This silent footage shows the University of Arizona in Tucson as it appeared in 1953. It’s possible this footage was used, lecture style, to promote the U of A in this period, or that it was part of a much longer film with sound, or that it was intended for something else. We simply don’t know! What we do know is that in the early 2000s, this print was sold as part of a UofA auction. One of the owners of Periscope Film is a Wildcat, and he managed to secure it from the auction winner — and thus you can see it today.
The film begins with shots of some of the campus including the Student Union (:59) which was likely almost new at the time (it has now been replaced with a much larger building). If you’re familiar with the modern UofA campus, keep watching the film and you’ll notice how much empty space there is to be seen — there were probably fewer than 30 buildings at this time.
A Mormon church is seen at 1:17, and the Newman Center at 1:22. At 1:29 you will see a football game pitting the University of Arizona Wildcats vs. the Texas Tech Red Raiders, which the UofA lost 27-52 (in 1953 they had a miserable 4-5-1 record). At 2:00, a float comes by with “Raiders Walk the Plank” on the side. (Present-day Wildcats will be surprised to see how small the stadium was in this era, with one side appearing entirely open and a running track dividing the stands from the field). At 3:03, there is what appears to be a mine — and at this time the School of Mines was an important part of the University. At 3:25, the search for uranium is shown — an important element in post-WWII. At 3:57, students are seen working with molten metals.
At 4:15, a horse corral is seen. At 4:40, the University of Arizona’s intercollegiate rodeo is seen at the Tucson Rodeo Grounds. At 5:00, the Botany Office is seen, a reminder that the UofA was principally a typical state college of its era, devoted to farming and agricultural advancement.
At 5:40, an art class is seen painting a church, and a survey team is seen at 6:00 at what might be Tumamoc Hill. At 6:23, students take core samples from trees on Mt. Lemmon, while at 6:40 they visit the Casa Grande Ruins. At 7:17, the campus observatory is seen, and at 7:33 athletes work with a medicine ball. At 7:47 the ROTC is seen conducting a drill at a local park. At 8:14, Arizona Stadium is seen again, this time empty except for members of the track team. At 8:35, swim classes are conducted at what is likely the pool of the Arizona Inn. The baseball team is seen at 8:50, with legendary coach Frank Sancet likely on camera at 9:05 (Sanset coached the Arizona Wildcats baseball team to an 831-275-10 win-loss record in 22 seasons, from 1950 through 1972). At 9:08, graduation ceremonies are seen.
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This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com
