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Ed Orr |
Pearl
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Fern Rollyson
| James
R. Scott
GSC Administrative Archives - Ed Orr Collection (1907-1985)
1938-1976. Journalist. Papers. 1938-1976 (1939) Papers
including a class report about the Gilmer County National
Youth Administration, papers from the Glenville High
School Journalism class of 1939, and other miscellaneous
clippings. 2 in. Orr was born in Osceola, Missouri, April 25, 1907,
to Edward Nicholas Orr, III and Allena (Welch) Orr,
natives of Tyler and Doddridge Counties, WV, respectively.
He attended Glenville State Teachers College (GSTC)
in spring of 1925 and again in spring of 1939 when
he received his A.B. after doing his student teaching
at Glenville High School. In between, Orr attended
St. John’s Military School, Potomac State College,
WVU (where he was editor of the Daily Athenaeum),
and Missouri University. Orr married Ella G. Murray
on May 28, 1938, a former 1934 GSTC graduate. During
his career, he taught journalism, was news editor
of the Dominion-News in Morgantown, WV, copy editor
of the Beacon-Journal in Akron, Ohio, worked for Tampa
University as Public Relations Council, and was state
editor to the Tampa Daily Times. Orr lived and worked
most of his life in Tampa, Florida until his death
in 1985, after which the Edward Nicholas Orr, IV “Estate
in Trust” was established at Glenville State
College to provide scholarships to students in his
field of journalism.
During the late 1930s, Glenville State Teachers College
was rapidly changing because the United States was
recovering from the Great Depression with President
Franklin D. Roosevelt setting up programs to help
the poor and unemployed. Although, prior to the invasion
of Poland, talk had begun about a possibility of war
overseas (WWII).
The National Youth Administration (NYA) was established
in 1935 within the Works Progress Administration.
“Created in a period of widespread unemployment
as part of the New Deal program of President Franklin
Delano Roosevelt, the NYA at first engaged in obtaining
part-time work for unemployed youths. As unemployment
decreased and war approached, emphasis was gradually
shifted to training youths for war work until, early
in 1942, all NYA activities not contributing to the
war effort were dropped. Its activities ceased late
in 1943.” (Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition,
Copyright (c) 2003).
Glenville High School was emphasizing Americanism
(patriotism) in 1939 as seen in the school’s
newspaper, The Satellite, which won a State University
Journalism Award during Orr’s spring student
teaching semester. The town of Glenville had recently
put in its (and, to date, Gilmer County’s) one
and only stop light (1938) and the county still had
five (?) high schools, Glenville, Sand Fork, Troy,
Normantown, and Tanner. Sound film projectors were
not yet in the high school and adults were referred
to as Mr., Mrs., or Miss. The Satellite covered school
activities and news about the grade school, local
affairs, Glenville State Teachers College, and state
and world events. Historical facts, school sporting
news (such as the school Red Terrors basketball team),
book/film reviews and gossip/romance were also reported.
Local advertising businesses included Kanawha Union
Bank, The Hub, Crystal Restaurant, The Midland Co.,
Straders 5&10, IGA, Pictureland Theatre, Lyric
Theatre, Wilson Motor Co., Garrett's Pool Room, and
MC's Pool Room... all of which are now long gone.
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