During winter term 2025 Dr. Kara Ritzheimer’s History 310 (Historian’s Craft) students researched and wrote blog posts about OSU during WWII. The sources they consulted are listed at the end of each post. Students wrote on a variety of topics and we hope you appreciate their contributions as much as the staff at SCARC does!

Blog post written by Cooper Lake

At the heart of America’s wartime strategy was an unexpected hero: corn. As the nation raced to secure its food supply, Oregon State College (OSC) emerged as a hub of groundbreaking research. Led by visionary agronomist R. E. Fore, OSC faculty tackled the challenges of adapting corn to the unique climate and soils of the Pacific Northwest. These efforts would not only meet the immediate needs of wartime production but also lay the foundation for post-war agricultural success in Oregon and elsewhere.

Central to OSC’s pioneering efforts was R. E. Fore’s A Summary of Corn Improvement Research in Oregon. 1936–1967, a document published in 1967 preserved in the Oregon State University Archives. This typewritten report, produced on thin paper and bound for long-term preservation, summarizes thirty-one years of experimental work aimed at developing a corn strain uniquely suited to Oregon’s climate and soils. Fore, then the college’s leading agronomist, compiled this report for fellow researchers and practitioners, detailing experimental methods, results, and the challenges posed by wartime resource reallocation.^[i] The document’s physical characteristics, its fragile paper and careful binding, speak to its dual role as both a working document and a historical artifact.

Fore’s work on corn improvement is part of a broader spectrum of faculty research conducted at OSC during the war. Collaborative studies, such as the joint work by G.W. Kuhlman and Fore on the Cost and Efficiency in Producing Hops in Oregon, publishedin 1939, illustrate that while corn was central to the war effort, other crops were also scrutinized under the pressures of wartime necessity.^[ii] Jack Sather’s Hop Agronomic Experiments 1939–1946 further details these investigations, highlighting how nonessential crops like hops received focused attention despite limited resources.^[iii] In a time when every experimental initiative had to justify its cost and labor input, these studies were vital for diversifying OSC’s agricultural output.

Corn was not only essential for feeding a nation at war but also for sustaining the cattle industry. Cattle played a dual role: providing meat for domestic consumption and manure that enriched soil fertility, which in turn supported continuous crop production. Remarkably, the stability of corn production even enabled the U.S. to share beef with Allied nations, linking agricultural innovation directly to both national resilience and international support.^[iv]

A January 9, 1943 article in OSC’s Daily Barometer captured the national urgency for increased corn production to meet the rising demands for livestock feed, a critical need given the war-induced shifts in meat production.^[vi] Similarly, the Oregon State Land Use Planning Committee’s report, Oregon State Agricultural Program to Meet the Impacts of War and National Defense (May 1941), contextualizes local agricultural policies within the broader national strategy for food security.^[vii] Together, these sources reveal that OSC’s research was both a local response and a component of a comprehensive wartime effort.

The contributions of OSC faculty during World War II must be viewed within a larger national framework. Corn was not merely a crop; it was a vital component of the war economy, essential for producing livestock feed and stabilizing market prices. Scott H. Irwin and Darrel L. Good’s article, “Market Instability in a New Era of Corn, Soybean, and Wheat Prices,” documents how wartime disruptions led to volatile agricultural markets, thereby emphasizing the importance of a reliable domestic food supply.^[ix]

Furthermore, Alvin T. M. Lee’s 1947 study on “Use of Military Land for Agriculture during World War II” demonstrates how government initiatives repurposed military assets to boost agricultural production, a strategy that fit together with OSC’s research efforts.^[x] Grover T. Sims’s 1951 monograph, “Meat and Meat Animals in World War II,” reinforces the idea that the availability of high-quality corn was directly linked to efficient meat production, highlighting OSC’s role in national food security.^[xi] These national studies, coupled with local initiatives, illustrate the symbiotic relationship between OSC’s research and the broader wartime strategy to stabilize food supply and economic conditions. Moreover, the analyses provided by E. C. Sherrard and F. W. Kressman in 1944 in Review of Processes in the United States Prior to World War II offers important context. Their work shows how long-standing agricultural practices were disrupted by the circumstances of war, prompting a necessary evolution in research and production methods.^[xii]

OSC’s innovations were not confined solely to experimental research; they also extended to infrastructural developments that have had lasting impacts on regional agriculture. The deep well irrigation projects documented in the OSU Special Collections & Archives’ “President’s Office General Subject File, Agricultural Experiment Station, Deep well irrigation project, 1929–1940” exemplify how OSC’s scientific efforts were complemented by practical advancements in farm infrastructure.^[xiv] Equally, the archival record of the “Class of Producing Dairy Cattle Shown at the Oregon State Fair, 1938” highlights the applied side of OSC’s work, showing how improved agricultural methods led directly to enhanced livestock production.^[xv]

These efforts emphasize that OSC’s wartime innovations were not isolated experiments; they were part of a broader transformation in American agriculture. As Lizzie Collingham discusses in The Taste of War: World War II and the Battle for Food, the transition from wartime scarcity to post-war consumer abundance was marked by significant shifts in food policy and production practices, a transformation to which OSC contributed meaningfully by successfully adapting corn to climates in the pacific northwest.^[xvi]

The archival journey through OSC’s wartime records reveals a story of determination, innovation, and strategic adaptation. R. E. Fore’s comprehensive report on corn improvement, alongside studies on hops production, labor mobilization, and infrastructural projects, paints a picture of an institution that rose to meet the unprecedented challenges posed by WWII. Through creative research initiatives and adaptive labor strategies including the mobilization of nontraditional workforces, OSC not only addressed the immediate demands of World War II but also laid the foundation for lasting agricultural reform.

