only one degree was offered in 1929-30, the same one first offered at
Union almost 50 years ago when President Stevenson inaugurated the
first college curriculum. Although the curriculum was no longer
"classical," every student had to complete 12 semester hours of foreign
languages in order to graduate. For many years, two foreign languages,
Latin and French, were offered, but the closing of the Academy and
lack of interest in "dead languages," brought about the removal of
Latin, which was taught for the last time in 1931. Graduation re-
quirements included one major field and two minors. Most majors
required a minimum of 24 semester hours, although 30 hours were
required in education and chemistry. Most minors required not less
than 18 hours of work. A minimum number of semester hours was
required in English (12) , foreign language (12) , history and political
science (12), the sciences (2 years), physical education (4), Bible
(6) , religious education (3) , and psychology (3) .24 The requirements
for the A.B. degree were to change but little in the next twenty years.

Union's Normal School for the training of teachers continued,
with the Barbourville city schools serving as training schools for the
grades. After the last academy class graduated (1930), arrangements

23 Dr. Gross, "Founders Day Address," Orange and Black, Nov. 9, 1938.
M Union College Catalogue, 1929-30.

116

Union Finds Its Place

also had to be made for practice teaching in the city schools on the
high school level. Upon satisfactory completion of various curriculums,
or minimum number of hours, the state department issued four types
of elementary certificates and three types of high school or super-
intendent's certificates. A model training school for rural teachers was
maintained for almost a year.

Union continued its traditional instruction in music. Seven grades
of piano and four of voice were offered. In addition, instructions were
given in public school music, theory, and three types of instruments —
reed, brass and strings. In 1931-32 the music department offering 10
hours of work, acceptable toward a degree, was reclassified as a
"division," with one teacher.

Under Dr. Gross, two additional degrees, the Bachelor of Science
in Education, and the Bachelor of Science was offered.25 This was in
line with efforts to place teacher training on a higher academic level,
to "liberalize" the curriculum, and in fulfillment of the needs of the
college as shown by a study conducted by Dr. Gross. In 1929 he said:

"An analysis of our curriculum is to be made this year to discover
whether our courses are in their proper sequence. We must prevent
our graduates from leaving with bits of knowledge instead of comprehen-
sive training. Union College is still in its infancy . . . our developments
have come within a comparatively short time. Some of the established
precedents have proved faulty and must be abandoned. It will help us
to keep ever in mind the fact of the youthfulness of Union College." 2a

The new B. S. in Education degree first offered in 1931-32 did not
require any work in foreign languages, otherwise, graduation require-
ments were the same as those for the A.B. degree. Two majors, one
professional, and one teaching, each consisting of a minimum of 24
semester hours, were required. In 1932 one third of the graduation
class took this degree. The following year, the class of 42 graduates
was evenly divided between the A.B. and B.S. in Education curriculums.
In 1937-38 the new B.S. degree required 12 hours in a foreign language.
The student must complete at least one major and one minor in
science. The first group, five in number, to receive this degree, gradu-
ated in 1939.

In 1930-31 it was possible to list definitely the departments of in-
struction at Union. The departments, nine in number, were Bible
and Moral Philosophy, Economics and Sociology, Education, English,
Foreign Languages, History, Natural Science, Physical Science and

25 It will be recalled that the B.S. degree was first offered in 1905, but the
collegiate curriculum began to collapse the same year.

ae President Gross to faculty and administration, Sept. 16, 1929.

117

Union College

Physical Education. In 1937 the departments were reduced to eight
in number by combining French and English into one — the Language.
A "division" of Fine Arts which included music and art was added in
1935-36. The terms, divisions and departments, are likely to cause
confusion if some attempt is not made to define, or at least to differ-
entiate between them. A division, although not a subdivision of a
department, ranked below it because neither a major nor a minor was
offered in any field.

The emergence of physical education as a bona fide study in the
college instruction, was one of the most striking features of the change
in the college curriculum. No courses in physical education were listed
in the college catalog for 1928-29, but such courses were recommended
for graduation. The following year, three physical education courses
were listed, one of them in the technique of coaching basketball. By
1932-33, eleven courses were offered in physical education and 4
semester hours of it were required for graduation.

Honors to graduates underwent a change in the early 1930's. Before
1932-33 honor students graduated either cum laude or magna cum
laude. High honors were won upon completion of 100 semester hours
of work with a grade of "A" in 60 hours, besides a few minor con-
ditions. With the addition of summa cum laude, graduation honors
were based on an averaged point system, ranging from 2.0 for honors,
to 2.8 for the highest.

In spite of the emphasis placed upon scholarship, it is doubtful
whether the academic quality of the student coming to Union was
increasing. In 1938 a faculty personnel committee found that 39 out of
130 freshmen would have been placed on probation under the former
ruling system, and the freshman class of that year ranked as high
school juniors under the Kentucky classification tests.27

The number of students attending Union continued to spiral
upward until the middle 1930's, declined slightly and then maintained
a "plateau." College enrollment increased from 262 to 405 students
in 1930-31. This is remarkable indeed when one stops to consider the
onslaught caused by the depression upon college enrollment through-
out the United States. The all time high wa^ achieved in the spring
of 1935, when the spring session swelled enrollment to a total of 497
students. This did not include 59 taking extension work.23 Almost
400 enrolled for the first summer term.29 It should be added that a
dead-line requirement for certain types of certification in Kentucky

" Faculty Minutes, Dec. 5, 1938.
" Union College Catalog, 1935-36.
"• Ibid.

118

Union Finds Its Place

was the greatest factor contributing to this unusual high enrollment.
The cost of attending Union continued to rise, but the depression
and "hard times" tended to keep it at a minimum. In fact the total cost
of attending Union in 1937-38 was only about $30 per semester more
than it was in 1929-30. Tuition had increased from $45 to $60, and
board and room from $90 to $102. According to college advertise-
ments, economical schooling constituted one of the major attractions
of Union College.30 To a nation or state in the throes of its worst
panic in history, such attractions must have played their part in main-
taining Union's high enrollment for the period.

Union College Catalog. 1929-30; 1937-38

119

Chapter IX
STRUGGLING THROUGH THE DEPRESSION YEARS

NEXT TO UNION'S final recognition as a college, and the honor-
ing of her founders, perhaps the most discussed subject at Union
during these years was her athletic program. During Franklin's
administration the enrollment in the collegiate department would
not support first class collegiate teams, which called for many players
or substitutes. As a result the football teams were of poor caliber.

In 1928 Union's football team broke even. The following year under
its new coach, James R. Bacon, Union had its best season to date,
winning five games out of eight with one tie. In 1931, "the Bulldogs,
hard hit by graduation . . . faced their schedule with the smallest
and most inexperienced team in the history of the school," and won
only two games. The years, 1933 and 1934, marked the zenith of
performance in football, when they were undefeated in Conference
play.

Union's admission into the Southern Intercollegiate Association
took place in December, 1932, shortly after its recognition by the
Southern Association of Colleges, and after serving a probationary
period. In anticipation of larger crowds at games because of con-
ference participation, a fence was erected around the athletic field
and lights installed for night football at a cost of $1,243. Union lost
its first game of night football against Lincoln Memorial University,
13-12, on September 25, 1931.

Plans for a stadium had been under way for several years but
nothing was done until the spring of 1934 when a campaign was
started to erect one unit seating 1000 people. Everyone who contributed
$1.00 received a free ticket to the first game and about $1,000 was
raised in this manner.1 It was hoped to build six units or sections
but construction never passed beyond the first unit which was com-
pleted in September, in time for the first game.2

Union's first year of participation in conference play was highlighted
by its victory over the University of Louisville, 32-6. Approximately
one thousand fans accompanied the team to witness the victory

1 "Report" of Building and Grounds Committee, May, 1931.
* Barbourville Advocate, Apr. 27, 1934, Aug. 17, 1934; President's "Report,"
May 28, 1935.

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sparked by the 130 pound quarterback, "Runt" Patterson.3 In 1935
Union registered another victory over Louisville.

Union was successful in the other sports as well, her basketball
teams registering winning seasons from 1929-30 through the 1934-35
season.4 Union's tennis teams likewise were supreme. In 1929 the team
won the Sutcliffe Cup for the third straight year and retained perma-
nent possession. The same year, Union defeated the University of
Kentucky. In its second year of SIAA participation, 1934, the football
team was undefeated.5 Only interest in baseball lagged. In 1931, find-
ing only two intercollegiate teams in Kentucky, the college decided to
drop baseball for the year. The preceding year Union's baseball team
had gone undefeated.6 An interesting sidelight in sports was furnished
by T. G. Lewis who won the amateur welter-weight title of Kentucky
at Louisville, February 19, 1935.7 Beginning with the school year
1936-37, Union began its first participation in the KIAC.

If one examines the lists of clubs and societies operating at Union
from 1938-1939, he might well wonder whether athletics really stole
the show. Approximately 30 clubs or societies, not counting athletic
teams, were in existence during this period. One college annual
(1935) pictures 17 of them.

Five new clubs — History, Journalism, Science, Education, and Voca-
tional Guidance, all came into existence in 1935.8 The next two years
marked the installation of three local chapters of National honorary
Fraternities. The honorary scholastic fraternity of Iota Sigma Nu was
established at Union on May 26, 1936, for those graduating with
honors. On March 6, 1937, the Alpha Psi Omega National Honorary
Dramatic Society presented a charter to the new Zeta Chi cast at
Union. This chapter is recruited from members of the Playlikers Club.
Miss Stella Ward, the dramatics instructor, was largely instrumental in
winning this recognition.9 Dr. Wayne T. Gray secured the chartering
of the local Omicron chapter of the Zeta Sigma Pi honorary social
science fraternity. Membership is based on scholarship, especially in
the field of the social sciences, and the qualities of character, service,
and leadership. The Beta Chi Alpha (BXA) , a social sorority, stress-
ing artistic and cultural development, made its first appearance on the
campus in 1932.

3 Union College Scrapbook, 1929-33.
* Orange and Black, Feb. 20, 1935.
6 Ibid., Mar. 27, 1935.

6 Union College Scrapbook, 1929, 1933.

7 Orange and Black, March 6, 1935.

8 "Report" of Extra-curricular Activity Committee, 1937.

9 Orange and Black, March 24, 1937.

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The two leading student publications, the Orange and Black and
Stespean, continued to grow in size and quality. In fact the Orange
and Black grew almost too large — beginning in February, 1933, as a
full size newspaper sheet. The Golden Stespean, issued in 1929,
featured Union's growth of half a century. Its several books were pref-
aced with beautiful colorplates, and quotations from the Rubaiyat
of Omar Khayyam. This same issue contains photographs of the presi-
dents of Union College from 1888 to 1929, and of early students. The
Stespean of 1936, besides having an unusually attractive cover, con-
tains many snapshots which graphically depicts campus life of that
period. No Stespean was published in 1937 because of the fact that the
press that was contracted to print the 1937 issue, upon receiving pay-
ment for expenses, was never heard from, nor heard of again.

Two more literary efforts of the period deserve mention. On May
25, 1931, the Constance Literary Club, under the sponsorship of Miss
Whiteside, began the publication of the club Echo. The club wished to
encourage the writing of literary essays. It seems that publication of
the little paper never developed beyond its first number. The other
was a "History of Union College" by Sillous G. Hembree who did the
work as a thesis in partial requirement for the degree of Master of
Arts. The history contains a great deal of statistical matter and is
especially valuable for one wishing to trace the development of Union's
curriculum.10 The Board of Trustees of Union College voted its
thanks to Mr. Hembree, class of 1931, for his labors and hoped "that
he might find time to gather material for a more detailed history." xl

Changes in social regulations came about gradually during the 30's.
At its beginning special rules regarding the conduct of students were
itemized in the college catalogs. Hours were listed during which all
students on the campus were expected to be engaged in study, and
Union College still regarded "promiscuous mixing of the sexes as
detrimental to good work" and insisted that "all social privileges be
regulated according to . . . formulated rules," presented to every
newly enrolled student at Union.12 The transitions of the early 1930's
are well described in a letter by Mrs. Catherine Faulkner Singer:

I entered Union College as a freshman in the fall of 1938, a member
of a class that saw the end of one era and the beginning of anodier.
It was not by any means my first contact with the college as I had at-
tended two high school summer sessions previously and had lived in
Barbourville all of my life. Our class was small compared with present
day classes. But we were as noisy and vivacious as most freshmen are. As

10 Sillous G. Hembree, "A History of Union College."
"Board of Trustees, Minutes, 1922-39, May 31, 1938.
12 Union College Catalog, 1939-40.

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president we elected a boy from Wise, Va. He came to Union, named
Earl Kilbourne, but a receding hairline earned him the nickname of
"Von" and from that day to this, he has never been anything else to
those who knew him at Union. I'm sure he never expected to be elected
class president, but he did a good job, and furthermore he stayed with us
through the four years and was a member of the graduating class of
1932. There were not many of us who stayed throughout the four years.
Dean Charles C. Smith was dean of the college, and Dr. E. T.
Franklin was president. In addition to the four years of college there
were at that time still two years of the Academy, although it was in the
process of elimination. That was a time of demerits and the accumulation
of a certain number of these black marks in the dean's office brought
about expulsion. Of course they could be acquired for things which seem
very funny to the present generation of students. For instance, the campus
was then divided by the main walk into two sections — the Boys' Side and
Girls' Side. Social life was restricted to such an extent that the boys were
not allowed on the girls' side of the campus during the day except for
strictly business purposes. Neither boys nor girls residing on the campus
were supposed to leave the dormitories earlier than 10 minutes before
classes in the morning or at noon. The same restrictions also applied to
town students, and to make it easier, a 10 minute bell was rung — the Big
Bell in the Administration Building Tower — so that the town students
could know how they stood. In fact, we stood on the corner across the
street from the campus or across from the dormitories if we happened
to arrive too early. There was some leniency on rainy days, but not much.
Wasting time by getting to school too early was something of a sin in
those days. I am sure that Es Davis '31 will not mind my telling of the
time he was dating one of the lovely young ladies in the dormitory and
met on the Big Walk one sunny day somewhat earlier than 10 minutes
before class time. It wasn't much fun standing there on the walk so they
wandered a little way over on the girls' side of the campus. Es had not
counted on the fact that Dean Smith had unusually good eyesight, and
needless to say, he was spotted and recognized! He was called to the
Dean's office, given a severe reprimand and a specified number of de-
merits! Can't you just see today's students under that sort of regulation!
Many a day have large groups of us been "Bawled out" for congregating
on the Ad Bldg. steps before classes. And gathering in the halls was just
as bad! The division of the campus extended into the building. The steps
on the Speed Hall side were for the girls, and the steps on the Steven-
son Hall side were for the boys, and it was a long time after
the rules were relaxed in that respect before I could remember that the
stairs could be used equally. If we had classes upstairs on the Stevenson
Hall side (the Chemistry, Physics, and Math classes were held there then) ,
we girls climbed the steps on the girls' side went through the chapel and
to the classrooms. The boys reversed the procedure! Chapel was compul-
sory then, every day, and the chapel was divided down the middle, with
the only "lucky" ones being those who sat in the center section and in
the middle of it. Usually the faculty members who assigned chapel seats
tried to see that the "man-haters" sat next to the "woman-haters" in
chapel, so that the temptations would not be too great! But we had our

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Union College

good times nevertheless. The old pump stood then just outside Speed
Hall, and there was no lovely library there then. For some reason pump
water was judged to be better for drinking purposes than tap water, so
each room was supplied with a pitcher and glasses for its occupants.
The boys had to come to the pump to get water, and if you were en-
amoured with certain Speed Hall occupants, it was very easy for both
to get thirsty at the same time, and casually wander to the pump to fill
the pitchers! Many a romance flourished around the Pump! Of course
chaperones were very necessary in those days. The parlor was consistently
chaperoned, and there just were not any movie dates in pairs. All the
Speed Hall girls who had dates went in a group with their dates to the
movies. The group was chaperoned by a faculty member or a senior who
was specifically designated as a chaperone. After my graduation, as a staff
member of the college, although a very young one, I was qualified to act
as a chaperone for any of the Speed Hall girls who were allowed out in
town over night or for automobile rides; and I must confess that I wasn't
too bad a chaperone! At least by that time we chaperones were allowed
to have dates — the chaperone wasn't a fifth wheel. Classes were conducted
just as they have been for years. And there were some good students,
and some poor ones, and some dropped out because they could not
make the grade, and with the depression coming some dropped out
because of finances. But it was no disgrace to have to work for part of
one's college education, even if the pay was only about 20c per hour. And
many of our graduates put in hours doing kitchen work, waiting tables,
doing janitor work in both dorms, working in the library, and working
at manual labor on the farm or the campus. Most of the work was
hand done, not machine done, and Col. Bender was the "Campus boss."
Prof. Peavy taught biology, also plane and solid geometry in the academy,
and at times certain courses in education. He had a heart of gold, and
many a boy or girl took his classes because he was too soft-hearted to
"flunk" anyone. Academically, that probably was not such a good idea,
but the students loved him while they took advantage of him. I think
a person must have been well-nigh incorrigible for Prof. Peavy to
say there was no hope for him. He and his wife were real "saints," not
only at the college but in the community. They went among the under-
privileged and brought them to Sunday School, and they bought many
a meal for those who needed it. Mr. Peavy's class was a never-to-be for-
gotten one at the Methodist Church, and even today I occasionally run
across someone who remembers it. I have always remembered him telling
me that it would not rain if there were spider webs on the hedges in
the morning. He was a wonderful person.

