New Dorm: First coed dorm on campus

Linfield's first coed dorm, New Dorm, fall 1970.

What is now Frerichs Hall II (a dorm) used to be called New Dorm.

It got that name since the dorm was new (it opened in 1968) and didn't have a name. It's Frerichs Hall II here at Wildcatville because there was another (the original) Frerichs Hall (a campus building) until it burned down in December 1969.

The original Frerichs was probably one of the buildings on campus which were or remodeled from a building purchased from the federal government. The building originally stood at Camp Adair, a military installation near Corvallis. Buying old military buildings and turning them into campus buildings was an inexpensive way for Linfield to deal with the influx of G.I. students and their families after Word War II.

What was the last or one of the last G.I. buildings on campus was Laurel Hall (it was near a laurel hedge), which paralleled Lever

Street. Some of Laurel -- nicknamed "The Waldorf" by some of its last residents -- was probably on an edge of the footprint of Durham Hall, home of Ted Wilson Gym and Hal Smith weight room. So, if you are facing the back of Memorial Stadium (looking at the front of Memorial Hall), Laurel/The Waldorf was on the left. What?! Memorial is now an all-women's dorm! It used to be all men. Laurel/The Waldorf was torn down...maybe in the summer of 1968 or so.

Anyway, in the spring of 1970, the college announced that "New Dorm," which had all men residents would become coed. All/many/some New Dorm protested. But, the protest went unheeded.

Historical note: When the coed New Dorm opened in fall 1970, it was the first coed dorm on campus.

Unknown at this writing os who took this “commemorative” photo seen above. It's a quality black and white photo, well lit. Maybe it was Reid Blackburn? Anyway, each coed New Dorm resident got a copy of the photo. Wonder how many of the first coed New Dorm alumni still have their photo

What you see here is a a photo of a hand-made button (the paper on the button covers up Blitz beer advertising "Blitz Me" slogan) and a page from the 1970 Oak Leaves which reproduces an ad which ran in the April 30, 1972, issue of Linews, the college's student newspaper.

Bonfire of the Homecoming

On the top, part of a page from the 1970 Linfield yearbook. Note the "red hot"
Homecoming bonfire photo. Immediately above, a photo which appears in the 1970
Parkrose, Ore., High School (also known as Parkrose High School of Portland, Ore.) yearbook. It's the same photo.


Next time you thumb through the 1970 Linfield Oak Leaves and 1970 Parkrose, Ore., High School Equus Ferox student yearbooks, compare the Homecoming bonfire photos. It’s the same photo. What gives? True confession: In the spring/summer of 1970, as the Linfield yearbook was being prepared for publication, concern was expressed by the yearbook publisher in Salem, Ore., about various parts of the Linfield yearbook. A just graduated from Linfield Oak Leaves staff member lived in Salem and became the 1970 Linfield yearbook’s de facto pre-press coordinator. Looking at each page of the book, the coordinator noticed the photo of Linfield’s Homecoming bonfire was washed out/over exposed. It didn’t look good. Expressing concern, a publisher’s employee showed the coordinator a well exposed Homecoming bonfire photo which was to appear in the Parkrose yearbook, which it also published. Presto change-o. At direction of the coordinator, the Parkrose photo replaced the Linfield photo. That’s the story. Don’t tell anyone!

It’s for real, a Linfield Wildcat tow truck

As a Linfield Wildcat, let's hope you never have a traffic accident. But, if you do let's hope you are not injured and that your accident happens in the Portland metro area where Newhouse & Hutchins Towing of Portland provides its services. Your vehicle will be proud to be tended by its Linfield Wildcat tow truck, a BMW no less.

The father-in-law of Neil Fendall, Linfield assistant football coach, is Mr. Newhouse. (Hmmm… maybe it’s Mr. Hutchins?) He salutes his son-and-law by having one of the tow trucks featuring Linfieldania.

Football game in Wisconsin makes Linfield Purple Flag famous

Chuck Humble waves the Linfield Purple Flag flag from bleachers behind the Linfield Wildcat team bench at Goerke Field in Stevens Point, Wisc. In the Sept. 18, 2004 football game, Linfield beat the University of Wisconsin Stevens Point, 46-35. Wildcatville photo.

What a game to debut the Linfield Purple Flag.

During the summer of 2004, Linfield alum Chuck Humble commissioned a purple flag sporting a large white "L" and measuring 6-feet x 4-feet.

"I had seen other colleges with signature flags that the fans brought to the games and I thought there should be one at the Linfield games," said Humble in 2008. "I figured it would add something to the excitement and the fun of attending the games and provide a rallying point for our fans."