By aligning its local research with national priorities, as documented by scholars such as Irwin, Good, Lee, and Sims, OSC contributed significantly to the stabilization of the nation’s food supply during a period of economic volatility.

Revisiting OSC’s pivotal contributions during World War II reveals how targeted scientific inquiry became the backbone of national resilience. Through groundbreaking research epitomized by Fore’s innovative corn improvement study, OSC not only addressed the immediate challenges of wartime food security but also set the stage for enduring advances in agricultural production. This focused approach ensured a stable food supply, underscoring the critical link between local research and national prosperity. The integration of diverse primary sources from the Oregon State University Archives reveals a story of resourcefulness and resilience. OSC’s adaptive strategies, innovation in crop research, and aligning local practices with national priorities demonstrate how institutions can drive significant societal change under pressure. These insights not only illuminate a critical period in American history but also offer enduring lessons for contemporary challenges in food security and resource management. In reflecting on OSC’s legacy, we are reminded that the intersection of scientific inquiry, governmental policy, and community mobilization is not merely a historical curiosity but a blueprint for building resilient systems in the future.

Citations

Collingham, Lizzie. The Taste of War: World War II and the Battle for Food. New York: Penguin Press, 2012.

Daily Barometer, The. “Wickard States Aims Of Farm Program”, Oregon State Barometer, January 9, 1943.

Fore, R. E. “A Summary of Corn Improvement Research in Oregon. 1936–1967.” SCARC, Agricultural Experiment Station (RG 25), Box 13, LOC: 8/3/6/20.

Irwin, Scott H., and Darrel L. Good. “Market Instability in a New Era of Corn, Soybean, and Wheat Prices.” Choices 24, no. 1 (2009): 6–11.

Kuhlman, G. W., and R. E. Fore. Cost and Efficiency in Producing Hops in Oregon. Oregon State College Agricultural Experiment Station, 1939.

Lee, Alvin T. M. “Use of Military Land for Agriculture during World War II.” Journal of Land & Public Utility Economics 23, no. 4 (November 1947): 349–359.

Oregonian, The. “Farm Help Due in Northwest.” May 12, 1943.

Oregon State Land Use Planning Committee. Oregon State Agricultural Program to Meet the Impacts of War and National Defense. May 1941.

“Class of Producing Dairy Cattle Shown at the Oregon State Fair, 1938.” SCARC, Agriculture Photograph Collection, 4‑H Photograph Collection (P 146). Accessed February 19, 2025.

“President’s Office General Subject File, Agricultural Experiment Station, Deep well irrigation project, 1929-1940.” Oregon Digital. Accessed February 19, 2025. https://oregondigital.org/concern/documents/h128nf96p.

Sather, Jack. Hop Agronomic Experiments 1939–1946. Oregon State University Archives, Agricultural Experiment Station (RG 25), Box 13, LOC: 8/3/6/20.

Schwartz, Harry. “Hired Farm Labor in World War II.” Journal of Farm Economics 24, no. 4 (1942): 826–44.

Sherrard, E. C., and F. W. Kressman. Review of Processes in the United States Prior to World War II. Madison, WI: U.S. Forest Products Laboratory, 1944.

Sims, Grover T. “Meat and Meat Animals in World War II.” U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Monograph 9 (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1951).

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^[i] R. E. Fore, “A Summary of Corn Improvement Research in Oregon. 1936–1967,” Special Collections & Archives Research Center (hereafter SCARC), Agricultural Experiment Station, RG 25, Box 13, LOC: 8/3/6/20, 11.

^[ii] G. W. Kuhlman and R. E. Fore, Cost and Efficiency in Producing Hops in Oregon (Oregon State College Agricultural Experiment Station, 1939), SCARC, RG 25, Box 13, LOC: 8/3/6/20, 19.

^[iii] Jack Sather, Hop Agronomic Experiments 1939–1946, SCARC, Agricultural Experiment Station, RG 25, Box 13, LOC: 8/3/6/20, 6.

^[iv]  Lizzie Collingham, The Taste of War: World War II and the Battle for Food (New York: Penguin Press, 2012), 481.

^[v]  R. E. Fore, “A Summary of Corn Improvement Research in Oregon. 1936–1967,” SCARC, Agricultural Experiment Station (RG 25), Box 13, LOC: 8/3/6/20, 15.

^[vi] “Wickard States Aims of Farm Program,” The Daily Barometer, January 9, 1943, 4.

^[vii] Oregon State Land Use Planning Committee, State Library of Oregon Digital Collections, Oregon State Agricultural Program to Meet the Impacts of War and National Defense (May 1941).

^[viii] “Class of Producing Dairy Cattle Shown at the Oregon State Fair, 1938,” SCARC, Agriculture Photograph Collection, 4‑H Photograph Collection (P 146).