Another faculty member who was an inspiration to all her students
was Miss Abigail Weeks, for whom the Library was named. She was at
Union for many years, and even taught some of the children of her
former students. She had a marvelous insight into human nature, and
although she was known as a strict teacher, she always left something
more than mere subject matter. There is no student who had her, no
matter what grades he made, who was not able to say many years later
that she had left something worthwhile widi him even if he could not
remember a single thing that she taught. During the last years she was at

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Union, she enjoyed telling how things had changed since she had come.
She liked to tell of the time when the front stairs at Speed Hall were
reserved only for Sundays and special occasions. At other times one used
the back stairs. Also ladies were supposed to wear high necked dresses
and blouses with long sleeves. She never forgot the first time the president
caught her descending the front stairs on a weekday, with a shortsleeved
dress on! But she kept up with the times, and she stayed young in heart
even though her body grew frail, and she finally had to give up her
beloved teaching. She did not live many years after that, but no one
really expected her to, for her teaching and her students were her life.

We had athletics then too. There were not only boys' basketball teams,
but girls' teams also. Coach Wolfe was the Athletic Coach my freshman
year, and as he was unattached, he made many a feminine heart turn over.
I don't remember him too well, except that he had blond curly hair!
Where he went, I have no idea! In my sophomore year, Dick Bacon came
from Corbin High School to be athletic Coach, and he stayed throughout
the entire time I was connected with Union, as student, and later on the
staff. He was a bachelor when he arrived at Union, and I am sure many
of the young ladies had dreams of capturing his heart, but it was not
too long before a young lady down in Western Kentucky had become
Mrs. Richard Bacon, and the undergraduates could go back to their
books! As for me, I had to take Physical Education, and even if they gave
me the basketball and put me under the basket with positively no opposi-
tion, I couldn't put it in, so I was never very fond of the course. At that
time, the girls in gym class wore white middies and black bloomers. We
were really a sight! For some reason, most of the girls managed to escape
Physical Education, but I never could. Our class was quite small — at times
not more than ten of us — and I know Coach Bacon often wondered
why on earth he had to be burdened with ten such useless bits of femi-
ninity! But our teams were good — we did not have great numbers of
reserves, but Coach Bacon always managed to turn out a reasonably
good team with what material he had. Until I got into the office and
worked with the student personnel, I did not realize what difficulties
often beset a coach who tries to put out a good team in spite of financial
and scholastic difficulties.

In the late fall of 1928, Dr. Franklin announced that he was going
to accept the presidency of Southwestern College in Winfield, Kansas.
In the spring of 1929, Dr. John Owen Gross, who was then District
Superintendent of the Barbourville District of the Methodist Church,
became president of Union College. So ended one era and began an-
other which was to last until the fall of 1937 [sic] when Dr. Gross left
to become president of Simpson College, Indianola, Iowa. It is inevitable
that a new presidency brings new faculty members and changes in policy
and procedure. So the coming of Dr. Gross marked the end of the de-
merit system, the end of chaperonage system, although that continued,
along with the 10 o'clock "lights out" in the dormitories, throughout the
period while he was president. The rule of "No Smoking" on the campus
was strictly enforced, except for outsiders at the athletic contests. Many
a dormitory resident, boys that is, sat on the log across from Stevenson
Hall or leaned against the telephone pole, or occasionally walked around

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Union College

the block in order to smoke. If the girls smoked, they did it more
secretly.

Social events were highlighted by Chautauqua programs, the semester
receptions for the students, class hikes and parties, the Halloween Party,
always put on by the Junior Class, and usually with the Spooks Walk
throughout the basement of the Gym before coming upstairs. Masking
was the rule. I never could fool anyone. But there were many clever
costumes, and we had wonderful times. Even then lest the present gen-
eration think it is the only one beset with troubles, we were even then
much concerned because social dancing was outlawed on the campus. We
always thought it would "someday," but actually none of us really
expected to be on the campus when it did! Of course we too thought
the elder generation was made up of "old fogies." And it really came as
a shock to some of us in a recent alumni meeting when a graduate of
1950 made the statement that the Alumni Association was being run
by old folks who had graduated in the '30's! The clubs and the organi-
zations were much the same as now. There was a French Club, "Le
Cercle Francais," two Glee Clubs, the Playlikers Club (which probably
is the oldest club on the campus in continuous existence) , the YMCA
and the YWCA with its branch called the "Pollyanna Club" (an organiza-
tion much like the Secret Pals of today — we drew names every two weeks,
and we endeavored to get acquainted with other girls whom we did not
know) , the "U" Club, the Pep Club, the country clubs: Harlan County,
Clay County, and the Corbin Club. I belonged to many of them. In
fact, during my senior year, it was somewhat of a joke that I belonged
to everything on the campus except the YMCA, the Men's Glee Club,
and the "U" Club! Needless to say, I didn't miss muchl

In the spring of 1929, Union celebrated its 50th Anniversary. We had
a pageant too, and it was in preparing for that, that I got my first ex-
perience with stage make-up and grease paint. My love for it continued
throughout my four years in college. Dr. James Watt Raines from Berea
College, in collaboration with Miss Abigail Weeks, wrote and directed
the pageant. It was presented in the old chapel in the Administration
Bldg. In 1936, the Fiftieth Anniversary of the College's association with
the Methodist Church was celebrated. Scenes from the original pageant
were used, and also some which were based on Dr. Stevenson's Journal,
which we had been able to borrow and use by then. The keynote of the
celebration then was held more to the theme of its connection with the
church, and that fall the Kentucky Conference held its session on the
campus.

During the years before 1932, die Baccalaureate Services were always
held in the Methodist Church. The Commencement Exercises were held
in the chapel. On at least one occasion lightning struck the tower during
the commencement services! Insofar as I can at present remember the
last time Commencement Exercises were held in the chapel was for the
class of 1932. The class of 1933 may have used the chapel, but I believe
not. At any rate, after that, the Baccalaureate and Commencement pro-
grams were held in the Gym. On at least one occasion the Commence-
ment program was held on the campus with the side porch of Stevenson
Hall serving as the rostrum. Many prominent men have appeared on the

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Struggling Through the Depression Years

platforms of Union College, at special services, at Baccalaureate and at
Commencement., Especially have we been fortunate in obtaining many of
the outstanding religious leaders, not only of the United States, but of
the world as well. We have seen men who came to our campus as ministers
become Bishops, and others become prominent in political circles and
economic circles.

In 1932, 1 added A.B. to my name, and took a quarter of post-graduate
work at the University of Chicago, intending to become a teacher, since
I had completed requirements for a teaching certificate. But depression
was deep, and in 1933 the Bank Holiday made life uncertain for many
of us. In the late summer of 1933, Dr. Gross asked me to become his
secretary, and I came back to Union campus in a somewhat different
capacity, but still with a deep love for it. Because of my job on the staff,
first as his secretary, and later as Secretary of Admissions and Director of
Student Labor, I stayed at Union College until my marriage in 1937.
Of course it was only natural that I should meet my husband at Union
College — but strange to say, it was not until after I had graduated and
was in the office. The fall of 1932 had brought many changes to the
faculty and staff of Union College. It was that fall that Dr. C. R. Wimmer
came to be dean of men and head of the chemistry dept. He brought
with him a brand new bride, and they lived in the faculty apt. in
Stevenson Hall. Dr. and Mrs. Harwell Sturdivant and Dr. Byron Gibson
also were among those present that fall. Dr. Gibson was so young-looking
that Owen Wiley, who was working in the Dean's Office, tried desperately
to make him take the registration papers for freshmen, as he arrived in
the midst of Freshman Orientation! Owen will never forget the time he
answered the telephone, and thinking he recognized the voice on the other
end said, "This is Dean Seay — hotcha-cha-cha-cha!" The voice replied,
"This is Mrs. Seay!" Needless to say, that was NOT the voice Owen ex-
pected! The year of 1933-34 brought a faculty romance. A new English
teacher arrived to take care of the unusually large number of freshmen
who had appeared. Before school was out, she became Mrs. Byron Gibson.

Before World War II, marriages among undergraduates were not only
discouraged — they were forbidden. Any couple who were married during
the school year was automatically expelled immediately. There were
several secret marriages, which were not announced until the end of
school but the faculty and staff never knew about them. They may
have suspected, but they had no proof. What a contrast to the young
folks today who marry and go right on to school! But then our colleges
thought that marriage and school just would not mix. College under-
graduates were supposed to be carefree and footloose and fancy-free,
or at least they were not supposed to be able to carry a college load and
take care of a home. Of course there was no such thing as a GI bill then,
either, and workships went to deserving young people who were having
a struggle just keeping themselves in school, without trying to keep two
people there.

It was about 1933 and 1934 that the campus began to bristle with
baby buggies. With a young faculty, and many of them not long married,
there came many infants. Dr. and Mrs. Wayne Gray were ahead of the
rest, for their twins — Lois and Lowell — had arrived in the summer of

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Union College

1931. But then there was Marty Blair, Molly Wimmer, Barry Bacon,
Jack Gibson, Douglas Laymon, Betty Sturdivant. In the President's home
were three youngsters: George, Birney, and Lucille Gross. And the Blairs
had an older daughter, Ina.

Although we talked much about new buildings, and we were bulging
at the seams with an unusually large enrollment, there was not too much
we could do because of the economic condition of the country as a whole.
We did acquire property across from the college campus and relieved the
faculty housing situation to some extent. We also acquired a large two-
story house which for a while was known simply as 420 College St., and
which housed an overflow of boys. (It is now Dean Smith's home) . A
little cottage which sat where Pfeiffer Hall now is housed the Fine Arts
Dept. and the Ad Bldg. was remodelled somewhat. The offices were
changed around some, and the library was enlarged. It had started in
the corner room on the first floor, and by 1934 or 1935 occupied three
rooms which are now classrooms. It was a good library, under the direction
first of Miss Weeks, then Mrs. Arva Stackhouse, and then Miss Euphemia
Corwin with Mrs. Florence Ridgway as her assistant. Miss Perma Rich
came later to take over the direction of the library. But it was not until
the economic condition of the country began to show signs of improve-
ment that the congestion in the buildings could be relieved. The Old
Water Tower came down and the Maintenance Building was erected to
replace the old Power Plant. This was in 1936-1937. We were getting
started at least. In 1934 our Football team was really good, and we were
so proud of the new concrete stadium which had been erected that sum-
mer. I do believe however that it was either that year or the next that
we were "Holbrooked" and the present coach (who came from Holbrook
College, I believe) could probably tell something about that! At any
rate, we were beating everything in the SIAA, and here comes this
college from Ohio and we get beat! We didn't forget that for a long,
long time! In the fall of 1935 we did win the SIAA championship in foot-
ball, and we were really proud of it! While we were having to forego new
buildings, we did manage to be accepted by the Southern Association of
Colleges and Secondary Schools in the fall of 1932, and as it was cus-
tomary to announce everything big by ringing the Big Bell, it rang and
rang and rang when the news came! Of course it rang every time we
won a victory in football or basketball. Homecoming was always held in
the fall, with one of the home football games as the drawing card. An-
other big event in the fall was the meeting of the UCEA which always
brought back many former students and graduates who were teaching
in the Upper Cumberland Valley. We always arranged to have a good
football game for that weekend too, and it and Homecoming were big
weekends for all of us.

The Alumni Association had been organized in 1913, but it limped
along through the years because there were so few to hold it together.
But there was a banquet every spring at Commencement time, and be-
cause there were so few, they were more loyal, and there was a large per-
centage of them in attendance. It was not until about 1940 that the
number of graduates became large enough to make taking care of the
alumni roll much of a job.

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Struggling Through the Depression Years

My direct association with the college ended almost at the end of that
era. I was married in June 1937, and in the winter of that year, Dr. Gross
left Union College to go to Simpson College. He was followed by Dr.
Conway Boatman, who has been president of Union College since that
time. And, as I said long ago — a new presidency brings changes in faculty,
in staff, and in the physical plant of a college, and we can look at the
campus today and see that changes have come through Gross's presidency
brought accreditation, maturity of academic standards, and increasing
enrollment, along with an awareness that Union College had a specific
place to play in Southeastern Kentucky. Dr. Boatman's presidency has
brought new buildings, an improved physical plant, a continued increase
in enrollment, and an ever widening horizon among the student body
which comes each year from farther away. Through all the years the
emphasis on a Christian education, as well as a college education has
been stressed.1

A student of economics may well ponder how a college with only
a slight increase in income could be maintained with the faculty, cur-
riculum, and physical expenses all in the process of expansion. In
fact, tuition rates provided the only increase in income, because
Union's endowment, based as it was, primarily on public securities,
suffered as did all such investments after the market crash of 1929.
Union's era of depression actually antedated the national depression
by one year. When school opened in September, 1929, President
Gross expected to have difficulty in meeting faculty salaries and
expenses. Because one of Union's chief investments, sufficient to pay
a full time professor had defaulted, and in addition, needed repairs
to the physical plant had brought unanticipated expense, Dr. Gross
reported a probable deficit of $7,000.14

The dangers to Union's endowment were recognized long before
the bubble burst. At a meeting of the Board of Trustees in May,
1928, the treasurer's report showed that Union's investment in the
Louisville Cement Company had a market value of $200,000 with a
face value of only $53,000. The stock market boom had pushed Union's
Proctor and Gamble stock from $20,000 to $45,000, and some bank
stock had likewise doubled its value of $21,000.15 At this time, Union
had a "paper" endowment of over $600,000. Legal advisors asked for
the sale of the Proctor and Gamble stock, with no further purchases
in industrial stock. A year later Union's stock in Proctor and Gamble
had soared to $100,450, but it couldn't be sold because Mr. Gamble had
restricted sales until September, 1930.16 By that time of course it

1S Catherine Faulkner Singer to writer, March 11, 1954.

14 President Gross, Address to faculty and administration, Sept. 16, 1929.

" President's "Report" to Trustees, May 29, 1928.

" Ibid., May 28, 1929.

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Union College

was too late and Union was caught in a flood which threatened
to engulf it. The re-establishment of the Seelback Hotel in 1929 had
already brought a loss of almost $10,000.

The treasurer's report covering from May, 1929 to January, 1930
presented a picture of the financial maelstrom into which Union had
fallen. The total value of stocks and bonds were listed at §275,906 and
$107,900 respectively.1? By May, 1932, Union's book value of $415,000
in stocks and bonds actually was worth only $155,000 on the market.
Bottom was reached in 1934 when the entire income from Union's
endowment stood at only $2,93 1.18 This amount represented a de-
crease of 85 per cent in six years. Actually this was less than Union's
outside income for 1913-14, when the Board of Education withdrew its
financial support. Union was now beset, said President Gross, by the
most disastrous storm ever to visit its economic life.19 Union ended the
school year with a deficit of $15,123, half of which was due the faculty
for unpaid salaries.

The Board of Trustees, seeming not to realize that financial stress
at Union was not peculiar to that institution alone, and that identical
situations were being duplicated in dozens of educational institutions
throughout the country, sought to place the blame upon poor financial
management, and proceeded to employ fiscal experts to direct Union's
financial policies. The Fidelity Trust Company was chosen for this
delicate task and assumed financial management in 1932. Three years
later, this responsibility was transferred to the First National Bank of
Chicago.

To add to the Board's financial woes, that old white elephant, the
Kenyon Building, reappeared again to haunt it. For over a decade,
the Kenyon notes were listed annually at $48,000 — the amount owed
Union. In 1935 the Hail Estate confessed its inability to honor the
notes and offered to deliver the building back into the hands of Union's
trustees free of encumbrance except for a lien of $25,000. At the end
of a year's haggling, the Board agreed to repossess the building and
authorized its treasurer to borrow not more than $13,000 to pay for
the Kenyon Building Bonds. This magnificent gift from Fanny Speed,
valued at one time at $208,000 had shrunken in value to $48,000.

Near the end of President Gross' administration, Union's financial
picture became much clearer. Stocks and bonds tended to remain
steady, and income from the endowment climbed steadily. In August,

17 Board of Trustees. Minutes, Jan. 25, 1930.

18 Treasurer's "Report," Ibid., May 29. 1934. If collected the student tuition
fees should have amounted to $40,000.

18 Ibid.

130

Struggling Through the Depression Years

1937, Union's endowment stood at $373,000 or approximately a decline
of $50,000 within a decade, and only $100,000 more than it possessed
after coming into the Fanny Speed bequest. The worst panic in the
nation's history must bear the primary responsibility for reducing
Union's endowment by almost 20 per cent. At the end of Dr. Gross'
regime the endowment had climbed to $414,000 of which approxi-
mately $300,000 represented investments in stocks and bonds.

In 1938 Union's total annual income stood at $133,214 of which
$18,000 and $15,000 respectively, represented income from endow-
ment and gifts. Other sources of income are listed as follows: room
rent, $6,562; board, $24,000; and athletics, $3,425. Student fees
amounted to almost $55,000. "Unproductive" assets included the
campus buildings valued at $242,000.20

Leading expenses were faculty salaries, plant operation, and the
dining hall, listed respectively at $43,000, $17,000 and $16,000. Less
than $2,000 was spent on public relations and publicity.21 The college
had an indebtedness of approximately $30,000, about twice the
amount owed in the early 1930's.22

Financial woes of the student body added to those of the college.
When the effects of the depression began to be felt, the college started
the practice of allowing students to defer their payments. In five or six
years' time, it looked as if many former students wished to have the
moratorium made permanent. By June 1, 1937, accounts of this nature
totaled almost $33,000 and the college was forced to terminate its
costly program.23

Throughout the depression years the college made every effort both
independently, and in cooperation with the federal agencies to assist
needy students at Union. For example, 60 scholarships were awarded
for the school year 1931-32. Under the NYA and other agencies, from
25 to 50 students were employed on various projects. Beginning under
the FERA, extra classes were conducted in music, carpentry, and
woodworking. One of the biggest FERA projects was the landscaping of
Union's campus under the direction of Dr. Sturdivant, Mrs. F. D.
Sampson and Mr. Bender. Besides the Lombardy poplars, arbor vitae,
dogwood and redbud trees planted, some of the hedges now seen on
Union's beautiful campus were planned and begun at this time.24

Under NYA, landescaping continued together with many other

*>Ibid., May 31, 1938.