The flag wasn't ready for the season opener on Sept. 11 on Maxwell Field in McMinnville, when Linfield beat Western Oregon University, 58-17.

So, the flag's debut was in Wisconsin on the afternoon of Sept. 18. It was the second game for the 2004 Wildcats, their first season with Brett Elliott as quarterback. The 'Cats would go on that season to win the NCAA DIII national championship. From that game through the rest of the season, the Linfield Purple Flag was there.

"The hardest part was getting the flag to Wisconsin as I not only had to bring the flag, but also the flag pole," Humble recalled. "I couldn't take the pole as airline passenger carry on, so I took it as checked luggage. It was the first of many air trips for the flag and the flag pole."

But, back to Stevens Point. It's a home game for the University of Wisconsin Stevens Point Pointers ranked seventh in the DIII poll. UWSP came into the game having not lost a regular season game to a non-conference DIII opponent since 1981. The Wildcats were ranked second in the poll.

The temperature was 80 degrees, it was sunny with a light breeze and the grass on Goerke Field was long. In the parking lot before the game and at halftime, brats are grilled, Wisconsin cheese curds and smoked trout jerky eaten and beverages consumed.

Final score: Linfield 46, UWSP 35. But, it wasn't easy. Led by Elliott, the Wildcats scored 21 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to win. He set a Linfield passing records of 480 yards on 38 completions out of 60 attempts.

A look at the game's scoring summary includes –with only points in which Elliott was involved listed -- for Linfield:

• Casey Allen 13-yd pass from Brett Elliot (Allen pass from Elliot)
• Brad McKechnie 16-yd pass from Elliot
• Brandon Hazenberg 11-yd pass from Elliot
• Tyler Kaluza 11-yd pass from Elliot
• Allen 10-yd pass from Elliot
• Thomas Ford 59-yd pass from Elliot

Looking at the now famous photo of the Linfield Purple Flag at Stevens Point, Humble notes the sun shining through it forming a cross. “This was seen by some as a prophetic sign that Linfield would be a team of destiny in 2004,” he said.

See below for game story which appeared in the Sept. 21, 2004, McMinnville News-Register. To see a larger version of each photo below, click on it.

Hey, you... Write a history book about Linfield athletics

There’s no definitive history book about Linfield athletics.

Why don't you write it?

Your sources for information should probably include the three books about Linfield history. Each book includes some information about Linfield athletics.

The books are:

--Bricks Without Straw, an early history of the college published 1938. It was written by Jonas A. Jonasson, then a Linfield history professor.

--Linfield's Hundred Years: A Centennial History of Linfield College, McMinnville, Oregon. Published in 1956, it was edited by Kenneth L. Holmes, then a Linfield history professor. He was also Linfield’s swim coach. Paul Durham provided the section in the book about athletics.

--Inspired Pragmatism: An Illustrated History of Linfield College. Published in 2007, it was written by Marvin Henberg, Linfield philosophy professor and Barbara Seidman, Linfield English professor and former interim faculty dean. He served (2005-2006) as interim president and academic affairs VP/faculty dean.

Also, take a look at:

• Shooting the Bull and Dodging with Durham sports columns by Paul Durham from the McMinnville News-Register and its predecessor (McMinnville Telephone-Register) newspapers. At the time Durham wrote the columns in the1950s-1960s, he was Linfield athletic director and football coach and, for much of the time, sports editor of the newspaper. Look for uncredited photos taken by Durham, too.
  

• Articles, bits of sports information and photos from the News-Register and Telephone-Register not produced, written or taken by Durham.

• Coverage of Linfield athletics by these daily newspapers: The Oregonian (Portland), now defunct Oregon Journal (Portland), and Salem’s Oregon Statesman (morning) and Capitol Journal (afternoon). The Oregonian is owned by Newhouse and so was the OJ in its final bit of life before it was folded into the “O.” Somewhat similarity, Gannett owned (and owns) the Statesman and the CJ before it merged the newspapers into the Salem Statesman-Journal. Look at issues of the S-J, too. Seek bound volumes or microfilm of these newspapers.

• Sports media guides and printed programs, brochures and other material, including DVDs, produced by Linfield sports information directors. You ought to interview some of some SIDs (sports information directors), too.

Speaking of interviewing. Think about interviewing some of those who were play-by-play “voices” and color commentators for Linfield football and basketball games on the radio.


Take a look, too, at:

• Linfield Review and Linews student newspapers.
  
• Linfield College Oak Leaves yearbooks.
  
  
• Linfield Magazine (produced by the college’s college relations office) and its predecessor, the Linfield College (Alumni) Bulletin.
  
