U l y s s e s S y l v e s t e r C o n n — P a r t I

Archival Minute April 2015

March 16, 2015, marked the 150th anniversary of

the birth of Ulysses Sylvester (U. S.) Conn, the

first president of Wayne State College (or, State

Normal School at Wayne, as it was known

initially). He served as president from 1910 to

1935. His 25 years as president is the longest term

of any Wayne State president.

I have been researching the life of U. S. Conn for

several years. I have experienced much frustration

along the way. One difficulty faced is that sources

of information about his life are difficult to locate.

There are indeed a few brief biographies in

reference works such as Who’s Who in American

Education (1935), Who Was Who in America

(1943), Addison Erwin Sheldon’s Nebraska : The

Land and the People (1931), and Nebraskana :

Biographical Sketches of Nebraska Men and

Women of Achievement Who Have Been Awarded

Life Membership in the Nebraskana Society

(1932). But they repeat essentially the same

information and do not provide much depth.

One would expect that a 25-year presidency

would produce an abundance of materials:

correspondence, internal memos, notes, texts

of speeches, etc.; however, very few primary

Wayne State College - U.S. Conn Library

Marcus Schlichter, Archivist 402-375-7266

Photo of U. S. Conn published in the 1935 Spizzerinktum celebrating the Silver

Anniversary of both Wayne State College and Conn’s presidency

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sources from his presidency have survived. We do have some letters from persons writing to

President Conn (to be discussed in Part II); however, we do not have Conn’s letters to these people,

so we can only infer what he may have written. We have only two letters written by him in the

Archives, one to Nebraska Normal College alumni and another written from Indiana following his

retirement to Mildred Piper, an accountant with the college for many years. (There were a few letters

of his that appeared in a publication; they are quoted below.)

Furthermore, U. S. Conn never published an autobiography nor, as far as we know, did he give any

interviews in which he discussed his life (although he did write very briefly about his years in

college as noted below). Again, as far as we know, he kept no journal and his wife (Cammie) and

daughter (Ardath) left behind no recorded accounts regarding him or their family life. There are no

direct, living descendants to interview.

What we do have, other than the aforementioned reference works, are messages he wrote for the

yearbook and alumni bulletins, newspaper accounts of speeches and various activities, and public

records, e.g. census forms and city directories. The archives at Valparaiso University where U. S.

Conn received his B. A. and M. A. degrees also has some helpful information unavailable elsewhere.

But information from these sources is still incomplete and, at times, even somewhat contradictory.

Given these limitations, the following is the beginning what can be told about U. S. Conn’s life on

the occasion of the 150th anniversary of his birth (the story will be continued in the next Archival

Minute) and will be updated in the future if new information is discovered.

Conn’s Family and Birth

U. S. Conn was born in Middletown, Henry County, Indiana, about 30 miles northeast of

Indianapolis, on March 16, 1865, about three weeks before Lee’s surrender to Grant at

Appomattox and a month before the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln. His parents

were Charles (1837-1910) and Mary C. (Jones) Conn (c.1831-1899). The Conns also had another

son, Luther (1861-1929).

The book Biographical Memoirs of Henry County, Indiana (1902) describes Charles Conn as

a man of excellent judgment, fine business ability and plentifully endowed with that most

admirable of all qualities, good common sense. By the exercise of these and other

commendable attributes he has succeeded well in his temporal affairs, owning one of the most

desirable rural homes in the township of Jefferson, besides other valuable property which

makes him one of the wealthiest men in this part of the county.

While the book does tend to be uncritical in its presentation, it does seem certain that Charles Conn

was very successful. It also seems that his son, U. S., inherited his father’s business ability and

common sense.

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Unknown date. U.S. Conn’s father, Charles is seated on the left. The two men standing are Luther Conn (left) and U. S. Conn (right).

U. S. Conn’s wife, Cammie, is standing next to him on his left. The woman standing to Luther’s right is most likely his wife, Ida. The woman seated on the right may either be Charles Conn’s first wife, Mary, who died in 1899, or his second wife,

Jennie, whom he married in 1902. The little girl may be U. S. and Cammie Conn’s daughter, Ardath, who was born in 1896.

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The book states that both sons “manifested a tendency to reading and study while quite young” and

that U. S. Conn, “was considered one of the brightest as well as one of the most original pupils of the

schools he attended.”