21 Financial Statement, Board of Trustees, Minutes, Aug. 31, 1938.

22 In 1934, the debt stood at $18,000. See President's "Report" for 1935.
asIbid., June 1, 1937.

24 The beautiful row of redbuds along the right entrance to the campus was
planted in 1934.

131

Union College

worthy enterprises. Miscellaneous printing issued from a press secured
through the generosity of the Pikeville Hospital. During the year
1935-36, 264 pieces of furniture were rebuilt and 35 new pieces added.
Some students typed manuscripts of historical value, while others were
doing social work in the community. At one time, eleven student
assistants were working in the library, most of them employed through
federal funds.25 Such grants-in-aid made possible Union's first resident
nurse in 1935-36. Loan funds were available, especially for students
preparing for the ministry or Christian service. The John A. Black
fund of $5,000, and the Elizabeth Gates Memorial fund were both
established for students expecting to do Christian work. The Anna G.
Williams loan fund gave aid to students whose scholarship was above
average.

Another device used to cut expenses at Union during the depression
years and to furnish employment for needy students, was the school
farm and dairy. Under the direction of Roy Faulkner over 20 acres
were placed under cultivation. Canning equipment was installed for
the use of Aunt Mae Wallace, "Mistress of Union's scullery knaves."
Mrs. Mae Wallace has already become a legendary figure at Union
College. Her good humor and ability to direct a prodigious amount of
work, endeared her to both the faculty, and student body. Repeated
articles appeared in the Orange and Black, commenting on the virtues
of Aunt Mae. In the fall of 1936, this good woman had preserved in
the school larder 475 gallons of string beans, 1,100 quarts of corn, 260
quarts of sauer kraut, and 100 quarts of chow-chow.26

What with a debt ridden college, radically reduced endowment
income, and an unpaid faculty, Dr. Gross could hardly be expected
to embark upon a huge expansion program during the depression
years. But in 1931, President Gross and Dr. Fort, his assistant, were
authorized to work out plans for a drive to secure a minimum of
$200,000 which was to be applied on a new heating plant, the removal
of all indebtedness, general college promotion, a new library, and the
remainder for an increase in the endowment.27

Actual acreage of land acquired during Dr. Gross' administration
far exceeded prior acquisitions to date, but unfortunately, much of
this was lowland likely to be covered by annual floods. In 1934
Union College acquired several additions of real estate. In February,
the Board of Trustees authorized the purchase of the Dishman property

26 President's "Report" 1934, 1935; Faculty Minutes, 1934.
28 Orange and Black, Nov. 11, 1936.
17 Barbourville Advocate, May 29, 1931.

132

Struggling Through the Depression Years

which lay east of Baldwin Place bordering on Allison Avenue,28 and
in April, its purchase was announced.29 About the same time 50 acres
of land were purchased from the Barbourville Brick Company at a
cost of $5,000. At an additional cost of $750, seven acres bought from
the same company were added in 1936.30

Because of the pressing need for faculty housing, the college ac-
quired the Kennedy property consisting of 6 lots with three houses,
in September, 1934. The purchase price of $10,000 was to be paid
from the endowment fund.31 Another house and lot, 80x208 1/2, was
purchased three years later from James H. Jackson for the sum of
$1,536.32

At a meeting of the Board of Trustees held early in 1936, the
purchase of three properties, the Black, Decker, and Sevier, was under
consideration.33 The Sevier was given preference over the others be-
cause of its close proximity to Union's main campus, bordering it on
the south and west. Arrangements for the purchase of the Sevier
property were completed in June. On it were located seven buildings
adjacent to Speed Hall and another close to the eastern wing of
the present location of Pfeiffer Hall. The adjacent Sevier homestead
was converted into the fine arts building,34 the other, a two-story
house was used for a boys' dormitory — the famous "420 College Street."
A small cottage35 in the rear of Speed, was used for student housing,
and three residences were rented. Union College did not receive its
deed for the Sevier property, of 8 acres, until March 5, 1938.36

The new maintenance building constituted the main addition to
the physical plant during Dr. Gross' regime. Dating from the days
of President Easley, Union had a central heating plant which in addi-
tion to supplying heat, also housed a dynamo and pump. In 1931
the college decided to purchase electricity and water from the public
utility power company and the municipal water supply company.
In 1937 the old building was rebuilt into a two-story, fireproof

28 Board of Trustees, Minutes, Feb. 21, 1934.

"Faculty Minutes, Apr. 13, 1934.

30 Hembree, "A History of Union College," 70-71.

81 C. P. Kennedy Papers, President's office; Treasurer's "Report" May, 1935. These
lots bordering on Main, Coyt and College streets are now part of the Viall and
Dickinson properties.

32 Board of Trustees, Minutes, May 31, 1938. This property is at 412 Manchester
Street.

33 Board of Trustees, Minutes, Feb. 24, 1936.

34 Orange and Black, Sept. 30, 1936.

35 The small cottage was later moved to the rear and became "Cozy Cottage,"
now the residence of the director of physical education. The other became the
Dean's residence and was moved across the street.

"Board of Trustees, Minutes, May 31, 1938.

133

Union College

maintenance building at a total cost of $U,743.37 Besides the heating
plant, this building housed a wareroom, and a student wood-working
shop equipped as a gift from the estate of the late Robert Norton
of New Albany, Indiana.38 Other improvements worth noting were
the biology laboratory, newly equipped in 1934, and the addition of
another room to the library in 1934, to meet the requirements of the
Southern Association.

The need for a new women's dormitory had been realized for years.
During the early thirties, 40 girls were crowded into Speed Hall. This
gradually increased until it was crammed with over 50. In 1935
when Union's enrollment was near its peak, an endowment committee
suggested a government loan of $50,000 to build a women's dormi-
tory.39 Two years later, President Gross, at a chapel session, an-
nounced his intention of planning a million dollar expansion
program, the first $100,000 of which was earmarked for the dormi-
tory.40

When the Board of Trustees met in September, Kenneth Tuggle
characterized a new dormitory as an imperative need, and offered a
resolution to issue Union College bonds up to $75,000.41 No action
was taken, but the Board asked for an endorsement of the building
program from the Kentucky Conference then in session. The follow-
ing day (September 17) , after President Gross presented his program
to the conference, a "resolution endorsing the forward program of
Union College and authorizing a financial program to raise $100,000
for the erection of a dormitory and $100,000 for additional endow-
ment was unanimously passed." 42 The following March (1938) , the
Board of Trustees authorized a development committee to have an
architect prepare plans and specifications, but no contracts were to
be let before May, 1938.43 In the meantime President Gross entered
into a understanding with John L. Wilson, architect of Lexington,
Kentucky regarding plans.44

President Gross did not remain long enough at Union to carry
out his building program. In 1938 the country was beginning to
show signs of financial recovery and prospects were better than at
any time since Gross took office. Although President Gross was able
to add only $6,000 to the endowment fund, the indebtedness of the

37 Ibid., Minutes, May 31, 1938.

38 Union College Catalog, 1939-40.

39 Board of Trustees, Minutes, May 28, 1935.

40 Orange and Black, June 2, 1937.

41 Board of Trustees, Minutes, Sept. 16, 1937.
43 Kentucky Conference Minutes, 1937.

43 Board of Trustees, Minutes, March 1, 1938.

44 "Articles of Agreement," President's office.

134

Struggling Through the Depression Years

college had been reduced from $40,000 to $14,000,45 and his successor
was to enter office with almost a clean sheet. Instead of operating on
an annual budget of less than $60,000, the school was now operating
on an amount over twice that amount. Preserving even the status quo
throughout such a chaotic era was in itself an achievement.

President Gross was probably Union's first president to use the
device of extensive advertising in order to boost the college's enroll-
ment. Such papers as the Pineville Sun, Louisville Herald-Post, West-
ern Christian Advocate, Cumberland Courier, Corbin, Times-Tribune,
Lexington Herald, and Harlan Enterprise carried Union's advertise-
ments. Dr. Gross also traveled extensively in connection with finance
and student promotion. One of his reports listed 27,000 miles of travel,
delivery of 134 sermons and addresses, including 9 baccalaureates, or
commencements in addition to many addresses to churches, service
clubs, and college chapels on the Mountain Rehabilitation program.46

The president's work among the various churches during the period
of promotion indicated that he had not lost sight of Union's Chris-
tian goals and objectives which had been maintained throughout
the years. In agreement with Union's charter, the college was devot-
ing its efforts to the interest of Christian education and to the main-
taining of a Christian atmosphere. Before Robert N. Cornett passed
to his reward, he recognized Union's efforts in this direction and
willed the college $10,000, the income of which was to be used for
young men preparing for the Methodist ministry. At this time Presi-
dent Gross was striving for a "more definite beginning in religious
work" and was asking that several ministerial grants be set aside
for work among the mountain churches. The Conference was already
recognizing Union's contribution to the Southern Highlands.47

In the summer of 1938, Dr. Gross telegraphed to Barbourville his
acceptance of a new position — the presidency of Simpson College in
Indianola, Iowa.48 His letter of resignation to Harry E. Bullock,
president of the Board of Trustees, dated his resignation effective,
November 1, 1938.

Before his departure from Union, President Gross was honored at
a banquet given by the Board of Trustees. Dr. C. M. Laymon, speak-
ing for the faculty, congratulated the retiring president for having
maintained academic freedom and a democratic spirit. On the campus,
Dr. Gross, stated the speaker, had determined to lift the mountain

45 This reduction in the debt was aided considerably by Judge A. B. Cornett's
gift of $10,000. See President's "Report," June 17, 1929.
48 Board of Trustees, Minutes, May 29, 1934.

47 Kentucky Conference, Minutes, 1933; President's "Report," May 29, 1934.

48 Barbourville Advocate, Aug. 19, 1938.

135

Union College

students, from "beyond the mountains" to a "panoramic world be-
yond," never doubting his conviction of Union's place as a church
school. The Board of Trustees conferred the degree of Doctor of
Letters of Humanities upon Dr. Gross in recognition of his past
services to Union.49

It was during President Gross' administration that Union finally
found her place. Beginning in 1915 under President Franklin, Union
had started on the road back which was to lead to Union's final
recognition in 1932 as a member of the family of colleges in the
south.

Orange and Black, Nov. 9, 1938.

136

Chapter X
UNION MOVES FORWARD, 1938-1954

BEFORE PRESIDENT Gross left Union to take up his new duties
in Iowa, the Board of Trustees met on November 4, 1938, for
the purpose of selecting his successor. Among the three candidates —
Doctors Hughes, Broyles, and Boatman, interest centered at once
upon the latter who had been mentioned for the position in 1929.1
Dr. Boatman had presented his idea of a program for Union, upon
the adoption of which, "he was willing to accept the presidency
of Union." The Board, after consultation with Bishop Smith, con-
sidered the candidate's ideas near enough to that of its members "to
assure him of . . . sympathetic cooperation in working toward objec-
tives which he had in mind;" and without further ado, Union's
Board elected him the new president.

Of his lineage and early life, Robert L. Blackwell, a member of the
Board of Trustees, said: "He came of old-line English stock — stock
which was rugged but had deep roots of personal dignity — of a people
who eked only a meager existence from the small farms which they
owned.

The rural schools, even when measured by the poor standards of
the day, were even poorer, with only a three months' term each year.
By the time he reached the fourth grade he was so advanced in years
he was promoted at one jump to Senior high school." 2 In 1915 he
married Caroline Brasher, a fellow graduate of the John H. Snead
Seminary at Boaz, Alabama. Three sons, John Paul, Joseph Brasher,
and Wilson Morehead, were born to this union.

Not long after his graduation from college, and in accordance with
his decision to follow the ministry, Conway Boatman was received on
trial into the South Dakota Conference and two years later, upon
ordination as a deacon in 1918, he accepted a call as an educational
missionary to India. Following a study of languages at Jubbulpore,
India, he spent one year at the Bareilly Theological Seminary, and
then, as a Charter Member, helped to organize the Methodist Leonard
Theological Seminary at Jubbulpore. For the next four years he

1 Board of Trustees, Minutes, Jan. 30, 1929.

* Robert Lee Blackwell, Presentation of Portrait "Address" Jan. 30, 1953.

137

Union College

taught church history and systematic theology at the seminary to
graduates of colleges from Burma and India. After nearly seven years
of work, India's enervating climate, so often fatal to Europeans, had
its depressing effect upon the Boatmans and they resolved to return
home on a leave of absence.

Back in the United States, Conway Boatman attended Columbia
University and Drew Theological Seminary, receiving the A.M. and
B.D. degrees from those respective institutions. After two years as head
of the department of education at Sterling College in Kansas, he was
elected president (1928) of the Iowa National Training School at
Des Moines. Besides directing this school designed for Christian lead-
ership, Dr. Boatman found time to engage in advance study at the
University of Chicago. In 1930, Fletcher College conferred upon him
the degree of Doctor of Divinity in recognition of his outstanding
work in the field of Christian education. The following year he was
called to head his alma mater, the John H. Snead Seminary. Dr. Boat-
man's accomplishments at this school included the elevation of this
institution to junior college level, the erection of a president's
residence, the procurement of Snead's first endowment of $50,000,
and the raising of funds for a new library and women's dormitory.

Union's thirteenth president was formally inducted into office on
March 24, 1939. 3 The colorful inaugural procession included repre-
sentatives not only from Kentucky Colleges, and member colleges of
the Southern Association, but also from many Methodist Colleges
outside the commonwealth. With Harry E. Bullock, president of the
Board of Trustees, in the presiding chair, Bishop H. Lester Smith,
in a most impressive ceremony, administered the charge to Dr. Boat-
man.

Recognition of his predecessors' accomplishments constituted a
portion of the new president's first message to Union's Board of
Trustees when he met with them for the first time. Said Dr. Boatman:

It frequently happens when a new man comes to the helm of an in-
stitution that he inadvertently makes the impression that what has been
done prior to his coming is not recognized and appreciated. The many
friends of a college who have been laboring for its success many years
are often sensitive to a new man's attitude in regard to his appreciation
of what has been done prior to his coming. Let me make it plain and
emphatic at my first meeting with this board that I make full recognition
of the services of those who have preceded me. I can see the evidence on
Union College campus of the struggles and heroic achievements of die
several presidents who have preceded me, of die labors, of the Board

* The figure, 13, is computed by counting Union's acting and nominal heads
since 1879.

138

Union Moves Forward, 1938-1954

of Trustees, of the faculty who are now in service, and many others whose
service has been terminated, as well as contributing friends all over the
country. Let it be understood that nothing I may say or do should in the
least ever be construed to reflect upon the service or achievements of
those who have preceded me. I inherit the fruits of their labors, and it
is my responsibility to build on what they have done. I cherish a most
grateful attitude toward my predecessors and enter into the results of
their work with reverent respect.4

With such a short stay on the campus it was not possible to give a
complete report, but Dr. Boatman issued a general statement of his
policy and the needs of Union. He warned of the dangers of a pro-
fessionalized athletic program and of subsidies to team members.
Debts were to be avoided because "they constitute the burial shroud
of a college and are the very best preparation for its demise." He saw
a need for an expanding curriculum especially in the field of com-
mercial science. The present policy of the governing board in giving
a large measure of freedom to the college head was commended be-
cause an executive wishes not to be restrained; rather to be pushed on
and up to the highest and best.5

It was also at this first meeting with Union's Trustees, that the new
president struck the keynote for his administration — the Forward
Program. Within the past few years, Union had sought and found of-
ficial recognition for the place which it was to fill in the educational
world. But, inadequate equipment for carrying out a mission, how-
ever worthy it may be, insures failure or at best, mediocre results.
Yet, this was partially true of the college in 1939, because Union, after
a struggle of many years, still remained poorly prepared to carry out to
the fullest its mission of Christian education to the many entering
its doors; and an increase in numbers could add only to one of
Union's greatest problems and deficiencies — an inadequate physical
plant.

The Forward Program, as first envisaged by Dr. Boatman, called
for a three-unit building program — a library, a women's dormitory,
and a chapel. Because of the increasing possibility of a general Eu-
ropean War, and much uncertainty regarding the attitude of a united
Methodism in Kentucky toward Union's future, the Board decided to
follow President Boatman's advice and to embark at once upon the
Forward Program. Speaking at a later date of this momentous deci-
sion in 1939, Dr. Boatman stated that the very life of Union College
was at stake as a Methodist institution, and that the advances secured

* Board of Trustees, Minutes, Feb. 28, 1939.
8 Ibid.

139

Union College

before the catastrophe of war broke upon America, was indeed a
great cause for rejoicing.6

Union's dead-end street could be opened only with an organized
campaign set in motion to raise funds for such a program. Exactly
three months after its inauguration, Dr. Boatman reported over
$147,000 in total pledges and contributions, of which §17,000 was in
cash. Nearly one half of Barbourville's quota of $8,000 was reported
as subscribed the first day the campaign opened.7 Included in the
total raised was a $100,000 conditional pledge from a name unknown
to Union's campus — that of Mrs. Anna Merner Pfeiffer. This pledge
for endowment purposes was contingent upon Union's ability to se-
cure an equal amount from other sources.

Now that Union had committed itself to a three-unit building
program, another important question remained to be answered — that
of priority in terms of Union's most pressing need. At a special meet-
ing of the faculty, President Boatman presented the matter of sub-
mitting to the Board of Trustees a request for placing the library
first on the Forward Movement's agenda. The faculty likewise agreed
as to its immediate necessity.8 One month later, the Board sitting at
Cincinnati passed a resolution providing for the library's construction.
From this point, plans moved forward rapidly and before the middle
of June, the Board awarded a contract to the John Muncy Company
of Berea, Kentucky, calling for construction of a Georgian style, two
story brick structure to be completed by October 15. As is usual in
such cases, the cost proved to be much higher than the original esti-
mate of May, 1939; and the $35,000 earmarked for construction of the
new library was stepped up to approximately $50,000.

