Gallaudet University Library Deaf Collections & Archives

The Archives now has digital copies of On the Green, Gallaudet's internal newsletter, from 1971 to 2010. You can view them online at the link below. Thanks to digitization specialist Samuel Hahn for his hard work, and look for more digital resources to become available in the future!

On The Green - Gallaudet University Since 1864, we have been investing in and creating resources for deaf and hard of hearing children, their families, and the professionals who work with them.

Throwback Thursday: Homecoming is usually the busiest time of year for us in the Archives. It's much quieter this year, but the Archives staff is still on the job to help you research school history or find those nostalgic photos! And if you feel the need to renew your Gally spirit, don't miss the Virtual Homecoming at https://gallyshare.com/hc2020/ .

Photo shows the Bison football team, in dark blue and yellow uniforms, running through a paper banner held by a group of cheerleaders at left. A couple of photographers are also at left taking pictures of the action. The Field House is at the rear, with a banner reading WELCOME TO GALLAUDET UNIVERSITY 1989 HOMECOMING at the top.

Throwback Thursday: Closeup of the Tower Clock face, 1970s. It's almost time for classes to start again, and the Archives staff is ready to help your research via videophone, e-mail, or Zoom!

Photo shows the Tower Clock, hands at 10:50. Rough-edged roof slates are visible above, and the wooden clock face is visibly weathered. There is a maintenance hatch on the left side of the clock face.

Throwback Thursday: If the heat is getting to you this weekend, enjoy this picture of a blizzard hitting campus on January 21, 1975. Stay cool!

Photo shows six people, wrapped up in heavy coats, in front of a building obscured by drifting snow (possibly Peet Hall?) The ground is covered with snow, and the air is full of flakes.

Throwback Thursday: Tyler Bullock, a deaf American Legionnaire, crouches to light a firework in New York City's Penn Station, August 27, 1947. A native of Augusta, Ga., Bullock was in New York for the American Legion convention. Enjoy your Fourth of July!

Photo shows an elderly man in uniform pants, well-polished shoes, dark shirt, and forage cap crouching with a sparker in his hand, extended to touch the fuse of a large firecracker. A sign hanging from a string on his back reads "I AM 'TOTALLY' DEAF PLEASE DO NOT SPIT IN MY EAR." A crowd of men and women in suits and dresses are watching from a safe distance in the background.

Throwback Thursday: Helen Heckman on the cover of Art & Life Magazine, 1924. Heckman (1898-1975), a native of Oklahoma, became deaf at 11 months from meningitis. She learned music and dance from her stepmother, and during the 1920s, she was known as "The Wonder Girl," internationally famous as a dancer, singer, and pianist. She performed all around the country and in Europe. The Archives rare book collection includes a copy of her autobiography, "My Life Transformed."

Photo shows Heckman in a loose white gown and flowered headband, posing on a stage with her arms outstretched and one leg extended.

Throwback Thursday: The Deaf Traveller, 1833. This was a series of articles published in the weekly "Penny Magazine" of London. The author, "J.K.," has been deaf since early childhood, and writes vividly about a trip he took through Iraq, Persia (Iran), and Turkey.

Photo shows the front page of one issue of the magazine, and one of the Deaf Traveller's articles.

Throwback Thursday: June 9, 1974. As the Watergate scandal heated up, Special Prosecutor Leon Jaworski's office hired three MSSD students to deliver documents and messages, as well as help sort mail. Here, administrative officer Dan Mann (at far left) explains their duties to (left-right) Robin Edwards, Buddy Pitcher, and Meriam Schroeder.

Photo shows the group in an office. Mann (bearded, in a short-sleeved shirt and bow tie) is seated on the desk and in the middle of signing, while the students are behind and to the right of him.

Throwback Thursday: The Archives staff wishes the best of luck to the Class of 2020! Here's a look back at the Class of 1920, when they were freshmen.

Photo shows two rows of students posed in front of a tree, six men in suits in the back row and four women and one man seated on the grass in front of them.

Throwback Thursday: Chapel Hall flagpole top. On May 10, 1911, Edward Miner Gallaudet spoke at the Commencement Day ceremonies before finally embarking on his retirement from Kendall Green. As Maxine Tull Boatner writes in her biography Voice of the Deaf: "A rather strange thing happened late in that day: a heavy thunderstorm came up and a severe bolt of lightning shattered the flagstaff on the Chapel." Only the copper ball that formerly topped the flagpole survived the lightning strike, and is now part of the Archives collection.

Photo shows a tarnished copper ball, about seven inches in diameter. The bottom part of the ball has been torn out and is surrounded with jagged, twisted metal.

Looking for some interesting reading material? The Northwest Silent Observer, a Seattle-based deaf newspaper, is now available online from 1909 to 1915. See here:

The Observer 1909-1915 Gallaudet University Archives

Throwback Thursday: Deaf artist and educator Theophilus D'Estrella (1851-1929) on a hiking trip in the Canadian Rockies with the Sierra Club in 1928. D'Estrella was 77 years old at the time. Remember to get out and go for a walk sometimes!

Photo shows D'Estrella seated on a gnarled log between two bushes. He has a sun hat pulled low over his ears, shading his face. In his hands are a plate of food and a fork.