  
• This blogsite, Wildcatville.That being said, Wildcatville focuses on Linfield football. Thus, be sure to not do so in the definitive Linfield athletics history and be sure to cover both Wildcat women and men’s athletics.
  
  
• And, interview a variety of people who have played a role in Linfield athletics over the years. Those interviewed might include Margaret Lever Dement or another or other of Marguerite and Henry Lever's nine children. (Henry Lever and all those with linked/underlined names below are members of the Linfield Athletics Hall of Fame.) Dorothy Helser, widow of Roy Helser; Ann Molek Wilson, widow of Ted Wilson; Terry Durham and Cathy Durham Devine , son and daughter of Paul Durham; Ad and Joan Rutschman and Craig Singletary, Linfield football public address announcer and former Linfield football play-by-play “voice.” Current athletic department leadership and coaches should be interviewed as should those enshrined into the Linfield Athletics Hall of Fame.

Some of those mentioned here are former Linfield athletes, be sure to interview them, too.

And, be sure to watch these video interviews:

• Interviews and videos – including Linfield’s Tradition of Excellence video and a 50-The Story Behind Football's Greatest Team Record about the Linfield football team winning season steak -- produced/"videoed" by videographer Mike Rhodes, formerly of MCM/McMinnville Community Media Cable Channel 11. Tim Marsh was the interviewer. It's on file on a DVD in Linfield's Nicholson Library as GV351.3.O7 L5643 2004.
  
  
• A 47 minute video interview of Paul Durham and Roy Helser, conducted in Aug. 1990 by Craig Singletary and on file on a DVD in Linfield’s Nicholson Library. The library catalogue gives the impression there are two interviews, one each with Durham and Helser. In reality, Durham and Helser were interviewed at the same time.
  
  
• Craig Singletary interviews (47 minute DVD videodisk) Paul Durham in Aug. 1990.

GV351.3.O7 L5642 1990

Summary: Durham “guided the Wildcats to six conference titles and two appearances in the NAIA national championship game. His most outstanding season as coach came in 1961 and 1965. In 1961, Durham's Wildcats capped the first unbeaten, untied season in college history with a trip to the ‘Camellia Bowl’ in Sacramento, Calif. Linfield was the first college from the Northwest Conference to participate in the NAIA football playoffs. The Wildcats narrowly lost the national championship game, 12-7 to Pittsburg State of Kansas. Linfield again finished unbeaten and untied in 1965 and beat Sul Ross State 30-27 in the semifinals before losing to St. John's of Minnesota 33-0 in the so-called ‘Champion Bowl’ played in Augusta, Ga. Durham graduated from Linfield in 1936.”

• Craig Singletary interviews (47 minute DVD videodisk) Roy Helser in Aug. 1990.

GV351.3.O7 L564 1990

Summary: Helser was the “Wildcats' head baseball coach for 21 seasons, a span in which Linfield won 14 Northwest Conference championships and one NAIA national title in 1966. He retired from coaching in 1970 with a career record of 316-199-6, then served as the college's athletic director for five years. He also served as men's basketball coach from 1949 to 1961 and was an assistant football coach under Paul Durham for several seasons. Helser's basketball teams won four conference titles during his tenure. Helser graduated from Linfield in 1936 after earning 11 letters in football, basketball and baseball.”

Wrought iron by Wipf

Elias J. "Eli" Wipf was born 1921 in Chasley, N.D. He died Oct. 2001. A longtime resident of Tacoma (University Place), he ran his own business, Wipf Ornamental Iron, until he retired. These photos show an example of his work, probably from the late 1950s.

Photos below have no connection to Wipf or ornamental iron.

Coach Paul Durham photos over the years

Paul Durham, Linfield athletic director and Wildcat football coach, photos (left to right) from Linfield Oak Leaves yearbook in the respective years 1951, 1955 AND 1963.

Whitworth at Linfield football 11 Oct. 2008

"Here Come the Wildcats"

"Here Come the Wildcats" ... the Linfield football team
runs out of Memorial Stadium onto Maxwell Field.
This video shot Oct. 11, 2008; Whitworth at Linfield
Northwest Conference game.








.

Linfield Football picture postcard is part of Wildcat football's Hawai`i (and Australia) connection

The late Bill Helbig grew up in Hawai`i, and returned there after graduating from Linfield in 1970. Later, he moved to McMinnville and lived at "Aloha Ranch." A friend of Linfield Athletics, one of his supportive efforts while in Hawai`i was a 5 3/4 x 8 1/4-inch picture postcard promoting Wildcat Football. The card was produced after Ad Rutschman-coached Linfield football teams won NAIA national championships in 1982 and 1984. Rutschman also led the Wildcats to a NAIA national title in 1986. Below is the front of the card. Beneath it is text from back of the card. When Rutschman was Linfield football coach and athletic director and his wife, Joan Rutschman, was the college's athletic office manager and football ticket manager. The Rutschmans often used the cards to correspond with recruits, alumni, friends and fans.

