#TBT in the Archives 4/28/16: Old School Tech

Ship students have not always had laptops, tablets, and digital projectors to use in their classes. Before all of these technologies were invented, last century's technology looked a lot different!

Aside from the paper records and photos we have featured in the past on Throwback Thursday, the University Archives also houses other memorabilia from the university. For example, the football team used to watch films of their games which were recorded on film reels. Games are not the only subject of the film reels in the Archives. There are also films of other aspects of campus life including various May Day celebrations from the 1950s as well as graduation ceremonies and homecoming celebrations from the 1960s.

Film reels, 1950s-1960s

Another example of "old school" tech housed in the Archives is a Keystone Eye Comfort Stereoscope. A stereoscope is a device which takes two photographs of the same object and creates a 3D image. Though the stereoscope was losing popularity into the 1920s, many people believed that they still had educational value and could be used to diagnose vision problems.

Stereoscope with image cards

There is also a vintage slide projector housed in the Archives. It runs off of electricity just like a newer projector and has a bulb in the back which illuminates a slide on the screen. Projectors like the one in the Archives were used in auditoriums and classrooms because of the clear pictures they produced. By moving the lens forward and backward, one could adjust the size and the clarity of the image.

Vintage slide projector that was used in the mid-20th century

That wraps up our Throwback Thursdays for this semester! Check back in the fall for more Ship history!