Biographical sources state he attended Spiceland Academy (a resume of his academic preparation and

career in the 1915 Spizzerinktum (Spizz) gives the years attended as 1881 to 1884). Located in Henry

County, Indiana, about 15-20 miles from Conn’s hometown, Spiceland School was founded by the

Society of Friends (Quakers) about 1826. By the 1870s it had been formally incorporated as Spiceland

Academy, “serving as ‘Select School,’ high school, college and business preparatory, and teacher-

training institution—an educational and moral power in its community” (Sadie Bacon Hatcher, A

History of Spiceland Academy: 1826-1921). Hatcher lists the graduates of Spiceland in her book, but

the name of U. S. Conn does not appear. This may be due to incomplete or missing records or perhaps

he attended four years without formally graduating.

According to historian Addison Erwin Sheldon in his book, Nebraska: The Land and the People, U. S.

Conn began teaching at the age of 19. That would be his age at the time of his leaving Spiceland in

1884. The 1915 Spizz states that he served as principal of the school in Honey Creek, Indiana, from

1885 to 1886. Honey Creek is a small, unincorporated community southeast of Middletown.

Conn at Northern Indiana Normal School

(Valparaiso University)

The Northern Indiana Normal School, located in Valparaiso, Indiana, near Chicago, was founded in

1859 as the Valparaiso Male and Female College. It was affiliated with the Methodist Church. The

school was forced to close in 1871, but reopened in 1873 as a secular institution under the leadership

of Henry Baker Brown (1847-1917) with the name Northern Indiana Normal School and Business

Institute. The school was renamed Valparaiso College in 1900 and then Valparaiso University in

1906. In 1925 the university was purchased by the Lutheran University Association.

In a letter published in the June 20, 1930 issue of the Valparaiso University Alumni Bulletin, Conn

wrote:

I first enrolled at Valparaiso [U]niversity in September, 1886, and was there the greater

part of the time until 1892. Of the faculty members who were prominent at that time are:

Professors Carver, Bogarte, Benton, Roessler, Baldwin, McAlilly, Evans, Heritage;

and of course Miss Corboy was secretary to the President. At this time the Star and

Crescent literary societies were two of the prominent organizations of the institution.

Students were enrolled from practically every state in the union and there were

representatives from Canada and some foreign countries. An unusually large number

came from the south and the southwest. [The school catalog boasted that it was “ the

largest normal school in the

United States”] .

Those who attended were mature

and most of them had earned the

money with which they were

paying their expenses. This

condition seemed to produce an

earnestness upon the part of

everyone which is usually not

found in our colleges today. My

college days were busy and

happy.

Earlier in 1930 Conn had written another

letter that appeared in the Valparaiso

University Alumni Bulletin (February 14,

1930) in which he described some of his

work while at Northern Indiana:

While at Valparaiso I was an

assistant in the department of

mathematics for the greater part

of a year. In this capacity I taught

four or five classes in commercial

arithmetic, some work in algebra

and had charge of some forty

sections in debate. At this time

I find an old class book; this

indicates that there were more

than 900 students taking debating.

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Cover of the 1895 Northern Indiana Normal School catalog with the words, “the largest normal school

in the United States.”

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That issue of the Alumni Bulletin carried a tribute to a former faculty member, Martin Eugene Bogart

(1855-1911), whom Conn mentioned among the “prominent” faculty in the letter quoted above. (A

biography of Professor Bogarte may be found here http://www.inportercounty.org/Data/Biographies/

Bogarte141.html.) Several students, including U. S. Conn, wrote fondly of their former teacher.

Conn’s remembrance indicates the high esteem he had for Professor Bogarte, his “ideal of a great

teacher” :

In reply to your request that I write something relative to the work of Prof. M. E. Bogarte I

will say that I was a student in his classes for three or four years. I have had many other

teachers who were excellent; I have worked with many teachers and have observed the work

of good teachers, but have never known anyone who was able to inspire and magnify a class

in the way Professor Bogarte seemed to do.

His grasp of a subject seemed to be complete. His questions were clear cut and right to

the point; and when he had completed the explanation of an intricate problem nothing

1890 Crescent Literary Society program showing the names of Luther (L. M.) and U. S. Conn

more seemed necessary. He has always been my ideal of a great teacher. No time was

ever wasted in his classes.