Homecoming, Founders Day, and dedication of the Abigail E.
Weeks Memorial Library were all combined into a gala celebration
scheduled for November 9, 1940. The Homecoming and Founders
Day programs featured addresses by C. Nevil White, and Frank Mc-
Vey, President Emeritus of the University of Kentucky. Photographs
of Fanny Speed, Dr. Stevenson, Governor Black, A. M. Decker, Abigail
E. Weeks, Dr. Franklin, Dr. Gross, and Mr. and Mrs. Henry Pfeiffer
were unveiled as part of the Founders Day Program. At 11:45 A.M.,
an impressive open air ceremony, conducted by Bishop U. V. W.
Darlington, featured the laying of the library's cornerstone followed
by the Dedicatory Services. The Bishop was assisted by President Boat-
man, Harry E. Bullock, Dr. Horace Sprague, and the Reverend J.

""Report" of the President, June I, 1942.

1 Barbourville Advocate, Oct. 20, 1939.

• Union College Faculty Minutes, Feb. 2, 1940.

140

Union Moves Forward, 1938-1954

Ralph Wood. Among the interesting records placed in a copper
box within the cornerstone was a copy of the Board of Trustees
Minutes for March, 1940; a copy of Union's catalog, 1940-1941; a
list of subscribers to the library fund; a student directory; programs
of the day's festivities; and recent copies of the Orange and Black and
the Barbourville Advocate.

The new library was named in honor of one of the greatest names
connected with Union's history — Abigail E. Weeks, who had passed
from this life less than a year before the library's dedication. Miss
Weeks had retired in 1937 as Professor Emeritus of English Literature
after almost thirty years of fruitful service to the college she loved so
well. She began her teaching career in her home town of Elkland,
Pennsylvania and attended the Mansfield Normal School not far away.
After completing her Ph.B. degree at Dickinson College in 1905 she
first came to Union as professor of English and History. Her first
period of service to Union lasted two years, the second (1910-1915),
five years, and the last, twenty-one years, beginning in 1917 when she
was recalled to the college as head of the English Department, and as
librarian. During her absence from Union she had enriched her life
with travel in Europe and the acquiring of an advanced degree. She
had first served as Union's librarian in 1910.

As early as 1923 recognition for Miss Weeks' services was sought
when the Board of Trustees was presented with a memorial signed
by President Franklin, the faculty, and the student body, requesting
the establishment of the Abigail E. Weeks chair of English. No action
was taken on the petition and no public honors were bestowed on
her until the time came for her retirement in 1937. The June 2, edi-
tion of the Orange and Black, of that year, the largest in its history,
was dedicated to Miss Weeks. Regarding her services to Union, the
school paper commented:

AN AFFECTIONATE DEDICATION: It is with a feeling of pro-
found gratitude that we dedicate this, the largest edition of the Orange
and Black in Union's history, to Miss Abigail E. Weeks, and to the mem-
bers of the Alumni association with whom she is so closely affiliated.

This memorable commencement, the greatest in Union's history, marks
the close of thirty-two years of service to Union College for Miss Weeks.
(1905-1937). During this time she has evidenced the remarkable growth
of the college, and much of its advancement may be attributed to her un-
tiring efforts. She has helped to bear the burdens through dark periods,
and rejoiced with the administration through periods of bright, opti-
mistic advancement.

The entire life of Miss Weeks has been centered around three great
affections: 1. Her subject. Not only has she been a great lover of the

141

Union College

English language and literature, but she has been a great interpreter of
it to many others who were in dire need in that respect. 2. Her students.
It is to them that she gave the best that she had. She gave to them a
philosophy of idealism that has been of inestimable value to them. 3. Her
Institution. She gave to Union College her sacrificial loyalty, and ful-
filled the sentiment of her own lines, written as a fitting close to the
college Alma Mater, "We will live for thee." *

Miss Weeks is a true lover of beauty. To others she showed the stars,
the trees, the birds, the flowers, like they had never seen them. She felt
and appreciated the rhythm, even in the commonplace things of life, in
smoke coming from chimneys, in the wind, in the contour of the moun-
tains.

Although she retires from active service at Union College at this
commencement, she leaves the deepest affectionate impression that will
make her presence one that will be felt at all times on the campus.

From the east coast to the west coast are scattered students in all walks
of life who sat in Miss Week's classes, and learned great lessons of life.
These are the Alumni. And Union College is justly proud of her alumni.
They have made enviable records. In their hearts Miss Weeks holds a
treasured place as, Teacher, Friend, and Ideal. To them, also jointly with
Miss Weeks, this special issue is affectionately dedicated.10

When the Board of Trustees met in June, 1937, it reiterated the
same sentiments expressed in the Orange and Black and recorded that
Miss Weeks' active work had ended summa cum laude.

After her retirement from Union, Miss Weeks went back to her
home in Elkland, Pennsylvania, not to enjoy a rest well earned, but
to care for an invalid brother although she was ill herself. Her interest
in English Literature and libraries never lagged to the end of her
life. She would borrow English journals from a neighbor and discuss
with her the teaching of English. Her last act of service was performed
for her home community of Elkland where she helped to organize the
public library and to catalog its books.11 At a memorial service held
for Miss Weeks on February 2, 1940, C. Nevil White spoke of her as a
"lover of beauty and expression." 12 Even in death Abigail E. Weeks
did not forget Union. The bulk of her small estate amounting to $900
was received as a bequest to buy books for the library she loved so
well.

Union's library facilities had come a long way since that day in
1888 when Dr. Stevenson installed a few book stacks in his outer office.
As already noted, Union's first organized library, the Speed-Stevenson,

"According to Percy L. Ports, Miss Weeks wrote the Alma Mater earlv in 1906.
10 Orange and Black, June 2, 1937.

11 Eleanor P. Donovan to writer, March 30, 1954.

12 Orange and Black, Feb. 14, 1940. Dr. White noted her reluctance to aid
cupid — "she knew all the courting couples . . . but when it came time to make
dining room assignments no couple was seated together."

142

Union Moves Forward, 1938-1954

began in 1898 under President Faulkner with about 1,000 volumes.
Magazines and papers were contributed by friends. After the dis-
astrous fire of 1906, Miss Weeks found many library volumes lying in
a heap on the floor of a near-by building and took them under her
care. In 1907 the library moved into a room (105) in the new ad-
ministration building. When Miss Weeks assumed charge in 1910 the
library had grown to 1,500 volumes and for the first time students
were allowed to take books from the library. By 1937 the library had
increased to 12,000 volumes and had expanded to include the French
and mathematics rooms. The same year (1931-1932), all the index
cards, formerly hand written, were typed.

The middle 1930's had brought about a change in administration
of the library. Miss Euphemia Corwin became Union's first full time
librarian and students had access to the stacks. A recataloging process
began under a full time catalog librarian in 1935. Four years before
Union's library building was built, it was necessary to add the old
English room to the library. The library may be likened to a monster
which had already consumed badly needed class room space and which
gave no indication of changing its insatiable appetite.

When the Abigail E. Weeks Library opened for service on January
13, 1941, it contained approximately 16,000 volumes together with al-
most 300 periodicals. This beautiful Georgian structure, built with an
eye to Union's future needs, will house approximately 40,000 books.
The large reading room containing the reference books, current maga-
zines and papers, will accommodate 150 readers. The first floor in-
cludes the book stacks, two offices and lounging and toilet facilities.
The second floor provides additional stack space and contains the
bound periodical reading room. The library was furnished through
the generosity of Mrs. Abbie E. Stewart of Des Moines, Iowa, in
memory of her husband, George B. Stewart.13

From 1938 to 1954, Union's library of 13,000 volumes almost
doubled in number, and the 160 current periodicals increased almost
to 300. Starting in the 1920's the college library began the binding of
a few periodicals, gradually increasing the number until in 1954 it
bound 40 periodicals at a cost of $200. The amount expended for
books exceeded $1,000 annually, and four- fifths of that same amount
was spent on newspapers and periodicals. "Special collections of ma-
terial on Union College, the Kentucky Methodist Church, Knox
County, and Southeastern Kentucky have been placed in the library.

18 This gift amounted to $3,350. See President's "Report," June 2, 1941.

143

Union College

Plans are being made to enlarge the Southeastern Kentucky collec-
tion and for moving it to the Administration Building." 14

Besides the library, Dr. Boatman was able to launch upon the sec-
ond item in his Point-Three program before America became en-
veloped in the second world holocaust of war. Had this project, a
women's dormitory, been delayed six months longer in getting started,
its building would likely have been postponed until the end of the
war. This would have led to double the cost and would have found
Union less able to take care of the demands of a greatly increased
post-war enrollment.

The inadequacy of Speed Hall as a women's dwelling had been
recognized for thirty years. Actually, only the second floor of Speed
was suitable for such purposes, but as many as 50 girls had been
crammed into the building. The construction of a modern fire-proof
dormitory for women would also release the terrific demands being
made upon the old administration building in regard to office and
classroom space. As early as 1920 President Franklin had moved the
appointment of a committee of five empowered to make plans for a
girls' dormitory and science hall.15 The imperative demands of an
increased endowment for standard recognition precluded any prog-
ress in that direction during the 1920's and the depression years
blocked later developments.

At first Dr. Boatman planned a small dormitory costing about
$62,000.16 A few months later when campaign objectives were pre-
sented to the Board of Trustees, the dormitory was made to include
a dining hall at an additional cost of $6,000. 17 In September, 1939,
the public had its first opportunity to see drawings of the proposed
building. The announcement of a gift of $100,000 in cash from the
Henry Pfeiffer estate meant that a much finer building could be
constructed than at first anticipated. Mrs. Henry Pfeiffer had pre-
viously visited Union College in April, 1940 to study Union's For-
ward plans and to confirm her great pledge to Union College's
endowment. Regarding this gift, President Boatman said: ". . . none
of us can properly express or conceive what this magnificent gift
through Mrs. Pfeiffer will mean to this institution." 18

Bids for construction were accepted in September, 1941,19 and
work began the following month. Then came the surprise attack at

" Union College Catalog, 193S-1939; 1954-1955.

16 Board of Education, Minutes, Jan. 29, 1920.

""Report" of the President, Board of Trustees, Minutes, Feb. 28, 1939.

1T Ibid., May 29. 1939.

l" "Report" of the President. Board of Trustees, Minutes, May 29, 1939.

11 Barbourville Advocate, August 29, 1941.

144

Union Moves Forward, 1938-1954

Pearl Harbor and the nation's sudden plunge into war. At once the
federal authorities gave building material priorities to construction
concerned with the war effort. At first it was thought that the build-
ing could be finished in time for the opening of the fall semester,
1942, but September passed and still Pfeiffer Hall could not be com-
pleted. Finally on next to the last day of the year, after returning
from Christmas vacation, about 40 girls moved into their new quar-
ters. On January 30, 1943, Mrs. Flem D. Sampson and Mrs. Boatman
held a formal tea; tours were held for the guests, and the hall was of-
ficially opened.

May 11, 1943 was the day selected for the hall's dedication. The
day's festivities included four programs: the Founder's Day service,
the ceremony of laying the cornerstone, the dedicatory service, and
the crowning of Miss Union. Dr. Edgar B. Wesley, a Union alumnus,
delivered the main Founder's Day address. In the afternoon, after a
colorful academic procession, the Honorable Keen Johnson, gave the
Dedicatory Address. James F. Blair was master of the cornerstone's
box, and Mrs. Pfeiffer, assisted by the architect, Otis C. Poundstone,
laid the stone. The keys were first given to Mrs. Pfeiffer, who in turn
presented them to Harry E. Bullock representing Union's Trustees.
Unfortunately the inclement weather forced most of the ceremonies
to be held indoors in the college auditorium which was crowded to
capacity. Others participating in the program were President Boat-
man, Bishop Darlington, Dr. H. W. McPherson and the Reverend
G. M. Haggard. Recipients of honorary degrees on that memorable
day numbered eight; among them were Mrs. Anna Pfeiffer and Edgar
B. Wesley.20

In the light of public relations, President Boatman looked upon
Pfeiffer Hall's dedication as "perhaps the most fruitful and most in-
spiring event of the year." 21 The following comments by distin-
guished guests is proof of the favorable impression made upon them
by Union College:

I thought your services were well planned. . . . Everything certainly
looks fine around your campus. You are to be congratulated on getting
the new building and keeping the property in such good repair. . . .
Union has made a great place for itself and we are all hoping that its
future may be even better than anything that has yet come.2'

It was a pleasure to represent your sister institution at Cumberland
Gap. Certainly you have a marvelous angel in Mrs. Pfeiffer, who has

ao "Programs" of Dedication exercises; Barbourville, Advocate, Apr. 30, 1943;
Orange and Black, May 19, 1943.

21 President's "Report" May 24, 1943.
" Dr. McPherson to Dr. Boatman. Ibid.

145

Union College

provided two of the most beautiful and useable buildings for a college
of your size that I have ever seen. Your work at Union has been justified
beyond your years of service. "

The program for the dedication of Pfeiffer Hall was splendidly con-
ceived and beautifully carried out. I have never attended a more im-
pressive one. . . . The thing that impressed me most in this connection
was not so much the mechanical readjustment but the fine spirit in which
it was done. Boys and girls are safe in the hand of folk who can meet
emergencies in such a Christian manner.2*

Before work on the most important item on the three-point pro-
gram, the construction of a sanctuary, could be launched, the flood
of students at the war's end made imperative prompt measures to pro-
vide more housing space for men, mostly veterans; and to add class-
room and laboratory facilities.

In 1945, Tye House, located at the corner of Main and Manchester
Streets, had been purchased with the idea of using it as a residence
for girls. This $ 10,000 investment, known as Senior House,25 was
used at first for senior girls but the greatly increased enrollment of
men forced its use as a men's dormitory. Added temporary housing
for men was provided by two steel barracks acquired from the federal
authorities and rebuilt at a cost of approximately $5,000. These two
buildings erected in 1946 and 1947 provided housing for 40 men. In
addition, the college acquired about 25 trailers for the use of married
veterans.

The second immediate post-war need, classroom space, was pro-
vided by the acquisition of a surplus government building, 30x150
feet, located at Bowman Field, Louisville. Unlike the barracks, this
fine $50,000 building erected during the summer of 1947 was intended
for permanent occupancy. Known at first as the science building, it
was officially christened the Veteran's Building at a combined Found-
er's Day-Dedicatory program held in November with Congressman
J. M. Robsion delivering the main address.26 Almost two weeks later
(November 20) , Union received the deed from the Federal Works
Agency. Besides housing the chemistry laboratory, which later re-
ceived a large grant in 1950, the building provided classroom space
for the English department.

At the war's end, plans for the chapel-auditorium, differed little
from those first projected in 1939 when it was intended to build a
structure almost identical with the library and locate it on the south-

23 Dr. Kincaid to Dr. Boatman. Ibid.

3i Dr. E. L. McClurkan to Dr. Boatman. President's "Report." May 24, 1913.

*6 Faculty Minutes, Sept. 22. 1945; President's "Report." June 3. 1946.

S0Barbourvil!e Advocate, June 13, 1947. Oct. 31, 1947; Orange and Black, Nov.
26, 1947; President's "Report," May 31, 1948. Although this building was "free,"
$4,000 had to be spent to convert it for classroom needs.

146

Union Moves Forward, 1938-1954

east side of the administration building, with the same kind of
ambulatory connections that building afforded with the library.27

The recent growth and needs of the college brought a drastic
revision in plans. The new fine arts department (1946-1947), having
no home of its own, was forced to use the limited facilities available
on the first floor of Speed Hall. Revised plans worked out early in
1947 called for a combined chapel-fine arts building to be constructed
on the northwest side of the college grounds suggesting the later de-
velopment of a quadrangular type of campus. Of course this structure
would cost much more than the one first planned because of its in-
creased size and the post-war inflation.

In the early spring of 1947, Dr. Boatman expressed hope of getting
construction started by July l.28 Bids received for the project seemed
exorbitantly high — one of $513,000 and another of $496,000 being
rejected.29 Nevertheless, in early September, the Board of Trustees
decided to go ahead with construction, and work began in October,
1947. It seemed illogical to start construction on a project with
theoretically no limit to the cost, and with cash assets of only $110,000
in addition to $55,000 in pledges. Before her death in 1946, Mrs.
Pfeiffer had pledged an additional $100,000 toward a chapel, but the
executors of her estate would not pay the amount to Union College
Corporation because construction had not begun. A plan was worked
out whereby Mrs. Pfeiffer's executors transferred the sum of $100,000
to the Board of Education of the Methodist Church to be held in trust
until such time as tangible evidence of construction was offered.30

From the first, the building of the chapel-fine arts structure was
plagued with unforeseen troubles. A firm foundation could be had
only after the driving of many piles into the sandy subsoil. Then came
labor troubles — the men were afraid to work because of intimidation
from others. The hiring of local labor, although beneficial to the
community proved to be harmful in the long run because few skilled
workers acquainted with this type of construction could be found in
the locale.

By the last of May, 1948, the first floor had been completed at a
cost of over $50,000. At this time, President Boatman predicted that
the struggle to get through with it would be the severest ever experi-
enced on Union's campus. The handicaps of raising $200,000 while the
building was already under construction seemed almost unsurmount-
able. The Board of Trustees authorized a loan of $100,000, if neces-

27 Union College Bulletin, I, No. 3 (July, 1939) ; Orange and Black, Jan. 26, 1945.

28 Faculty Minutes, March 10, 1947.

29 Barbourville Advocate, Sept. 5, 1947.

30 Board of Trustees, Minutes, June 2, 1947.

147

Union College

sary,31 to insure completion. Eight months later about two-thirds of
the building had been completed at an expenditure of over $200,000,
whereupon the revised estimated cost was set at 5350,000. 32 By the end
of the following May, after $290,000 had been spent, and $100,000
borrowed to date in temporary loans, the total was reestimated
at $381,000.33 The edifice in its unfinished state was first used for
commencement exercises on May 31, 1949.

