Special Collections in 2022: 3rd Quarterly Review

The purpose of The Compass Rose is to raise awareness of Special Collections' resources and to foster the use of these resources. The blog series also reports significant new programs, initiatives, and acquisitions of Special Collections. 

This is the newest in an ongoing series spotlighting new acquisitions and reproductions of our content. For more on our previous featured material, read our previously published Quarterly Review blogs.

Special Collections is continually acquiring new materials and image reproductions of items from our collections are regularly used in new publications and by media outlets. This post reviews where and how materials from our collections are being used around the world in July, August, and September of 2022.

We've recently received a generous donation of astronomy-themed books and maps from Donald Sheff. Both maps seen below were produced by cartographers Johann Gabriel Doppelmayr and Johann Baptist Homann. Doppelmayr was a German mathematician, astronomer, and cartographer whose works covered sundials, spherical trigonometry, and celestial maps and globes. In the early 1700s, Doppelmayr prepared a number of astronomical plates that had appeared in Homann's atlases, which in 1742 were collected and issued as Atlas Coeslestis. Homann, a well-known German mapmaker, was best known for his heavy detailing in graving in his copper plates as well as the distinctive allegorical cartouche designs and hand-coloring.

Above at left is Hemisphaerium Coeli Australe (1730) by Doppelmayr and Homann, a celestial chart of the Southern Skies showing illustrated constellations and stars. The constellations include Orion, Scorpio, Taurus, Eridanus, and the Southern Cross. The constellations include some unusual additions, including the Peacock, Toucan, and a unicorn called Monoceros. The corners of the chart are decorated with vignettes of the astronomical observatories at Greenwich, Copenhagen, Cassel, and Berlin.

Above at right is Tabula Selenographica (1742), also by Doppelmayr and Homann, a lunar map according to Johannes Hevelius (left) and Giovanni Baptista Riccioli (right). Different lunar phases are represented between the two images and additional lunar phases are represented in the four corners. The upper right quadrant features Diana, goddess of the moon, and in the upper left quadrant are cherubs using a telescope.

Special Collections acquired Joseph Moxon's A Map of all the Earth and how after the Flood it was divided among the Sons of Noah (1681) that illustrates the view of the world as it was known at the time. Moxon was one of the earliest compilers of sea charts. This world map was designed by Moxon for an English edition of the Bible, depicting the map area in an oval projection surrounded by scenes from the Old and New Testaments. These include the Creation of the World, the Tower of Babel, Moses and the Ten Commandments, and the Crucifixion. The general map shows how the world was divided up among the sons of Noah after the Flood. California is still shown as an island and Australia only partially. The countries and areas are named using a legend with 78 entries. 

We have acquired a small collection of 26 photographs of cattle ranching in the Fort Davis/Davis Mountains area [circa the 1920s], that depicts cowboys, horses, cattle roundup/branding, sheep shearing, ranch buildings, and the surrounding scenery. The 1880s brought a number of cattle ranchers to the area, many fleeing a Texas fever epidemic in other parts of the state. Ranching and tourism have been the main industries in Jeff Davis County since its founding and ranching remains an important element of the local economy today.

Official records of the UTA Movin' Mavs wheelchair basketball team were donated to Special Collections, which included photographs, ephemera, and digital media from the 1990s-present. This donation supplements our existing UTA Movin' Mavs Records collection, digitized items from which can be viewed on the UTA Libraries Digital Gallery or the Texas Disability History Collection website. The sport of wheelchair basketball was introduced to UTA in 1976 and the team, which started as the "UTA Freewheelers," began intercollegiate competition in 1988. They were the first Intercollegiate Wheelchair Basketball Team to be invited to meet the President of the United States, as most other National Champs are honored, in 1993. In its history, the team has won nine National Intercollegiate Wheelchair Basketball Tournament (NIWBT) national championships.

Records from the Society of Professional Journalists, Fort Worth Chapter (chartered in 1946) were donated to Special Collections to supplement our existing collection from the Chapter, which was donated in 1996. The Society, a non-profit professional organization for journalists, originated from the journalism fraternity, Sigma Delta Chi. The collection includes correspondence, minutes, financial records, by-laws and constitution, membership records, annual reports, newsletters, newspapers, plaques, photographs, scripts, and audio & video tapes of the Chapter and the Texas Gridiron Club. Materials span over forty years, from 1950-1996, and include items relating to the Gridiron Club dinners and shows, the annual Gridiron-produced newspaper, Yellow Jaundice, and various organizational records of the Fort Worth Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists.

