It’s often said that news reporting is like a rough draft of history. Newspapers have almost always been a primary source and that will likely stay true for as long as newspapers keep printing and will be true for online publications as well.
But what good is all the history if you can’t see it?
Thankfully, the university archives are open to all and you are able to look at almost anything you want, as long as you ask. We also recognize that not everybody has time to go through the university archives, especially when the subject matter involves old newspapers that could crumble at any moment.
If you’re in a strange predicament where you want to see what was going on in Point Park’s weekly history but don’t have the time to handle decades old papers, you’re in luck.
When relevant or appropriate, some stories will be re-ran in the original form in case the event needs more than just a tiny bit of explanation.
Is there a risk of repeating history or needing to learn some kind of lesson from the news reported in the student newspaper many years ago? We doubt it.
This is supposed to be a fun side project that unearths old articles that likely haven’t been read in years. Be amazed at how much the university has changed since these stories were last published or be shocked at what
hasn’t changed.
Regardless, we hope you all enjoy this new project. We would like to give special thanks to Archival Coordinator Phillip Harrity for providing us with digital versions of every edition of The Globe that exists.
Welcome to campus, Lawrence Hall
In the April 5, 1967 edition of The Globe, an unnamed staff writer wrote about the Sherwyn Hotel’s eventual sale to what was then Point Park College’s board of directors. At the time, it was promised that a basketball court in the former athletic club would be restored, along with the addition of offices and other athletic facilities.
According to this writer, a bowling alley and pool were expected to be restored in what eventually became Lawrence Hall. The bowling alley was restored but taken out in the 1970s due to vandalism and lack of usage.
When the building was first purchased, two radio stations occupied the Sherwyn Hotel’s street-level spaces.
The last graf of the piece is surprisingly prophetic.
“Globe suggests the building be named after current or past members of the board of directors. For example, Rockwell Hall or David A, Lawrence Memorial Hall.”
Whoever this writer was, you were exactly right.
Election Screw-Up?
Back when the Student Government Association (SGA) was still called United Student Government (USG), an undisclosed problem caused the votes cast in the April 1992 election to not count because of a potential violation of election code. Thankfully, the next edition reported the election counting problem was remedied.
Pioneer hockey team wins division title against St. Vincent
Unless you’ve taken a look in the University Library’s display near the stairs to the bottom floor, you might not know Point Park ever had a hockey team.
Not only did we have a team, but in the April 3, 1979 edition of The Globe, sports writer Marian Tomichek showed how the team was dominating the Division II Western Pennsylvania Intercollegiate League.
The entire piece uplifts the Pioneers performance at the game against the St. Vincent players, especially highlighting the team’s offense.
Pioneer team captain Mark Doerfler was quick to hype up his team.
“We played like a real professional team — like a real team unit,” Doerfler said. As the article states, he scored the first goal for the Pioneers. “We fought and hit hard — and now we can go all the way.”
Unfortunately, little information on the hockey team exists outside the university’s archives. What happened for the team to just go and disappear into thin air?
At the Playhouse
It would be a mistake to write about anything relating to Point Park’s history without giving any mention to students in theatrical productions. In the April 8, 1993 edition of The Globe, two students discuss their role in the Playhouse’s version of “Pippin,” which entertainment writer JoLayne Feltz called a typical story that wasn’t a typical musical. Feltz’s piece served as both a review of the production as well as a behind-the-scenes look into the musical’s choreography, production and learning the thoughts of the main performers as well.
Larry’s Laugh
Rapid transit in the 1960s? ‘Transit: More Talk; No Action’
Just like public transit is a major topic in Pittsburgh right now, mass rapid transit was a big topic as reported in the April 1, 1968 edition.
Staff Writer Richard Dadowskl reported on goals expected from the Pittsburgh Urban Transit Council, such as a need for more modern urban transit options.
At the time, Pittsburgh’s public transit options were a mix of electric streetcars and buses, but a concept known as “Skybus” piloted in the late 1960s and 1970s might have become the new urban mass transit option discussed in this article.
C. Carroll Charter, assistant executive director of the Pittsburgh Urban Transit Council at the time according to the article, also supported building new expressways for cars along with busways. Yet, Dadowskl shows examples where this doesn’t work, noting how cities like Dallas and St. Louis have tried this and failed.