^[ix] Scott H. Irwin and Darrel L. Good, “Market Instability in a New Era of Corn, Soybean, and Wheat Prices,” Choices 24, no. 1 (2009): 8.

^[x] Alvin T. M. Lee, “Use of Military Land for Agriculture during World War II,” Journal of Land & Public Utility Economics 23, no. 4 (November 1947): 349–359.

^[xi] Grover T. Sims, “Meat and Meat Animals in World War II,” U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Monograph 9 (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1951), 35.

^[xii] E. C. Sherrard and F. W. Kressman, Review of Processes in the United States Prior to World War II (Madison, WI: U.S. Forest Products Laboratory, 1944), 11.

^[xiii] “Wickard States Aims of Farm Program.”

^[xiv] “President’s Office General Subject File, Agricultural Experiment Station, Deep well irrigation project, 1929-1940,” Oregon Digital, accessed February 19, 2025, https://oregondigital.org/concern/documents/h128nf96p, 14.

^[xv] “Class of Producing Dairy Cattle Shown at the Oregon State Fair, 1938,” SCARC, Agriculture Photograph Collection, 4‑H Photograph Collection (P 146).

^[xvi] Collingham, The Taste of War, 477.

During winter term 2025 Dr. Kara Ritzheimer’s History 310 (Historian’s Craft) students researched and wrote blog posts about OSU during WWII. The sources they consulted are listed at the end of each post. Students wrote on a variety of topics and we hope you appreciate their contributions as much as the staff at SCARC does!

Blog post written by August Gadbow

“Collegiate sports revolutionized campus life, turned institutions of higher education into athletic agencies, brought changes in the curriculum, and influenced administrative policy.”^[i] The rise of college sports not only integrated athletics into university structures but also expanded their influence beyond academia. Legislators, university administrators, and even U.S. presidents recognized the role that collegiate athletics played in shaping national identity, fostering school spirit, and connecting colleges to the broader public. College athletic history is American history and a powerful tool for measuring the effects of world events. During the Second World War, college sports were severely disrupted, forcing universities to adapt their programs to the realities of wartime. Oregon State’s experience during this time gives insight into how the global crisis reshaped college athletic programs.

Oregon State College’s (OSC) Athletic Board Minutes from 1942-1943, used as a bookkeeping tool, provides a detailed account of how the college managed its athletic programs during the uncertainty of WWII. The minutes record important administrative discussions, including budget reports, letters between directors, sports schedules, and business decisions. The document’s tidy and straightforward format and to-the-point writing style suggest that it was intended for administrative use only, and used to track decisions and financial records. However, because the broader societal context was the US involvement in WWII, its pages are riddled with war-related issues including economic uncertainty, travel restrictions, and athlete shortages. The report provides useful insight into how OSC administrators dealt with the realities of wartime while trying to maintain the athletics program.

WWII forced Oregon State athletics to shift from traditional college competition to a model focused on adoption, survival, and military preparedness. During the war, OSC boasted a prominent ROTC program and had deep ties to the war effort; many competing athletes were also enrolled in its military programs. In August 1943, the US War Department banned training members of the military from participating in intercollegiate athletics, thereby disrupting all sports and most notably leading to the suspension of OSC’s football team until the end of the war.^[ii]  Despite this setback, the Oregon State athletics Administrative Council remained committed to student athletic programs, reaffirming in April 1944 that sports were an essential part of student life and long-term campus planning.^[iii]  While the majority of sports still did run at some capacity, financial uncertainty and the declining enrollment in the school led faculty members to be cautious about major athletic investments.^[iv] During this time, Oregon State College athletics simply could not combat the setbacks of wartime.  Understanding that its resources could also be useful elsewhere, OSC reshaped its approach to sports beyond competition. In 1942, the university’s women’s physical education programs greatly expanded, emphasizing health and fitness as patriotic duties in support of the war effort.^[v]  These changes, combined with ROTC athletes, added to OSC’s wartime efforts beyond STEM and agriculture.

Athlete participation was limited, travel was restricted, and priorities were shifted towards the war effort. Oregon State’s athletic history during this time was greatly stunted. In 1942, students enrolled in the ROTC programs were not allowed to travel off campus.^[vi] This led to much less success in away events for the school and also limited students’ abilities to be eligible for varsity letters and awards.^[vii] Furthermore, this may have been the last time athletes were able to compete as students before being deployed to war. Those who were not enrolled in the military program also faced challenges pertaining to travel. Wartime restrictions led to the use of school-owned cars for transportation instead of the bus or train, whose prices were overinflated at the time. This decision was also supported by the war effort to reduce the number of people on public transport.^[viii] Wartime fears made other schools weary of travel toward the West Coast, leading to the postponement and relocation of football games.^[ix] Directly before the program’s temporary pause, OSCs competed against Duke in its first Rose Bowl appearance, taking place in Duke’s stadium in North Carolina, away from its usual location, Pasadena, California.^[x] (Oregon State beat the undefeated Blue Devils 20-16 marking the team’s only Rose Bowl victory to date.) As the nation mobilized for war, OSC’s athletic department redirected financial resources to support the war, shifting its priorities from sports to national service. Funds from the previous Rose Bowl game were donated to the Red Cross along with investment into defense savings bonds by the athletic department.^[xi] Oregon State athletics were dampened by WWII, athletes were suspended from competition, travel was severely limited, and their resources were directed elsewhere.

