Philanthropy as a force in placing memory
Colleges and universities depend heavily on philanthropy for funding for buildings as well as programming. While the institutions are grateful for this support, it does generate lasting effects on the everyday experience of every member of a college or university community, as these names become embedded in the everyday life for all of us. In so doing, their economic power becomes also about the power to place memory. Several of the building on campus are honorific, but many of them are named for donors. The commemorative landscape at Southwestern resonates with a few names of donors that seem to be present everywhere on campus: Cullen, Brown, Prothro, McCombs Lord, Garey, Olin. But who are these people, how did places come to be named after them here, and what are the implications?
Who Was Red McCombs?
Understanding how McCombs’ name came to be known on the Southwestern campus, and across the state of Texas
Billy Joe (more commonly known as “Red”) McCombs was renowned for his philanthropy to various educational institutions across the state of Texas, funded by the profits of his work in the oil and gas, automotive, and sports industries. This entry focuses on McCombs’ path to philanthropy through his…
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Deconstructing the McCombs Frontier Americana Collection
This problematic collection, which was met with anger, disbelief, and indifference among students, faculty, and staff over the years, haunted the majority of campus activities for over two decades.
On the second floor of the McCombs Student Center, there is a hallway filled with display cases. At this writing, they are all empty, still carrying a sign placed there in fall 2023 that says “Exhibit Undergoing Renovation.”
From 1998-2023, these cases were filled with the artifacts from the…
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Remembering (and Rethinking) the McCombs Frontier Americana Collection
A visual, material, and spatial analysis of who “earns” the right to create the social and cultural image of Southwestern’s place in history
The Red & Charline McCombs Campus Center finished construction in the Spring of 1998. Funded by a $6 million gift (one of the largest donations in the history of Southwestern), and named after the donors Billy Joe "Red" and Charline McCombs. Both Red and Charline McCombs attended…
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Brown Foundation Matching Grant, 1963
With a remarkable matching gift proposal and the endowment of three professorships, the Brown Foundation expressed its initial interest in Southwestern.
After Herman Brown’s passing, George R. Brown decided to continue to express his brother’s interest in Southwestern through the Brown Foundation’s Matching Gift proposal. In September of 1963, in a special meeting with students in the Fine Arts Building, President Fleming reported that…
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The Brown Family Portraits in Cullen
These four portraits hanging in Cullen outside the University Relations suite form a kind of shrine to the Brown family.
It seems that the name of the Brown family is everywhere on campus. But aside from the remembrance of the Brown’s impact on campus through the buildings that the Foundation funded, the endowed professorships, and the Brown Symposium, the Brown family also is prominently commemorated visually on…
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Who was Margaret Root Brown?
A Southwestern Alumna, Philanthropist, and art patron whose legacy permeates the campus.
Margaret Root Brown was born on July 21, 1895 in Taylor, Texas, to James Leper Root and South Carolina Root. She had two older siblings, Daniel Root and Florence (Florra) Root Cody, who both attended Southwestern University alongside her. During her time at the University, Root Brown joined Alpha…
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Herman Brown Swimming Pool, 1955-1976
There once was an outdoor pool on campus.
The existence of an outdoor pool on the Southwestern campus might sound crazy to anyone who has recently attended Southwestern and dreamed of some kind way to escape the summer (and spring and fall) heat while still being outside. However, for a while, the University had an outdoor pool located…
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