Tarleton history

Tarleton’s 125 Years of Excellence: Dr. Dick Smith

Dr. Dick Smith was a professor of government at Tarleton for almost 40 years, from 1934 to 1973. Born in Milford, Texas in 1908 to a county judge and high school teacher, politics and education were in his blood. Smith briefly attended Tarleton in 1926 before completing his undergraduate degree and receiving his master’s fromContinue reading “Tarleton’s 125 Years of Excellence: Dr. Dick Smith”

Tarleton’s 125 Years of Excellence: The Mollie J. Crow Building

As we near the completion of the 125th fall semester at Tarleton State University, let us look at an important campus building from our past, one of the first large buildings on campus. Located off what is now known as Military Drive, the Mollie J. Crow building was the first administration building on campus. ButContinue reading “Tarleton’s 125 Years of Excellence: The Mollie J. Crow Building”

Tarleton 125 Years of Excellence: History of Dick Smith Library

As Tarleton celebrates 125 Years of Excellence, Tarleton Libraries will showcase different stories and accounts from the university’s history using material from the archives. This month, we will look at the library’s history on campus. Tarleton Libraries can trace its history back to 1902, when President E. E. Bramlette and his wife, Louise, took theContinue reading “Tarleton 125 Years of Excellence: History of Dick Smith Library”

Commencement at John Tarleton College 121 Years Ago

May graduation ceremonies will be held at Tarleton on 5/10 and 5/11. So, we’ve decided to republish a post from last year about Tarleton’s first graduation ceremony held in 1903. It was a special time for the five students. They were about to become the first graduates from John Tarleton College. The celebration schedule wouldContinue reading “Commencement at John Tarleton College 121 Years Ago”

Commencement at John Tarleton College 120 Years Ago

It was a special time for the five students. They were about to become the first graduates from John Tarleton College. The celebration schedule would encompass three days with morning and evening events each day. The year was 1903; the month was May. The students’ names were William M. Bowman, Monnett P. Chambers, Melissa PearleContinue reading “Commencement at John Tarleton College 120 Years Ago”

READ Poster Reveal 2023

Since 2010, the Tarleton State University Libraries have celebrated National Library Week, by honoring two individuals or groups from the Tarleton community with READ posters. Library staff select two honorees that we feel exemplify one or more of Tarleton’s core values. This year’s recipients are the Tarleton Greeks and the Staff Council. On April 6th,Continue reading “READ Poster Reveal 2023”

Service Day and Day of Giving

At Tarleton State University, Service Day and the Day of Giving are dearly held traditions that highlight one of the core pillars that bolster Tarleton’s foundation, service. By helping fellow students, staff, or faculty, the communities that surround the Tarleton campuses, or even other areas in Texas and the United States, Tarleton Texans have leftContinue reading “Service Day and Day of Giving”

Women Who Tell Our “Tarleton Stories”

The United States celebrates women’s history in March each year. The national theme for 2023 is Women Who Tell Our Stories. The Tarleton Libraries’ Archives and Special Collections has several archival collections that were created by women affiliated with Tarleton State University. This blog post explores one of those women and the story her collectionContinue reading “Women Who Tell Our “Tarleton Stories””

John Tarleton\’s Land Patent

About a month ago, the library\’s archives received some documents from the President\’s Vault pertaining to the history of Tarleton State University. This is the 1861 patent for some of the land that became part of Tarleton\’s estate, the sale of which helped create John Tarleton Agricultural College . This describes a 1605-acre parcel inContinue reading “John Tarleton\’s Land Patent”

October is American Archives Month!

In recognition of American Archives Month, here are just a couple of the interesting items in the Dick Smith Library\’s archives. The two pages pictured below (click on the images to make them larger) are from the Flora Clarke scrapbook, 1924-1926. It was created by Flora Marguerite Clarke Kinney (1907-1987) when she attended John Tarleton AgriculturalContinue reading “October is American Archives Month!”