Scholarly sources on college athletics during WWII that are not football-oriented are limited. It’s reasonable to presume, however, that the problems Oregon State athletics faced were widespread among colleges throughout the nation. Like Oregon State, many college football programs could not continue to function during the war due to a  “shortage of cars, tires, fuel, and students.”^[xii] Low spectator turnout and the loss of top players due to enlistment gave universities little incentive to spend the money and time to continue to compete. By August 1942, nine months after the US entered the war, 52 colleges had paused football and some, including Gonzaga, Saint Mary’s, and NYU, cut it completely. A majority of these schools were located away from major metropolitan areas and relied on spectators to travel, which was discouraged during wartime.^[xiii] By 1943, over 200 schools, including Alabama, Michigan State, and Stanford, suspended their football programs until the end of the conflict. While civilian universities’ athletic departments struggled, in contrast, military academies teams and service teams dominated, benefiting from direct government support and unique advantages.^[xiv] The US government believed that having strong football programs promoted morale within the ranks and boosted voluntary military recruitment. Military officials went to great lengths to maintain the prestige and appeal of military academies during the war. In 1942, President Roosevelt insisted that the historic Army vs. Navy game still take place despite many other games being cancelled and there being restrictions on nonessential travel. Furthermore, the matchup between West Point (Army) and Notre Dame was canceled due to Army officials’ fear that a bitter rivalry matchup between big Catholic schools would undermine Catholic support for Army. The Black Nights (Army) government connection even improved their recruiting systems. The head coach at the time, Earl Blaik, used West Point graduates around the country as scouts for the team. When the best high school players were determined, Blaik would ask members of Congress to appoint the athletes to the academy. These benefits did not fall short of results: during the war, Army boasted a seventy-seven percent win rate and won two undisputed titles.^[xv]  In modern college football, the chances of any military academy winning a national championship are close to none.  World War II completely reshaped college football. While civilian universities like Oregon State battled the setbacks of wartime, military academies directly profited from it.

The study of college athletics is uniquely positioned to illustrate the effects of war. The war impacted tradition, competition, and national identity. The same men who represented their schools in football represented the nation in war. As college life was more broadly disordered by the war, OSC athletics was completely disrupted. Football was suspended, travel restrictions limited competition, and financial resources were redirected toward the war effort. The school campus, meant to be a hub of school spirit, became a place of military preparation, with sports doubling as physical training and athletes enlisting. The war didn’t just subdue and pause college athletics, it redefined their purpose, making schools like OSC adapt to wartime America.

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^[i] Guy Lewis, “The Beginning of Organized Collegiate Sport,” American Quarterly, 22, nr. 2 (Summer, 1970): 222-229.

^[ii] “’World War II’ in Where’s Waldo? Exploring Waldo Hall History,” Oregon State University Special Collections & Archives Research Center (hereafter SCARC), https://scarc.library.oregonstate.edu/omeka/exhibits/show/waldo/wartime/wwii.

^[iii] Administrative Council Minutes, April 20, 1942, SCARC, Administrative Council Records, Box-folder 2.4, Minutes.

^[iv] Administrative Council Records, April 20, 1942.

^[v] Brooklyn Blair, Grace Matteo, and Ruiqi Zhang, “Promoting Physical Health for Women at Oregon State College During World War II,” Oregon State University Special Collections Blog, February 8, 2024, https://blogs.oregonstate.edu/scarc/2024/02/08/promoting-physical-health-for-women-at-oregon-state-college-during-world-war-ii.

^[vi] Letter to the athletic director regarding ROTC athletes, April 19 1943, Intercollegiate Athletic Board Minutes 1942-1943,8, SCARC, Intercollegiate Athletic Records, RG 007, Box 1.

^[vii] A track coach’s recommendation for an athlete to earn a 2-stripe award even though he did not compete in the required amount of events do to army regulations, May 25, 1943, SCARC, Intercollegiate Athletic Board Minutes 1942-1943, 2, Intercollegiate Athletic Records (RG 007), Box 1,

^[viii]OSC Athletic Director to a Member of the Corvallis Ration Board, April 15, 1943, Intercollegiate Athletic Board Minutes, 1942–1943, 9–10,SCARC, Intercollegiate Athletic Records (RG 007), Box 1. 

^[ix]Michigan State Athletic Director letter from 1942 requesting postponement of a football game due to fears of traveling to the West Coast, Intercollegiate Athletic Board Minutes, 1942–1943, 15, SCARC, Intercollegiate Athletic Records (RG 007), Box 1.

^[x] Oregon Stater, February 1942, Oregon Digital, https://oregondigital.org/concern/documents/fx71bk57j.

^[xi]  Letter to the Vice chairman of the Red Cross, March 9 1943, Intercollegiate Athletic Board Minutes 1942-1943, 31 SCARC, Intercollegiate Athletic Records, RG 007, Box 1.

