Tecumseh High School Class of 1955 Collection (MS-650)
Scope and Contents
The Tecumseh High School Class of 1955 Collection contains primarily clippings, programs, photographs, scrapbooks, and mementos from class members’ time in high school, as well as later alumni and reunion activities. Materials date from 1950 to 2014.
Series I, School Days, includes clippings, programs, photographs, scrapbooks, mementos, and a few audio recordings (33rpm LPs) from class members’ time at Olive Branch School and the new Tecumseh High School, dating from 1950 to 1955. Materials in this series are organized chronologically by school year (if known) and then by type. A large amount of the clippings in this series focus on the basketball team, which was quite good during this time period. There are three scrapbooks in this series: one concerning basketball at Olive Branch and Tecumseh, 1950-1952; one created by Merrillyn Rinehart which includes various activities, 1951-1954; and one created by German exchange student Gudrun Klotz, which details many aspects of the exchange process, her senior year (1954-1955) at Tecumseh, and various travels throughout Ohio and the east coast while visiting the United States.
Series II, Alumni Activities, includes primarily materials pertaining to class reunions, such as planning documents as well as records of the events themselves, as well as alumni-related clippings, directories, photographs, and correspondence. Materials in this series date from 1955 to 2014.
Dates
- Creation: 1950-2014
Creator
- Wallace, Donald Kiblinger, 1937- (Person)
Language of Materials
English and German. The majority of the collection is in English. Some items in the Gudrun Klotz scrapbook are in German.
Conditions Governing Access
There are no restrictions on accessing paper-based material in this collection. However, due to preservation concerns, original audio and video materials cannot be accessed in the reading room. Patrons may have access to reference copies. Items without reference copies can be digitized at the request of a patron for the cost of creating a digital copy. Please provide us at least two (2) weeks advance notice if you would like to request an audio or video reference copy. Call (937) 775-2092 or e-mail us at library-archives-ref@wright.edu. Use of digitized content is subject to conditions governing use.
Conditions Governing Use
Copyright restrictions may apply. Unpublished manuscripts are protected by copyright. Permission to publish, quote, or reproduce must be secured from the repository and the copyright holder.
Biographical / Historical
The late 1940s to early 1950s were a notable time in the history of what is now called Tecumseh Local School District in New Carlisle, Ohio. In the summer of 1948, the New Carlisle School District and the Bethel Township School District formally merged, forming the New Carlisle Bethel Local School District, with overwhelming support from voters in both of the original districts. (The district was later renamed Tecumseh in 1989.) The new Tecumseh High School opened in the spring of 1952, until which time students attended Olive Branch High School. Therefore, the Tecumseh Class of 1955 attended both Olive Branch and Tecumseh as part of their high school experience.
Also notable during this time period was the impressive win-loss record of the high school basketball team, coached by Frank Shannon, who served as a teacher and coach at Olive Branch and Tecumseh from 1948 to 1955. The team played well in multiple tournaments, and evidence of their status as a basketball powerhouse is demonstrated strongly in this collection.
Extent
1.84 linear feet
Abstract
The Tecumseh High School Class of 1955 Collection contains primarily clippings, programs, photographs, scrapbooks, and mementos from class members’ time in high school, as well as later alumni and reunion activities. The basketball team, which was quite good at the time, is strongly represented in the collection. The scrapbook of German exchange student Gudrun Klotz from the class’s senior year is also particularly noteworthy.
Arrangement
This collection is arranged in two series:
- Series I: School Days, 1950-1955
- Series II: Alumni Activities, 1955-2014
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
This collection includes original analog audio recordings (33rpm LPs) which require special equipment for digitization and playback. The original audio must be digitized prior to access/use.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
The immediate source of acquisition for this collection was Donald K. Wallace, an alumnus of the Tecumseh High School Class of 1955, who facilitated the donation of his and his classmates’ materials. The first accession for this collection was received by Special Collections and Archives, Wright State University Libraries, in October 2014. Additional materials from Gudrun (Klotz) Meyer (via Don Wallace) were received in September 2015.
Separated Materials
Newspaper clippings concerning 1959 flooding in Clark County and the 1974 Xenia tornado have been removed to two separate small collections (SC-328 and SC-329).
Processing Information
Loose items found in the scrapbooks have been removed to archival file folders within the collection. Page numbers from which the items originated have been identified if known.
donor
- Wallace, Donald Kiblinger, 1937- (Person)
Subject
- Meyer, Gudrun Klotz (Person)
- Rees, William (Person)
- Rinehart, Merrillyn (Person)
- Shannon, Frank (Person)
- Medway School (Medway, Ohio) (Organization)
- Olive Branch School (Medway, Ohio) (Organization)
- Tecumseh High School (New Carlisle, Ohio) -- Alumni and Alumnae (Organization)
- Tecumseh High School (New Carlisle, Ohio) -- Foreign students (Organization)
- Tecumseh Local School District (New Carlisle, Ohio) (Organization)
- Wallace, Donald Kiblinger, 1937- (Person)
- Title
- Guide to the Tecumseh High School Class of 1955 Collection (MS-650)
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Lisa Rickey
- Date
- 2019 June 12
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- English
- Sponsor
- The preservation and processing of this collection was made possible with the generous support of Donald K. and Ellen Wallace.
Repository Details
Part of the Special Collections Repository
Wright State University Libraries
Special Collections and Archives
3640 Colonel Glenn Hwy
Dayton OH 45435-0001 USA
937-775-2092
library-archives@wright.edu