As early as February, 1949, a joint committee composed of faculty
and board members had been selected to make plans for its dedica-
tion.34 Bishop William T. Watkins exclaimed: "I thank God for the
glorious history of Union College ... I look with keen anticipation
to the coming years for the contribution this college will make . . .
far beyond the borders of the State." Governor Clements considered
this expansion of Union's plant facilities as symbolic of the progress
which characterized Union and as marking another milestone in the
service contributed to the community and state; while Dr. Nicholas
Mitchell thought the chapel would prove to be a source of inspiration
for many years to come.35

Dedication services of the chapel-fine arts building were -highlighted
by an act of recognition indeed rare in the annals of mankind — the
naming of a monumental piece of work for its builder within the life
span of its prime mover. Without the person of Conway Boatman it
would be difficult for one acquainted with Union's history, to
visualize the appearance of such a structure on the college campus.
The Board's timely announcement of the Conway Boatman Chapel
brought with it prolonged applause from the enthusiastic audience.36
On this same auspicious occasion, honorary degrees were conferred
upon William T. Watkins, William Woodson, Robert B. Pierce,
Joseph D. Jones, Carl E. Vogel, Elizabeth Harpst, and Torney O.
Nail, Jr.

Final honors for President Boatman came on January 30, 1953,
when Robert L. Blackwell, representing Union's Board of Trustees,
presented Sudduth Goff's brilliant portrait of the President to the
college. At the ceremony of presentation directed by Miss Kathleen
Moore of the college faculty, Mr. Blackwell, in sketching Dr. Boat-
man's successful career, stated:

81 Article VII of Union's charter had heen amended to permit loans up to $500,000.
Board of Trustees, Minutes, May 31, 1948.

89 President's "Report," Feb. 4, 1949.

88 Ibid., May 30, 1949.

3* Board of Trustees, Minutes, Feb. 4, 1949.

86 Orange and Black, Oct. 26, 1949.

88 The Dedication number, (vol. 6, no. 1) , of the Union College News, contains
the addresses of Bishop Watkins and Governor Clements.

148

Union Moves Forward, 1938-1954

The trustees have assembled this convocation ... to honor one in
the very midst of his life's work, who in his youth learned well what . . .
Cardinal Wolsey learned too late.37

It is a great privilege to participate in the ceremonies of this occasion —
an occasion which is an outward mark of the high esteem so justly due to
a man of high purpose. ... A man with purpose is a man with power;
power of achievement which is limited only by his capacity to imagine
and by his will to pursue! **

President Boatman's dream of many years, the Chapel-Fine Arts
Building, is, as the name suggests, really two buildings in one. The two-
story Fine Arts section located in the rear contains ten piano practice
rooms, two student studios, a radio control room, an instrumental
room, a music library, an art room with laboratory equipment, class-
rooms, division administrative offices, and a student prayer room. In
addition there is a small concert hall with stage and a projector booth.
This "Little Theater" was furnished through the generosity of the
family of Fred C. Rector, a prominent member of Union's early
faculty. The sanctuary, built as the name implies for the purpose of
worship, seats 700, which is considered adequate for future needs.
The divided chancel for the use of Union's robed a cappella choir,
and the $ 13,000 Kilgen organ lends dignity and solemnity to the
worship services. The organ is the gift of Mr. and Mrs. C. B. Cawood,
in memory of Hiram Cawood and A. B. Cornett. The Maas 32-note
chimes in combination with the Westminster Clock, the gift 39 of the
Oscar H. Viall family was dedicated at an impressive ceremony on
March 17, 1951.40

Dedication and use of Union's pride of the campus did not mark
the end of the heavy financial problems connected with it. At the
time of dedication, the building debt was approximately $150,000, but
only 18 months later President Boatman made the amazing announce-
ment that the chapel-fine arts building was free of debt.41 Practically
the entire amount had been raised by President Boatman through
personal solicitations. Two major gifts of $50,000 each were con-
tributed by the Kresge Foundation and the E. L. Lilly Endowment,
Incorporated. The other great gift of $100,000 pledged by Mrs. Pfeiffer
before her death has already been noted.

The name of this great benefactress to Union College, Anna

37 In Shakespeare's King Henry VIII, Wolseys says, "Had I but serv'd my God
with half the zeal I serv'd my King . . ." etc.

18 "Presentation Program," Jan. 30, 1953. Office of the President.

39 This gift cost approximately $10,000.

40 The class of 1953 donated the system of lights surrounding the Westminster
dock.

41 President's "Report," May 28, 1951.

149

Union College

Merner Pfeiffer, has been mentioned in connection with Union's two
major buildings, but nothing so far has been said of her unusual life.
As a seamstress in Cedar Falls, Iowa, she married Henry Pfeiffer, a
rising young druggist who achieved the extraordinary success of be-
coming owner of the Hudnut Perfumery Company and the William
P. Warner Drug Company. Promotion of their wares in the South
brought the Pfeiffers into personal contact with the people, mores,
and problems peculiar to that region. They recognized the special
educational needs of a section of our country not yet fully recovered
from the awful effects of a fratricidal war.

Union College was not alone among Southern institutions to benefit
from the Pfeiffers' generosity; two junior colleges in North Carolina,
Florida Southern College, and Snead Junior College in Alabama,
also shared. While president of the latter institution, Dr. Boatman
became acquainted with the Pfeiffers and proposed to Mrs. Pfeiffer a
unique system of control of a college's endowment funds, whereby a
local board of trustees relinquished its control of funds to a higher
body, which presumably was of a more responsible nature. This sys-
tem was applied to the care of the Pfeiffer endowment by allowing
the General Board of Education to handle the gift.42

Shortly after Mrs. Pfeiffer's death on January 8, 1946, at the ad-
vanced age of 86, the Board of Trustees passed in the form of a resolu-
tion the following memorial:

"No one could come into her presence without sensing that fine,
chastening, . . . benediction of her personality, simplicity, cheerfulness, a
rare sense of humor, profound sympathy for human need, and suffering,
an uncanny, practical wisdom in the administration of great wealth to
achieve the greatest service, or inspiring loyalty to the service motive in
life, a rare patience with people and dieir faults, a personal dislike of
pious thoughts that failed to issue in deeds of usefulness, a burning
love of God and man." i3

Union's three-point building program was bound inseparably with
Union's greatest permanent problem — an adequate endowment. This
inadequacy, operating in a vicious circle, tended to nullify all phases
of Union's growth. Because the income from Union's endowment was
insufficient in any given year to balance operating costs, the president
was forced to apply the gifts he received (at a great deal of cost to
him in time and labor) , to make up current deficits rather than
applying them to the endowment thereby insuring a larger annual

41 Dr. Boatman to writer, May 3, 1954.
48 Union College News, January, 1946.

150

Union Moves Forward, 1938-1954

income. For instance in the fiscal year, 1953-1954, President Boatman
had to raise $36,000 in gifts in order to balance the budget.44 In addi-
tion, the large building programs and unexpected outlays for plant
repairs have retarded the growth of Union's endowment.

Since 1888, Union had been the child of the Kentucky Conference
representing the Northern branch of the Methodist Episcopal Church.
Although the conference at times fostered and sustained other institu-
tions of learning over the years, Union finally emerged as the confer-
ence's only college. Reunion of Methodism in a border state such as
Kentucky where two former alien conferences found it difficult to
forget the wounds engendered by the terrible civil conflict of 1861-
1865, further complicated rather than simplified Union's status within
the two newly formed conferences.

Three colleges, Union, Kentucky Wesleyan, and Lindsey Wilson,
were now operating under the joint auspices of the Kentucky and
Louisville conferences of the Methodist Church. In 1941 a sur-
vey report recommended complete withdrawal of support from Lind-
sey Wilson, the continuance of Union, and a study of the possibilities
of moving Kentucky Wesleyan or merging it. The compilers of the
survey assumed that the burden of maintaining three conference
colleges was too great to bear. But the Joint Commission on educational
survey rejected the recommendations and advocated the continuance
of both Lindsey Wilson and Kentucky Wesleyan with the idea of
making the latter a fully accredited four year college.45 The commis-
sion also thought that Union should "continue its program of secur-
ing a major part of its operating expenses at large, receiving only
a nominal part of the regular conference benevolence and of College
Day collections." 46 In other words, this commission on educational
policy was blandly asking the Kentucky Conference not to hold itself
responsible financially for its first child, Union, but at the same time
to indicate its willingness to take care of its newly adopted waifs,
Lindsey Wilson and Kentucky Wesleyan.

Rumor had it that Union was well able to shift for itself, although
only a cursory examination of the school's finances would have been
required to reveal an entirely different picture. These dangers to
Union's existence were succinctly stated by Dr. Boatman: "The im-
pression is being made throughout the two conferences that Union
College is not the sick child of the three colleges." Throughout the
conferences the idea prevails that Union "no longer needs financial

44 President's "Report," May 25, 1953.
" Kentucky Conference, Minutes, 1941.
" Ibid.

151

Union College

aid. I can think of no menace for the future of Union College," con-
cluded President Boatman, "so serious as this impression." 47

Dr. Boatman won a great victory for Union in September, 1946 at
Wilmore, Kentucky, where after spirited debate, it was decided to
distribute the Educational funds of the two conferences equally among
the three colleges. At first the Educational Board voted for the
status quo, meaning that Kentucky Wesleyan should receive one half
with Lindsey Wilson and Union sharing the remainder. But happily
the conference rejected the Board's recommendation following an
"impassioned plea" by President Boatman.48 In 1946 Union was re-
ceiving 10 per cent of the funds while Kentucky Wesleyan got 70 per
cent. After years of pouring the major share of Conference funds into
what appeared to be a fruitless financial investment, the conferences
changed the site of Kentucky Wesleyan to Owensboro, Kentucky. How-
ever, efforts to build a new college plant at Owensboro has again
caused Union to lose its share in the great conference drive of 1953.

In spite of the handicaps mentioned, the college was able to sus-
tain a huge building program with a relatively small increase in the
indebtedness, and to witness a large increase in its endowment at the
end of the Three-Point building program. The major items — the
Library, Pfeiffer Hall, and Chapel-Fine Arts Building, together with
some minor items like the Veterans (science) Building and barracks
had boosted Union's property value from |242,000 to $1,075,000 or
over four times its prewar value. While Union's property value was
increased by over $800,000, the debt totaled only $67,000 in 1951, al-
though it had reached $200,000 in 1950. The year 1950-51, had been
a banner one in respect to gifts; $178,000 being contributed within a
twelve-month. During this same thirteen-year period (1938-1951),
Union's endowment had increased by 50 per cent its value of $414,-
000 in 1938, reaching $600,000 in 1951.49

Union's operating expenses in 1951 had multiplied over 2y2 times
that of 1938. The prewar budget of $135,000 paled into insignificance
alongside the 1950-51 budget of $360,000. In 1954-1955 it reached a
high of $396,000. During the same period endowment income had
doubled — growing from $15,000 to $30,000. The conference and College
Day Collections for Union had increased from $2,000 annually to
$20,000. Over a period of twelve years these contributions totaled
$145,000.

*T President's "Report," to Trustees, June 1, 1942.

*• Barbourville Advocate, Sept. 6, 1946.

49 These statistics which are given in round numbers are taken from the
"Reports" of the President, and the Treasurer of Union College for the period,
1938-1951.

152

Union Moves Forward, 1938-1954

One would think that with such an amazing record of physical
expansion over a dozen years that most administrators would have
been content to rest upon their laurels, but Dr. Boatman realized
that Union was still far removed from the place where the college
would be in a position to render maximum service to its students,
the community, and its faculty. Scarcely had the books been closed
upon the Three-Point Program of the Forward Movement when Presi-
dent Boatman proposed to embark upon another — A Five-Point Pro-
gram, more ambitious than the first and contemplating expenditures
over twice as great.

Three of these items on the new Forward Program were concerned
with housing. For years new faculty members were confronted with
the difficult problem of finding suitable housing on short notice. The
steel barracks, intended only for temporary student housing were
fast proving inadequate; and with the disintegration of the Trailer
Village, Union had no special attraction for the Korean Veterans or
any married couples wishing to attend school. By 1954, two of these
housing needs were fulfilled and completion of the third was guar-
anteed.

During the summer of 1953, a timely announcement was made of
a $75,000 anonymous gift to be applied toward construction of housing
units for married couples. Originally, 20 units consisting of two rooms
each in the style of a modern motel were planned. Later changing of
the plans to three-room units plus additional conveniences and fur-
nishings upped the estimate an additional $51,000. The donor readily
agreed to give the additional amount.

The story of Arthur Vining Davis who bids fair to become added
soon to Union's growing list of "saints," reads like one of Horatio
Alger's typical success tales. This son of a Yankee Congregational
minister graduated from Amhurst College the same year that Dr.
Stevenson moved on Union's campus. Hired as a handyman for the
newly born Pittsburgh Reduction Company at $14 per week, he
assisted in pouring the world's first commercial aluminum. By 1928
he had forged ahead to become chairman of the Aluminum Company
of America — that giant sprung from a pigmy company of five em-
ployees. Besides his interest in ALCOA, Mr. Davis served as director
of five other corporations. Because of these achievements in the world
of industry, Union College bestowed upon him the honorary degree of
Doctor of Commercial Science. This immensely wealthy tycoon,
through the efforts of Dr. Boatman became interested in the welfare of
Union College and donated the amount needed to build the College
Courts.

153

Union College

This need for married couples attending Union was cited in a re-
port of the Special Study Committee on May 30, 1949,50 but the com-
mittee could hardly have foreseen its coming into being 3 years later.
In late 1953, the contract for the College Courts was let to the J. W.
Wyan Company of London, Kentucky for $1 35,570. 51 With furnish-
ings the total expenditures exceeded $165,000. By May, 1954, about
$15,000 in gifts had already been subscribed for furnishings. This im-
portant addition to Union's fast growing plant was expected to be
completed by September, 1954.

As late as 1949 there was talk of purchasing an aluminum hangar
from the government for use as a gymnasium. The intitial cost was
set at $50,000 with an additional $75,000 needed for installation and
equipment. Although abandonment of this plan deferred the time
when Union was to realize her dream of a modern physical education
plant, in the long run, the delay proved fortunate. In the first place,
a hangar gymnasium was completely out of harmony with recent
architectural developments on Union's campus and would have
marred the beauty of one of Union's greatest assets — her beautiful
campus. Secondly, such makeshift equipment would have in the end,
proved unsatisfactory and Union's needs would still have remained
unfulfilled.

The great combined Kentucky and Louisville conference drives of
1953 provided the financial nucleus for construction of Union's pro-
jected $500,000 field house and gymnasium. This drive was expected
to net approximately $900,000, which meant that Union could expect
about $240,000 as her share from this source. By May, 1954, Union
had received in cash, over $75,000,52 and an outside pledge of $100,000
was anxiously expected. The Board's resolution of February 18, 1954,
provided for starting of construction when $100,000 was received in
addition to the development fund.

Upon completion of the new field house, it is planned to convert
the old gymnasium into a student-union building. One of the
severest criticisms directed at Union College throughout the years by
students and alumni has been the school's inability to cope with the
problem of satisfying student demands for a fuller social life on the
campus. At a meeting of the College Administrative Council in the
fall of 1951, the urgent need for a building which the students could
call their own, was discussed and immediate action followed. Union's
miniature student-union building opened its doors on February 16,

50 "Report" of Special Study Committee. 1919.

81 Union College Alumnus, December, 1953.

62 Treasurer of Union College to writer, May 10, 1954.

154

Union Moves Forward, 1938-1954

1952, as part of the winter homecoming festivities. This well equipped
rendezvous located near Cozy Cottage at first underwent a great
variety of names but finally by common consent, this student "hang-
out" crystallized into the Snack-Shack. Its cost of almost $9,000 was
financed entirely by friends of the college. In President Boatman's
opinion, this little adventure has proved to be by far the greatest
help to the student body social life that this college has ever pro-
vided.53

The last important item on President Boatman's new Program, and
actually the most critical in 1954, was the new housing for men
students. There is good reason to believe that the Federal Housing and
Home Finance Agency will grant a loan of $300,000 to be used in
building a wing to Stevenson Hall and for renovation of the old
dormitory itself.

Completion of the present phase of the Forward Movement, stu-
pendous as it appears (and actually is) , is only part of a larger one
projecting into the future. Apparently, in the fast moving atomic age
of the 20th century, a college which seeks to maintain only what ap-
pears to be a satisfactory status quo will soon find itself stagnant and
unproductive. In complete agreement only with the material phases
of this philosophy of education, President Boatman has outlined
further material growth under 25 year objectives.54 This includes
major repairs to the old classroom building, a small modern hotel, a
new combined science-cafeteria hall, a campus radio station, an addi-
tional women's residence hall, hard surfacing of campus driveways,
additional faculty housing and an endowment three times the 1953
size of $715,000.

The celebration of Union's 75th anniversary in 1954 marks not the
finale of a glorious epoch in material growth for the college, but only
a phase which began with the Fanny Speed era a half-century hence,
and which experienced a tremendous acceleration with the coming of
the Conway Boatman regime. In 1954 the Forward Movement seeks
to help shape Union's destiny with a well directed step into tomorrow's
unknown.

63 President's "Report," May 26, 1952.

64 "Looking Forward." Union College, 1954-1979. This is the official 75th Anniver-
sary brochure.

155

Chapter XI
UNION SERVES

WHILE IT IS true that the over-all aim of Union College, the
efficient preparation of Christian leaders for a contemporary
society,1 has remained constant since the days of Dr. Stevenson, the
college's ability to carry out included goals have increased during
the last 60 years to an extent that even Dr. Stevenson would hardly
have dared to hope. And moreover while it is also true that increased
ability to serve has come about because of the school's gradual growth
over the years, Union's expansion of more recent years has greatly
increased the college's potential in this respect.

Only one with limited vision could think of Union College as serv-
ing only the students that attend it. A broader interpretation must
include service to its faculty, the national community and finally to
the cause of Christianity. New media through which these services
function have likewise come into being and multiplied in conjunction
with the college's growth. A public, often bewildered by the various
claims of educational institutions must needs be informed of Union's
place in its peculiar field of Christian education. In years past this
work has been carried on, often haphazardly, by the personal contacts
of faculty and staff, and, through Union's students, friends, alumni,
and descriptive literature. In recent years two developments, the offices
of Public Relations and of Alumni Affairs, have greatly strengthened
Union's ties with the public and her former students.

