1942

1942 in Clemson History

Events that occurred in 1942:

• January 1: The federal government freezes the sale of private automobiles, although vehicles purchased but not yet delivered may be taken possession of.
• April: After the surrender of Allied forces to the Japanese at the end of the Battle of Bataan in the Philippines, some 75,000 prisoners including more than 11,000 Americans are forced on a non-stop three day 60 mile march known as The Bataan Death March. It is estimated that only 54,000 reached the destination. Clemson graduate (Class of 1939) and future professor Ben N. Skardon survives the ordeal.
• May 15: Rationing of gasoline begins on the East Coast (nationwide by December) and sugar rationing is imposed by the government.
• May 17: The Corps of Cadets observe Armed Forces Day on Bowman Field. Wylene Pool is chosen as the female honorary corps commander or honorary cadet colonel. (Riley, Helene M., "Clemson University", Arcadia Publishing, Charleston, South Carolina, 2002, Library of Congress card number 2002108889, ISBN 0-7385-1470-5, page 91.)
• June 27: The college grants the War Department an occupation permit for lands to develop the Issaqueena Bombing Range in the Experimental Forest. The War Department also purchases an additional 265 acres within the boundaries of the target. The total area for the range sums 4,096 acres.
• Tiger Rag introduced at Clemson by cadet and band member Robert Dean Ross (Class of 1948).
• Fall: "The students enlisted in the Air Corps Reserve at Clemson organized the Tiger Squadron in the fall of 1942. Membership is open to all enlistees." -TAPS, 1943, page 393. M.F. Gay was Flight Commander, R.S. Bobo was Flight Lieutenant.
• September 19: Construction is finished on Memorial Stadium just ahead of the crowd for the first game to be played in the future Death Valley. The Tigers run down the hill for the very first time and defeat Presbyterian College, 32-13, in front of 5,500 fans. Presbyterian Coach Lonnie McMillan declares in 1948 that playing Clemson at home is like taking his team into Death Valley.
• September 26: Clemson defeats Virginia Military Institute, 36-7, in a game played in Lynchburg, Virginia.
• October 3: The Tigers lose to the N.C. State Wolfpack, 6-7, in a game played in Charlotte, North Carolina.
• October 8: Professor G. H. Stribling of the school of vocational architecture is the guest speaker at a meeting of the Future Farmers of America. His topic is the origins of the F. F. A. organization. Stribling is faculty adviser to the society. "Brought up at the business meeting was the subject of having the club write letters to all graduates of vocational agriculture education now in the Army, for the purposes of letting them know that there are still matters of interest to them on the campus." (The Tiger, "Stribling Speaks", Thursday 15 October 1942, Volume XXXVIII, Number 5, page 3.)
• October 8: Twenty-eight members of the football team, Coach Howard, a photographer, a manager and a trainer depart Clemson by train for Boston at 10 p.m. "Because of war transportation, it was impossible to get enough berths for everyone, so some of the boys had to sleep two per berth. It may have been a little crowded, but as the players had practiced for an hour and a half Thursday morning they were pretty tired and had very little trouble sleeping." (The Tiger, "Tiger Team Enjoys Week-End Ball Trip To 'Yankee-Land' ", Thursday 15 October 1942, Volume XXXVIII, Number 5, page 4.)
• October 9: "Friday morning, [the football team] was awakened early and asked to hurry dressing as it was almost time to get off the train. Looking out the window and seeing no lights, the boys supposed they were either still in the country or in a black-out, but they were surprised to learn that they were only passing through the Hudson river [sic] tunnel and entering 'Little Old New York.' The train pulled into Pennsylvania Station about 6:30, where breakfast had already been prepared for the party in the station cafe. After breakfast the boys had just enough time to see a few such places as the Empire State Building, George Washington Bridge, the capsized Normandie, and Times Square. At 9 o'clock the team boarded a day coach for Boston. Necks were pretty sore from then on as they stretched to see the ships and unusual sights in the harbors of the old New England towns. The boys were getting pretty tired of riding when they arrived in Boston at 3 o'clock Friday afternoon. After they had been assigned rooms in the Hotel Kenmore, Coach Howard took the players out to Fenway Park for an hour's workout to get rid of their 'train legs'. A large number of sports writers and fans were on hand to look the Tigers over, to take pictures, and to make predictions. Dinner was served in the magnificent Embassy Room of the hotel and after a walk, the team retired early in preparation for the hard day ahead." (The Tiger, "'Tiger Team Enjoys Week-End Ball Trip To 'Yankee-Land' ", Thursday 15 October 1942, Volume XXXVIII, Number 5, pages 4-5.)
• October 10: In a game played in Fenway Park, the Tigers are defeated by Boston College, 7-14.