^[xii] Joseph Paul Vasquez III, “America and the Garrison Stadium: How the US Armed Forces Shaped College Football,” Armed Forces & Society 38, no. 3 (2011), https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0095327X11426255

^[xiii] Brenden Welper, “Like 2020, College Football Was Very Different During World War II,” NCAA.com, October 7, 2020, https://www.ncaa.com/news/football/article/2020-09-21/2020-college-football-was-very-different-during-world-war-ii.

^[xiv] The US War department banned training members of the military from participating in intercollegiate athletics. See: “No Football at OSC this Year,” Oregon State Yank, November 1943, 3, https://oregondigital.org/concern/documents/fx719t248?locale=en

^[xv] Joseph Paul Vasquez, III, “America and the Garrison Stadium: How the US Armed Forces Shaped College Football,” Armed Forces & Society, 38 no. 3 (2011), https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0095327X11426255.

During winter term 2025 Dr. Kara Ritzheimer’s History 310 (Historian’s Craft) students researched and wrote blog posts about OSU during WWII. The sources they consulted are listed at the end of each post. Students wrote on a variety of topics and we hope you appreciate their contributions as much as the staff at SCARC does!

Blog post written by Kyle Knott

            When researching college campuses during World War Two, many historians look at the student populations or faculty. Some might even look at religious groups or specific areas of study. However, compared to the previous topics, the history of fraternities during World War Two is an understudied topic. This brings up the topic of what happened to fraternities when there were minimal civilian men on college campuses.

On October 15, 1943, the Oregon State Barometer reported that campus fraternities were pausing rush that term.[i] The year before, fraternities pledged over 300 members, to make the total number over eleven hundred within 34 fraternities.[ii] This begs the question, how did fraternities go from pledging so any members, to suspending multiple chapters on campus due to low membership? The answer would be because of the war. Barometer editor Jack Bolter wrote the article, telling the reading audience, who would most likely consist of students and faculty, that the inter fraternity council had decided to pause rush for all fraternities. The decision came after Jim Leedy, president of the inter fraternity council, led a meeting between the Inter Fraternity Council and additional members of the 13 fraternities on campus to discuss the current state of fraternities on campus. Regarding the war effort, all members concluded that they should pause rush so all aims of the men would be towards the war. The pause came for multiple reasons, such as that most fraternities had very low member numbers and could not do their full rush rituals as well as the men who would rush, would eventually be taken into selective service once they became 18 years old. The individual article about the fraternities itself is part of a larger daily newspaper called the Oregon State Barometer. The document remained in good condition, printed in black and white, and has minimal damage to the edge of the paper. Looking from the perspective of a student during the time it was released to the public, I would see that the number of men enrolled in the college was dropping dramatically as the largest active fraternity only had 13 members.

With fewer civilian male students and growing military presence on campus, the college had to adapt to the wartime demands of housing. In 1943, Oregon State College president Strand announced that the university would be transitioning Waldo Hall and Snell Hall from women’s dormitories to military use only. Because the university lost these buildings as dormitories and fraternities were losing so many members due to the draft and enlistment, the school began to lease fraternity houses and placed female students to live in them.[iii] The university allocated twelve houses to be specifically used for women.[iv] Along with Oregon State College, the University of Illinois was another university that used fraternities as makeshift housing, however, in their case, they would temporarily house soldiers while they were training.[v] In 1944, houses such as Kappa Sigma transitioned from a men’s fraternity the year prior, to an all-women’s group occupying the house.[vi] On December 10^th, the Inter Fraternity Council cancelled all formal fraternity dances as diminishing numbers did not bring in enough revenue for the events to take place.[vii] Fraternities, such as Kappa Sigma, demonstrate how the university repurposed unoccupied houses to house women. Others, including Alpha Gamma Rho, housed athletes or other men due to limited space of the university’s dormitories.[viii] Later in March 1944, the Inter Fraternity Council met together to discuss whether the organization should continue as most men at that time had been sent off to the war.[ix] (Insert Figure 1 below)

Figure 1 The Theta Chi Fraternity House at Oregon State College, used to house female students during WWII[x]

During the years of World War Two, many fraternities on campus had to suspend activities due to members being shipped off to the military and some shut down for good. In total, during the 1943-44 school year, fifteen men were living in fraternity houses. This was a drastic change from the year prior with that number being at 1,156 men.[xi] With the school being very active with training military troops, especially engineers and the development of the Army Specialized Training Program bringing in 1300 students, the dorms had become overcrowded, and the school had to look elsewhere to house its students.[xii] Along with Oregon State College, other universities’ enrollment took a massive hit. At the University of Washington, in the 1942/1943 school year, the school had a total of 6,521 stud ents [xiii] enrolled in the winter term, losing 1,341 students from the previous term.[xiv] Going into spring, at Oregon State College, the college’s enrollment dropped a staggering 23% compared to the previous year’s spring term.[xv] During the 1943/1944 school year, the number of civilian men enrolled in classes dropped as low as 258. The number of women outnumbered men by roughly 4 times with that number being 1,319.[xvi] (Insert Figure 2 Below)

Figure 2 The chart shows the number of students enrolled at Oregon State College from 1888 to 1943, demonstrating the drop in enrollment during World War 2.[xvii]

