Walter R. Hepner Memorial Collection MS-0308
Matthew Nye (Intern)
Special Collections & University Archives
07/15/2006
5500 Campanile Dr. MC 8050
San Diego, CA 92182-8050
askscua@sdsu.edu
Contributing Institution:
Special Collections & University Archives
Title: Walter R. Hepner Memorial Collection
Creator:
Hepner, Walter R. (Walter Ray Hepner)
Identifier/Call Number: MS-0308
Physical Description:
4.75 Linear Feet
Date (inclusive): 1892-1977
Date (bulk): 1940-1969
Language of Material:
English
.
Scope and Contents
The
Walter R. Hepner Memorial Collection documents aspects of Hepner's professional administrative career and his involvement with the community at large, including
international travel. The collection dates from 1892 to 1977, with the bulk of documents created between the 1940s and 1960s.
The majority of the collection consists of paper materials such as correspondence, retirement mementos, memorial artifacts,
and personal scrapbooks. It contains a significant number of speeches written during and after Hepner's tenure as President
of San Diego State College (SDSC). The collection also consists of a large amount of materials from the Hepners' travels,
both paper and photographic slides. The collection has been divided into three series:
Office Files,
Speeches, and
Travel. The
Travel series is made up of two subseries:
Paper Materials and
Slides.
The
Office Files series consists of a number of small folders with materials dating from 1892-1977. These folders contain small amounts of
random material such as news articles relating to Hepner's career and community involvement dating from 1929-1977; biographical
material from 1892-1974; information on some of the conferences attended by Hepner while president of SDSC, 1936-1952; personal
and professional correspondence from 1924-1975, with the bulk coming from the 1950s; information on the dedication of Hepner
Hall in 1976; a small collection of papers from Frances Hepner, including her correspondence, 1932-1977; mementoes from Hepner's
memorial in 1976; a small amount of material from his publications, 1935-1971; papers from Hepner's involvement with the Rotary
Club; and scrapbooks, which include a small amount of personal photos dating back to Hepner's infancy in 1892. This series
is filed alphabetically according to subject title.
The
Speeches series includes transcripts of speeches and some articles that were written by Hepner. This series documents Hepner's involvement
with the community between 1934 and 1953, his involvement with the Rotary Club between 1950 and 1975, and his tenure as SDSC
President between 1935 and 1952. Hepner has provided a contents list that has been placed in the front of each file. Speeches
were written both for incoming students and graduating classes, for important community events, and for Rotary Club gatherings.
Also documented in this series is SDSC history during the Second World War, as some speeches focusing on campus issues during
war time. This series is arranged alphabetically according to subject.
The
Travel series dates from 1959-1967 and is comprised of two sub-series. The first is
Paper Materials, which consists of documentation gathered from the Hepners' international travels. There is printed matter such as brochures,
pamphlets and maps; and there is written material, such as verse that was scripted by Hepner to document many of his and his
wife's travels. Much of the travel paper material was originally stored in scrapbooks by Mrs. Hepner, and consists of the
printed material, written verse, and a small amount of photographs. The second sub-series, called
Slides, consist of approximately 1,000 photographic slides. A talented amateur photographer, Hepner documented the scenic elements
of most of their travels. This entire series has been filed alphabetically by subject title.
Arrangement Note
I. Office Files, 1892-1977
II. Speeches, 1934-1975
III. Travel, 1959-1967
1. Paper Material
2. Slides
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
The copyright interests in some of these materials have been transferred to or belong to San Diego State University. The nature
of historical archival and manuscript collections means that copyright status may be difficult or even impossible to determine.
Copyright resides with the creators of materials contained in the collection or their heirs. Requests for permission to publish
must be submitted to the Head of Special Collections, San Diego State University, Library and Information Access. Permissions
is given on behalf of Special Collections as the owner of the physical item and is not intended to include or imply permission
of the copyright holder(s), which must also be obtained in order to publish. Materials from our collections are made available
for use in research, teaching, and private study. The user must assume full responsibility for any use of the materials, including
but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials.
Source of Acquisition
Frances K. Hepner
Accruals and Additions
1995-004, 2007-004
Related Materials
Malcolm A. Love Papers
Brage Golding Papers
Thomas B. Day Papers
SDSU Historical Collection
Edward Lawyer Hardy Papers
Samuel T. Black Papers
Preferred Citation
Identification of item, folder title, box number, Walter R. Hepner Memorial Collection, Special Collections and University
Archives, San Diego State University Library.
Biographical Note
Walter Ray Hepner was born in Covina California, October 30, 1891. The son of a major orange grower, Hepner received his A.B.
(1913), A.M. (1916) and Ed.D (1937) from the University of Southern California. He also completed two years of graduate study
in Sociology and Education at the University of Chicago from 1917-1919. Hepner married Frances Hepner in 1919 and they had
one son, Walter Ray Hepner, Jr.
Hepner's administrative career in public education began in 1919 with a position as principal of Polytechnic Evening High
School in Long Beach, California. From 1920 to 1926, he worked for Fresno city schools, eventually becoming Superintendent
of Schools. In 1928 Hepner became Superintendent of Schools for the city of San Diego. In 1934 he was appointed Chief of the
Division of Secondary Education in the California State Department of Education, and moved to Sacramento. The following year,
1935, Hepner returned to San Diego as President of San Diego Sate College (SDSC), where he remained until his retirement in
1952. He was SDSC's third president, following Samuel T. Black and Edward L. Hardy.
During Hepner's tenure at SDSC, the college broadened its academic programs in business, technical and liberal arts, and education.