It was my privilege during one year to be a member of the faculty, where I was associated in

a subordinate way with Professor Bogarte in the department of mathematics; so I learned to

know him as an associate as well as a teacher. In everything he undertook he was looked

upon as a leader. I do not believe there was ever anyone else connected with the University of

Valparaiso who wielded so great influence over his students and others who came in contact

with him as did Professor Bogarte.

It is a great privilege to me to think of him as my teacher, my friend, and an inspiring leader.

It’s worth noting here that Nebraska Normal College founder and president, James M. Pile (1857-

1909), and his wife, Ella Meek Pile (1868-1936) had attended Northern Indiana Normal School a

decade before Conn. William Clemmons (1856-1920) who became president of the Fremont

(Nebraska) Normal School in 1888 had also attended Northern Indiana. Both Pile and Conn taught at

Fremont Normal before coming to Wayne (and Conn returned there several years later). What

influence the educational philosophy of the Northern Indiana program and the relationship among

James Pile, U.S. Conn and William Clemmons had on the founding principles of the Nebraska

Normal College and even the early years of Wayne State College would be a subject worthy of

further research.

A Chronological Dilemma

The 1915 Spizz published photographs with a brief resume for each member of the administration

and faculty including President Conn. The following chronology for Conn during the years 1886

through 1901 can be drawn from the Spizz resume:

1886-1887 – Student, National Normal University [Lebanon, Ohio]

1887-1888 – Principal, Monticello, Illinois

1888-1892 – Valparaiso University, A.B. and A.M.

1892-1893 – Instructor, Gibbon Normal, Nebraska

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Yet in Conn’s 1930 letter quoted above he states

that he first enrolled at Valparaiso in 1886, and his

alumni record at Valparaiso indicates he took

courses in 1886, 1887, 1888, 1889, and 1891. This

does not square exactly with the chronology given

by the Spizz. Perhaps the key is to be found in the

phrase “the greater part of time” in his 1930 letter.

While he may have first enrolled at Valparaiso in

September 1886, it’s possible that he left to attend

the Ohio school briefly and then took the position

in Monticello before returning to Valparaiso to

complete his degree. The Spizz was perhaps

(over)simplifying Conn’s resume for the sake of

space and clarity. Other sources, by the way, do

indicate that Conn attended National Normal

University and was a “superintendent” of schools

in both Indiana and Illinois, but they give no

dates, exact locations of the Indiana and Illinois

schools, or any other details. It’s interesting that

the Northern Indiana / Valparaiso alumni record

shows that he was not in attendance in 1890.

Perhaps that’s the year he actually taught in

Monticello and the Spizz got the date wrong.

Without more documentation, however, it’s

impossible to establish an exact chronology

during this period of Conn’s life.

The Spizz chronology is also off regarding the

dates of his A. B. and A. M. degrees. All

biographical sources as well as the Valparaiso

alumni records indicate Conn completed his A.B.

degree in 1891 (although his wife did graduate in

1892). Moreover, Conn was already in Nebraska

in 1891 (see below). Concerning his A. M. degree,

reference sources say that the he received the

master’s degree in 1901. Again, perhaps the

Spizz put the two degrees together under one

Photo and resume of U. S. Conn from the 1915 Spizz

entry to save space. (One also wonders where the Spizz obtained this information, if Conn reviewed

the information before publication and, if he did, why he did not correct it).

U. S. Conn Comes to Nebraska

The December 7, 1891 Omaha Bee printed an item with the dateline of Gibbon, Nebraska, pertaining

to a teachers meeting:

The Buffalo County Teachers association will meet at the Normal college [sic] December 12.

The following will be the program: “Percentage,” U. S. Conn; “Methods of Teaching

Reading,” H. F. Carson; “Primary Language,” Ella Paxton; “The Problem,” L. B. Erwin;

address, Mary Ripley. All teachers from this part of the state are invited to be present.

This is the first mention found (so far) of U. S. Conn’s being in Nebraska. There’s no documentation

as to the reason why he made the decision to come to Nebraska. Was it the only job opportunity open

to him? Did he have several job offers, but was drawn to the Great Plains and so chose Nebraska over

the others? Was there a Northern Indiana Normal connection with Pile and/or Clemmons that drew

him here? At this time, one can only speculate. However, it is certain that U. S. Conn came to

Nebraska before 1892.

