Letters — November/December 2010

Mrs. Heisman Picked Atlanta

Seems to me I read, in a much earlier edition of our magazine, that Heisman left Tech and coached at Auburn for some time before going to New York. The explanation given [in 125 Pieces of Tech History] was that he had to leave Atlanta as part of a divorce settlement because the wife had first choice on remaining in Atlanta.

Marvin Turner
Hixson, Tenn.

Editor’s note: John Heisman coached at Oberlin, Buchtel, Auburn and Clemson before Tech hired him in late 1903. According to Dress Her in White and Gold, Heisman summoned L.W. “Chip” Robert Jr., a member of Tech’s athletic board and a former player, to his home after the close of the 1919 season.

“‘A most unfortunate thing has happened,’” the book quotes Heisman as telling Robert. “‘Mrs. Heisman and I have decided to get a divorce. There are no hard feelings, however, and I have agreed that wherever Mrs. Heisman wishes to live, I will live in another place. This will prevent any social embarrassment. If she decides to stay in Atlanta, I leave.’

“Robert, almost in shock by now, waited while Mrs. Heisman made up her mind. She selected Atlanta, and Heisman promptly resigned from Tech to accept the head coaching job at the University of Pennsylvania. After 16 years, the most colorful of all the Tech coaches gathered up his belongings and departed.”

Didn’t Maxie Wear the Hat?

I believe you guys put out the best alumni magazine in the country. I compare it regularly to the ones I see in the office.

I thought the September/October edition was one of the best. I enjoyed Joe Irwin’s column and read the issue cover to cover. I thought 125 Pieces of Tech History was one of the best articles I’ve ever read. The work that went into the article is staggering. I learned a lot I didn’t know and enjoyed the trip down memory lane for the ones I was familiar with. Congratulations on a fabulous job to all those who contributed.

Of the 125, I only have one question: Was it really Bud Carson who first wore the engineer’s hat? I thought it was Maxie Baughan, but perhaps I’m too young to recall Coach Carson wore it first. I’m pretty sure that Maxie popularized it. I do recall that after he started wearing an engineer hat, they became known as “Maxie hats.”

Ben Mathis, IM 81
Marietta, Ga.

Uncle Was Watchmaker Too

Just a quick correction to give credit where credit is due [in 125 Pieces of Tech History]. The first Mickey Mouse clock on the Skiles Building was done by Lindsey Smith as well as my uncle, Henry Claxton.

Laura Hutcheson
Huntsville, Ala.

Smaxton Clock Company

After reading the article about 125 pieces of Tech history, I noticed a small detail that was missing. Item number 57 was missing some information. The article attributes the Mickey Mouse clock to Lindsey K. Smith. He didn’t do this alone. The other person’s name was Henry Claxton.

The original clock had Smaxton Inc. on the lower edge. That name was a combination of Smith and Claxton. They both were CerE grad students. Right after they put up the clock, they came to Glenn dorm (it used to be a male dorm in the ’70s) to the section I lived in called the Zoo. They told several of us how they put up the clock. They “borrowed” some two-by-fours from a construction site and made a ladder. They then painted it a rust color so they could put it up against the Skiles Building. They did this so that the ladder would blend in with the bricks and the campus police wouldn’t notice it against the wall while they put up the Mickey Mouse clock.

Edward Jordan, EE 80
Kernersville, N.C.

Drownproofing Invaluable

I entered Tech in the fall of 1969 as a Navy ROTC scholarship midshipman. It was the swimming course we were all required to take in those days that probably made it possible for me to survive the Navy and look back fondly as I near retirement.

The September/October issue highlighting 125 pieces of Tech history includes a drownproofing manual as item 16. When I took the swimming course during my first quarter at Tech, we were required to perform a variety of skills in order to earn a grade. A grade of C could be earned by completing the equivalent of the U.S. Navy first-class swimmer test required of all flight students during survival training at Pensacola.