With most able-bodied men being drafted or volunteering to join the military, many universities saw a great decrease in the number of men enrolling in college. To deal with the issues of low enrollment of men, many universities had an increase in women registering for classes and began programs that brought in uniformed soldiers to take classes while preparing for war. [xviii] With the increase in students on campus, that being civilian and soldiers, the dorms on campus began to fill up. To keep up with the need of housing for students, many schools looked elsewhere for makeshift dormitories. Towards the end of the war, the number of civilian men enrolled dropped to 27% of the prewar enrollment numbers.[xix] With less civilian men enrolled in universities, the ratio of men to women enrolled in college dropped to a number that hadn’t been seen for 2 decades prior. Furthermore, the graph above shows a dramatically large increase in the ratio right after the war with the introduction of the G.I. bill. While the bill did make college free for all veterans, it also puts into perspective just how many men could have been enrolled in college during the time versus how many were.[xx] (Insert Figure 3 to right of paragraph)

Figure 3 The figure shows the Ratio of Men to Women throughout 1900 to 2000, with a decrease in the ratio during the period of World War 2 and a sharp increase right after.[xxi]

Looking at Oregon State College during World War Two, while fraternities were not able to operate, they still made a great contribution to the university. They leased their properties to the university to house female students so the college could bring in military troops to train and help the United States in the war effort. Without the use of the houses, the university would not have been able to bring in as many students or soldiers to train, lowering enrollment numbers even more than they already were.

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[i] “No Rushing for OSC Men”, Oregon State Barometer, October 15, 1943, Oregon Digital, https://oregondigital.org/concern/documents/8k71nk05g

[ii] “Inter-Fraternity Council,” The Beaver 1943, 290, Oregon Digital, https://oregondigital.org/concern/documents/fx719t41x

[iii]U. G. Dubach, Biennial Report for Years 1942-1943 and 1943-1944, May 5, 1944, 5, Oregon State University Special Collections & Archives Research Center (hereafter SCARC) SCARC RG 013-SG 12 Annual & Biennial Reports Box 6 Folder 4, Department of Dormitories.

[iv] “President’s Office General Subject File, Oregon State College, Living Organizations – War-time housing, 1943-1946,” 1, Oregon State University President’s Office Records, Oregon State University, Oregon Digital, https://oregondigital.org/concern/documents/qn59q5195#citations

[v] Thomas Hendrickson, “World War II and University Housing,” University of Illinois Student Life and Culture Archives, December 9, 2015, https://www.library.illinois.edu/slc/2015/12/09/wwiihousing/

[vi]“Wartime Guests of Kappa Sigma,” The Beaver 1944, 244, Oregon Digital, https://oregondigital.org/concern/documents/zk51vh18n

[vii] “Ticket Refund for Frat Dance Set Today,” The Daily Barometer, 1, December 10, 1943, Oregon Digital, https://oregondigital.org/concern/documents/8k71nk21v

[viii] “Wartime Guests of Alpha Gamma Rho,” The Beaver 1944, 262, Oregon Digital, https://oregondigital.org/concern/documents/zk51vh18n

[ix] “Inter-frat to Meet,” The Daily Barometer, March 21, 1944, 1, Oregon Digital, https://oregondigital.org/concern/documents/8k71nk445

[x] “From the Archives: ‘Mother of Five Theta Chis’ Pays Tribute to Fraternity,” Theta Chi Fraternity, https://www.thetachi.org/from-the-archives-mother-of-five-theta-chis-pays-tribute-to-fraternity

[xi] U. G. Dubach, Biennial Report for Years 1942-1943 and 1943-1944, 2, SCARC RG 013-SG 12 Annual & Biennial Reports Box 6 Folder 4, Dean of Men.

[xii] “Army Specialized Training Program Records, 1943-1946,” Archives West ORBIS Cascade Alliance, https://archiveswest.orbiscascade.org/ark%3A80444/xv04125?utm_source=chatgpt.com

[xiv] “Scouting the Campuses,” The Daily Barometer, January 16, 1943, Oregon Digital, https://oregondigital.org/concern/documents/8k71nj28k

[xv] “OSC Enrollment Records Drop Of 23 Percent,” Oregon State Barometer, March 24, 1943, Oregon Digital, https://oregondigital.org/concern/documents/8k71nj62w

[xvi] “College Enrollment Hits Bottom”, Oregon State Barometer, April 18, 1944, Oregon Digital, https://oregondigital.org/concern/documents/8k71nk470

[xvii] “Presidents Biennial Report for 1943-1944,” SCARC, Annual and Binomial Reports, Box 6 Folder 4, 1944.

[xviii] Roger L. Geiger, The American University: A History (Princeton University Press, 1990): xix.

[xix] Geiger, The American University, xx.

[xx] Claudia Goldin, Lawrence F. Katz, Ilyana Kuziemko, “The Homecoming of American Women: The Reversal of the College Gender Gap,” Journal of Economic Perspectives 20, no. 4 (Fall 2006): 139.

[xxi] Goldin et al, “The Homecoming of American Women,” 139.

During winter term 2025 Dr. Kara Ritzheimer’s History 310 (Historian’s Craft) students researched and wrote blog posts about OSU during WWII. The sources they consulted are listed at the end of each post. Students wrote on a variety of topics and we hope you appreciate their contributions as much as the staff at SCARC does!

Blog post written by Allyson English.

