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Stapleton interviews about Courtney Smith

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Held at: Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College [Contact Us]500 College Avenue, Swarthmore, Pennsylvania 19081

This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held at the Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in their reading room, and not digitally available through the web.

Overview and metadata sections

Courtney C. Smith was born on December 20, 1916, in Winterset, Iowa. He went to public schools in Des Moines and then attended Harvard University in 1934 where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. He graduated in 1938 and was named a Rhodes Scholar, travelling to Merton College in Oxford University in 1938-1939. Upon his return, he married Elizabeth Proctor and was named a Teaching Fellow and English Tutor at Harvard University, a position he held until 1943. He received his Ph.D. from Harvard in 1944. From 1946 to 1953 he was an Instructor, Assistant Professor, and Bicentennial Preceptor in English at Princeton University. In 1953 he was named the American Secretary of the Rhodes Scholarships, directly succeeding former Swarthmore President Aydelotte, and also was named ninth President of Swarthmore College. While at Swarthmore, he joined the Society of Friends.

Under the presidency of Smith, Swarthmore gained the reputation as one of the finest small liberal arts colleges in the country. While the College began its ride to the top primarily under Swain, Aydelotte, and Nason, it was under Smith's presidency that the college gained it full reputation and flourished. Smith set in motion a thorough re-evaluation of the College and increased the financial stability of the school. He appealed to the Ford Foundation as well as alumni to raise faculty salaries. In 1955 he initiated a Faculty Research Fund which provided funding for professors to pursue independent research.

Smith changed the physical campus as well. Under his presidency, McCabe Library, Sharples Dining Hall, DuPont Science Building, and Worth Health Center were built, and the old library became Tarble Social Center. Another evaluation of the College was initiated in the fall of 1966 to study all aspects of the college. Most academic changes were accepted, including reducing the number of Honors seminars, and incorporating the library into the academic life of the college.

In June of 1968 Smith announced his resignation effective the fall of 1969 in order to head the Markle Foundation. Before he left, however, the campus was tense with the social concerns and anti-war sentiments that typified the 1960s. The social rules imposed by the Board were one source of controversy. Another major concern was negotiations with the Swarthmore African-American Student Society (SASS) to increase the presence of black students on campus. On January 9, 1969, members of SASS occupied the Admissions Office and demanded that the College take a more active role in the admission and recruitment of African-American students, including those seen as high-risk students. On January 16, President Smith died of a heart attack in his office. He was 52 years old. At the time, some blamed the actions of SASS for precipitating the President's death, while others saw it as a sad coincidence.

This collection consists of 36 taped interviews on 43 audiocassette tapes, created by Darwin H. and Donna Heckman Stapleton from 1991 to 1999 as research for their 2004 biography, Dignity, Discourse, and Destiny: The Life of Courtney C. Smith. Interviews were conducted with Swarthmore College faculty, staff, students, and Board members, as well as personal friends and family members of Courtney Smith. An asterisk* in the inventory below indicates access or use restrictions exist as of 2016.

Tapes are arranged in alphabetical order by interviewee. An asterisk* in the inventory below indicates access or use restrictions exist.

Gift of Darwin H. and Donna Heckman Stapleton, 2010.

This collection was processed in 2016 by FHL student employee Constance Hawley and staff member Celia Caust-Ellenbogen.

Publisher
Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College
Finding Aid Date
2016 December
Access Restrictions

Approximately half of the interviews are open and available for researcher access as of 2016. Some interviews are currently restricted, until the decease of the interviewee. Access to some interviews is restricted because there is no signed release form.

Use Restrictions

Copyright has not been assigned to the Friends Historical Library. Most interviewees signed a release form permitting citation or quotation without restriction following the interviewee's decease. Use of some interviews is temporarily restricted (until the decease of the interviewee) or permanently restricted (due to specifications on the release form or due to the lack of a release form).

Collection Inventory

Avery, George*, 1991-08-06.
Biographical / Historical

Professor of German, 1959-1994

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Barnard, Boyd, 1991-11-16.
Biographical / Historical

Class of 1917; founder of Boyd and Ruth Barnard Fund for the Advancement of Music at Swarthmore; Board member

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Barr, Robert, 1993-05-07.
Biographical / Historical

Class of 1956; Dean of Men, 1962-1970; Dean of Admissions, 1977-1994

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Clarke, Eleanor S.*, 1991-05-10.
Biographical / Historical

Board of Managers, 1935-1971

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Cross, Robert, 1994-11-12.
Biographical / Historical

College President, 1969-1971; Faculty (History?), 1952-1959, during which time he also served as Director of Admissions