Students from a variety of classes and organizations visit Special Collections to engage in experiential learning activities using our unique materials. Visits this quarter have included History, Art History, Spanish, African American Studies, Mexican American Studies, and English classes. Pictured below at left is a Historical Research Methods (HIST3300) class that visited Special Collections to engage in a “20 Minute Historian” activity. Students from the class critically analyzed primary sources both individually and as a group, and then came up with a historical argument, or thesis statement, about the sources on the table. A Spanish class (SPAN3318), pictured below at right, also visited in September to analyze Mexican and Mexican American political cartoons in issues of El Malcriado, the United Farm Workers’ newspaper, held in Special Collections.

TARO (Texas Archival Resources Online) makes descriptions, or "finding aids," of the rich archival collections in repositories across the state available to the public. Finding aids assist users in locating information in our collections and serve as a descriptive guide to the unique materials only available here in Special Collections. Here are our most recent finding aid uploads to TARO:

• Oscar Hanszen Papers (AR441) 
• James M. and Marguerite L. Bailey World War II Letters (AR471) 
• L.N.D. "Nat" Wells, Jr., Papers (AR525)
  • L.N.D. "Nat" Wells, Jr., was a labor lawyer in Dallas, Texas from 1947-2000. Wells and his law firm helped defend unions and other working people throughout the southern states for many years. The collection includes materials relating to labor law and Wells law firm, including briefs from court cases, business correspondence, photographs, and more.
• James O Mullins Papers (AR550) 
• McCain Family Papers (AR597)
  • The McCain Family Papers are the records of three Texas brothers who served in the US Army Air Force during World War II. Robert McCain Jr., a navigator, was a German POW for nineteen months. Garvin McCain, a pilot, was shot down over Italy and was missing in action for several weeks before he escaped to American lines. Homer Elwyn McCain fought in the Pacific theater and was on one of the first planes to land in Japan. All three brothers survived the war. Correspondence included in the collection documents the various experiences of the three brothers and those of their families back home.
• Montfort, Sawtelle, and Gilbert Families Papers (AR610)
• Leo Bielinski Thurber, Texas, Research Collection (AR741)
• Texas Pacific Coal and Oil Company Pay Roll Ledger (AR749)
• University of Texas at Arlington. College of Nursing and Health Innovation. Center for Hispanic Studies in Nursing and Health Records (AR753)
  • The UTA Center for Hispanic Studies in Nursing and Health (CHSNH) was established in 1996 to host and coordinate the Travel, Study, Learn Program and the Medical Spanish Classes for health care workers. The CHSNH was active until 2016.
• Judith Cohen Cowtown Moderne Research Collection (AR756)
  • Judith Singer "Judy" Cohen is an art historian, historic preservationist, and author of the book Cowtown Moderne: Art Deco Architecture of Fort Worth, Texas. Cohen has served as an independent lecturer and tour guide, demonstrating to public and private groups the richness of Art Deco architecture in Fort Worth. The Judith Cohen collection consists largely of research materials and organizational files in historic preservation (largely relating to to Art Deco architecture in Fort Worth), as well as historic preservation and adaptive reuse of historic buildings.
• United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America, Local 704 Quanah, Tex.) Records (AR757) 
• United Slate, Tile and Composition Roofers, Damp and Waterproof Workers Association, Locals 123 (Dallas, Tex.), 148 (Fort Worth, Tex.) and 148-B (Waco, Tex.) Records (AR759)
• Mothers Against Teen Violence Records (AR770)
• International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees and Moving Picture Machine Operators, Local 330 (Fort Worth, Tex.) Records (AR776)
• National Alliance of Postal Employees, San Antonio (Tex.) Branch Records (AR779)
• Elzie and Ruby Odom Papers (AR783)
  • Elzie Odom served three terms as the mayor of Arlington, Texas from 1997-2003 and was the city's first Black mayor. His wife, Ruby, is also an important figure in the community through her work in charitable organizations. The Odom collection is comprised of clippings, correspondence, programs, scrapbooks, and ephemera which document their personal, religious, and political lives from the 1960s through the 2010s. Topics include biographical and genealogical information on the Odoms and their ancestors, their dedication to the Christian faith and work with Mount Olive Baptist Church, and political issues in Arlington during Odom's tenure as mayor.

Materials found within Special Collections’ holdings have been used across a wide variety of outlets, including (but not limited to) features in local news stories, on television shows, printed in publications, and used in public exhibitions. Below are some examples of where and how our materials have been used this quarter.

