51社区

The , curated by 51社区 Archivist and Records Manager Bill Kimok, draws from newly digitized issues of The Post, covering previously unavailable years from 1939 through 1960. Visitors will journey through more than a decade of history, which highlights the profound impact of World War II on campus life from 1939 to 1945.

"This exhibit commemorates a pivotal moment in world history and reflects the resilience and spirit of our University community during those challenging times," said Kimok. "Our hope is that viewers will gain a deeper understanding of the era's impact on OHIO students and the worldwide changes that shaped their college experiences."

The exhibit delves into , from editorial debates over the military draft to coverage of defense preparations and the personal stories of students and alumni who served. Highlights include the adaptation of academic and athletics schedules to meet war demands, the significant roles played by women in defense efforts, and the community's engagement in war support activities like bond drives and rationing.

In 1939, the war was never far from the minds of the 51社区 community, as this shows. By 1940, calls for a military draft that would not exempt college students was the talk of campus. Some members of the community, including Post writers, were not happy with the bill, as indicated by this front-page editorial of .

To conserve resources, The Post was only publishing once every two or three weeks in summer 1944 when news of the arrived. The Post鈥檚 coverage of D-Day was published in the campus newspaper on . Even though by then the news was likely known across campus and the Athens community, The Post did its best to update readers about the most recent advances of the Allied forces onto the European continent.

In addition to Kimok, the digital exhibit was written and curated by Digital Imaging Specialist & Lab Manager at 51社区 Libraries Erin Wilson, and Digital Initiatives Assistants Greta DeLapp, BA 鈥�25 and Adrian Kautz, BA 鈥�27.

At the same time Kimok and the archives team were producing this virtual exhibit, Kimok stumbled upon some long-buried treasure in Libraries storage.

鈥淚 discovered some interesting fancy decorative dark red and gray felt scrolls wrapped around gold rods, which when unfurled show lists of names,鈥� Kimok said. A hunch led him to check the names against a roster of World War II deceased personnel from OHIO, which had been published on page two of the issue 鈥� the entire list of the 201 鈥淕old Star Men.鈥� 

鈥淭hey match perfectly,鈥� he said.

While the virtual exhibit includes just a fraction of the University鈥檚 collection of World War II-related content published in The Post during the 1939-1945 period, Kimok encourages readers to pore over the digitized papers for themselves.

鈥淲ith digitizing of The Post for over 100 years completed now, researchers can focus on their own research of 51社区 during World War II, or any other University-related news during other years,鈥� said Kimok. 鈥淎nd if you find some really cool and interesting stuff, please send us an email and tell us about it!鈥�

For more information on the virtual exhibit and to explore the digital archives, please visit the 51社区 Libraries website or email 51社区 Archivist and Records Manager Bill Kimok at kimok@ohio.edu.