• October 15: The newly-constructed water plant goes into service this date, with approximately four hundred thousand gallons of Seneca River water being drawn and processed daily by the facility which was built with funds obtained from the federal government as a Works Projects Administration project, said Joe McCall, supervisor of the works. Previously, the college water supply was drawn from a near-by lake. Tests have been made in order to ascertain the quality of the new water-source and it has been found that the river water will far surpass that of the lake in purity and taste. (The Tiger, "Clemson's New Water Plant In Operation - Seneca River To Supply College Water", Thursday 15 October 1942, page 6.)
• October 16-October 17: Due to a lack of transportation facilities, the South Carolina Synod Conference scheduled for these dates is cancelled. The conference was to have been sponsored by Clemson's Presbyterian Student Association. (The Tiger, "Synod Conference Is Called Off", Thursday 15 October 1942, page 1.)
• October 18: Reverend J. Boyce Brooks, former pastor of of the First Baptist Church, Spindale, North Carolina, takes over the pastoral duties at the Clemson Baptist Church this date, replacing Rev. John K. Goode, who retires after 40 years of service. Rev. Brooks comes to Clemson after a year as minister of the First Baptist Church of Spindale. He was born at Petersburg, Kentucky in 1911, and attended Campbell College (North Carolina) and was graduated from Wake Forest College in 1933. He spent three years (1935-1938) as a seminarian at the Baptist Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, and accepted the pastorate in Spindale in February 1941. Since 1929, he has been closely associated with the North Carolina 4-H Club and was president of the organization for a year. He represented this organization at the National 4-H Camp in Washington in 1931, and presided over the 4-H short courses offered by the North Carolina State College. (The Tiger, "New Pastor To Assume Duties This Sunday", Thursday 15 October 1942, page 1.)
• October 19-October 20: Tax tickets for the Clemson-Carolina freshman and varsity games to be staged at Columbia during State-Fair Holidays will be on sale at the Field House Monday and Tuesday. There will be a 10 cent tax for the "Rat" game, and 20 cent for the varsity game. To be eligible for this students price, the cadet must purchase his ticket here. No tickets of this type will be sold at the game. Cadets must wear uniforms to the game or pay full rate. (The Tiger, "Football Tickets Go On Sale Monday", Thursday 15 October 1942, page 1.)
• October 22: The Tigers defeat the Gamecocks in Columbia, 18-6, for Clemson's 200th victory. The Cocks will end the season with a 1-7-1 record.
• October 24: P. M. Gray, former instructor at the College of the City of New York, and at Vanderbilt University, fills the vacancy created by the resignation of Professor E. F. Vandiver on this date. Professor Gray received his master's degree at the University of North Carolina, and is a resident of that state. Berry Floyd, Jr., instructor at Rayburn Gap Nacoochee Junior College of Georgia was unable to effect a satisfactory release from his institution, and therefore was unable to accept the position offered to him as stated in last week's issue of The Tiger. Mr. Vandiver has accepted a position with the engineer's department of the Federal Communications Commission in Baltimore. (The Tiger, "Physics Vacancy Filled By Gray", Thursday 15 October 1942, page 1.)
• October 28: James Melton, concert tenor with the Chicago Opera Company, appears at Clemson College. He is presented with a certificate of honorary membership at intermission by Mu Beta Psi national music honorary fraternity's Delta Chapter, headed by J. E. Hudson. (The Tiger, "Mu Beta Psi Taps Eight New Members; Melton Accepts", Thursday 15 October 1942, page 1.)
• October 31: Clemson loses road game at Wake Forest, 6-19.
• November 7: Clemson takes on the George Washington University in Memorial Stadium the fifth time to two teams face off, but lose to the Colonials, 0-7. Series record is 3-1-1, Tigers. And with GWU quitting NCAA football after the 1966 season (their Board of Trustees voted to abandon the program on January 19, 1967), we'll never improve the score.
• November 14: College athletics are influenced by the wartime conditions, and the Tigers meet a team representing Naval Air Station Jacksonville in a one-time pairing, played in Florida. Clemson loses, 6-24.
• November 21: The Tigers defeat Furman in Memorial Stadium, 12-7.
• November 28: The Tigers conclude the season with a loss to Alabama Polytechnic Institute (later Auburn), 7-28, in a match played in Alabama. Season record is 3-6-1, 2-3-1 in league play, for ninth place in the Southern Conference. Tailback Butch Butler amasses 616 yards rushing and 504 passing for 1,120 yards gained, the second Clemson player to gain 1,000 yards in a season (Banks McFadden was the first, in 1939). (Martin, Johnny, "Death Valley: 72 Years of Exciting Football at Clemson University", Independent Publishing Co., Anderson, S.C., 1968, Library of Congress card number 68-58849, page 98.)

1941

The 1940's

1943