osu_archives

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Beautiful images, complex histories, missing details…

This is another image that tells a story; unfortunately, we can only guess the plot.

Here’s what we know: the picture was taken by Benjamin Gifford around 1900. It’s likely that it was taken in Eastern Oregon, probably at the Pendleton Round-up.
Benjamin was well-known for his images of Native Americans, scenic views of the Columbia River and the Columbia River Highway, and views of central Oregon and Portland areas, publishing Art Work of Oregon in 1900 and a view book entitled Snap Shots on the Columbia in 1902.
You can read more about the Giffords on the collection page and see a list of Benjamin Gifford’s images on the finding aid for the photo collection.

You can see images taken by Ralph Gifford when he was stationed on Whiddy Island, Ireland, by visiting our osu.archives Flickr set.

And, as always, if you know more tell us!

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Ruth Namuro and John Garman, the life in autochrome

In the humblest of opinions, this is one of the most stunning photos we have. The colors, details, simplicity, and peace are incredible. What do we know about the subject, Ruth Namuro? Not much, which is a shame because there is a undoubtedly a back-story to the image we see here. Instead, we’ll focus on John Garman, the photographer.

Here’s the condensed version of what you’ll find on the John Garman biography page, which accompanies a great online exhibit of some of his other photographs.

John Garman was born in Urbana, Illinois, in 1896, though his family moved to Portland when he was two. After graduating from Benson Polytechnic High School in 1916, Garman enrolled at Oregon Agricultural College (OAC). According to an oral history interview with Garman, he and a friend made a bicycle trip from Portland to Corvallis in 1917, where they enrolled at OAC. The funny part of the story is that they had intended to travel to Eugene to enroll at the University of Oregon, but the two decided that they had travelled far enough for that trip. Though for those who’ve ridden the rest of the way, the trip down Hwy 99 from Corvallis to Eugene can be quite beautiful…

He began his studies in Electrical Engineering, specializing in telephony, though he also an accomplished musician (the b flat clarinet being his instrument of choice. However, as life often does, Garman took a detour after his first year at OAC: he entered the Army and was sent to service in WWI. While enlisted, he served as an instructor, training recruits in basic marching and drill. Really, it was lucky for all of us who enjoy his photography that he enlisted, because it was in the Army that Garman picked up his camera. Although he had been given a camera as a child, he didn’t take a serious interest in photography until an Army friend reintroduced him to it while they were in camp.

After WWI, he returned to OAC and began taking elective courses in photography from R.W. Uphoff, was involved in some of the early work on synchronous flash devices, and some early work in commercial applications of color photography. He was also a member of the OAC band and orchestra, manager of the band his junior and senior years, and a member of Kappa Kappa Psi (the Music honors society). In the meantime, Garman continued his studies in electrical engineering, founding the OAC chapter of Eta Kappa Nu, the Electrical Engineering honors society, and serving as the first president of OAC’s chapter. He graduated with a B.S. in Physics, with honors, in 1922.

After graduation, Garman spent the summer working for the Western Electric Co. in their telephony division. He returned to OAC as a part-time instructor in Engineering. R. W. Uphoff left OAC that year to pursue his own photography, and  Garman was hired in September 1923 to replace him as instructor of Photography in the Physics Department– this was a position he held until his retirement in 1966. Garman concentrated on the practical aspects of photography, believing the purpose of photography was “to make accurate and usable records of how things worked, and how they were built, and what they were for, and how they were adapted to their use …”

Without this practical-minded approach to photography, OSU might never have created its Photographic Services. Because of his photography talents, Garman had become well-known and sought after by the OAC faculty. It was Garman, working with Ed Yunker, who created the Photo Services in 1924 when they realized that their work taking pictures for other departments was interfering with thier ability to do the work for which the college had actually hired them.

As an instructor, John Garman didn’t simply teach students how to point a camera at something and push a button; he insisted that his students understand the optics of a camera, the geometry of using lenses and of composition, and the chemistry of films and printing processes. He said this of of photography: “Processes are being continually changed and improved and if you don’t have a basic understanding of them the first change licks you. So, we found it advisable to teach people basic understandings of photography. Not, just training.”

He retired in 1966, after 45 years of teaching photography; however, in 1969, when the decision was made to move the instruction of photography to the Art Department, Garman was the natural choice to help the new caretakers of photography set up classes and labs– so he returned…

It wasn’t all electrical engineering and pictures: in 1925, Garman married Florence Goff, and they had three children. Garman passed away in November of 1989.

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Listen up!

A snapshot of Zelda Feike Rodenwold: How did she become the “housewife’s friend”?

What do we know about Zelda Rodenwold, first director of women’s programs at KOAC? If only you could all read the “Who’s Who in the Faculty Series: Radio Station KOAC” piece on Mrs. Rodenwold from the Archives’ Memorabelia Collection… It’s a late 1930s gem!

Rodenwold, born Zelda Feike, known from teaching women how to make “the best of a little and get the best return from the things they have,” was beloved for her work as the director of the the home economics extension radio programs. She was born in Iowa in 1897 and worked most of her life in the schools (student and teacher). Her family moved to Granite, Oklahoma in 1911, where she studied shorthand and typing, a skill that helped her pay her way through liberal arts courses at Drake University by working as a secretary. Her parents moved to Portland, Oregon, and Rodenwold followed in 1914. She travelled down the Valley, registering at OAC (OSU) in the fall of 1916 in the home economics program.

She was a member of the Chi chapter of Delta Zeta, one of the founding members of their Zeta Chi local, its president, and later the first president of Delta Zeta. Again, using those typing and shorthand skills, she paid her college expenses by doing office work, waiting tables at Waldo Hall, and serving as a student correspondent for the Oregon Journal. She was the first woman editor at the Barometer, member of the Scribe, Omicron Nu national home economics honor society, and Forum (which later became Phi Kappa Phi national scholastic society). And, in her spare time, she was president of Waldo Hall. She graduated in 1919 with a BA.

Though she had planned to be a teacher, after graduation she was asked by Ava Milam to work as the secretary for the School of Home Ec, a position she accepted and held for two years before moving on to another one as the secretary of the Alumni Association. There, shocked that there wasn’t an alumni magazine, she established a monthly paper called “OAC Alumnus.

She was married in 1924 to a fellow OAC employee, Ben Rodenwold (assistant professor of Animal Husbandry). After marrying Rodenwold, she gave up her position as a secretary, but remained editor of the magazine, which became known as Oregon State Monthly. She did free-lance writing and had stories published in Sunset, Forecast, Practical Home Economics, Pacific Northwest Magazine, and School Life.

In 1928, her husband received a year leave, so they both returned to Iowa State College to pursue masters of science degrees. With her advanced degree in Household Administration in hand, Zelda Rodenwold returned OAC and to writing, publishing several educational booklets for the college’s editor, ET Reed. Then, in 1930, she began broadcasting “Aunt Sammy’s Chats,” a 15 minute piece on home economics work on KOAC. As Aunt Sammy became more and more popular, the program was lengthened to 45 minutes, with Rodenwold in charge of planning, writing, and answering all her own fan mail.

That year Claribel Nye, state home economics extension specialist, asked her to serve as the state specialist in home managements. She accepted, but finding her heart in radio, she resigned after two years to become the director of home economics radio programs at KOAC.
Did you know? KOAC is now Oregon Public Broadcasting, aka OPB? And that they maintained their OSU studios until the spring of 2009, broadcasting all nightly programs from campus? Learn more about OPB and KOAC in the OSU Archives’ collection guide for KOAC or by checking out this Wikipedia article.