Archive Record
Images
Metadata
Title |
UA3 President's Office Series 3 Kelly Thompson |
Creator |
WKU President's Office - Thompson |
Description |
Records created by the President's Office during the Kelly Thompson administration. This series is broken down into the following series. Series 1. Subject/Correspondence File Series 2. Speeches Series 3. Awards Series 4. Construction File Series 5. Interviews/Oral History Series 6. Publications Series 7. Scrapbooks Series 8. Assistant to the President Series 9. Personal Papers |
Collection |
WKU Archives |
Object Name |
Records |
Year Range From |
1955 |
Year Range To |
1969 |
Admin / Biog History |
The president's office was created in 1906. Assistant to the President Edwin Kelly Thompson became acting president during Paul Garrett's last illness. Upon Garrett's death February 28, 1955 the Board of Regents approved Thompson to continue as acting president until a replacement could be found. He was elected president on October 17, 1955 a position he held until his retirement in 1969. Kelly Thompson was born in Lebanon, Kentucky on January 28, 1909. He came to Western in the fall of 1928 on a football scholarship and earned bachelor's and master's degrees. Thompson spent his early career at WKU as college representative and publicity director. During World War II he served in the Navy, after which he returned to campus to work as an assistant to E.A. Diddle and President Paul Garrett. [Harrison, pp. 139-143] During his tenure as president, Thompson oversaw a steady increase in student population which resulted in the construction of new buildings and WKU gained university status in 1966. He stepped down in 1969 and later went on to serve as president of the College Heights Foundation. Thompson died August 14, 1993. |
People |
Thompson, Edwin Kelly, 1909-1993 |
Search Terms |
Western Kentucky University |
Related Materials |
UA1F WKU Archives Multimedia Resources / Vertical File UA2 Board of Regents |
Catalog Number |
UA3.3 |
Dates of Creation |
1955-1969 |
Caption |
WKU Archives Logo |
Extent |
43.12 cu. ft., 13 audiotapes, 6 scrapbooks, 4 folders, 3 films, digital files |
Number of Images |
1 |
Access Conditions |
This record group is unprocessed and must be reviewed for potential restricted materials before access is granted. Please contact the WKU Archivist prior to your visit. |
Parent ID |
UA3 |
Level of Description |
Series |
Disciplines |
Higher Education Administration |
Containers |
Unprocessed Records Unprocessed Records - Restricted |
Child Records |
WKU Map of Campus UA3 President's Office Series 3 Kelly Thompson Subseries 1 Subject/Correspondence File UA3 President's Office Series 3 Kelly Thompson Subseries 2 Speech File UA3 President's Office Series 3 Kelly Thompson Subseries 3 Awards UA3 President's Office Series 3 Kelly Thompson Subseries 4 Construction File UA3 President's Office Series 3 Kelly Thompson Subseries 6 Publications UA3 President's Office Series 3 Kelly Thompson Subseries 7 Scrapbooks UA3 President's Office Series 3 Kelly Thompson Subseries 8 Assistant to the President UA3 President's Office Series 3 Kelly Thompson Subseries 9 Personal Papers WKU Map of Campus WKU Map of Campus UA3 President's Office Series 3 Kelly Thompson Subseries 5 Interviews/Oral History |