Overview
The main goal of this project is to foster a greater understanding of our campus history and emphasize both the historical reasoning and the contemporary importance of these memorials’ construction. Often what we're told about our campus history is only half the truth; in a sense, we get the legend, not the lore, of many significant markers that make up Auburn tradition. Our research covers five locations: the World War I memorial, the lathe, the War Dogs memorial, the bust of John Heisman, and the "Women on Campus" statue. These sites represent a multitude of hidden histories not commonly known by the general population at Auburn University, and so this project hopes to bring these fascinating stories to the public. Although this project is tailored for anyone interested in learning about many lesser known artifacts on campus, hopefully it inspires other history students to engage with overlooked memorials and bring awareness to these amazing pieces of public-facing history.
Probably the most obscure of our five locations, this easily-missed plaque is dedicated to "the Auburn men who gave their lives in the World War." Following World War I, the French government sent small oak trees from the Argonne Forest, the site of numerous important battles, to America for distribution among the states. Through the Women's Club of Auburn, the university acquired one of these Argonne trees and planted it on campus under the direction of President Thach on Memorial Day, April 20, 1919. Following the acceptance of this gift, the local Light Horse Harry Lee Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution "was given permission to place a granite pillar with a tablet at the tree to mark it as a memorial to the Alabama Polytechnic Institute who fell overseas in the World War" (Judd). Although the date of this dedication is unknown (sometime following Memorial Day 1919), the speakers at the event included Major L.S. Spalding, Commandant, Lieutenant John E. Pitts of the 117th Field Artillery, Dixie Division, and Miss Catherine Hare.
The Lathe has become an integral piece of Auburn University tradition and history since it was brought to the campus in 1936; however, few know much about it apart from the midnight kissing tradition that is told on every campus tour. The real history is much more interesting, if also convoluted. "[D]ating from an indeterminable period before the Civil War," the Lathe was first used at a foundry in Selma to bore cannon for the Confederate Army (Thomas 1). "With the invasion of the South by the Federal troops, the Confederate soldiers, fearing that the lathe would be confiscated and used by the enemy, loaded it on ox carts and started for Columbus, Georgia" (Thomas 1). The soldiers' fears ultimately came true, as the machine was buried in Irondale, Alabama, when they were intercepted by raiders. This slight diversion did not stop the Lathe from successfully making its way to Columbus, Georgia, where it resided until around 1917 when Mr. Lynn of Lynn Iron Works in Irondale purchased it. After Tennessee Coal and Iron took over the company, the machine was moved to Birmingham and used to produce train wheels; this job proved to be its last, as the company presented the Lathe to Alabama Polytechnic Institute in 1936 as a commemoration of the universities contributions to the Confederacy. The hunk of metal has stirred a fair amount of controversy since its introduction to the campus because of its placement next to Samford Hall. Many claimed that the Lathe was too ugly and artificial to be located among the natural beauty of the Main Building (Samford) at the front of campus; others combatted this claim by emphasizing its "heroic" significance and insisting it deserved a place of honor. In 1952, Alpha Phi Omega, a national service fraternity for male students, presented a plaque relating a brief history of the now-iconic landmark.
"I think the lathe belongs on our front campus and nowhere else. It was given to us as a memorial of the old South. We were expected to value it as such and place it in a spot of prominence. The front campus is the only logical place for it. Anyone should be able to see that" (Smith).
(Photo: The Lathe in the 1930s)
What is known about Auburn’s College of Veterinarian Medicine? Many would simply recognize it as the renowned school training the hands of future dog-tors, or maybe they know it for the work and research they do with equestrian (and other large animals), but what not many people may know is the storied military history surrounding the College. In 1943, Dr. William Putney, a veterinarian and graduate of Auburn, was assigned to the Marine Corps’ War-Dog training school. There he was the commanding officer (CO) of the 3rd War-Dog Platoon, of the Marine’s 3rd Division. As the CO of 3rd platoon, he led his dogs, and men, into combat in Guam earning himself the Silver Star and the Purple Heart when they took a machine gun battery held by the Japanese. While in Guam, Putney was not the only member of his platoon to gain notability, Kurt, a Doberman, was loyal and brave. He was the first canine casualty of the Battle of Guam; he was responsible for security and scouting when he was killed by enemy soldiers while on patrol. Kurt was also used as the model for the War-Dogs memorials, titled "Always Faithful", in Guam and at the Auburn University College of Veterinary Medicine. The War-Dog platoon conducted around 450 patrols on the island.
In the mid- to late-1980s, Dr. Putney returned to Guam to begin the commission of the War-Dog cemetery which was completed in 1994 on US Naval Base Guam. At the cemetery, Putney commissioned Susan Bahary to design and sculpt the memorial for his always faithful companions. In 2005, Betsy Putney, Dr. Putney’s wife, dedicated a replica of "Always Faithful" to Auburn University in remembrance to her husband and his dedication to the dogs he served with and the school he loved.