The Fort Worth Star-Telegram collection, which came in increments to UTA Libraries from 1984 to 1999, is often used in a variety of news articles and columns published by the original donor, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. This quarter, the Star-Telegram used photographs from the collection for 18 stories: 

• “What was the ‘Vin Fiz Flyer’ and why did thousands watch it land in Fort Worth in 1911?” July 2, 2022 by Mike Nichols
• “Communism, capitalism, rocket science and baseball all once collided at a Rangers game,” July 16, 2022, by Hollace Ava Weiner
• “From the Star-Telegram archives: Historic photos of churches in the Fort Worth region,” July 31, 2022
• “George Eder, his wells and ‘Buckskin Joe’ are why Fort Worth has Ederville Road today,” August 6, 2022 by Mike Nichols
• “Queen Elizabeth visited Dallas in May 1991. Here are Star-Telegram photos of that day,” August 9, 2022
• “Much of W. Lancaster in downtown Fort Worth is thriving. But what about this landmark?” August 20, 2022 by Hollace Ava Weiner
• “In Fort Worth’s 1949 flood, West 7th was underwater, and that wasn’t all,” August 23, 2022 by Bud Kennedy
• “PHOTOS: Labor Day in Fort Worth, from the Star-Telegram historic archives,” August 24, 2022 by Matt LeClercq
• “Dallas was the focus, but Fort Worth wasn’t to be left out of Texas’ centennial party,” August 27, 2022 by Richard J. Gonzales
• “West 7th Street construction uncovers century-old remnants of Fort Worth history,” September 2, 2022 by Megan Cardona
• “This trusted partner helped a Fort Worth boxer travel independently after he became blind,” September 3, 2022 by Carol Roark
• “An ‘unrivaled’ reign: Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, officials mourn Queen Elizabeth II’s death,” September 8, 2022 by Eleanor Dearman
• “Historic red bricks uncovered in West 7th Street construction will be saved for reuse,” September 12, 2022 by Megan Cardona
• “ON THIS DAY: Historic photos from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram archive for Sept. 23,” September 23, 2022, by Matt Leclercq
• “FROM THE ARCHIVES: Halloween photos from Fort Worth Star-Telegram over the years,” September 24, 2022, by Matt Leclercq
• “ON THIS DAY: Sept. 27, Historic photos from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram archive,” September 27, 2022, by Matt Leclercq
• “ON THIS DAY: Sept. 28, Historic photos from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram archive,” September 28, 2022, by Matt Leclercq
• “ON THIS DAY: Sept. 29, Historic photos from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram archive,” September 29, 2022, by Matt Leclercq

Other local news outlets published the following stories using our collection materials: 

• Texas Monthly article and August 2022 cover photo use, “Glen McCurley Strangled Carla Walker in 1974. Was She His Only Victim?” July 21, 2022 by Skip Hollandsworth; images used from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection
• City of Arlington video feature, “Culture Buzz: A Tribute to Nurses – UTA and Beyond,” August 26, 2022 by Jeremy Thomas; video footage shows the "A Tribute to Nurses – UTA and Beyond" exhibit 
• City of Arlington video feature (en español), “Culture Buzz: Exhibición de UTA "Un Tributo a la Enfermería,” August 26, 2022 by Jeremy Thomas; video footage shows the "A Tribute to Nurses – UTA and Beyond" exhibit, narrated in Spanish
• City of Arlington video series “Journey to Baseball Town,” images used from the the Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection, UTA Photograph Collection, J. W. Dunlop Photograph Collection, Squire Haskins Photography, Inc. Collection, Fielder Museum Photograph Collection, Jack White Photograph Collection, Arlington Citizen-Journal Photograph Collection, and the Styles, Vincent, Day Family Papers

• This America of Ours: Bernard and Avis DeVoto and the Forgotten Fight to Save the Wild, by Nate Schweber, published by Mariner Books, a division of HarperCollins Publishers LLC, on July 5, 2022; image used from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection
• 50 Years of Texas Rangers Baseball, published by Pediment Publishing in August 2022; images used from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection
• Son of Vengeance: Searching for the Legendary Apache Rafael, by Dr. Bradley Folsom, published by the University of Oklahoma Press in Fall 2022; image used from the Virginia Garrett Cartographic History Collection

Exhibit titled Fort Worth and the Green Book, displayed at the Fort Worth Museum of Science & History, February-October 2022; images used from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection and W. D. Smith Commercial Photography, Inc. Collection

Visit The Compass Rose in December for our next quarterly blog review!