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Dukakis, Michael*, 1994-10-09.
Biographical / Historical

Class of 1955; 65th and 67th Governor of Massachussetts

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Field, James, 1993-04-30.
Biographical / Historical

Isaac H. Clothier Professor of History and International Relations, 1947-1986

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Gifford, Prosser*, 1994-11-11.
Biographical / Historical

Assistant to President, 1956-1958

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Gilbert, Charles*, 1996-02-10.
Biographical / Historical

Professor of Political Science; First Provost of the College, 1969-1974

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Graves, Michael and Sheryl*, 1999-04-27.
Biographical / Historical

Michael Graves: Class of 1969, part of the sit-in (maybe part of the leadership?); Sheryl Graves, Class of ?

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Hayden, Nancy and Smith, Richard*, 1997-04-05.
Biographical / Historical

Children of Claude C. Smith, Board member and chair

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Hester, James, 1995-01-16.
Biographical / Historical

Born in Chester, PA; influential career in higher education in New England; friend of Courtney Smith

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Hynes, Samuel*, 1994-05-07.
Biographical / Historical

Professor of English

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Ingram, Elizabeth (Lee) Smith*, 1995-04-02.
Biographical / Historical

Daughter of Courtney Smith

Physical Description

2 audiocassette tapes

Kerr, Clark, 1995-08-29.
Biographical / Historical

Class of 1932; Board of Managers circa 1991-2003

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Lasker, Morris, 1994-10-15.
Biographical / Historical

Courtney Smith's Harvard classmate and friend; a lawyer and federal judge

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Legesse, Asmaron*, 1993-07-24.
Biographical / Historical

Faculty member during the 1969 sit-in; Anthropologist

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Mayne, Wiley*, 1996-04-04.
Biographical / Historical

Courtney Smith's Harvard classmate and friend; a Congressman

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Moore, John, 1991-11-16.
Biographical / Historical

Religion Professor; friend of Courtney Smith

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Murphy, William M.*, 1994-10-22.
Biographical / Historical

Courtney Smith's Harvard classmate and friend; biographer of Yeats's family

Physical Description

2 audiocassette tapes

Nason, John, 1992-02-20.
Biographical / Historical

College President, 1940-1953

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Pagliaro, Harold*, 1991-08-09.
Biographical / Historical

Professor of English--retired 1992, Provost

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Peelle, Paul*, 1994-10-10.
Biographical / Historical

Class of 1969

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Pennock, Roland, 1992-02-21.
Biographical / Historical

Professor of Political Science, 1932-1976

Physical Description

2 audiocassette tapes

Pusey, Nathan*, 1995-11-09.
Biographical / Historical

Former president of Harvard; friend of Courtney Smith

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Rakoff, Jed*, 1993-03-12.
Biographical / Historical

Class of 1964

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Rockefeller, David*, 1992-12-04.
Biographical / Historical

Chase Manhattan Corp., Harvard graduate and friend of Courtney Smith

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Shane, Mrs. Joseph (Terry), 1991-08-06.
Biographical / Historical

Helped establish the Associates of the Scott Arboretum; spouse of staff member

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Smith, Courtney Craig Jr.*, 1993-02-12.
Biographical / Historical

Son of Courtney Smith

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Smith, David*, 1991-08-07.
Biographical / Historical

Political Science

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Stahr, Elvis Jr., 1995-01-16.
Biographical / Historical

Government official and higher educator, also involved in Chase Manhattan Corp.; friend of Courtney Smith

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Stone, Jeremy and B.L.*, 1995-01-15.
Biographical / Historical

Jeremy J. Stone, Class of 1957; Betty Law Stone, Class of ?

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

Stott, Gilmore, 1996-02-10.
Biographical / Historical

Dean of Men, 1950-?, also holding positions in Financial Aid, Registrar, Associate Provost, Assistant to President, Professor of Philosophy and Ethics, involved in Upward Bound

Physical Description

2 audiocassette tapes

Van Syoc, Mrs. Florence (Smith), 1991-12-23.
Biographical / Historical

Sister of Courtney Smith

Physical Description

2 audiocassette tapes

Weismiller, Edw., 1994-11-11.
Biographical / Historical

Poet and scholar, Harvard graduate and friend of Courtney Smith

Physical Description

2 audiocassette tapes

Wright, Harrison, 1993-05-08.
Biographical / Historical

Professor of History, 1957-1979; 1984-1993; Provost, 1979-1984; Acting President, 1980-1981

Physical Description

1 audiocassette tape

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