One skill was to swim a mile wearing a long-sleeved shirt and long pants and then inflate the pants and use them as a life preserver. The skills that had to be demonstrated to earn a higher grade included achieving faster times in the mile swim and 800-yard speed swim; swimming the length of the pool and back underwater without pushing off from the side; and completing a variety of tasks while having our hands tied behind our backs, doing the same tasks with our feet tied together and, finally, doing everything with hands and feet tied.

The one thing I could never do was swim to the bottom of the pool and pick up a rubber ring with my teeth while my hands were tied behind my back. So in order to obtain maximum partial credit, I spent the remainder of the hour drownproofing with my hands tied behind me.

Nine years later, on March 1, 1978, I was flying an HH-46A helicopter in the plane guard pattern for the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower at 150 feet and 70 knots when something broke in the flight controls and caused the helo to spin around and crash into the water backward. As I saw the water rushing up at me, I distinctly remember taking a deep breath and thinking, “If I’m awake after we hit, I’ll get out.”

Miraculously, I did survive the impact, but the cockpit was completely flooded. My first memory is of cold water and bubbles on my face. I was able to force the escape hatch open and push out, then I inflated my CO2 life vest and rode it to the surface. Reconstruction based on eyewitness accounts of the incident verify that I was underwater between one and two full minutes. It’s also estimated that I was between 30 and 45 feet underwater when I escaped.

Maybe I’m wrong to give credit for my survival to the swimming course I took at Tech, but I learned the important skill of problem solving while avoiding drowning that quarter. Sure, the degree I earned from Tech got me into graduate school later and has given me the opportunity to have several interesting jobs both in and out of the Navy, but it was the comfort I gained while avoiding drowning in the Tech pool that made the difference that day in 1978.

Howard M. Tillison, EES 74
Poulan, Ga.

Budweiser or Song First?

You gave the history of every item in 125 Pieces of Tech History except the Budweiser song. My husband [Scott Pierce, ME 83, MS ME 92, PhD ME 03] and I were both in the band between ’78 and ’82. We believe it was in the fall of either ’78 or ’79 that Budweiser donated a keg of beer to the band for a party. However, we remember the sequence of events differently: One of us remembers the donation came first, then the band played the Bud song during a football game to thank them; the other remembers we played the song first, then the company gave us the keg to thank us. Does anyone remember which came first?

Jane LaPlante Pierce, IE 82
Lynchburg, Va.

Gun Was From Submarine

Referencing 125 Pieces of Tech History, I was in the NROTC program in the old armory and was told the 4-inch gun was from a submarine. Available information indicates there were no 4-inch guns on the USS Georgia. However, the old S-class submarines had 4-inch deck guns and were available as salvage at the end of World War II. I think this gun is from an S-boat.

W. Russell Slye, EE 62
Millersville, Md.

Adventures of the Wreck

I thoroughly enjoyed the latest edition of the Alumni Magazine, particularly the 125 pieces of Tech history, which brought back lots of good memories. After reading the magazine, I remembered that years ago I was given an old newspaper article about the original Ramblin’ Wreck being retired. I framed it and hung it in my office for many years.

The article was in the Sunday edition of the Atlanta Journal dated Oct. 21, 1928. The headline reads: “After 150,000 Miles of Adventure, the Ford Touring Car of Dean Floyd Field, of Georgia Tech, Now Rests on Its Laurels, Secure in the Place It Holds in the Hearts of College Boys, and of Agnes Scott Girls, Hauled ‘Twelve High’ to Sunday Night Suppers at the Home of Dean and Mrs. Field.”

The full-page article shows a picture of the 1916 Ramblin’ Wreck with Dean Field and his daughter. It is a very interesting article describing the many adventures of the car and Dean Field. Again, let me say that you hit a home run with your article, and I bet you may hear from other grads who would like to see more pieces of Tech history.

Julian Wade, Text 54
Greenville, S.C.

No Mention of Fred Ajax

I found the latest edition of the Georgia Tech Alumni Magazine very interesting. However, I was very disappointed to see no reference to my father, Fred Ajax. Not only is he credited with founding the placement center, after his untimely death the center, the old Pickrick restaurant, was named for him. The placement center was located on Hemphill Avenue.

