Browse Exhibits (6 total)
Around the World in 40 Stamps
Invented by Sir Rowland of England in 1840, stamps were first made to verify that mail sent to someone had already been paid for by an addressor. The first stamp, known as the Penny Black, depicted a portrait bust of England’s reigning monarch at the time, Queen Victoria. As stamp usage began to spread across the world, other countries continued the trend of putting their leaders on stamps, over time causing them to evolve from a simple postage marker to a means of commemoration and a symbol of a country’s national pride. Today, stamps record people, places, objects, and events of significance to nations and cultures all over the world, allowing us to catch a glimpse into the values of past generations and observe both the positive and negative characteristics of what they chose to memorialize.
In the United States, subjects for stamp memorialization are chosen by a group known as the Citizens’ Stamp Advisory. Hand selected by the Postmaster General, a collection of professionals in fields ranging from sports, history, business, and the arts meet four times a year to review stamp ideas that have been submitted by the public. They form their decisions based on a predetermined list of criteria including “honor extraordinary and enduring contributions to American society, history, or environment”. I used this criterion as my guideline for this project, though I chose to incorporate stamps at the global level rather than concentrate on a specific region. Using stamps found in the Eads collection, I compiled a select sample of people who, for better or for worse, made a significant impact in their home countries and around the world. Their professions include monarchs, artists, musicians, politicians, and revolutionaries, hailing from regions all over the globe such as Europe, North America, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East. To view the individual stamp and description, select the blue, inverted tear drop icon on the map.
The stamps are organized according to the order in which they appeared in the Eads collection.The project as a whole is being presented in both a digital and physical format to make it accessible to a wider audience. These stamps and other items are part of the Eads collection, donated by Eleanor and Ora Eads, and can be accessed in the Tennessee Tech University Archives and Special Collections under Record Group 132.
Big Name Entertainment The Exhibit: 1960s-1980s
Alumni and community members regularly contact archives regarding big-name entertainment groups that performed at Tennessee Tech in the past. Some interest is due to nostalgia, but others inquire because of a concert or performers historical significance. We assisted patrons as far as England and Australia with our big-name entertainment archives. As a result of this interest, we felt a big-name entertainment exhibit at the Varsity Theater would be a great idea.
The exhibit features photographs of famous people on stages; however, it also includes some great stories and historical documents that add depth to the pictures. For instance, did you know Elvis’s last scheduled concert was at Tech? Or that a major record label signed Garth Brooks after playing Tech? More importantly, how did Tennessee Tech book these big-name acts??? Creedence Clearwater Revival, Johnny Cash, Jefferson Starship, and The Temptations to name a few. The exhibit answers these questions and more.
We wanted a traditional exhibit opening. We even prepared a big-name entertainment playlist which you can listen to here (*Spotify required): https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2ftNbzz22pNZ2t4eQYx2VK?si=UbYaZkclRdeNs0qISVO3TA&fbclid=IwAR2SpZQnzdm0XGFbW7Nx1JoLNb4vZWIrBjf8A8hOdy1HCqULcB-cWOBkfgw
Unfortunately, due to COVID-19, this is not happening. You can view the exhibit in person with social distancing and a mask at the Varsity Theatre or here! We are living in strange times, but we are also excited to try a new online exhibit software. We hope that it makes the exhibit accessible to more people.
If you have a story about seeing a band at Tennessee Tech that we did not include and you would like for us to add it to the exhibit, you can submit it to archives@tntech.edu. make certain that your email includes a permission for us to publish and store your story for the exhibit and future researchers to use.
Leona Lusk Officer Black Cultural Center Events
This exhibit on events held by the Leona Lusk Officer Black Cultural Center is presented in honor of the Center's 30th Anniversary.
Check back in November 2020 and 2021 for additional exhibits on the Center's history and the broader history of African Americans at Tennessee Tech.
Accessibility note: Click on images in the exhibit to view them in larger sizes and to access image descriptions, transcriptions, or screen reader compliant PDFs.
Recreating Campus Scenes: Tennessee Tech's Campus Then and Now
Tennessee Tech's campus has grown exponentially since its inception as the University of Dixie in 1909. Construction brings new buildings to campus and existing buildings undergo name changes. Documented in this exhibit are some of the buildings on campus and a brief history of those buildings. You may notice that some buildings are named after people, and on these occasions the building histories will tell you who the person was and their affiliation with the university. Like the ever changing scenery at Tennessee Tech, this exhibit will grow as more archival photographs are digitized from our collections.
Recreating Campus Scenes: Tennessee Tech's Campus Then and Now showcases archival photographs from the Photo Services collection dating from 1919 to the 1980s. This exhibit also includes pictures taken by the students of HIST 3420: Archive Management and Research taught during the Spring semester of 2023 by University Archivist Megan Atkinson. The pictures are recreations of photographs located in Tennessee Tech Archives' Photo Services photographs.
Accessibility note: Click on images in the exhibit to view them in larger sizes and to access image descriptions.
Curated by Jenny Huffman with research and digitization assistance by University Archivist Megan Atkinson and the Spring 2023 HIST 3420: Archive Management and Research class at Tennessee Technological University. First published April 6, 2023. The items in the exhibit are held by the Tennessee Tech University Archives and Special Collections unless otherwise noted.
Welcome to Archives and Special Collections
Tennessee Tech University Archives and Special Collections hosts introduction to archives sessions for students to explain the purpose of archives, give a brief description of the university's history, and allow students to view and analyze materials held in the archives. Although the online platform lacks the feel of the archives, the in-person experience, and the actual handling of historic documents, this online class is designed to give some experience of the actual in-person visit to the archives.
The sections of the online course are listed on the right.
If you have any questions, please contact us at archives@tntech.edu
If you would like to come by, please feel free to set up an appointment! https://www.tntech.edu/library/archives-visit.php
Check out our website here: https://www.tntech.edu/library/archives.php