Conn became principal of the Normal School and Business Institute in Gibbon (a few miles east of

Kearney). He was joined by his brother, Luther, who became associate principal. He wrote about his

experience to The Student: A Journal of Education published by the Northern Indiana Normal

School:

School is moving along as I had anticipated. Our attendance is small now, but the prospects

are good for the future. This is a fine country, and in time will be the place for a normal

school. There is but one other independent normal in the state as far as I know. I have heard

from several of the boys of my class and nearly all have good positions. (January 1892)

On July 3, 1892, The Omaha Daily Bee wrote this about the school:

. . . Gibbon has a very successful Normal school and business college under the

superintendency [sic] of Prof. U. S. Conn. Last year over 100 pupils were in attendance. The

building now occupied by the Normal school was built for and occupied first as a courthouse,

the county seat being originally located [t]here.

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However, in spite of Conn’s hopes for “the prospects for the future” and having over 100 students

enrolled, the Normal school closed in 1893 “for lack of patronage” (Omaha Daily Bee, April 4,

1893). Luther Conn moved to Washington, Missouri, taking the position of principal of the high

school there. He later went to Texas as school superintendent for five years and then returned to

Indiana to farm.

After the closing of the Gibbon school, U. S. Conn took a teaching position at the Fremont Normal

School as alluded to above. Research into his time at Fremont is ongoing.

The Fremont Normal School had opened in 1884 under the leadership of William Patterson Jones.

After his death in 1886, his widow, Mary and daughter, Lydia, carried on the operation of the school

until William Clemmons was named president in 1888 (as noted above). James Pile taught at

Fremont from February 1889 to June 1891. It was then that Pile came to Wayne to found the

Nebraska Normal College.

Conn came to Fremont in 1893, but while the Spizz indicates that he was there in 1893 (only briefly

it would seem according to the yearbook) and then came to Wayne later in that year, there’s evidence

he may still have been at Fremont in 1894. The Columbus Journal of March 7, 1894 printed the

program for the North Nebraska Teachers’ Association conference to be held later that month. U. S.

Conn is listed on the program as being from Fremont. Of course, it’s possible that the planners of the

conference or the newspaper could have used outdated information, but that seems unlikely.

Moreover, there’s another piece of evidence that suggests Conn’s move from Fremont to Wayne may

have occurred in 1894 rather than 1893. It’s an item from the Normal Budget, 1894-1895, cited in the

March 1914 Goldenrod in a feature, “Twenty Years Ago”:

Professor U. S. Conn has been added to the faculty. He is an experienced teacher in normal

school work and comes highly recommended by all who know him.

The Normal Budget was most likely a publication of the Nebraska Normal College. Unfortunately,

no known copies exist to consult today. But, if it covered the 1894-1895 NNC school year, and it was

referenced correctly by the Goldenrod in 1914 (looking back 20 years to 1894), then it seems to

support U. S. Conn’s being “added to the faculty” of the NNC in 1894 rather than 1893.

Marriage

Presumably, one of the “happy” aspects of Conn’s college days that he spoke of in his June 20, 1930

letter was that while at Northern Indiana he met Cammie Baum (1870-1952). Cammie Baum was

born in Johnson County, Iowa ,but grew up in Valparaiso. Details are very sketchy about her family

and childhood, but it appears that after her father’s death sometime between 1870 and 1880 her

widowed mother, Hannah, moved her family to Valparaiso, the home of her late husband and his

family.

Cammie Baum was attending the Northern Indiana Normal School when she and U. S. Conn met.

Their marriage took place on August 23, 1893, in Valparaiso.

U. S. Conn Comes to Wayne

Whether it was 1893 or 1894, U. S. Conn came to teach at the Nebraska Normal College founded by

James M. Pile in 1891. Again, the documentation is lacking for the reason why he left Fremont after

such a short time and how he got the position at Wayne.

Future Nebraska poet laureate John G. Neihardt entered the NNC in 1893. Neihardt later wrote about

Professor Conn:

[He] was at that time teacher of mathematics, science, and advanced Latin. For nearly three

years he gave me private lessons in Latin for the simple reason that he believed I sincerely

wanted more knowledge of Latin. He was also my teacher in advanced mathematics, and I

believe that I owe more to him and J. M. Pile than to any other two persons in this world.