Tech commissioned a portrait of him, and I attended its placement and the dedication. If the portrait is not located in some appropriate place at Tech, I would sure like to have it. Not only did he serve under several of the presidents named in your article and work closely with Dean Griffin and Dean Dull, he actually hired Joe Guthridge as I recall. He was very dedicated to Tech, and I imagine many who read your story will wonder why he was not included.

Fred W. Ajax Jr., IM 66
Atlanta

Editor’s note: Fred Ajax Sr. joined Tech as an English instructor in 1931. He was appointed assistant dean of students in 1941. After service in World War II, he was promoted to associate dean in charge of placement, veteran affairs and student activities. He was named director of public relations in 1957, director of campus affairs in 1958 and an honorary alumnus of Georgia Tech in 1963. Dean Ajax died on May 22, 1968, at age 59. The Fred W. Ajax Placement Center has been demolished to provide additional campus green space. The portrait now hangs in the Student Success Center.

Griffin’s Life Lessons

Many thanks for the 125 pieces of Tech history. To expand on Dean Griffin, the “Mr. Chips” of Georgia Tech, he was the track coach for a time and still coached the cross-country team until his retirement. It was in that capacity that I got to know him as “Coach.”

Coach taught life lessons. “You have won if you have beaten yourself,” and, “Remember to double knot your shoe laces” have held me in good stead no matter what circumstances I have found myself in.

The Rev. Jim Watkins, IM 65
Decatur, Ga.

Honored to Head the List

I had been traveling extensively for work and hadn’t looked through my pile of mail on my infrequent days at home. Fortunately some friends alerted me to the fact that I was mentioned in the latest Alumni Magazine. I was shocked and honored to be listed as the No. 1 item in 125 Pieces of Tech History, ahead of Roosevelt, Heisman, Cink, Carter, astronauts and Sideways (not in that order) and many other more famous people. Thanks for the reminder of one of the highlights of my life, but I don’t feel worthy of being first on the list.

I did want to point out that there has been at least one other female Buzz: Erin Kerr [ME 06]. I met her at a Tech event. She was with her father, Wayne Kerr, [ABiol 73, MS ABiol 74]. I was proud to have some small part in encouraging her to try out. I hope someday to achieve something of greater significance, perhaps through my work in international development, that will make Tech proud.

Susan Davis, ABiol 91
Atlanta

Preserve History

Evidenced by the 125 pieces of Tech history in the September/October issue of the Alumni Magazine, Georgia Tech values history. Inasmuch as Tech’s history is Atlanta’s history worth preserving, so is the Crum and Forster building [771 Spring St.] that the Georgia Tech Foundation acquired. How can it be that the Foundation has contemplated demolishing that building?

Crumbs of Crum could be archived for display like the Alexander Coliseum floorboards (number 30). But, luckily, one can continue to enjoy the Crum and Forster intact.

John Evins, BS 77, M Arch 84, CE 94
Atlanta

In Need of a Haircut

I would like to call your attention to [the convocation photo] in the September/October Georgia Tech Alumni Magazine. The yellow headgear is improperly worn. The bill of the cap should be turned up, and the freshman’s name should be plainly visible, printed with the large word RAT, as in RAT WARNER. In my day, an improperly worn RAT cap would get you a T haircut — your head shaved except for the letter T on the top of your skull.

In the summer of ’42, I was elected president of the freshman co-op class. We were hazed by the sophomore co-ops. There was a tradition of a tug-of-war at Peachtree Creek when half the quarter was up. The frosh and the soph rode to the site in a big stake truck. The president of each class was at the front of the tug-of-war line. If the freshmen pulled the sophomores into the creek, hazing was over. If the freshmen lost, they pulled the sophomores back to Tech in the truck, and hazing continued until the end of the quarter.

