Collections

The Organizational Records, 1900-2014, undated (including undated, late nineteenth century images), documents part of the history of CMU Athletics Track, Field and Cross-Country (TFCC) programs, athletes, coaches, staff and alumni and a few items documenting other CMU athletes or teams in textual and audio visual materials, including moving image film.

The Organizational Records, 1900-2014, undated (including undated, late nineteenth century images), documents part of the history of CMU Athletics Track, Field and Cross-Country (TFCC) programs, athletes, coaches, staff and alumni and a few items documenting other CMU athletes or teams in textual and audio visual materials, including moving image film. The collection is incomplete, but provides the earliest documentation of the CMU men’s track field and cross country (TFCC) clubs, later teams and documentation pre- the 1900, which predates surviving Central Michigan University (CMU) publications about TFCC. The first documentation of what became Central Michigan University (CMU)’s men’s cross-country teams is in October 1929 when a cross country class began practicing under coach A. U. Nowak, with plans for a track 2.5 miles long to be laid soon (Central State Life, Oct. 9, 1929). This collection also documents CMU Women’s TFCC at CMU beginning in 1981 although the Women’s TFCC formally began at CMU in 1971. TFCC were originally divided by gender.

Included in this collection are formal and informal athletic, athletic alumni, social and family events, collected and donated, and sometimes personally created, by athletes and coaches, all of whom were proud of the history of their programs and wished to preserve it. Formal events include training, TFCC meets and competitions, award ceremonies, and athletic dinners. Informal events including time spent in hotels, eating, traveling, the Ten Mile Breakfast Run, Christmas cards and wedding images of alumni athletes. Some major coaches, staff, and athletes are documented. A racist photograph of a female student in a fake Native American costume is included.

Formats include images, still photographs, including Mugs (mugshots style portraits) and negatives, photograph albums, moving image films; scrapbooks; communications (emails, letters, notes, memos), statistics, clippings; CMU publications and public relations materials (brochures, newsletters, programs, sport cards, news releases, newsletters); a plaque; certificates; architectural drawings of the CMU Outdoor Track, 1998 and the Athletic Facility Renovation, 1995, 1997. CMU Track and field coach Don Sazima (1970-1984) documented the history of the combined programs and his career (2 folders, 2014 in Box 1). A list of Men’s CC coaches, 1910-1950 includes names of coaches which predates surviving CMU publications. The First Annual Alumni Luncheon was held in 1979. Alumni provided directory information on forms, later documentation of this is in the separate CMU. Athletics Organizational Records collection.

Oversized materials include a Women’s team photograph plaque, 1999; numerous oversized photographs of Ed VanderHeuvel, track star, 1958; three unidentified CMU Women’s TFCC athletes and a team photograph, 1980 and undated. Architectural drawings of the CMU Outdoor Track, by All American Track Corp. Engineering Division,1998 and the Athletic Facility Renovation, by Foresite Design, Inc.1995, 1997.

Materials documenting non TFCC CMU athletes includes: CMC and CMU Varsity football team group photographs, 1947-19548, 1965; photograph of Dennis Yeates, CMU gymnast, 1960-1962; Oversized materials include: five football team photographs; 1952, 1955, 1956, 1966, undated; CMU Men’s basketball team photograph, 1949; and CMU Men’s Tennis team photograph, undated.

Researchers may also be interested in other collections in the Clarke including: the CMU. Athletics, CMU. UComm (University Communications) and CMU. Information Services collections, all of which include some materials mostly documenting CMU athletes and athletic events and to a lesser extent, CMU coaches and staff. Also at the Clarke is a 1930s CMU Cross Country uniform worn by Neil Hoover who attended CMU during the 1932-1934 school years and one term during 1937, he was a cross-country runner who also played football for CMU.

Film Description: Three 16 mm polyester films, in 2 archival film canisters. The film was funded by a grant from the CMU Creative Endeavors Committee.

Film ID Number: 76748-1 Format: 16 mm color and silent, but includes smaller sections in various combinations of black and white, negative images, color, silent and sound (magnetic). Date: 1972-1973. Size:330 ft. (plays for 13 minutes) Information off of original can: final, edited copy of "the Distance Runner," compiled by Omnicron Productions, Lansing, a division of Omnicron Corporation, on June 12, 1973, Information off of original film leader: "the Distance Runner," Overview of scenes: The film documents Central Michigan University (CMU) Cross County male student athletes running through campus, cornfields, on roads, and through forests in fall and winter, 1972, and perhaps spring 1973. Athletes discuss why they love to run, when and why they began running, what they think about while running, including "girl trouble" with their girlfriends, memorizing tax formulas for their accounting classes, and their running schedules. Physical information: .4 film shrinkage, .5 out of 3 on the AD strip acidity scale - by Marian Matyn, Aug. 2020. Miscellaneous information: none.

Film ID Number: 76748-2 and 76748-3 (spliced together are raw footage from which parts were taken to create Film ID Number 76748-1) Format: 16 mm color and silent, but it includes smaller sections in various combinations of black and white, negative images, color, silent and sound (magnetic). Date: 1972-1973. Size: 150ft. Information off of original can: "the Distance Runner," compiled by Omnicron Productions, Lansing, a division of Omnicron Corporation, on June 12, 1973, Information off of original film leader: "the Distance Runner," Overview of scenes: Raw footage of Central Michigan University (CMU) Cross County male student athletes running through campus, cornfields, on roads, and through forests in fall and winter, 1972, and perhaps spring 1973. Athletes discuss why they love to run, when and why they began running, what they think about while running, including "girl trouble" with their girlfriends, memorizing tax formulas for their accounting classes, and their running schedules. Physical information: .4 film shrinkage, .5 out of 3 on the AD strip acidity scale - by Marian Matyn, Aug. 2020. Miscellaneous information: none. The film both documents CMU cross country runners, 1972-1973, and served as an inspirational film for other runners. Stylistically, the film has many obvious similarities to an earlier inspirational cross-country running film, The Harriers, 1960, created by Humboldt State University.

Processing Note: During processing approximately 1 cubic foot of duplicates and CMLife newspaper clippings were withdrawn. Newspaper clippings from beyond campus were photocopied and the copies were retained.