Video Takes Viewers Down Memory Lane

Footage features clips of campus from 1962

It’s not exactly viral, but it’s certainly worth watching. A 10-plus minute video has surfaced on You Tube with some fascinating footage of The College of Wooster from 50 years ago.

The primary focus is the day students helped to move books from the old Frick Library to the new Andrews Library on Sept. 18, 1962, with an underlying theme that clearly promotes the importance of reading. Much of the footage shows students reading and studying at the library, in their rooms, and even outside under a tree on a warm autumn afternoon. There are also clips of the Scot Marching Band parading through the vibrant streets of Downtown Wooster and forming a “W” on the field during halftime of a football game. Other excerpts show former President Howard Lowry, the inside of Memorial Chapel, freshmen wearing their beanies, and a black Scottie dog wrapped in a MacLeod Tartan warmer.

No one is quite sure who took the footage, which is mostly in color, but we do know that it was digitized and posted by Stephen Flynn, emerging technologies librarian at Wooster. The video provides an intriguing trip down memory lane with professional narration that sounds much like the alarmist orations of the time, such as the threat of Communism, the dangers of sexually transmitted diseases, and the perils illicit drug use. Some of the background music is presumably provided by the Scot Band.

While much has changed across the campus landscape during the past 50 years, there is a lot that still looks the same in the video, including exterior shots of Kauke Hall and distant views of the residence halls. Take time to check it out online. Who knows, you might see yourself or someone you know.