Exterior view of the President's home, on the east side of the campus. This was the oldest stone house in the state of Minnesota, and was torn down in the late 1950s or early 1960s. Note: the building is no longer standing.
Group portrait of some of the members of the Wahlers and Graebner family. Martin Graebner is on far left and Art Wahlers is sitting on the woman's knee.
Students lying on grass outside with brooms, mattresses and blankets hanging on clotheslines. The brooms are used to beat the mattresses clean. Taken near the old dining room.
Students lying on grass outside with brooms, mattresses and blankets hanging on clotheslines. The brooms are used to beat the mattresses clean. Taken near the old dining room.
Students lying on grass outside with brooms, mattresses and blankets hanging on clotheslines. The brooms are used to beat the mattresses clean. Taken near the old dining room.
Interview with William H. Lieske, Concordia College class of 1937, from Matairie, Louisiana, in 1981. Pastor Lieske talks about, among other things, his classmates and what they did upon graduation, Concordia's first two presidents ' Theodore Buenger and Martin Graebner ' as teachers, pranks played on professors, the gradual diminishment of hazing and the gradual rise of coeducation, free time activities, the geography of the campus and its old tunnel system, the deaths of three students during his time there, and participation in musical groups and athletic teams. This interview was conducted by librarian Margaret Horn (at Concordia from 1956-1987) during a summer sabbatical, and was made possible in part by a grant from Aid Association for Lutherans (now 'Thrivent').
Interview with Wesley Kuhn, Concordia College class of 1940, from Biloxi, Mississippi, in 1981. Pastor Kuhn talks about, among other things, the prevalence of and secrecy surrounding hazing ('shagging'), what outstanding professors did, working as student body president with the school president Martin Graebner, working to earn extra money, what the students had to pay for (not tuition), the effect of the depression on the school and students, physical education requirements and intramural sports, and attitudes towards Germans, Germany and Hitler. This interview was conducted by librarian Margaret Horn (at Concordia from 1956-1987) during a summer sabbatical, and was made possible in part by a grant from Aid Association for Lutherans (now 'Thrivent').
Interview with Walter Volz, Concordia College class of 1956, from Plantation, Florida, in 1981. Pastor Volz talks about, among other things, how he and his brothers would ride their bicycles to Concordia even in winter - after doing their paper routes, the young professors who came on at this time, their excellent forensics/debate team led by professor E.J. Otto, the literary societies on campus and their role in the all-male dramas (Shakespeare and such) performed on campus, participation in the campus printing and yearbook activities, interesting memories of professors, the respect students had for professors who disciplined them (like Professor Edgar Streufert), President William A. Poehler waking up the younger students in the morning, sneaking out to study while being a chapel acolyte, exploring the tunnel system of the old Reformatory school (seeing ball and chains, solitary confinement cells), giving President Poehler's daughters a hard time, his happy recollections of Concordia, and his very busy ministry in south Florida. This interview was conducted by librarian Margaret Horn (at Concordia from 1956-1987) during a summer sabbatical, and was made possible in part by a grant from Aid Association for Lutherans (now Thrivent).
Interview with Walter Haag, Concordia College class of 1934, from Marianna, Florida, in 1981. Pastor Haag talks about, among other things, why he went to Concordia, homesickness and some details of hazing ('shagging') incidents, memorable school work, various professors and pranks played on them, the close bond the students shared, the untimely death of a roommate, the effects of the depression and working at school for extra money, transportation, nicknames of students and profs, and the school's expectations about dating. This interview was conducted by librarian Margaret Horn (at Concordia from 1956-1987) during a summer sabbatical, and was made possible in part by a grant from Aid Association for Lutherans (now 'Thrivent').
Interview with Rudolph Ritz, Concordia College class of 1935, from Largo, Florida, in 1981. Pastor Ritz, whose mother was the chief cook for Kaiser Wilhelm II, talks about, among other things, why he came to study for the ministry at Concordia, how public school teachers sacrificed extra time to help him learn English and math, the president's long list of responsibilities at the school (leading chapel, night watchman, his own secretary), outstanding profs and what made them great, the dissection of stray animals for biology classes, how city boys at Concordia avoided hazing and who got it the worst, classroom clowning and fun, playing sports, the difficulties professors faced, the scandal of dating students (dancing, movies), extracurricular night lectures by a professor on sexual matters, a 'rebel' student newspaper (the 'Rebel Comet'), pro baseball and the St. Paul Saints (Babe Ruth), work outside of school, the conversion of a co-worker to Christianity through his preaching, and an interesting story about a personal letter from President Nixon. This interview was conducted by librarian Margaret Horn (at Concordia from 1956-1987) during a summer sabbatical, and was made possible in part by a grant from Aid Association for Lutherans (now 'Thrivent').