Union secured its first full time director of public relations in
1942.2 Obviously during the trying war years little could be done with
respect to student contacts. During the past few years, the Director of
Public Relations has used such tools as college speakers, personal con-
tacts, radio programs, visual education, college student organizations,
and high school activities on Union's campus to foster better relations
between Union and the public it serves.

Union's a cappella choir, because of its annual tours has rendered
the name "Union College" a familiar term in areas of the nation far
distant from Barbourville. The choir made its initial debut on

1 Union College Bulletin, 1954-1955.
•Board of Trustees, Minutes, June 1, 1942.

156

Union Serves

television over WKRC-TV, Cincinnati, Ohio, in the spring of 1952.
Variety shows, organized under Union's Director of Public Relations
gave performances before Kentucky High School students and service
groups. The famous show of 1951-1952 consisted of the "Uke" team,
and the "Ink Blots," with the versatile Dave Jones as master of cere-
monies. The following year, Dave presented his gorgeous "Show of
Shows."

Union's first public relations radio show was presented over station
WCTT, Corbin, Kentucky on March 20, 1953, in conjunction with
High School Senior Day. The next month, the Union College program
emanating from the Conway Boatman Chapel began as a quarter-
hour weekly feature. On January 27, 1954, a similar monthly program
was instituted from WMIK, Middlesboro, Kentucky. The advent of
television has brought increased opportunities for presentation of
Union College to the public.

Pioneer work at Union in promotion of Alumni relations began at
a propitious time in 1944, when Union was making plans for post-war
development. Credit for much of this work belongs to Catherine
Faulkner Singer, '32, and Phillip E. Peters, '41. The first Alumni
Newsletter, 4 pages, mimeographed, was edited by Mrs. Singer in
November, 1944.3 The publication of the second issue, (about Feb-
ruary 1946) , was made possible by the contribution of James P.
Faulkner, who paid $26 in back alumni dues, thereby giving him the
distinction of having paid his dues in full for 52 years.4 In December,
1945, Phillip Peters, then a member of Union's faculty, took charge of
these letters. The issue of November, 1948, related an interesting story
of the organizing of the New England Chapter of Union's Alumni
Association, at the home of Bob and Mary Pearson in Braintree,
Massachusetts. This chapter meets twice a year to renew friendships
and exchange reminiscences of life at Union. Mrs. Willa Peters, '42,
prepared the only printed Alumni Newsletter, the commencement
number of 1950.

Beginning in 1952 the Alumni Newsletter grew into the Union
College Alumnus, now published quarterly by Union College. The
first issue, February, 1952, prepared under the direction of Union's
director of Alumni Affairs, Milton Townsend, '48, brought greetings
from President Boatman to the Alumni, listed the whereabouts of
many alumni, and cited the New England Chapter for its outstanding
work. Perhaps the most prominent number to date has been the

3 This number was not dated or numbered; but the second issue which is
numbered, refers to the date of the first publication.
* Alumni Newsletter, #2, n.d., [1945].

157

Union College

directory of September, 1952 which listed all Alumni receiving degrees
and Academy graduates from 1908 to 1930. The Alumni Association
was strengthened in June, 1952 through the establishment of a Board
of Directors, with four-year terms expiring at the rate of three an-
nually.5

Another Union publication of interest is the Union College News,
first appearing in September, 1944. This bulletin purported to be "a
tie of information and understanding between the college and its
friends." 6

High School and youth activities on Union's campus, as a medium
for acquainting prospective freshmen with the college, have rapidly
increased in number during the post-war period. The first of these
activities was High School Senior Day beginning in 1940, when 250
high school seniors visited Union's campus. These visits, which gives
an opportunity for high school students to witness Union at work,
have become an annual event, and the number attending has swelled
to approximately 700. Local high schools are also taking advantage
of Union's special facilities to hold dramatic and music festivals. The
same is true in the field of physical education. Union's track, the
best in southeastern Kentucky, is used annually for regional meets.

The Kentucky Conference has been using Union College as the site
for holding its Methodist Youth Fellowship Assembly. This event
which promises to become an annual event on Union's campus has
special features for each day of its weekly program. Courses in Bible,
Life of Christ, and Christian Living, are offered by trained pastors
of the Conference. Union thus assists in bringing Christian education
to youth not sufficiently advanced to enroll in the college.

When Dr. Boatman took office war clouds were already appearing
on the European horizon. Hitler, leader of the trio of international
bandits, had succeeded in reuniting the Teutonic world and was pre-
paring Germany for her long heralded thrust toward the East. War
broke out the next year, and again a European conflict threatened
America's isolationism. To one possessed of hindsight, Dr. Boatman's
voice of 1940 seemed almost prophetic: "When we look out upon our
present world, security of every kind is gravely threatened. . . . The
holocaust now raging in Europe may engulf not only our own in-
dividual interests but the interests of this college, smash enrollment,
reduce income, and for the appeal for funds for Christian education
purposes, substitute campaigns to pay staggering war costs." 7

0 Union College Alumnus, Dec. 1952.

9 Union College News, Vol. I, No. 1, (Sept. 1944).

7 President's "Report," May 27, 1940.

158

Union Serves

Not long after America's entrance into the world conflict as a
belligerent power, President Boatman presented a seven-point pro-
gram explaining how Union was prepared to serve during the war
emergency. The streamlined accelerated program would permit
graduation in three years. Courses in science, physics, and business
which tended to function more directly in the war effort would be
strengthened. Union would struggle to cope with the problems of
teacher shortage, and the training of women for emergency services.
And finally the college would strive to uphold the quality of instruc-
tion, strengthen the civilian moral, and preserve the integrity of the
moral character of the people.8 At the same time, in order to avoid
"financial anemia," strictest economy would be practiced in concert
with a drive for increasing endowment resources — Union's "only hope
of survival."

As a wartime service Union offered non-credit courses to local
citizens at only a $1.00 registration fee. Ten faculty members, all
volunteers, taught courses which were related to wartime problems
one day per week.9

The years, 1943 and 1944, were the darkest during the conflict.
Only 15 candidates were considered for degrees in May, 1943. Low
point in enrollment was reached in January, 1944, when fewer than
100 students enrolled for the second quarter. Not many students sur-
vived the crisis at Union. In June, 1945, Union graduated only 9 out of
the 113 that entered in 1941.10

The first marked improvement in enrollment (103) , came about
during the 1945 summer session. At the Lindsey Wilson Junior College
workshop, an additional 54 affiliated students received credit from
Union. Dr. Otis Amis had instituted a similar workshop at London
the preceding summer.11 The large freshman class of 100, eleven of
whom were veterans, proved that the crisis was over by September,
1945.

The influx of veterans brought with it certain expectations regard-
ing Union's immediate future. It was thought that the veterans would
constitute a problem on the campus and that extreme laxity of
morals could be anticipated as part of the war's aftermath. Fortunately
such dire predictions failed to materialize; most of the veterans proved
to be excellent students — leaders in all phases of campus activities,
and there came about a "more genuine and deeper interest in re-

8 Conway Boatman, "Program of Union College in Relation to the War
Emergency." Pamphlet, Union College Library.

9 Barbourville Advocate, Jan. 15, 1943; Schedule of classes.

10 President's "Report," June 4, 1945.

11 Faculty Minutes, June 9, 1944.

159

Union College

ligion." 12 Veterans were assisted in attaining vocational rehabilitation
and education through a guidance center opened at the college in the
fall of 1945.

Union College did not wait until the war crisis was over to make
plans for its place in the post-war world. Suggestions for a self survey
of Union College were made on October 8, 1943, at a meeting of the
Upper Cumberland Association on the campus. At a faculty meeting
(November 22) , Dr. Otis Amis of the college faculty presented a
tentative plan. A few days later his plan was adopted and Dr. Amis
was appointed co-ordinator of the study. Three area committees and
nine sub-committees were appointed to work on the project intended
to answer three questions: (1) Whom does Union College Serve? (2)
How adequately does Union Serve? (3) How should Union College
organize to serve? 13

The survey, which took two years to complete, is embodied in two
typewritten bound volumes. Crammed with statistics (116 tables),
the survey covered high school students of the area, 56 freshmen
entering Union in 1943, Union Alumni, and former non-graduating
students.

Summaries of the study of high school students indicated a swing
to commercial, scientific and mathematical interests. Music constituted
the largest extra-curricular activity, with athletics second. Church
was the largest area of activity outside the high school area. The
chief interest within high school was preparation for college.

Opinions of the college freshmen, characterized as being based upon
"immature and inadequate judgments," 14 gave answers to questions
concerning church affiliations, religious interests, leading occupations,
and standard of living as indicated by the number of newspapers,
painted houses, refrigerators, average incomes, etc., found in the area.
Returns (493) from Alumni and former students showed that Union's
location (nearness) , was the biggest factor in attracting students. In-
fluence of friends, and low college costs placed second and third
respectively. About 13 per cent were businessmen and 3 per cent had
entered the ministry. Although two-fifths of Union's former students
had engaged in teaching, most of them found history and education
courses of least value to them because they had "little or no need
for them after graduation." The most valuable courses, according
to the survey, were English and physical education.

The things they liked most about Union, said her former students,

11 President's "Report," June 2. 1947.
13 Faculty Minutes, November 22, November 26, 1943.
14 "Union College Faculty Self-Survey," I, 80.

160

Union Serves

were the faculty-student relationships and "friendly atmosphere." The
things most disliked about Union were its "inadequate social life"
(16 per cent) , its restrictions (12 per cent) , and the ban against danc-
ing (8 per cent) .15 Only 5 of Union's former students disapproved of
Union's geographical location.

A total of 348 suggestions for improvement at Union were made by
these students. The leading suggestions in order of importance were:
(1) A larger college; (2) More Christian influence; (3) More
athletics and social life.16

The committee's recommendations, based primarily on its findings,
asked for: (1) curriculum changes in the direction of vocational
needs such as secretarial science and accounting; (2) A full fledged
department of Fine Arts; (3) A new counseling program; (4) Plant
improvements; (5) Student industries; (6) Teacher education labora-
tory; (7) Improved faculty retirement system; (8) Minimum increase
of $250,000 in endowment.17 President Boatman had no doubt as to
the Survey's importance — it would "stand out in Union College's
history as a landmark of success and the beginning of a better college
on this campus." 18 Furthermore, Dr. Boatman expressed his hope to
incorporate the recommendations gradually into the total program
of the college.

Some of the curriculum trends toward vocational subjects had
already been anticipated by the college in the pre-war years. In
1939-40 the "division" of secretarial sciences offered one year of work.
When war came, two instructors were required to teach the sixteen
courses offered. In 1941 five graduates received the first diplomas in
secretarial science. Two years later the two-year diploma course in
accounting was replaced by an accelerated one-year course for the
purpose of relieving the critical shortages in that profession.19 At
the end of the war the two-year course was re-instated. Forty-eight
students received diplomas in this field in a five-year period (1948-
1952) . The next logical step, in view of the post-war needs of the
business world, was to offer a four-year curriculum in the field carry-
ing the baccalaureate degree.

Placement of a home economics division in the curriculum was
another step in the direction of offering work in the "practical arts."
Entrance of the United States into the war hastened this step because
girls now constituted the great majority of students attending college.

"Ibid., 105.

16 Ibid., Table 92.

17 Union College News, Jan. 1945.

18 President's "Report," June 4, 1945.
"Union College Bulletin, 1943-44.

161

Union College

In February, 1942, the faculty moved that home economics be added
to the curriculum.20 Beginning with the freshman year, 1942-43, it was
intended to add additional years until the degree of Bachelor of
Science in Home Economics could be offered.21 In spite of the addi-
tion of a well equipped home economics laboratory, the small enroll-
ment continued in the courses and failed to justify the effort or the
high expenditures. The biggest hindrance to the growth of the division
was the inability of the college to train for such work under the
provisions of the Smith-Hughes Act. State public school institutions
hiring personnel trained under the provisions of the act qualified
for federal grants-in-aid which underwrote the salaries of vocational
teachers in home economics and agriculture. In 1952 home economics
was dropped from the curriculum22 with the hope that sufficient de-
mand would soon justify its reinstatement.

The curriculum leading to the Bachelor of Science degree likewise
suffered from small enrollment in the post-war years and beginning
in 1948-49, new students were not allowed to register for this degree.
In 1948 Union College conferred its last B.S. degree.

Union's requirements for graduation in 1954 were approximately
the same as they were in 1938. The number of semester hours required
in science had been reduced while those in physical education were
increased. Six semester hours of work required in "social science" has
been changed to sociology, and courses formerly listed under Bible
and Moral Philosophy are now under the caption, Religion and
Philosophy. The minimum number of semester hours, 126, and the
quality point standing of 1.00, has remained unchanged.

Admission requirements to Union College have become markedly
more "liberal" during this sixteen-year period. In 1938 the applicant
for admission had to submit 15 units of standard high school work
including 3 units in English and 2 in mathematics; and not more
than 4 units in vocational subjects were accepted. In 1954 graduation
from an accredited high school was sufficient for entrance, and even
graduates of non-accredited high schools were admitted on condition.
Neither did veterans need to qualify for entrance under general
admission requirements. It may be added that these changes in
entrance requirements at Union are in harmony with changed re-
quirements in other colleges.

A study of degrees conferred in the early 1950's indicated the
direction in which Union was moving, and the fields of service expected

From College Faculty Minutes, Feb. 23, 1942.

Union College Bulletin, 1942-43.

One student graduated with a major in 1953 through special arrangements.

162

Union Serves

from potential graduates. Only about ten per cent of Union's graduates
were coming from the liberal arts curiculum, preparatory, it was
assumed, for work in the advanced professional fields of ministry,
medicine, law, etc. On the other hand, approximately sixty per cent
of Union's graduates had prepared for teaching certificates in the
elementary field, and another thirty per cent for teaching in the
public high schools.

In an effort to serve Southeastern Kentucky's need for more public
school teachers, Union increased the course offerings in the field of
education and offered work to teachers in the field. At first, the
in-service training was carried on through extension courses at night
in towns not far distant from Barbourville. Beginning in the early
1950's, Saturday classes on the campus were inaugurated for teachers
in the area living within commuting distance. This offering, successful
from the start, enabled teachers in training to carry approximately one-
third of a normal school load. For many years, Union has offered a
special spring term for the convenience of teachers whose schools
closed early in the spring.

When President Boatman assumed office at Union, all courses in
the curriculum were listed under seven departments of instruction and
the two divisions of fine arts and extension. Early in 1947, there was
much discussion at faculty meetings concerning the need for curriculum
reorganization, and a committee went to work on the problem. At a
later meeting (February 24) , three proposals were voted down by
the faculty. Not until almost a year later did the faculty adopt a new
divisional system, effective June 1, 1948. 23 Under the new organization,
all courses were listed under the six divisions of Religion and
Philosophy, Education, Fine Arts, Languages, Sciences, and Social
Sciences. These divisions were at first subdivided into 24 departments.
The numbers and titles of some of these subdivisions have undergone
change especially in the Education and Social Science Divisions. The
new system was easier to run from an administrative viewpoint and
raised the status of the former Fine Arts, Home Economics, and
Secretarial Science groups.

One of the services offered to many students of Union College is
the opportunity to earn a portion of the expenses incurred while
attending college. This service in the form of workships greatly
expanded in the post-war period. For example in 1953-54, approxi-
mately 60 students were earning a total of $ 10,000 at Union. In
addition to the workships, the college has been giving many more

Faculty Minutes, Jan. 28, 1948.

163

Union College

scholarships and grants than in former years. During 1953-54, it
issued eleven athletic and five music scholarships, totaling almost
$2,500. Ministerial grants cost the college another §2,300 in tuition
fees, and the freshman scholarships, 54 in number, totaled approxi-
mately $7,500. It is almost unbelievable that Union College could
grant and pay its students $22,000 or more yearly — more than the
full tuition fees of 100 students.

Union's first services, geographically, were in Southeastern Kentucky.
While statistics proved that Union's major sphere of service still lay
in this area, it is erroneous to think of Union as a "mountain school."
Beginning in the 1920's the proportion of students not living in the
immediate vicinity of Barbourville, gradually grew until it seemed
that there was no geographical limit to Union's areas of service. In
1928-29, about 4 per cent of Union's students came from homes out-
side Kentucky. By 1936-37, the percentage had risen to 9 per cent.
During the past five-year period, 1947-1952, Union enrolled from
outside Kentucky an average of 104 each winter term out of an average
enrollment of 475 students. One can hardly any longer consider
Union's atmosphere provincial, when over 20 per cent of its resident
winter students come from outside the Commonwealth. It is of special
interest to note that one-fourth of the out of state students in the
post-war period came from New England, a section of our nation
which led in public education from the first.24

As long as Union discriminated racially in the selection of its stu-
dents, it was hard to justify to its fullest, Union's precepts of a Chris-
tian education for all. The question of admitting negro students to
Union became a lively issue in 1946, when the college received its
first application from a member of that race.25 In the fall of 1950,
both the faculty and the regular student body voted favorably to
admit negroes.26 Only Union's Board of Trustees had the authority
to take such action and that body on February 18, 1954, passed by a
unanimous vote the motion "... that negroes should and are now
permitted to enter Union College as day students. . . ." 27

Another great service which Union College has rendered through
the years and increasingly so in the last two decades to the community
has been purely outside the educational and cultural spheres. Union
College has become Barbourville's biggest business. Coach Bacon in
1943, was among the first to call the public's attention to this fact. A

24 The number attending from New England in each of the school years from
1947-1952, were 28, 36, 28, 22, 21. respectively.

25 "Report" of Committee on Admissions, 1949-50.
29 Orange and Black, Oct. 25, 1950.