Like many people in the United States, sorority women around the nation were involved in contributing to the war effort to beat the Axis powers. In the case of Kappa Delta at Oregon State University, previously called Oregon State College (OSC), this sorority did their part during WWII to contribute to the war effort. One example would be a letter written to Kappa Delta from an organization supporting children impacted by the war in Europe. The letter itself is in excellent condition and contains creases where the paper has been folded to fit inside an envelope. The letter also contains pencil marks emphasizing paragraphs of Kappa Delta’s specific involvement with the organization. This letter shows Kappa Delta’s involvement towards the war effort on OSC’s campus. This blog post aims to articulate not only the efforts made by OSC’s Kappa Delta, but the organized effort among the Greek community on OSC’s campus and nationwide.

Jane Chase Rogers, the Educational Chairman for the organization Foster Parents’ Plan for War Children, Inc., wrote this letter to the Alpha Kappa chapter of Kappa Delta. This organization was founded during the Spanish Civil War in 1937 by British war journalist Langdon-Davies and refugee worker Eric Muggeridge to protect children by evacuating them to safe countries.[1] Written on September 11, 1944, Rogers wrote this letter to thank the Kappa Delta chapter of OSC for their sponsorship of two foster children named Barbara Reader and Melvyn Jones. OSC’s Kappa Delta was assigned Barbara and Melvyn in September of 1944 by the organization.[2] The money that Kappa Delta raised and donated went to the provision of Barbara and Melvyn. The means of provision would go towards clothing and other necessities the children would need that they would not be able attain themselves. The letter continues to express the continuation for the provision of the children as well as asking some of the sorority members to write letters to Barbara as she is old enough to read and was asking for letters from her foster parents because she sees other children getting letters according to Rogers.[3]

While some sororities organized their own contributions to the war effort, Panhellenic sororities and other campus organizations across OSC banded together to do their part to aid wartime contributions. In result of the ongoing war, sororities faced the direct effects. These direct effects are expressed through the Oregon State Barometer, OSC’s student newspaper. In the fall rush season of 1943, one article reported: “Panhellenic [had] just recently deferred the first fall rushing period of three weeks” due to “Oregon State’s accelerated war setup”, according to the Oregon State Barometer. [4] Within the same issue of the newspaper, the reason for the deferment of the fall rushing period is because “Panhellenic council thought it inadvisable to take women away from their summer jobs which would probably be associated with war work.”[5] In 1943, Panhellenic approached the war head on. In their response to OSC engaging in war initiatives, “Panhellenic revised many of its policies to program with national defense.”[6] To align with the nation’s efforts to support the war, sororities within Panhellenic, along with other living organizations on OSC’s campus, participated in a coat hanger drive in response to Camp Adair’s request for hangers. Camp Adair was built during 1940 through 1942 to train men for the war.[7] The coat hanger drive required the living organizations who participated “to collect a minimum of two hangers from each Oregon Stater.”[8] During World War Two, metal was reserved for the war effort, resulting in a shortage nationwide among citizens. At Camp Adair, the men stationed there only had access to cardboard hangers which couldn’t support the weight of their coats, so “wire and wooden hangers [were] specifically needed.”[9]

Panhellenic sororities, along with contributions of OSC’s Interfraternity Council (IFC), contributed to the war effort by buying war savings stamps. During World War Two, the United States Treasury Department issued war savings stamps that “allowed everyone in the country, rich or poor, young or old to save and contribute to the war effort.”[10] Sororities and fraternities at OSC pledged an amount of how many war savings stamps they purchased. In the early 1940’s, war savings defense stamps were priced ten cents, twenty-five cents, fifty cents, one dollar, and five dollars, the color of each stamp reflecting a different price.[11] Many of the sororities and the fraternities went over the initial pledge of stamps they originally made to buy. Lambda Chi Alpha took first, exceeding their original pledge of stamps by ninety-one thousand, eight hundred and fifty-one percent and taking second, Kappa Alpha Theta exceeding five thousand, nine hundred and seventy-one.[12] These percentages represent the percent of stamps exceeded by sororities and fraternities’ initial amount the pledged to buy.

On a national level, Kappa Delta supported the war effort. Every Kappa Delta member has a subscription to the Kappa Delta magazine called The Angelos. The Angelos is a quarterly magazine with the purpose of informing Kappa Delta’s about other Kappa Deltas and their respective chapters around the nation on other college campuses. In the November 1942 edition of the magazine, National Kappa Delta announced its War Service Project written by the National President Clementine Newman Militzer. Headed by Helen Bunting Brown as the War Service Chairman and Julia Fuqua Ober and the Honorary Chairman, the purpose of Kappa Delta’s War Service Project would be “devoted to the purpose of supplying recreational equipment of all types for [the] armed forces.”[13] This excerpt is an excellent condition and there is no evidence of damage whatsoever. The announcement of National Kappa Delta initiating a War Service project shows that they are acknowledging the war and requesting aid in the war effort by recruiting as many Kappa Delta chapters on college campuses as possible to provide for the armed forces of the United States. While National Kappa Delta is initiating chapters around the nation to contribute their part to Kappa Delta’s War Service Project, National Kappa Delta addresses the war through letters to individual chapters. Addressed to Kappa Delta on September 1, 1944, Militzer the National President, opened the letter by noting that the “country is nearing the close of its third year at war,” acknowledging the impact of the war on the chapter, and emphasizing that the chapter “continue for high scholarship, undertake projects of worthwhile service for [the] campus and [the] country, and to take full advantages of the opportunities offered by sorority relationships.”[14] With the persistent attitude of contribution through National Kappa Delta’s War Service Project and a letter acknowledging the impact of the war shows the nature of importance made by Kappa Delta to contribute to the war effort during World War Two.