As president of the freshman class, I was the first to go into the water, cuff links and all. (I wore a nice shirt with French cuffs as a gesture of confidence.) I will never forget pulling that great big stake truck full of celebrating sophomores up the steep Peachtree Road Race “cardiac hill.” It was just about a mile downstream from the tug-of-war site that Great-gran’pa Warner wisely surrendered during the Battle of Atlanta. Capt. James Warner spent the rest of the war in Andersonville. The family legend is that a pig somehow got loose among the starving prisoners in Andersonville, and Great-gran’pa Warner got an ear.

Jim Warner, Arch 50
Atlanta

Witness to Flights

I very much enjoyed reading about the famous flying Yellow Jacket in the September/October issue of our Georgia Tech Alumni Magazine and especially that fateful day of the crash on Grant Field. I was there and witnessed it all.

Mom and Dad always had season tickets for us. We sat in the southwest corner of the field, closest to where the “air shows” took place. It was an ideal position. I do remember a red crepe-paper ribbon flying behind the bulldog. The Yellow Jacket made several passes at the red-and-black plane — and then victory. The Yellow Jacket caught the bulldog in its sights and clipped the ribbon in two. I thought it was great. And I always enjoyed each halftime period in those years expecting to see those Yellow Jackets fly.

In fact, I would encourage a group of volunteer students to again build and fly those Yellow Jackets at halftime. It would be quite a crowd pleaser.

Jim Steed, IM 65
Blairsville, Ga.

Books Helped Develop Techie

The July/August edition of the Alumni Magazine was such a home run — knocked all the way out of the park in my book. As soon as I looked at the cover from out of the mailbox, my mind’s reality switched to 1992. I thought about how myriads of students were in the exact same posture reading Les Miserables by Victor Hugo. In the same instant, I prejudged what the actual article would be about. I thought it would finally reveal who the professor was in 1992 who made everybody read Les Miserables. (I bought Les Miserables and read it, and it was great.)

Then I read the article, 101 Books Tech Alums Should Read Before They Lay Dying. It was terrific! Billiee Pendleton-Parker is wonderful. I finally met her around 1999, I think. She is a treasure.

Then there were the pictures of the books in the library that really took me back. Wow! So much joy — the shelves, reading everything I could get my hands on, having to extend study sessions. I could never stop reading those books. Those books are a part of how I developed as a Techie in 1992. Seeing them within the context of the article was very powerful for me. One of the bricks on the back cover [in the Roll Call ad] summed it up well for me: “Tech is part of who I am.” As you can see, the July/August 2010 Georgia Tech Alumni Magazine really did it for me.

Kenneth Starks, MS Chem 94
Atlanta

Hickersons Saluted

The Navy League, Hawaii Council, recognized Ret. Capt. James Hickerson and his wife, Carole, at its annual dinner with the American Patriot Award. Some 500 people attended the event at the Hilton Hawaiian Village Resort in Honolulu on Aug. 7. Capt. Hickerson also received the Secretary of the Navy’s Distinguished Public Service Award, and Mrs. Hickerson received the Secretary of Defense’s Medal for Outstanding Public Service.

Capt. Hickerson, CE 56, was a member of Beta Theta Pi fraternity and was commissioned in the Navy after ROTC. He became a naval aviator and flew attack aircraft before duty as a test pilot at Patuxent River Naval Air Station, where he was the project officer for bringing the A-7 Corsair II into service. Subsequently, he deployed with the first operational squadron operating in the South China Sea. He was shot down on Dec. 22, 1967, and became a prisoner of war at the infamous Hanoi Hilton.

A classmate and fraternity brother, I was an Air Force major and already a POW. We lived together for about half of our five-plus years there. We reminisced about our days on the Hill and shared stories about Bobby Dodd and Georgia Tech’s golden years of football with our cell mates.

Four other Georgia Tech graduates were POWs: the late Air Force Maj. Dick Dutton, IM 51; Navy Lt. Cmdr. Render Crayton, Text 54; Marine Corps Maj. Orson Swindle, IM 59; and Navy Lt. j.g. Mark Gartley, Phys 66, also a Beta. Only the military academies had more POWs in Hanoi.

Orson and I and our wives attended the dinner in Honolulu, visited with the Hickerson family and posed for photographs.

Wayne Waddell, EE 56
Marietta, Ga.

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