The college acquired eight new buildings, the open air theatre, four building extensions, and 167 acres which more than doubled
the original land base. Enrollment increased from 1,250 to 4,000, course offerings from 404 to 1,431, and faculty from 63
to 222.
In March of 1947, Hepner was selected by the War Department to serve with a small group of educational leaders on an advisory
commission to the U.S. Office of Military Government in Berlin. He also spent ten summers teaching at San Jose State (1924),
Stanford (1927 and 1934), Claremont (1930), U.C.L.A. (1935 and 1942), and U.S.C. (1938, 1940, 1941, and 1948). He was appointed
to two state committees by Governor Earl Warren; one on juvenile justice and the other on mental hygiene. Hepner had a devout
interest in community service, participating in over twenty local, state, and national councils and commissions devoted to
educational, cultural, and civic causes such as the San Diego Army and Navy YMCA Board of Directors, San Diego Council Boy
Scouts of America, California Society of Secondary Education, and the San Diego Rotary Club.
Along with numerous articles in educational magazines, Hepner published three text books: The Good Citizen (1924), Junior
Citizens in Action (1928), and Laboratory Textbook in Civics (n.d.). Each of these was co-written by his wife Frances and
published by Houghton & Mifflin. Hepner also wrote Junior College Survey of Northern San Diego County with Walter Morgan in
1935 and Factors Underlying Unpredicted Scholastic Achievement of College Freshmen in 1937. In 1971, San Diego State University
published Hepner's The San Diego State College: the Third Regime, 1935-1952, which consists mainly of excerpts from "The Presidents
Corner" in the campus newspaper, The Aztec.
As President emeritus, Dr. and Mrs. Hepner vacationed around the world, and traveled to some International Rotary Club conventions.
Their trips took them to the Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, Europe, and the Middle East. With his 35mm camera Hepner documented
many of their travels. In 1974 Hepner and his wife moved to Baltimore, Maryland to be near their son. Hepner passed away on
January 13, 1976. Mrs. Hepner gathered the contents of this collection, which was stored at home, and donated it to the San
Diego State University on February 17, 1977.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Slides
Personal Papers
College presidents' spouses--California--San Diego--Biography--Sources
College presidents--California--San Diego--Biography--Sources
Hepner, Frances Keating
Hepner, Walter Ray, 1891-1976
San Diego State College
Hepner, Frances K. (Frances Keating)
Hepner, Walter R. (Walter Ray), b. 1891--Archives
Hepner, Walter R. (Walter Ray), b. 1891--Correspondence
Hepner, Walter R. (Walter Ray), b. 1891--Travel
San Diego State College--History--Sources
box 10, box 9
Office Files Series 1
1892-1977
box 1, folder 1
Articles, 1924-76 Folder 1
box 1, folder 2
Biographical Folder 2
1927-34
box 1, folder 3
Conferences Folder 3
1936-52
box 1, folder 4
Correspondence Folder 4
1936-52
box 1, folder 5
Correspondence Folder 5
1936-52
box 1, folder 6
Dedication of Hepner Hall Folder 6
1976
box 1, folder 7
Hepner, Frances K. Folder 7
1932-77
box 2, folder 2
Patron's Board Minutes Folder 2
1947
box 2, folder 3
Personal Folder 3
1946-53
box 2, folder 4
Publications Folder 4
1935-71
box 2, folder 5
Publications Folder 5
1935-71
box 2, folder 6
Publications Folder 6
1935-71
box 2, folder 7
Publications Folder 7
1935-71
box 3, folder 2
Rotary Club Folder 2
1955-75
box 3, folder 3
Scrapbook Folder 3
1892-1974
box 3, folder 4
Scrapbook Folder 4
1935-76
box 3, folder 5
Scrapbook Folder 5
1952-74
Speeches Series 2
1934-75
box 3, folder 7
Community Folder 7
1935-45
box 3, folder 8
Community Folder 8
1934-37
box 3, folder 9
Community Folder 9
1938-43
box 3, folder 10
Community Folder 10
1941-45
box 4, folder 1
Community Folder 1
1941-53
box 4, folder 2
Community Folder 2
1941-53
box 4, folder 3
Community Folder 3
1941-53
box 4, folder 4
Rotary Club Folder 4
1950-75
box 4, folder 5
Rotary Club Folder 5
1962-72
box 4, folder 6
San Diego State College Folder 6
1936-42
box 4, folder 7
San Diego State College Folder 7
1936-42
Paper Materials Sub-Series 1
1959-64
box 5, folder 1
Brochures and Maps Folder 1
box 5, folder 4
First Cruise, the Caribbean Folder 4
1959
box 6, folder 3
Verse Diary, Africa Folder 3
1962
box 6, folder 4
Verse Diary, Japan Folder 4
1961
box 6, folder 5
Verse Diary, Japan Folder 5
1961
box 6, folder 6
Verse Diary, South Africa Folder 6
Slides Sub-Series 2
1961-67
box 7, folder 3
Africa Folder 3
1962, 1967
box 8, folder 1
Middle East Folder 1
1967
box 8, folder 2
Middle East Folder 2
1967