27 Board of Trustees, Minutes, Feb. 18, 1954.

164

Union Serves

payroll of $70,000 and other income was bringing in a total of $1 14,000
to Barbourville annually. The college saved commuting students
many thousands of dollars, making it possible to remain at home
while attending college.28 If this was true in 1943, it is much more so
over a decade later. Unemployment in the area has placed Union
College, as never before, as the community's chief economic bulwark.
An institution which has an operating expenditure of almost $400,000
annually, is bound to be exerting a powerful influence on the economic
life of a small community of only 3,000 people. The total payroll has
more than doubled in the decade, 1943-1953.

Services for the community must include services for the faculty,
and much progress in this direction has been made during the Boat-
man regime. These chief lines of progress are in the fields of faculty
housing, retirement, salaries, and tenure.

Before the war began, a few properties were secured adjacent to
the campus. During the conflict and shortly after when Union was
engaged in her plant expansion, little could be done in this direction.
With completion of the chapel-fine arts building in 1949, Dr. Boatman
turned to the problem of securing better housing for Union's faculty.
After a plea for action on the part of the Trustees, Dr. Boatman
said: "Therefore I make bold to say this should be a trustee meeting
that will go down in history for doing something for the faculty.
Little has been done for the faculty because there have been no
resources. ... I want this Board to go all out for faculty at this
meeting and if we do I think we can overcome 50 per cent of the
faculty short tenure problem." 29 President Boatman proposed a
loan of $75,000 from Federal Housing funds if necessary. The Board
had been presented with a way that was open and a need that was
imperative.

A year later, the Board of Trustees authorized the building of
four new housing units to be completed by September. Construction
was expected to take place on the newly purchased Decker property.
The buying of this property together with the renovation of the old
home of Andrew Decker into two apartments cost the college almost
$25,000. This construction of three new housing units in close
proximity to the old Decker home, raised the total expenditure to
$87,000.30 In 1953 the college acquired another property on College
Street for $14,830. In a two-year period faculty housing had cost

),000. By 1954, the college owned thirteen residences occupied by

28 Barbourville Advocate, Sept. 24, 1943.

"• President's "Report," May 30, 1950.

*8 These new units were first occupied in October and November, 1951.

165

Union College

faculty or staff members.31 It is of special interest to note that $32,500
of Union's total debt of $90,112 in April of 1954, was due to expendi-
tures on faculty housing. These units rent for considerably less than
the amount usually charged by private investors for like investments.

A retirement system for teachers was first inaugurated during Dr.
Gross' administration in 1938. Under arrangements with the New
England Mutual Life Insurance, faculty members and the college
each made flat contributions of $50 annually. In 1945 the Development
Committee recommended participation in the Teachers Insurance and
Annuity Association of America.32 The draft of retirement as adopted,
provided for entrance into the plan as suggested. Two years of
academic service were required for participation. Under this system,
retirement was voted compulsory at the end of the academic year in
which the member attained the age of 70. 33 By special vote of the
trustees, retirement might be postponed for a period not to exceed one
year. As first adopted the faculty member and the college each con-
tributed 5 per cent of the annual salary,34 but later the college raised
its contribution to 6 per cent. Five members of the staff and faculty
were allowed to continue under the old system, but in 1954, only
one faculty member was still participating in it.

In 1950 an amendment to the Federal Old Age and Survivors
Insurance Act (Social Security) , gave Union's faculty the right to
qualify for federal retirement benefits. In January, 1951, the board
decided to continue T.I.A.A. while at the same time entering the
federal system. Union entered the system in 1951, four months "late."
In 1952-53, the annual cost to the college for T.I.A.A. and Social
Security benefits amounted to approximately $7,000.

Although the college has not been able to pay for sabbatical leaves
for faculty members, it does grant leaves of absence for additional
graduate study or other approved purposes. In 1953, when a faculty
member proposed to make a European tour, the college offered to
pay one-fourth of this member's expenses.

The salaries paid at Union in 1954, when compared even to the
lush year of 1929, appeared stupendous. In 25 years the salaries of
full professors had doubled. In February, 1950 a salary scale based
upon rank was adopted with a range of about $700 within each rank.35

" These are 411, 420, College; 205. 402, 412. 416, Manchester; 310. 416. 418. 420. 422
N. Main; and two residences on the campus. During 1952-53, approximately $38,000
was secured in gifts to help pay for this housing.

M "Report" of Development Committee, Board of Trustees, Minutes, June, 1945.

s* In 1936 the Board of Trustees set the age limit of retiring teachers at 70.

14 Draft of Retirement, Board of Trustees, Minutes, June 4, 1945.

88 Board of Trustees, Minutes, February, 1950.

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Union Serves

In four years the established maximum became approximately the
minimum and the base salary of a Ph.D. with rank of professor was
set at $4,000. According to a faculty scale worked out under Dr. Gross'
administration in 1936, an associate professor must have completed
two years of graduate work and a full professor must hold a doctorate.
These qualifications for rank have been generally followed except
when the member is a department or division head.

Speaking of salaries at Union, President Boatman said: "I venture
the judgment that Union College exceeds any college in America
with comparable endowment and student fees income in expendi-
tures on faculty salaries and benefits." 36 At the same time it is
admitted by everyone that Union's salaries are still much below the
scales found not only in many colleges and universities, but also
public schools. If it is true that salaries have doubled in the past 20
years, it is also true that living costs have doubled; actually, in pur-
chasing power there has been little change in this respect.

At a faculty meeting held December 2, 1946, permanent tenure was
announced for faculty completing a three-year period of service. At
a later meeting the Dean of the college explained that a "continuous
contract" meant that a teacher's election was automatic after three
years, but a contract was signed as a "pledge of good faith." 37 How-
ever, tenure at Union College is not to be interpreted as meaning that
a teacher whose services are considered unsatisfactory must be retained
year after year. In 1938 the average period of service of Union's
faculty was 4.5 years. In 1953-54 the average had risen to 4.8 years.
In summing up the major problems connected with short faculty
tenure, President Boatman said: ". . . living conditions of this rural
area, I have over the years found to be a far greater hindrance to
getting and holding superior faculty than is our comparatively low
salary scale. Together they present a formidable obstacle which con-
stitutes Union College's biggest problem." 38

When the Committee on Faculty Welfare made its report in 1950,
it recommended or approved most of the measures later achieved in
1954. It asked for additional faculty housing, continuance of T.I.A.A.,
retirement optional at the age of 65, closer observance of Southern
Associations standards in regard to precentage of faculty rating at
different levels and no "apparent discrimination" as to rank at social
functions.39

*a President's "Report," May 25, 1953.

*T Faculty Minutes, January 13, 1947.

""Report" of President, May 31, 1954.

" "Report" of Committee on Faculty Welfare, Faculty Minutes, Feb. 20, 1950.

167

Union College

In making this survey of service rendered by the college to the
students, the community, the state, and the faculty, through the media
listed, no mention has been made of the extra-curricular organizations
which functioned on the campus in the period 1938-1954, and which
promoted the physical, social, and spiritual well being of the student
body. At no time in the history of Union have these adjuncts to
learning, so essential to a well balanced college life, played such an
important part.

The coming of the war soon had its adverse effects on Union's
intercollegiate athletic program. On the eve of the conflict, Union's
football mentor, Coach Bacon, had gained wide recognition for his
outstanding work at the college. Bacon's success was no accident — he
had prepared himself with study under such famous coaches as Knute
Rockne, Frank Leahy, Bernie Bierman and "Pop" Warner. In 1939,
he missed by one vote, the nomination for Kentucky's outstanding
coach, and the following year, he was awarded the coveted honor.40
In 1941 Coach Bacon won the Berea Cup Award for doing the best
basketball coaching job in the KIAC with his material. Six weeks
after Pearl Harbor, the faculty voted unanimously for discontinuing
intercollegiate football for the duration of the war.41

In the spring of 1945, with victory in sight in Europe, the faculty
took up the problem of a post-war athletic program, and passed a
resolution that the future program of Union College "emphasize
health, track, well directed intra-murals for all students, and that the
college eliminate intercollegiate football but concentrate on inter-
collegiate basketball to the extent that the college may become dis-
tinguished for success in some particular popular sport." 42

Unfortunately in the post-war years, success in any popular sport
such as basketball usually can be measured in direct ratio to the
amount of subsidies expended on players. In effect, the resolution
meant that Union must be prepared to subsidize, not lightly, but
heavily, an intercollegiate basketball team in order for the school to
become distinguished in that sport. In 6 years of KIAC competition,
1947-1953, Union had three successful seasons, and in 1948-1949 broke
even. Four years of competition (1949-1953) , in the Smoky Mountain
League, proved more successful; Union having a winning team each
year, and winning a total of 28 games while losing 12. In 1950 Union
captured the Smoky Mountain Tournament.

10 Orange and Black, March 11, 1942.

41 Faculty Minutes, Jan. 19, 1942; President's "Report," June, 1942.
" President's "Report," June 4, 1945. This resolution was passed also by the
Board of Trustees.

168

Union Serves

The resolution on post-war athletics contained a clause asking for
Union to pioneer in developing track. This, Union's administration
determined to accomplish, and on May 16, 1948, the college inaugu-
rated its new $28,000 track by winning a tri-college meet against Berea
and Georgetown. Because Union possessed the finest track in South-
eastern Kentucky, the school became a focal point for participation in
this sport. The Swim brothers, Cliff and Gerald have proved to be
Union's two outstanding field and track athletes to date. The former
holds Union's record in the low hurdles, broad jump, 220 yard dash,
and 100 yard dash while the latter holds Union's record in the pole
vault, high jump, and the high hurdles. Cliff Swim, as Union's out-
standing athlete (baseball, basketball, and track) , was honored by
having his number 22, retired at Union College in May, 1952.

In 1950 Union withdrew from the old SI AC conference because it
was the only member also participating in the Smoky Mountain
Conference. In addition, Union played only three SIAC schools and
did not have a football team for conference participation.4^ This
same year Union, under Coach Bill Bolyard, achieved probably its
most successful all around sports year in its history. The track team
was undefeated in the KIAC, and the baseball team tied for first place.
In basketball, Union took first place in the KIAC conference play
and captured the Smoky Mountain tournament.

Besides athletics, Union's old extra-curricular student clubs con-
tinued to play their part in the student life at Union. During part of
Dr. Gross' administration, student participation in some extra-cur-
ricular activity was made compulsory. This plan of giving one semester
hour credit for such participation was followed for 4 years with slight
modifications. Some clubs had 75 members, but very few took active
part.44 Although the compulsory features were dropped in 1938, at
least 20 clubs sprang into existence during the period, 1938-1954. Some
of these were offshoots of older organizations with changed titles; for
instance, the French club became the Le Cercle Fran^ais; and the old
Spanish club now dead, resurrected as La Tertulia; and the History
Club emerged as the International Relations Club.

Some of the clubs which passed out of existence after 1938 or were
merged with others were the Y.M.C.A., the Y.W.C.A., Education club,
Public Speaking club, Vocational club, Guidance club, Science club,
Sociology club, Home Economics club, Secretarial Science club, and
the Quill Club. Some of the new student organizations which have

" "Report," of Athletic Committee, May 14, 1951.

44 "Report" of Extra-curricular Activities Committee, 1942, copy attached to
Faculty minutes.

169

Union College

come on Union's campus since 1938, are Beta Chi Alpha, Oxford
Club Auxiliary, Union College Christian Association, and Women's
Athletic Association.

In 1940-1941, the Committee on Extra-curricular Activities made an
interesting study of clubs and social life at Union. The committee
report showed that almost half of Union's students did not belong to
any organization although the "average student" belonged to from
2 to 3 organizations. Amusing was the discovery that one-third of the
students thought that Union's 15 student clubs and organizations were
too few. For improvement of social life on Union's campus, the students
suggested: (1) Dancing on the campus; (2) Increased student par-
ticipation in planning student social activities; (3) Reduced faculty
class assignments for classes on days following social functions; (4)
Establishment of a date bureau; (5) Recreation center on the campus;
(6) More hikes and picnics; (7) Saturday entertainments.45

An interesting account of life at Union over most of the period,
both as a student and faculty member, has been recorded by Phillip
Peters:

My father was pastor at the Barbourville Methodist Church while I
was in the 6th, 7th, and 8th grades at the city school. I remember what
fun it was to go to the old Chatauqua programs that the college
sponsored each year. To this day I can remember the intense excitement
that I felt on those occasions — the name of a play that particularly ap-
pealed to my childish mind ("Old Crusty Hits the Air") still stays with me.

In my freshman days I was lucky to be "dormitoried" in a two-story
frame house on the campus with about a dozen other boys who made me
feel very much at home. The "house-father" was Prof. Virgil Smith,
head of the Union's fine-arts dept. at the time; I was his student secretary
for the four years of my college life, and I owe much of my music educa-
tion to his fine direction. I might say that the house I mentioned above
has since been moved from its original site and is now the residence of
another Smith — Dean H. B. Smith.

In my sophomore year, Dr. Conway Boatman became the ninth (I think
that's right) president of Union. I remember so well his inauguration.
There were official representatives from quite a number of colleges and
universities — to bring good wishes from their respective institutions; they
wore academic regalia, and I recall one dignified old lady who wore the
usual robe with a most unusual hat — it was her own street hat. I
learned later that she had refused to don the mortar-board that was
prepared for her, because she feared that it might harbor vermin from
some previous wearer. I was singing in the a cappella choir at the in-
auguration, and as we sat (behind the dignitaries) on the rather small
platform of the old auditorium, I had a quite intimate view of the entire
affair. It seemed so solemn and important an occasion to me then.

"Report" of Extra-curricular Activity Committee, 1942.

170

Union Serves

In my junior year, the editorship of the Orange and Black fell to me.
At first I was quite flattered at the honor, but later I found that under-
neath the glory lay an enormous amount of hard work. We published
only once a month, but for about one week of each month the small
staff went through a never-to-be forgotten horror. We had no office then,
and frustrations were legion. I must say, however, that when the paper
finally came out, we felt some pride in getting a hard job done.

My junior and senior years at Union were made possible by a very
generous loan from Mrs. Annie Pfeiffer, Union's late fairy god-mother.
Mrs. Pfeiffer charged me no interest on the loan, asked for no security
or note, and allowed me to repay the loan at my convenience.

In my senior year, I edited the school yearbook — The Stespean. Our
advisor, Prof. Donald Stewart, who later got his Ph.D. in history and is
now on the faculty at Drake University, was a hard worker and full of
good humor, although he did now and then assure us solemnly that, if
we didn't raise enough money to pay for the publication of the yearbook,
the college would take it out of his paycheck. I didn't know until several
years later that we actually did go "in the red" that year, but of course,
the college didn't hold Professor Stewart financially responsible. Inci-
dentally, that (1941) was the last yearbook Union had until 1945.

Another noteworthy event of that year was the opening of the new
Abigail E. Weeks Memorial Library. After the small, crowded quarters
of rooms 104, 106, 107 in the old administration building, the new library
seemed like a palace. Along with perhaps twenty other students, I helped
carry books from the old library to the new. I fully appreciated for the
first time how many books Union College owned.

Teaching at Union did prove to be a wonderful experience for me.
In my ten years on the faculty, I think I served on every committee
(except the committee on athletics) at least once, my particular favorite
was the chapel-programs committee. Although it involved much hard
work, and the possibility of cancelled programs was ever hanging over
my head, I really enjoyed this opportunity to be creative. The students
were always so responsive to good programs (and so critical of poor ones)
that it was a real challenge to find new and interesting material.

One particular responsibility got attached to me early at Union — for
eight of my ten years, I was marshal of the academic procession at com-
mencement time. The pageantry of that occasion never failed to thrill
me, although the close planning (to make everything click) began to
worry me in the later years.

Although I have many poignant memories of Union, the most recent
one is that of the commencement day in May, 1953. Near the end of the
program, we stood to sing the Alma Mater. I began singing lustily, and
then it suddenly dawned on me that this would be the last time I would
sing that song as an official member of the Union family. I must confess
that a lump of tremendous size came in my throat, and it just wouldn't
go away. I did manage to join in the last chorus.**

During the school years, 1938-1954, many interesting features ap-
peared on Union's campus and even a catalog of them would fill

*6 Phillip I. Peters to writer, March 7, 1954.

171

Union College

many pages. In 1945 the student annual, the Stespean, appeared again
after an omission of three years. Under the leadership of Dr. Karl
Bleyl, in May, 1948, Union participated in the first Daniel Boone
Festival. The next spring the college International Relations Club
was host to the Ohio Valley Conference, composing more than 60
colleges and universities. Approximately 200 delegates attended the
conference which was under the direction of Clyde Pearson, Union's
I.R.C. president. In March, 1953, Union enjoyed the greatest musical
treat of its history when the Louisville Symphony orchestra presented
a program in the Conway Boatman Chapel. For a period of 10 years
Union College students enjoyed the superb piano numbers presented
by the duo team of Miss Katherine V. D. Sutphen and Professor
Phillip Peters.

Miss Sutphen retired in 1954 with the second longest period of
service in Union's history, only one less year than that given by Miss
Weeks. After graduation from the New England Conservatory of
Music, Miss Sutphen came to Union in 1905 with the beginning of the
Easley regime. Speaking of these days at Union nearly a half-century
ago, when he was a young professor, Dr. James E. Dunning wrote: "I
wonder if Miss Sutphen will recall how a group of the faculty used to
gather in one of those rooms in the evenings to sing. I still have a
copy of Der Erlkoenig which Miss Sutphen made for me in pen and
ink. I marvelled at the dexterity with which she played the accompani-
ment (64/th triplets as I recall) , and I learned that and many songs
with her accompaniment." 47

Besides her services at Union, Miss Sutphen taught at the School
of Fine Arts, Marshalltown, Iowa; Allentown College for Women,
Pennsylvania; Agnes Scott College for Women, Decatur, Georgia, and
at Alabama College. In addition she served as Field Secretary of the
Rockport Art Colony and as director of the Baker Church Choir at
Baker University. She supplemented her musical education with study
in organ under Dr. J. Laurence Erb, and did additional work at the
University of Washington and Nebraska.