TEXT ON BACK OF POSTCARD

Linfield College Wildcats
McMinnville, Oregon

LINFIELD COLLEGE WILDCATS-There are few small college football programs in the county that can match the success of Linfield. The Wildcats, coached by Linfield alumnus Ad Rutschman, won NAIA Division II national championships in 1982 and 1984. Nine NAIA playoff appearances (1961, 1964, 1965, 1974, 1977, 1980, 1982, 1984) is matched by none. The Wildcats are the winningest team among NAIA Division II schools in the last ten years. Linfield had won 12 Northwest Conference titles in the last 16 seasons. Coach Rutschman has compiled a 130-32-3 record in 17 years at Linfield.

Photographs by Rusty Rae, Dean Koepfler and Tony Overman – Published for Linfield College by Bill Helbig – P.O. Box 2835, Honolulu, Hawaii 96803. Printed in Australia.

Shrine All-Stars on 1961 Wildcat team

SHRINE ALL-STARS were welcomed in grand style on the Linfield campus Wednesday at the 1961 football aspirants gather to being drills Thursday morning. Eight men who played in the Shrine classic in Portland recently are new members of the Wildcat club, seven of them are show above being greeted by Linfield football coach Paul Durham. Left to right, in the front row, are Jim Gaydon, Joe Rainwater, and Pat Thruston. In the back row are Russ Morrison, Larry Binkerd, Durham, Bill Champange and Barry Fuller. The eighth man, Bill Mickle, showed up after the photo was taken. (Photo by John Buchner) Sept 8, 1961, McMinnville News-Register

Beating Whittier assures Camellia Bowl berth

TWO OF THE HAPPIEST people on Maxwell field Saturday night after the rampaging Linfield football team had cinched a Camellia Bowl berth by turning back Whittier, 18-7, were Wildcat head coach Paul Durham (center) and his son, Jeff (left), a starting offensive end. Reserve quarterback Ken Ware is show on the right. The Wildcats will Battle Pittsburg State of Kansas in the Camellia Bowl Dec. 9 for the national small college football championship. A 40-man Linfield party is scheduled to fly out of McMinnville Tuesday, Dec. 5, for Sacramento, site of the bowl game. (N-R Photo by John Buchner.) Nov. 28, 1991, McMinnville News-Register

1961: Street named for Coach Henry Lever

Lever Street sign on Linfield campus. 

Photo taken in 2018.
==========================

Oct. 24, 1961
McMinnville News-Register
Henry Lever
Gains Honor

Henry Lever, a former Lin-
Field college coaching great,
flew in from Chicago Friday
to be the honored guest of the
Wildcats’ 1961 homecoming
weekend.

Lever, who coached basket-
ball, baseball, football and track
at one time or another during
his 19-year tenure at Linfield
(1963-1949), was honored at
halftime of the Wildcat-Whit-
man homecoming game Satur-
day night.

College president Harry Dillin
introduced Lever as a truly fine
gentleman dedicated to the de-
velopment of young men.

President Dillin called for all
the former athletes who per-
formed under Lever during his
tenure at Linfield and these
ex-athletes filed out from the
stands onto the field to greet
their coach.

Then L.F. Ramsey, mayor
of McMinnville, told the crowd
that a street had been named in
honor of Lever. The street,
which runs parallel to the foot-
ball field, was formerly known
as Stadium Ave. It is now called
Lever Ave.

(Note from Wildcatville in 2008.
These days it is called Lever
Street.)

President Dillin added that a
plaque will be inset in the side-
walk across from Maxwell field
stadium in the near future.

Lever concluded the cere-
mony by thanking everyone for
making the night possible.

From Paul Durham’s “Dodging with Durham” sports column
Oct. 27, 1961
McMinnville News-Register

…Then, when the Wildcats came out for the second half and surrounded coach Henry Lever for the ceremony in which Mayor L.F. Ramsey announced the changing of the name of Stadium Ave., to Lever Ave., the game was held up long enough that the officials penalized Linfield 15 yards before kickoff…

COACH LEVER HAS RECEIVED many honors for his years of highly successful coaching and every one of them was richly deserved. He’s been a tremendous influence on a great many young people all his adult life and has contributed greatly to the development of those young people.