(From a letter quoted in Thelma Sealock, “Twenty Years at Wayne,” The Nebraska

Educational Journal, January 1931)

There are a few newspaper accounts of Conn’s activities during this period. The May 28, 1895

Omaha Daily Bee reported that Conn would be one of several persons to give lectures at the Pierce

County teachers’ institute in August of that year. Then there’s this rather interesting item, also

published in the March 1914 Goldenrod, this time citing another NNC publication, Normal College

Journal (of which several copies do exist and can be found in the Archives) from June 1896:

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Professor Conn has performed some fine experiments with the x-ray machine. The students are

much pleased with the work of Professor Conn and the College is to be congratulated upon

securing his services.

And there’s this:

Prof. U. S. Conn, of the Wayne Normal College, delivered an excellent address on the subject:

‘May We Blame the Schools for Failures in Life?’ Saturday evening in the school house hall to

a large and attentive audience. He contended that we should look more carefully into our

school interests and insist upon a course of instruction that will serve and strengthen the child

to act its part in this life better. All seem to have much pleased with his remarks.—Pilger Cor.

Wisner Chronicle.” (The Wayne Herald, March 6, 1896)

Mrs. Conn and

the Birth of a Daughter

Meanwhile, Mrs. Conn taught arithmetic,

algebra and grammar at the Normal (c. 1894)

and then held the position of assistant

principal at Wayne High School (1895).

On February 7, 1896, she gave birth to a

daughter, Ardath. She would be the Conn’s

only child.

Baby Picture of Ardath Conn from the May 1914 Goldenrod. Baby pictures of the senior class were featured in this issue.

U. S. Conn Leaves Nebraska Normal College

In 1897 Conn left Nebraska Normal College to take the position of superintendent of Wayne public

schools. Again, there’s no reason for the move that we know of.

The Wayne Herald published these items while he served as superintendent:

We have heard much praise for the practical talks of Prof. Conn. He discusses the subjects of

Arithmetic, Orthography, reading and Physiology during the forenoon of each day. His

physiology illustrations and talks in physiology are especially instructive.” (April 7, 1898)

Prof. U. S. Conn and all the teachers of the Wayne public schools except Miss Brown, also

Misses Abbie Manning and Mamie Wallace, went to Soo [sic] City on Sunday to visit the

public schools the following day, seeking further knowledge in the manner of conducting

schools and in the science of teaching. They returned on Monday evening, highly pleased with

their visit.” (April 14, 1898)

There were also the brief items about the social and business activities of the citizenry typically

found in small-town newspaper, such as:

Dr. Blair, Prof. Conn and S. H. Alexander attended the institution of a Lodge of Knights of

the Forest at Winiside Friday night. (April 21, 1898)

Prof. and Mrs. Conn expect to spend the summer vacation in Indiana and other states in the

east (June 16, 1898)

Mrs. Conn arrived home from Valparaiso, Ind., last evening. (August 18, 1898)

Prof. Conn has returned home from the west part of the state where he has been doing

institute work. (August 18, 1898)

The Omaha Daily Bee published a story on December 7, 1898, concerning the upcoming four-day

meeting of the Nebraska State Teachers Association in Lincoln. Among the speakers was U. S. Conn

who was scheduled to give an address entitled, “To What Extent Should Economy Be Taught in the

Public Schools.”

Mrs. Conn must have still been teaching in the high school as a retrospective “The Early Days in

Two Counties” in the April 8, 1921 issue of the Wayne Herald reported an item from April 20, 1899:

“An election was held in Mrs. Conn’s room at the high school.”

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A couple weeks later the newspaper printed an item from June 1, 1899: “At the meeting of the school

board, Prof. Conn was re-elected principal of the public schools at a salary of $1,125 for the ensuing

year.” (Using the Consumer Price Index as a measure, $1,125 in 1899 would be roughly the

equivalent of $33,000 today).

In December 1900, U. S. Conn was elected president of the Nebraska State Teachers’ Association.

The Wayne Herald of January 3, 1901 noted what a “distinguished honor [this is] coming from so

large and influential an organization in the upbuilding [sic] of the state and its splendid educational

institutions. Wayne’s citizens should be highly pleased with this recognition of one of her worthy

citizens.”

Professor Conn Leaves Education

In June 1901, Conn resigned his position as superintendent of schools. He would, however, continue

as president of the Nebraska Teachers Association through the end of his term.