Miss Sutphen had continuous service at Union after 1932. Union's
commencement in 1930 was named in her honor and the class of 1953
planted a tree for her on Union's campus as a memorial. Miss Sutphen
entertained the students and faculty for the last time (May, 1954) at
the President's reception for seniors with Paderewski's, "Menuet
a 1'Antique."

47 Dr. James Edwin Dunning to writer, March 26, 1954. Dr. Dunning was a
classmate of Miss Weeks at Dickinson College. At this writing. Dr. Dunning is
Field Secretary of the Southern California-Arizona Annual Conference of the
Methodist Church.

172

Union Serves

One phase of student life for the period, 1938-1954, remains to
be discussed — that of religious life at Union. Although the college,
since the days of Dr. Stevenson has suffered hardships, temporary
retractions, and wounds almost until death, her administrators never
lost sight of Union's prime goals. Concerning Union's place as a
Christian institution, Dr. Boatman said:

... if "Christian" in Christian Education does not become effective
in the lives of Youth we have failed dismally. As trustees you should
understand that as Methodist Colleges go, Union College is different, and
that difference consists in the sincere, persistent effort, organized and
individual, on this campus to exalt Christ in student thinking as essential
to happiness and success. The Christian religion is a matter of both
personal experience and way of life. Rarely is found a college that is so
active and energetic as Union in efforts to integrate mental and spiritual
growth. The insistent emphasis here is that desirable character can not
be developed apart from conscious experience of Christ. The service
motive is introduced as the guide to useful living. No individual or insti-
tute can boast of Christian attainment for there always remains such
to be desired. Nevertheless, there is much to encourage us in the religious
life of our student body. Religion is a sincere, natural subject of informal
conversation all about the campus.48

The leading student Christian organization on the campus, the
Union College Christian Association was formed in September, 1939,
by combining the old YMCA and YWCA organizations. The move-
ment came about because of a student vote on the matter.49 Article II
of its constitution sets up three objectives: (1) To enable its members
to live a richer life through a growing knowledge of God and a
deeper understanding of Jesus Christ his son; (2) To sponsor good
will projects throughout the year; (3) To cooperate with other campus
organizations in order to promote fellowship and social activities.

All members of the Oxford Club — those anticipating entrance
into the ministry, and the Oxford Club Auxiliary, participate in the
work of the UCCA. Under the sponsorship of Dr. Horace Weaver,
the UCCA has grown into Union's largest and most popular campus
organization. It has already become a tradition for the Oxford Club
and Oxford Club Auxiliary to join together, twice a year, for a
"retreat" at Cumberland Falls. Besides the clubs mentioned, other
factors contribute to the spiritual life of Union's students. They are
"challenged and inspired" by the Wednesday chapel services, the
local church services, class work, Religious Emphasis Week, and the
counseling furnished by Union's Director of Religious Education.

48 President's "Report," May 30, 1950.

49 Orange and Black, Oct. 1, 1939.

173

Union College

Union's Department of Religion seeks "to encourage students to see the
revelance of religion for their lives; also to see that Religion and science
do not conflict, but supplement each other in their own peculiar ways.
We also try to show that religion is a normal human need, and has a
proper place in the academic, recreational, social, economic, and
aesthetic life of the student. Religion is seen as a part of life — not some-
thing divorced from life. Class-room instruction attempts to show the
intellectual integrity of religious persons, and to challenge the student
to appropriate the truths being discussed." "

As a means of improving spiritual life at Union, Dr. Weaver pro-
posed increased faculty participation in religious activities, the hiring
of a part time Director of Religious Life, and a sense of the "com-
munity" (no cliques) , among the faculty.51 Dr. Boatman felt that
some deficiences in student religious life could be overcome by elimi-
nating the wrangling between "liberal and conservative" groups,
by overcoming passive religious attitudes, and finally by encouraging
increased student religious leadership.52 In spite of these acknowledged
deficiences, visitations to Union's campus by men who are in a position
to pass judgment, have repeatedly led to favorable comments on the
fine religious atmosphere at Union. The following extract is only one
of many recorded in Union's archives. "Your school is doing an out-
standing job of Christian education and I look forward to these
occasions which draw me to your campus." 53

After having studied this brief survey of Union's services carried
through the restless years of mid-twentieth century, one finds, upon
ariving at the year, 1954, excellent reasons for pausing to look back
over the time space that separates 1954 from 1879 — a period of service
extending across three quarters of a century. And after a student of
the history of Union College has learned the story of Union's rise,
vicissitudes, and many narrow escapes from destruction, he may well be
willing to think of Union's history as the "Miracle of Union College."
So it came about that Union's friends sought in 1954 to celebrate
this "miracle" of Union's existence, growth and completion of seventy-
five years of service, with a mammoth celebration.

Perhaps the first mention of a jubilee celebration was made by
President Boatman himself in his annual message to the trustees. "In
five years," wrote Dr. Boatman, "we should celebrate the 75th anniver-
sary, the Diamond Jubilee. It is both fitting and imperative that this
college set up and achieve unprecedented goals worthy of the present

60 Dr. Horace Weaver to writer, March 2, 1954.
" Ibid.

"President's "Report," June 2, 1941; May 31, 1948.

" William Canson of the Candler School of Theology, to Conway Boatman, April,
1947.

174

Union Serves

crisis and demands, and come to the 75th anniversary with the celebra-
tion of achievements worthy of a great jubilee." 54 Three years later
the Board of Trustees authorized the establishment of a Jubilee Steer-
ing Committee composed of faculty, trustees and alumni.

When the Jubilee Steering Committee met for the first time on
March 17, 1953, a tentative list of general objectives, implementation,
and personnel was adopted; and the permanent officers, Buford Clark,
president, and Milton Townsend, secretary, were elected. "Looking
Backward and Thinking Forward" was chosen as the guiding principle,
and the enlisting of thousands of people to work for the welfare of
Union College was selected as the general goal. The proposed imple-
mentation consisted of a six-day series of gala celebrations, each named
for the group or event being honored. In addition, two special works
were authorized to be written in connection with the celebration — a
historical pageant, and a history of the College.55 The latter task was
assigned to the Professor of History at Union College.

At the second sitting of the Steering Committee in September, 1953,
six sub-committees were appointed to plan and carry out programs
for each of the six days. Bishop Fred P. Corson, President of the Board
of Education of the Methodist Church was announced as Commence-
ment speaker for 1954, and Bishop Watkins was named to deliver the
Baccalaureate address. Mrs. Tom Easterly, formerly of Union's division
of Fine Arts, was approved for the directorship of the Diamond
Jubilee Pageant. As an added feature, the publication of a special
commemorative 75th anniversary brochure was unanimously approved.
Final jubilee plans were completed at a third meeting of the Steering
Committee on February 19, 1954.

In March, 1954, the most beautiful brochure in Union's history
appeared. Entitled, "Looking Forward," this pamphlet, principally
the work of President Boatman, summarized Union's past, her growth,
and her planned 25 year objectives with a projection of a quarter of
a century into the future. In addition, the well illustrated pamphlet
contained special articles on Union's trustees, Fanny Speed and Anna
M. Pfeiffer, the academic program, and Christian influence at Union.

Union's grand series of festivals ran almost a week, beginning
Thursday, May 27, through Tuesday, June 1. The divisional daily
celebrations were named Barbourville, Faculty and Student, Alumni,
Louisville and Kentucky Conferences, Trustees, and Annual Com-
mencement days.

64 President's "Report," May 30, 1949.

5B As early as 1952, J. William Harris, '01, in a letter to Union's director of
Public Relations, suggested the necessity for a history of Union.

175

Union College

The most picturesque event of a week packed with the unusual was
the historical pageant presented outdoors in front of the Conway
Boatman Chapel. This unique production, "Towers of Strength," had
for its theme, Union's primary objective, Christian education. Each of
the eight epochs into which Union's history was divided portrayed
several poignant highlights of Union's history. At the end of the grand
finale, Union's friends swung into the final chorus of Union's alma
mater, lifting their eyes to witness the floodlights playing upon the
stately spire high above the college sanctuary — the symbol of Union's
mission, pro deo et homine.

As the curtain fell upon Union's first three quarters of a century
of service, the college turned to face the future. Union had finished
looking backward in honor of its past and was thinking only forward.

I find thee, Union College, still,

Enduring as the sun;
And just as fair as in those days

When dreams had just begun;
A fortress strong, our citadel,

Among your stately elms;
Your grandeur through the passing years

Our memory o'erwhelms.
You've proven to be our beacon light

Through a thousand yesterdays
And through die morrows we'll give

To thee our solemn praise.5'

By Martha Tcague, Orange and Black, May 25, 1949.

176

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE

The author wishes to acknowledge his indebtedness to the follow-
ing persons who were either interviewed or contributed by mail.

INTERVIEWS BY THE AUTHOR

Mrs. Annie Albright, April 6, 1953.

Dr. Conway Boatman, May 3, 1954.

Gertrude Black, July 7, 1954.

Pitzer Black, July 7, 1954.

Andrew M. Decker, III, March 17, 1954.

Mrs. Hattie Edwards, April 15, 1953.

Mr. and Mrs. W. D. Faulkner, March 11, 1954.

Thomas Fuller, March 19, 1954.

Mrs. Myrtle Minton, April 20, 1953.

The Honorable Flem D. Sampson, March 20, 1953.

Miss Katherine V. Sutphen, April 23, 1953,-March 3, 1954.

James Tuggle, April 30, 1953.

Mr. and Mrs. James Tuggle, July 8, 1953.

Judge Jessie Tuggle, July 8, 1953.

George Tye, April 29, 1953.

Dr. Horace Weaver, March 2, 1954.

LETTERS TO THE AUTHOR

The Reverend Howard P. Donahue, College Hill, Ky., Sept. 8, 1953;

Nov. 4, 1953.
Eleanor P. Donovan, Elkland, Pennsylvania, March 30, 1954.
Dr. James E. Dunning, Los Angeles, California, March 26, 1954.
Joan Easley, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, September 1, 1953.
Maureen Faulkner, Berea, Kentucky, March 23, 1954.
Dr. Ezra T. Franklin, Fort Wayne, Ind., March 3, 1954; April 27,

1954.
Grace R. Franklin, Fort Wayne, Indiana, November 13, 1953.
John P. Grider, Ravenna, Ohio, February 2, 1954.
Blanche Griffing, Perryville, Kentucky, July 14, 1953; August 25, 1953.
Mrs. A. D. Grider Hewitt, Kansas City, Missouri, February 23, 1954.
J. E. Matthews, Knoxville, Tennessee, April 21, 1953.

177

Union Serves

E. R. Overley, Union, South Carolina, March 15, 1954.

Phillip I. Peters, Jeffersonville, Indiana, March 7, 1954.

Percy L. Ports, Arlington, Virginia, February 26, 1954; March 29, 1954.

Delia J. Rankin, San Diego, California, July 12, 1953; September 19,

1953.
Catherine Faulkner Singer, Beech Grove, Indiana, March 11, 1954.
Mrs. Ida Tribble, College Hill, Kentucky, November 4, 1953.
Dr. Oscar Wesley, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, December 9, 1953.
Dr. George H. Wilson, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, August 3, 1953.

178

APPENDIX

THE ORIGINAL ARTICLES OF INCORPORATION OF
UNION COLLEGE, OCTOBER 18, 1879

"This certificate of Incorporation made and entered into this 18th
day of October 1879, in pursuance of the provisions contained in
chapter 56 of the general statutes of Kentucky, defining the right,
duties and privileges of Incorporated Companies.

• * • • •

All being citizens of the United States and being desirous of form-
ing a corporation for the purpose of founding, establishing and carry-
ing on an Institution of Learning at Barbourville, Knox County,
Kentucky, to be known as Union College of Barbourville, do make this
certificate of Incorporation in writing and state and certify the follow-
ing particulars, viz:

1st. The corporate name of the company hereby organized, shall be
Union College Corporation, and its principal place of business shall
be at the town of Barbourville, Knox County, Kentucky.

2nd. The object of the formation of said corporation shall be to
found, establish and carry on said Union College of Barbourville,
Kentucky.

3rd. The amount of capital stock of said corporation shall be,
(nominally) Twenty thousand Dollars divided into shares of twenty
dollars each.

4th. The term of existence of said corporation shall be twenty-
five years from the filing of this instrument in the proper office for
record.

5th. The affairs of the Corporation shall be conducted by a Board
of Directors composed of a President, Vice President, Secretary, Treas-
urer and Attorney, and two other members of the company.

6th. The names of the officers who shall service the first year are
A. H. Harritt, President, W. W. Sawyers, Vice President, James D.
Black, Secretary, Green Elliott, Treasurer, and John Dishman, At-
torney, and Peter Hinkle and W. B. Anderson.

7th. Annually after the first year the officers shall be elected by
the stock holders representing the paid up shares.

179

Appendix

8th. The stock subscribed shall be paid up in such amounts as shall
be ordered by the Board of Directors.

9th. The indebtedness of the Corporation shall at no time exceed
two thirds of the amount of capital stock subscribed.

10th. The private and individual property of the members of the
Incorporation, officers and stock holders shall not be liable for the
payment of the debts of the Corporation."

LEADING STOCKHOLDERS OF THE
UNION COLLEGE CORPORATION

NO. OF DATE OF

NAME

SHARES PURCHASE

1. W. W. Sawyers 16 May 5, September 21,

September 24, 1880.

2. James H. Tinsley 13 January 23, 1881,

February 16, 1882.

3. James T. Gibson 12 January 28, 1881.

4. John A. Black 12 January 26, 1886.

5. Green Elliott 6 January 5, October 21, 1880.

6. Mrs. Josephine Harritt 4 May 5, 1880, February 2, 1881.

7. William Lock 4 January 4, 1881.

8. A. H. Harritt 4 February 2, 1881.

9. Peter Hinkle 4 February 16, 1882.

10. Ellen C. Lyttle 4 January 24, 1881.

11. Eupemia Pogue 2 January 4, 1881.

12. John D. Jarvis 2 January 4, 1881.

13. A. E. Pogue 2 January 28, 1881.

14. J. N. Baughman 2 February 27, 1884.

15. Mrs. M. S. Costellow 2 February 27, 1884.

Ill

FIRST ANNOUNCEMENT OF UNION COLLEGE IN
THE LONDON ECHO, DECEMBER 12, 1879

A company with a capital stock of $70,000 has been duly organized
to establish the above named institution. This enterprise is designed
to fill a long felt want in Eastern Kentucky, East Tennessee and
Western Virginia. Steps have been taken looking to the erection of
suitable college buildings which will be completed at an early date.

180

Union College

Under the title, "Union College," it is designed to combine three
departments, classical, business and normal. The institution will not
be under partisan or sectarian control. It will be open to all denomina-
tions and to both sexes.

It is intended to begin a semi-annual session about January 5, 1880.
The rates of tuition and the names of the faculty will be announced
in due course of time.

ADDRESS BY DR. DANIEL STEVENSON IN CONFERRING

DEGREES UPON THE FIRST GRADUATING CLASS,

JUNE 8, 1893. TRANSLATION FROM THE LATIN

BY JAMES P. FAULKNER, 1936.

It is now my privilege, honored seniors, to address you briefly.
Faithful students, you have been with us more than four years. The
road through which you have come to this hour has been tortuous and
difficult, and there have been times when without doubt you have
been discouraged and nearly ready to give up, for the way of the
learner is not always lined with roses; it is often beset with thorns.
However, after much labor and great effort you have finished the
course prescribed by this college for those who, as time goes on, may
wish to receive its honors.

I congratulate you that you have been thought worthy to receive
the reward of all your labors, and, now, giving you your diplomas,
I wish for you prosperity in all your future and pray that, in your
entire journey through life, you may honor the name of your Alma
Mater. You are her first grown sons, and it will be incumbent upon
you to act as examples for all her younger children.

Sending you from our halls, let me give you our most heart felt
blessings. May you strive so to live that no preparations will have to
be made by you, when you come to the end of this life but you will be
able to die in peace, sustained by the hope of eternal life.

I give to you now these evidences of your faithfulness and learning:
James Perry Faulkner, accept this diploma. John Elbert Thomas,
accept this diploma.

181

Appendix
V

UNION COLLEGE FACULTY UNDER THE HARRITT,
POYNTER, AND GRIDER ADMINISTRATIONS, 1879-1886

Bland, Edwin O., A.M.; Latin and English, 1879-1881.

Chapman, Miss Jessie, Music, 1879-1880.

Clagett, J. H., (?), 1884-1885.

Clagett, Miss Annie, Art, 1884-1885.

Clagett, Mrs. J. H., Assistant, Music, 1884-1885.

Decker, A. M., Jr., Primary assistant, 1880-1881.

Douglas, Mollie, Music, 1881.

Frasey, Mr., Music, spring, 1882.

Greathouse, Mr., (?) , 1882.

Griffing, Sarah Poynter, Primary principal, 1882-1884.

Goetz, Francis, Diploma, Berlin Conservatory, Music, 1885-1886.

Goetz, Mrs., Music, 1885-1886.

Gordon, Anna, (?) , Music, 1882-1884.

Grider, John, Grades, January-June, 1886.

Grider, Hartford P., A.B., President, Academic subjects, 1884-1886.

Grider, Mrs. H. P., Grades, 1884-1885.

Harris, (?) , Spring, 1882.

Harritt, Abraham H., A.M., President, Mathematics, Belle-Lettres,

1879-1882.
Harritt, Mrs. A. H., Primary grades, 1880-1882.
Hultz, Miss Mary, Primary grades, 1882-1883.
Mayes, Lillian, Music, 1881-1882.
Northcut, Lula, Music, 1884-1885.

Poynter, Thomas Clay, A.B., President, academic subjects, 1882-1884.
Perry, Mr., (?) , 1882.

182

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