During late summer 1958, many of Texas Instruments’ employees were enjoying the company’s annual two-week vacation. Not Jack Kilby, who as a recently hired engineer, had not accrued enough vacation time and kept on working in TI’s Semiconductor Components division in Dallas. TI was developing the micro-module program with the U.S. Army Signal Corps, but…Continue Reading The Integrated Circuit has just turned 60
Doing It–Creating Controversy at SMU
During the summer, our friends at the William G Jones film archives discovered a fascinating, and little known, story about an uproar at Southern Methodist University in its WFAA Newsfilm Collection. The controversy centered over the student handbook. Student handbooks are often the most mundane of publications—they’re rarely even read by the students who are…Continue Reading Doing It–Creating Controversy at SMU
Honoring Santos Rodriguez
Mid-May of this year, I discovered a series of contact sheets and photographs in the Andy Hanson collection here at the DeGolyer Library. Hanson was a photographer for the Dallas Times Herald. I didn’t know what I was looking at except that the pictures were of a demonstration. I could see that in some frames…Continue Reading Honoring Santos Rodriguez
Archives of the Women of the Southwest 25th Anniversary Celebration
On Sunday, March 11, 2018, the Advisory Board of the Archives of the Women of the Southwest celebrated the 25th Anniversary of the founding of the board with a celebration at the DeGolyer Library at SMU. The Advisory Board was created in 1993 to: Promote the visibility and scholarly value of archival material related to…Continue Reading Archives of the Women of the Southwest 25th Anniversary Celebration
June 6, 1968 – June 6, 2018: the 50th Anniversary of the Assassination of Senator Robert F. Kennedy
Fifty years ago, like his brother President John F. Kennedy, Senator Robert F. Kennedy – Bobby – was murdered by an assassin’s bullet. The year 1968 was a tempestuous time in America. The Vietnam War continued, and the anti-war movement peaked. Martin Luther King had been killed earlier in the year,…Continue Reading June 6, 1968 – June 6, 2018: the 50th Anniversary of the Assassination of Senator Robert F. Kennedy
Sarah T. Hughes, Only Woman to Ever Have Sworn in a U.S. President
Sarah T. Hughes (1896 – 1985), American lawyer and federal judge, was a woman of firsts. She moved to Dallas in 1922 with her husband, George E. Hughes whom she had met in law school. George was able to find a job quickly, but no law firm would hire Sarah. Eventually, a small firm gave her…Continue Reading Sarah T. Hughes, Only Woman to Ever Have Sworn in a U.S. President
Mr. Stanley’s Birthday!!!
April 20 – it’s Mr. Stanley’s birthday! Born in Dallas, Stanley Marcus (April 20, 1905 – January 22, 2002) was the eldest son of Neiman Marcus store founder Herbert Marcus. He attended Harvard University where he graduated in 1925. It was during his years in Cambridge that he began his life-long hobby of collecting rare books….Continue Reading Mr. Stanley’s Birthday!!!
Isabel T. Kelly Ethnographic Archive, El Tajin Fieldwork
Isabel Truesdell Kelly (1906-1983) was a social anthropologist and archaeologist who specialized in Mexican cultures. She developed a scholarly interest in anthropology while a student at the University of California, Berkeley (UCB), and conducted fieldwork in 1931-1934 with the Coast Miwok and the Southern Paiute people. Kelly was an indefatigable field worker. She went to Mexico in…Continue Reading Isabel T. Kelly Ethnographic Archive, El Tajin Fieldwork
Remembering Horton Foote
Horton Foote (1916-2009) was born this day, March 14. He grew up in Wharton, Texas and wrote about his childhood home in prose, plays, and productions for television and film. He is mostly known for his Oscar-winning screenplays for To Kill a Mockingbird and Tender Mercies, and his Pulitzer Prize-winning play A Young Man in…Continue Reading Remembering Horton Foote
Remembering Marsh Terry
Marsh Terry, also known as “Mr. SMU,” was born this day–February 7. He was a long-term friend of the DeGolyer Library. For a while, he even had an office (Room 318) here. Marsh graduated from SMU. Marsh worked at SMU. Marsh taught at SMU. And Marsh wrote about SMU. From High on the Hilltop is…Continue Reading Remembering Marsh Terry