The June 6, 1901 Wayne Herald published this story:

With this week the school year of Wayne will close. In many ways it has been the most

successful ever held and that this is true has been because of the special efforts of Prof. Conn

who has devoted his best energies in putting the school upon the highest plain, and there are

many who regret deeply that Prof. Conn has decided to sever his connection with the schools

to engage in other work.

That same issue carried this announcement:

PRIVATE SALE. For a few days we will offer at private sale all our household goods. U. S.

CONN.

The reason for his resignation and leaving education is unknown. The newspaper accounts do not

mention (or even speculate about) a reason and there’s no record (yet discovered, at least) of his ever

discussing it in subsequent years. In spite of his selling all his household goods, it does not seem that

money was an issue as Conn, emulating his father, owned land in and around Wayne County. As a

matter of fact, on April 25, 1901, just two months before the announcement of his resignation, the

Wayne Herald reprinted this item from the Wausa Gazette: “Prof. U. S. Conn of Wayne, has had a

windmill and a lot of fencing added to the improvements on his farm northeast of this city this week.”

But yet he didn’t completely leave education at this time. Remember that he received a master’s

degree from Valparaiso in 1901 and seems that it was at this time he was a “special student” at the

University of Chicago (whatever that meant). However, he was not actively engaged in teaching or

educational administration.

The Conns moved to Minneapolis. A report in the June 13, 1901 Wayne Herald states that U.S.

Conn would be in charge of the U. S. Life and Investment Co. for the state of Minnesota. However,

they didn’t stay there for very long. On March 13, 1902, the newspaper carried this item: “We are

informed that Prof. U. S. Conn, who has been residing at Minneapolis, has moved to Fairfax, S. D.,

where he is engaged in the insurance business.”

The Conns moved yet again in 1902. The 1902 Fargo, North Dakota, city directory lists Ulysses S.

Conn as living at 308 3rd St., in that city. His occupation is given as president of the Fargo

Hardware Company. Mrs. Conn is listed as a milliner.

Mrs. Conn’s mother, Hannah Baum (1837-1926), and her two sisters, Alice Baum (1865?-1948) and

Lillie Baum (1860-1955), are also listed in the 1905 Fargo directory. Prior to this time they had been

living in Valparaiso, Indiana. No occupation is given for Lillie, but Alice is also listed as a milliner.

One might speculate that Hannah, Alice and Lillie moved from Indiana to Fargo to be close to their

daughter and sister, respectively. Perhaps Alice wanted, or was asked, to go into the millinery

business with her sister, Cammie, and Hannah and Lillie moved with her (neither Alice nor Lillie

ever married and they evidently lived together throughout most of their adult lives as well as taking

care of their mother until her death in 1926). However, it’s a mystery why U. S. Conn left the

insurance business to enter the hardware business—and why Fargo? One might also ask why Mrs.

Conn did not take a teaching position and instead became a milliner.

U. S. Conn returned to teaching in 1905. He took a position as the head of the Mathematics

Department at Fremont College (formerly Fremont Normal). Again, there’s no known evidence as to

why he made the decision. (Hannah, Alice and Lillie, however, stayed on in Fargo until at least

1911. They then moved back to Indiana).

The August 22, 1907 issue of the Wayne Herald reported:

Prof. Conn, formerly an instructor in our Normal College and later Superintendent of the city

schools, has excepted [sic] a position as superintendent of schools at Columbus, Nebr. Prof.

Conn has been instructor of mathematics in the Fremont Normal the past year or two but has

tendered his resignation and goes to Columbus to succeed E. B. Sherman.

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On August 21, 1907 the Columbus Journal published this story:

At a special meeting of the board of education last Saturday evening Prof. E. B. Sherman was

released by the board in order to permit him to accept the appointment of superintendent of

the Boy’s Industrial school at Kearney, tendered him by Governor Sheldon. This motion was

not taken until after the situation had been gone over very carefully, as the best interests of the

Columbus schools were to be considered. After the motion to release Prof. Sherman ha[d]

prevailed, the selection of his successor was taken up, and from the list of applicants Prof. U.

S. Conn of Fremont Normal faculty was chosen, as a salary of $1,350. Professor Conn’s

recommendations were first class and such that carried weight with the board.

I will pick up the story of U.S. Conn’s life with his work in Columbus in the next Archival Minute.