Every college football fan has heard of the Heisman Trophy, the award given to the most outstanding offensive player at the end of every season, but here at Auburn we have a special connection with this award and the man it’s named for, John William Heisman. Heisman was born in 1869 in Cleveland, Ohio to German immigrants, raised in Titusville, Pennsylvania, and he attended Brown University and Pennsylvania State University (Penn State), where he played football for both schools. In 1895, he became the 5th head coach of the Alabama Polytechnic Institute football program, and during his 5 seasons he held a record of 12-4-2. This game record, however, is not his most notable attribute to Auburn or to football. He was a key factor in getting the forward pass added to the rules of the game, he introduced a variety of trick plays including the “Hidden ball trick” and the double reverse, he introduced the pulling of guards for different blocking schemes, and he got the game broken down into quarters instead of halves. In 1916, Coach Heisman set a college football record that has yet to be broken: the most points scored in a single game, 222-0 against Vanderbilt while he was coaching at Georgia Tech. He was also the first head football coach to be paid, earning $2,250 a year and 30% of the gate admission fees. In 1935, Heisman became the Athletic Director of the Downtown Athletic Club in Manhattan, NYC, which that same year voted to begin awarding the Downtown Athletic Club Trophy for the best collegiate football player east of the Mississippi River. Heisman was initially opposed to the idea of an award singling out a player instead of a team but conceded that honor for the accolades of the player does go to his teammates. The following year, 1936, and only two months after his death, the Downtown Athletics Club unanimously voted to rename the award the Heisman Memorial Trophy. During his coaching career, Heisman coached at Oberlin College, Buchtel College (University of Akron), Alabama Polytechnic Institute (Auburn University), Clemson University, Georgia Tech, the University of Pennsylvania, Washington & Jefferson College, and Rice University; and in 1971, Auburn became the first of the schools that Heisman coached at to receive the Heisman Trophy with Pat Sullivan (Auburn quarterback) being the recipient of the award.
While it is definitely the most visible memorial on the list, the "Women on Campus" statue commemorates 125 years of women at Auburn University. Both it and the conjoining ampitheatre, Theatre III, are dedicated to the many women who have attended Auburn since 1892 when Katherine Broun (daughter of President William Broun), Margaret Teague (niece of Mary Teague Holliefield), and Willie Little (daughter of Auburn businessman and mayor) were admitted. "The common trend was their close proximity to the university, and this would stay true for Auburn students throughout the decade. Coeds were often 'daughters of townspeople and faculty,' taking the train from Opelika or walking to school" (Berg). 1894 marked the first commencement with three female graduates, earning "degrees and all honors" (Berg). Broun, Teague, and Little, as trailblazers for other women, are the three distinct figures that the 2019 statue was created to honor, along with James and Juanita Lee Whately. Their daughter – another Auburn alumni, Melanie Whatley Barstad – funded the memorial project in order to honor her mother, who graduated from Alabama Polytechnic Institute with a degree in education, and her father, who served in World War II. The "Women on Campus" statue was dedicated on Friday, September 27, 2019, and has now become a memorable landmark on the Auburn University campus.
works Cited
1892: First three women enrolled at A&M. 1892, Auburn University Digital Library, http://content.lib.auburn.edu/cdm/compoundobject/collection/village/id/135/rec/2.
Berg, Reagan Day. "Women at Auburn: 1892-1900." Auburn Alumni Association. Auburn University, https://www.alumni.auburn.edu/women-at-auburn-1892-1900/.
Confederate lathe, placed on the campus of the Alabama Polytechnic Institute in 1937. 1941, Alabama Mosaic, http://cdm17217.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/photo/id/2509.
Crain, Abbey. "Auburn University honors 125 years of women on campus with bronze statue." Advance Local Alabama. Advance Local, 27 Sept. 2019, https://www.al.com/news/2019/09/auburn-university-honors-125-years-of-women-on-campus-with-bronze-statue.html.
Heisman, John M. "John W. Heisman." The Heisman Trophy. https://www.heisman.com/about-the-heisman/john-w-heisman/
"Heisman Represents College Football Greatness." Auburn University Athletics Department, 10 April 2012. https://auburntigers.com/news/2012/4/10/Heisman_Represents_College_Football_Greatness
Judd, Edith Royster. "The Argonne Tree." Daughters of the American Revolution Magazine, Feb. 1937, pp. 126.
"Local Service Group Presents Bronze Plaque For Campus Landmark." The Plainsman, 5 Dec. 1952, p. 5.
Norton, Mindy. "Remembering Military (War) Dogs." Alabama Public Radio, 26 May 2018. https://www.apr.org/post/remembering-military-war-dogs
Reynolds, Grace. "New statue on AU campus to honor 125 years of women's enrollment." Eagle Eye TV. Eagle Eye TV, 29 Jul. 2019, https://www.eagleeyeauburn.com/article/2019/07/new-statue-on-au-campus-to-honor-125-years-of-womens-enrollment.
Smith, L.M. "Confederate Lathe is in The Right Place, Says Irritated Writer." The Plainsman, 12 Feb. 1937, p. 2.
Thomas, Son. "Civil War Lathe, Now On Campus, Has Long And Interesting History." The Plainsman, 3 Feb. 1937, p. 1 and 4.
"War Dog Biography - Dr. William Putney." University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture College of Veterinary Medicine. https://vetmed.tennessee.edu/home/Pages/war_dog_biography.aspx
Workman, Howard. "History of Old Civil War Lathe Near Samford Hall Is Related To Students." The Plainsman, 20 Oct. 1937, p. 4.