Ceer (yearbooks digital files), 1922 - 2019

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Summary

Title:
Ceer yearbooks digital files
Dates:
1922 - 2019
Abstract:
This collection contains 92 digitized volumes published on a near annual basis by various iterations of Chapman University from 1922 through 2019. The earliest volume in this collection is a memory book published in 1922 by the California School of Christianity (CSC). The majority of this collection contains digitized volumes of the Ceer yearbooks that document various aspects of student, staff, and faculty life at California Christian College (CCC), Chapman College, and Chapman University from 1923 through 2019.
Containers:
folder: 1922-2019_Ceer-yearbooks_2024.004.a
Extent:
10.9 gb 92 digital files, PDF/A
Language:
English .
Preferred citation:

[Item title / description; Box "n" / Folder "n"], The Ceer yearbooks digital files (UA-036), Frank Mt. Pleasant Library of Special Collections and Archives, Chapman University, CA. For the benefit of current and future researchers, please cite any additional information about sources consulted in this collection, including permanent URLs, item or folder descriptions, and box/folder locations.

Background

Scope and content:

This collection contains approximately 92 digitized volumes published between 1922 through 2019 by the California School of Christianity (CSC), California Christian College (CCC), Chapman College, and Chapman University.

The earliest volume in this collection is a memory book published in 1922 by CSC, which contained the college hymn "Far Below the High Sierras," lists of students, staff, and faculty; however, this volume also contains a large number of unused pages, likely intended for placement of photographic snapshots students were expected to procure themselves.

The remainder of volumes in this collection are digitized Ceer yearbooks published from 1923 through 2019, which contain sections/chapters recording various aspects of academic life at CCC, Chapman College, and Chapman University. These sections/chapters generally include information about each school's administration, classes, student rosters, student organizations, athletic groups or teams, and local business advertisements. The Ceer yearbooks from 1923 - 1926 contain chapters dedicated to the history of CSC and CCC, while yearbooks published after 1926 occasionally contain highlights of this early history. The Ceer yearbooks from 1923 - 1983 also contain predominantly black and white photography, while Ceer yearbooks published from 1984 onwards contain predominantly color photography.

Biographical / historical:

According to Louise Booth, author of Fulfilling a Dream: The History of Chapman University, the first annual publication to resemble the Ceer yearbooks was a memory book published by the California School of Christianity (CSC) (2001, 24). Editors of the 1923 Ceer yearbook published by CSC's successor, California Christian College (CCC), stated that the 1922 memory book "was different from most . . . because . . . . instead of having cuts for the pictures, they were all snapshots that each person pasted in his or her own book" (Perard 1923, 16).

Booth adds that the very first volume of the Ceer yearbooks was published in 1923 by the Junior Class of CCC and that "the title is believed to have been chosen because the word 'seer' means wise person; and the s was changed to c for Christian" (2001, 305). Randolph Boyd, Special Collections Librarian at Chapman University, affirms that the Ceer "name is a play on the word 'seer,' or biblical prophet, . . . so the Ceer [name] implies that the yearbook will be the 'College Prophet'" (Boyd, n.d.).

The Ceer yearbooks were published by the California Christian College from 1923 - 1934, Chapman College from 1935 - 1990, and Chapman University from 1991 - 2019. The Ceer yearbooks were edited by each Junior class from 1923 - 1939. Beginning with the 1940 edition of the Ceer yearbook, the Junior Class was no longer consistently credited as the being part of the editorial staff for unknown reasons.

Acquisition information:
Digital surrogates of the Ceer yearbooks donated by collection donors or transferred by university offices. Surrogates created by Special Collections and Archives staff, and student employees from 2019 to 2023.
Custodial history:

Yearbooks marked "Hertg Rm" indicate Ceer yearbooks that used to be housed in the Thurmond Clarke Memorial Library (1967-2003) Heritage Room before their transfer to Leatherby Libraries after the latter's construction.

Processing information:

Processed by Frank J. López-Huerta with techincal assistance provided by Brian Song in April 2024. This collection does not currently include Ceer yearbooks for the years 1936, 1943, 1946, 1972, 1981, and 2017.

Arrangement:

The print volumes of the Ceer yearbooks are arranged in chronological order. The digital surrogates of the Ceer yearbooks are titled according to the Department of Special Collections and Archives' file naming standard, which can be utilized to facilitate arrangement in chronological order.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Bibliography:

Booth, Louise. 2001. Fulfilling a Dream: The History of Chapman University,. California: Donald R. Booth and Associates.

Boyd, Randolph. n.d. "Chapman University History Timeline." Chapman University (website). Accessed April 4, 2024. https://www.chapman.edu/library/libraries-collections-and-archives/special-collections-and-archives/history-timeline.aspx

Perard, Marion, ed. 1923. The Ceer. California: California Christian College.

About this collection guide

Collection Guide Author:
Frank J. López-Huerta
Date Encoded:
This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2024-06-18 14:32:46 -0400 .

Access and use

Restrictions:

This collection is open for research.

Terms of access:

There are no restrictions on the use of this material except where previously copyrighted materials is concerned. It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain all permissions.

Preferred citation:

[Item title / description; Box "n" / Folder "n"], The Ceer yearbooks digital files (UA-036), Frank Mt. Pleasant Library of Special Collections and Archives, Chapman University, CA. For the benefit of current and future researchers, please cite any additional information about sources consulted in this collection, including permanent URLs, item or folder descriptions, and box/folder locations.

Location of this collection:
One University Drive
Orange, CA 92866, US
Contact:
(714) 532-7719
speccoll@chapman.edu
Website