Hallway History Ideas  

  1. The first exam, 1806.  Painting with Wood Cenotaph. Pictures of same. Statue of Liberty built on site of Fort Wood.
  2. Ferdinand Hassler was Math P, 1807-1809. Fired by Secretary of War, Eustice. Later headed Coast and Geodedic Survey. Story about his salary. His wagon. Granddaughter married Simon Newcomb. Gg-son was Hassler Whitney.  
  3. Letters from Grant to Church asking to teach at West Point. Need to find them. Several of his drawings from descriptive geometry are in the library. These are large. Make reproductions.  
  4. The first cadet computer work at West Point. Computing logarithms. Copy is in storage room.  
  5. The Zeroeth Putnam Exam, 1933. Can we find an original copy of the exam. Article of Arney in Math Horizons. Poem.  
  6. Slide rules at West Point. Can we find out what was originally issued, and when. some manuals available in the library. Should the large slide rule be part of the display. I have plastic slide rule for use on overhead in my office.  
  7. Early examination in front of Board of Visitors. Look up illustration from the Smithsonian exhibit.  
  8. The first person with a PhD to teach in the department was, I believe, Yates. He wrote a bunch of interesting books so there will be nice illustrations about curves. Who was first with a master's degree?  
  9. The first person  killed in an airplane was West Pointer Thomas Selfridge, Class of '03. This was in 1908. He had been riding with Orville Wright, who survived the crash.  He is pictured in a classroom scene in the MCR. Let's hang a note next to that picture.  
  10.  Former Math P, Meigs, Class of 1836, built the wings and dome of the Capital in Washington, D.C.
  11.  Oliver O. Howard, USMA 1854, and former Math P was founder and president of Howard University.
  12.  Douglas MacArthur, USMA 1903, Math P.
  13.  Benjamin S. Ewell, USMA 1832, President of the College of William & Mary 1854-88.
  14.  COL Nicholas won a Ford by "guessing" how many pennies in the fishbowl that is today used at Coffee Call.
  15.  Slide rules, integraph, comptometer. Explain how they were used. Will need to catalog these items first.
  16.  Graves receiving Lee Saber, 1961. Also Rod Strdivant. Mention plaqe on 4th floor.
  17.  Baron and The Mathematical Correspondent.
  18.  Yates. First PhD.
  19.  COL Snook. In the first class with women graduates.
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