Interview with Robert Gaiser, Concordia College class of 1914 (?), from Gulfport, Florida in 1981. Mr. Gaiser talks about, among other things, how his father was a pastor at a congregation ' at one time pastored by a man who became the President of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod (Friedrich Pfotenhauer) ' that provided a steady supply of pastors and teachers for the church, hazing incidents and 'payback' years later (at a theological convention!), harmless pranks, the disciplined education received, professors at the school, students working outside of school, transportation and various entertainments, the old campus buildings (the old Reformatory School) since torn down, sports, his later career as a realtor and builder, his convictions about the importance of the church and its mission. This interview was conducted by librarian Margaret Horn (at Concordia from 1956-1987) during a summer sabbatical, and was made possible in part by a grant from Aid Association for Lutherans (now 'Thrivent').
Interview with Orville Quast, Concordia College class of 1938, from Lumberton, North Carolina, in 1981. Mr. Quast talks about, among other things, being a small town boy coming to St. Paul, how hazing was good for him, needing parental permission to smoke at Concordia when 16 years old, Professor Paul Stor's interesting biology classes, hitchhiking to school, his responsibilities as his class president, the accreditation of the high school, the effects of the Great Depression on the school, participation in sports and singing groups, being justly punished by upperclassmen, his musings about when President Martin Graebner slept, mandatory study time before early breakfast and in the evening, why he dropped out of seminary after Concordia, and the other people in his class. This interview was conducted by librarian Margaret Horn (at Concordia from 1956-1987) during a summer sabbatical, and was made possible in part by a grant from Aid Association for Lutherans (now 'Thrivent').
Interview with Marlin Mentz, Concordia College class of 1943, from Douglasville, Georgia, in 1981. Pastor Mentz talks about, among other things, how his grandfather encouraged him to be a pastor, his transfer to Concordia in 1941, the teachers the students respected and why (particularly professors John Berger and Lorenz Blankenbuehler), school President Martin Graebner's many gifts, issues created by World War II, social activities including tavern visits and effectively avoiding the President's supervision, classroom and dormitory exploits and pranks, the school's museum, food service improvements, Dr. Graebner's remarkable office manager Lydia Caldwell (Dierks), the school nurse Anna Gutz, spiritual life on campus and off, and the value, in retrospect, of his deeply classical education at Concordia. This interview was conducted by librarian Margaret Horn (at Concordia from 1956-1987) during a summer sabbatical, and was made possible in part by a grant from Aid Association for Luth
Interview with John Naumann, Concordia College class of 1925, from Lehigh Acres, Florida, in 1981. Pastor Naumann talks about, among other things, his birth in India, how he and four of his brothers attended Concordia, resenting the hazing/'shagging' and then doing it himself, the faculty's attitudes towards the practice, working as President Theodore Buenger's 'private secretary', memories about his professors, traveling to do music concerts both as a student and professor at Concordia, pranks pulled on him as a professor and pranks he did as a student, dinnertime and working in the kitchen, President Buenger teaching the students about constellations in the evenings, the limited social life due to the need to work, being quarantined due to illness yet playing hockey in the attic of the building called 'Old Main', visiting other places around the school, experiencing 'campus arrest' where one could not leave the campus without permission, and his great fondness for Concordia. This i
Interview with James Mack, Concordia College class of 1945, from Rome, Georgia, in 1981. Pastor Mack talks about, among other things, his childhood and the church-worker-producing congregation he came from, crying himself to sleep in a room of 45 boys due to homesickness, former school president Theodore Buenger inviting him to go for a drive with him, President Martin Graebner's brilliance in Latin, getting caught staying out late by President Graebner, working in the library and elsewhere to help pay for school, being forced to get cigarettes for the older boys (part of the 'shagging,' or hazing, that occurred), nurse Anna Gutz's great concern and generosity, playing and coaching baseball, proving English professor Edgar Otto wrong, pranks (mild and dangerous) played on professors, the food donated to the students by local churches, working for a local radio station WMIN, meeting his future wife at a local church event (through the 'Walther League'), their ensuing courtship, city c
Interview with Howard Patten, Concordia College class of 1956, from Conover, North Carolina, in 1981. Pastor Patten talks about, among other things, his upbringing in the small Scandinavian-dominated town of Roseau, where he was one of the few Missouri-Synod (German) Lutherans. He also discusses being a green northern Minnesota boy at Concordia, how he decided on the train ride to St. Paul to be a pastor instead of a doctor, learning about how dancing was sinful, falling asleep in class due to working so hard, his great Greek teacher Fred 'Quickie' Wahlers, how girls helped 'civilize' the campus, his disappointments with teachers and fellow students, his being student body president and his own rebellious streak, being told by the school's president William A. Poehler to attend the worship services he was skipping, Poehler's intellect and imposing presence, organizing a dance at Como Park and attending dances at the University of Minnesota (not permitted at Concordia), hearing really