But his most recent honor, having a street named in this city will go down in history as remind people in years of the contributions of himself and his worldly goods that coach Lever made to Linfield and its students during his 19 years on the staff, is without a doubt the greatest and the most lasting.

During his years of struggle to develop a winning athletic tradition at the college, fighting a lack of athletes, interest, equipment, facilities, money and everything else that is needed to make such a program grow, coach Lever brought about development far greater than he realized … He is so humble in his approach to admitting that he contributed much to the development of the college and its athletic program that, even now, he sincerely feels the honors such as the one which came his way last weekend are not deserved.

But people who worked with him on the campus here, and the hundreds of young men who played on his teams, as well as those individuals who served the city in various capacities at the same time he did as a stellar member of the Methodist Church and a solid worker in the Kiwanis Club, know that no one deserves recognition that does Coach Lever.

When someone begins talking about the great things Mr. Lever did, about the fine team he had, and about the successes some of “his boys” have achieved in many walks of life since their years at Linfield, Coach Lever begins to kid himself about the tough times, the losses, the mistakes he made, and the things he should have done better.

So Coach Lever will always be the same great person. He’s been gone from campus for more than 12 years now but his successors are striving to contribute just a small bit of the high ideals, ethics, desire to excel but always according to the rules, which he not only preached but lives.

Coach Lever must be well into his seventies now but he still looks almost as young as he did when he first hit the Linfield campus back in 1930. He has the secret to the fountain of youth.

And he still has a youthful approach to athletics. He could still take over a college football team and bring it in a winner. He’s kept up with the game and is about as up-to-date on it has a man can be.

Kids are still his big love… This next summer, for example, he plans to coach at Peewee baseball team in his hometown, Madras. And don’t bet against his boys, They’ll know the fundamentals of the game from A to Izzard and battle all opponents every inch of the way.

But why not? They'll be playing under a great coach who has always used coaching sports as a means of make fine men out of boys… What greater thing can you say about him?

• Joe Dancer, who served from 1960-1986 as McMinnville City manager, told Wildcatville the McMinnville City Council changed the name of Stadium Avenue to Lever Avenue in 1961. What is now called "Lever Street" borders the college's athletic complex, football field and baseball diamond. The name change came at the urging of Linfield President Harry Dillin, said Dancer.

A Linfield here, there, every where

Linfield Football Club of Irish Premier League, Northern Ireland

Linfield Christian High School “Lions” of Temecula, Calif.

Linfield National Golf Club in Pennsylvania

Linfield Hall at Montana State University in Bozeman, Mont. In Feb. 2012, the Bozeman Chronicle reported MSU had committed $1.5 million to make the hall accessible to the disabled.

Campus streets have football connections

LEVER STREET

Lever Street intersects with Linfield Avenue. It is bisected by Brumback Street.

In 1961, during halftime of the Linfield homecoming football game (Linfield beat NW Conference opponent Whitman, 52-0) on Maxwell Field, what had been Stadium Avenue -- which runs behind Linfield's Memorial Stadium -- was named in honor of Henry Lever. He was athletic director and coached basketball, baseball, football and track at one time or another during a 19-year (1930-1949) tenure at the college. As part of the halftime ceremony, McMinnville Mayor L.F. Ramsey announced the name change. According to an article in the Oct. 24, 1961, McMinnville News-Register, Linfield President Harry Dillin told the crowd Lever was a truly fine gentleman dedicated to the development of young men. Article says Lever "flew in from Chicago" for homecoming festivities. In addition the article says, "Dillin added that a plaque will be inset in the sidewalk across from Maxwell field stadium in the near future."

Photo taken 12/4/2012. The plaque is no longer inset in the sidewalk. That sidewalk was removed and replaced except for a section of the sidewalk in which the plaque was inset. The section was cut and saved. The section is on display on the the Maxwell Field grounds near Memorial Stadium, close to the stadium's auxiliary entry/exit gate. 

BRUMBACK STREET
Brumback Street intersects with Renshaw Avenue.

On one end of the street is the Linfield Softball Field, which is across the street from Renshaw Hall, now home of the college's Mass Communications Department. Player/coach A.M. (Arthur M.) Brumback organized Linfield's first football team in 1896. He coached for five seasons before being appointed college president in 1903, a position he held for two years (1903-1905). Brumback taught natural sciences at the college. According to one write-up, "Brumback had a passion for sport, playing center on and coaching the college’s first football team. While enormously popular with students" he was not successful in dealing with Linfield's financial crisis. He left Linfield in 1905, to take a position at his alma mater, Denison College, in Ohio. At Denison, he was that college's first chemistry professor.