Much like other groups around the nation, college sorority women were no exception in contributing to the war effort to defeat the Axis powers. With the perspectives of Kappa Delta at Oregon State College and on a national level with National Kappa Delta, the devoted actions are shown from both, highlighting the importance what can be done on the home front to support the war overseas. If anyone is researching this topic, I would like to highlight the difficulty on finding scholarly writings on Greek life as a whole during World War Two.

Endnotes

[1] “History,” Plan International USA, https://www.planusa.org/about-us/history/.

2 Jane Chase Rogers to Kappa Delta, September 11, 1944, Foster Parents’ Plan for War Children, Alpha Kappa chapter of Kappa Delta Personal Records at OSU.

3 Jane Chase Rogers to Kappa Delta.

4 “Panhellenic Adopts Rushing”, Oregon State Barometer, May 21, 1943, 2, Oregon Digital, https://oregondigital.org/concern/documents/8k71nk01c.

5 “Open Rushing to Continue This Summer.” Oregon State Barometer, May 21, 1943, 1, Oregon Digital, https://oregondigital.org/concern/documents/8k71nk01c.

6 “Panhellenic” in 1943 Beaver (Corvallis, OR: Oregon State College, 1943), 292.

7 National Park Service, Preserving the Historic Military Landscape at Camp Adair, U.S. National Park Service, https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/preserving-the-historic-military-landscape-at-camp-adair.htm.

8 “Campus Begins Drive for Coat Hangers,” Oregon State Barometer, January 26, 1943, 3, Oregon Digital, https://oregondigital.org/concern/documents/8k71nj33f.

9 “Campus Begins Drive for Coat Hangers”, January 26, 1943, 3.

10 Harry K. Charles, Jr, Postal and Treasury Savings Stamp Systems: The War Years (paper presented at the National Postal Museum Symposium, Washington DC, September 26, 2015), 1 https://postalmuseum.si.edu/sites/default/files/charles-blount_symposium_paper.pdf.

11 Postal and Treasury Savings Stamp Systems, September 26, 2015, 34.

12 “Savings Pledges Led by Chi Alpha,” Oregon State Barometer, January 19, 1943, 1, Oregon Digital, https://oregondigital.org/concern/documents/8k71nj29v.

13 Clementine Newman Milizter “Announcing Kappa Delta’s War Service Project,” The Angelos of Kappa Delta, November 1942, 2.

14 Mrs. Walter E. Militzer to Kappa Delta, September 1, 1944, Kappa Delta National Council, Alpha Kappa chapter of Kappa Delta Personal Records at OSU.

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[1] “History,” Plan International USA, https://www.planusa.org/about-us/history/.

[2] Jane Chase Rogers to Kappa Delta, September 11, 1944, Foster Parents’ Plan for War Children, Alpha Kappa chapter of Kappa Delta Personal Records at OSU.

[3] Jane Chase Rogers to Kappa Delta, September 11, 1944, Foster Parents’ Plan for War Children, Alpha Kappa chapter of Kappa Delta Personal Records at OSU.

[4] “Panhellenic Adopts Rushing”, Oregon State Barometer, May 21, 1943, 2, Oregon Digital, https://oregondigital.org/concern/documents/8k71nk01c

[5] “Open Rushing to Continue This Summer.” Oregon State Barometer, May 21, 1943, 1, Oregon Digital, https://oregondigital.org/concern/documents/8k71nk01c

[6] “Panhellenic” in 1943 Beaver (Corvallis, OR: Oregon State College, 1943), 292.

[7] National Park Service, Preserving the Historic Military Landscape at Camp Adair, U.S. National Park Service, https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/preserving-the-historic-military-landscape-at-camp-adair.htm

[8] “Campus Begins Drive for Coat Hangers,” Oregon State Barometer, January 26, 1943, 3, Oregon Digital, https://oregondigital.org/concern/documents/8k71nj33f

[9] “Campus Begins Drive for Coat Hangers”

[10] Harry K. Charles, Jr, Postal and Treasury Savings Stamp Systems: The War Years (paper presented at the National Postal Museum Symposium, Washington DC, September 26, 2015), 1 https://postalmuseum.si.edu/sites/default/files/charles-blount_symposium_paper.pdf

[11] Postal and Treasury Savings Stamp Systems, September 26, 2015, 34.

[12] “Savings Pledges Led by Chi Alpha,” Oregon State Barometer, January 19, 1943, 1, Oregon Digital, https://oregondigital.org/concern/documents/8k71nj29v

[13] Clementine Newman Milizter “Announcing Kappa Delta’s War Service Project,” The Angelos of Kappa Delta, November 1942, 2.

[14] Mrs. Walter E. Militzer to Kappa Delta, September 1, 1944, Kappa Delta National Council, Alpha Kappa chapter of Kappa Delta Personal Records at OSU.