History
of the Albert Gore, Sr., Research Center at Middle Tennessee State University
In November of 1969, MTSU Political Science Professor Norman L. Parks, with advice from colleague David Grubbs and the support of MTSU President Melvin Scarlett, contacted Senator Gore to request that he consider placing his Congressional papers at his alma mater. Senator Gore immediately agreed and one year later, in December 1970, the Washington National Records Center transferred his papers to the University. They were stored in a small workroom in the basement of Todd Library. Because Senator Gore retained ownership of the papers, access was initially limited.
In 1980, President Sam Ingram called on professor and historian James H. Neal to improve access to the papers. In January 1984, President Ingram established a committee, chaired by Dr. Neal, to study the feasibility of a Senator Albert Gore Room to house the Gore papers and memorabilia. In May of 1984, Senator Gore and President Ingram signed a deed of gift officially transferring physical and intellectual ownership of the papers to the University. Dr. Neal completed the first comprehensive inventory of the voluminous collection in 1986.
In 1992, the Gore papers were relocated to a room in the Learning Resources Center and in 1993 the Albert Gore, Sr., Research Center officially opened its doors in affiliation with the Department of History. Dr. Neal was named Director. Along with access to the collection, the Center under Dr. Neal’s leadership provided orientation for classes, hands-on learning experiences for students in Archives classes, and document conservation workshops for graduate students.
Dr. Neal also began
the effort to build the Gore Research Center into an
important regional history archive for middle Tennessee, a strategy initially
proposed by History Professor Ernest Hooper in 1977. Dr. Hooper had suggested that the significance of the Gore
Papers for the University could be enhanced by adding collections documenting
the lives of ordinary Tennesseans and building up a University archive.
In his first year as Director, Dr. Neal acquired approximately thirty
collections documenting community and University history.
He continued developing the collections and programs of the Center until
his retirement in 1999. Upon Dr.
Neal's retirement, Dr. Lisa J. Pruitt was appointed Director
and the Center became a separate unit within the College of Liberal Arts.
In March of 2005, the Gore Research Center
moved into its new facility, a 5600 square foot
space on the ground floor of Todd Hall.
Highlights
of Past Achievements
Date |
Title |
Description |
|
1986 |
Albert Gore, Sr., Papers Project |
First comprehensive inventory of the Gore Papers completed |
|
1995-1998 |
Quintin Miller Smith Oral History Project |
138 oral history interviews about Middle Tennesse State College during the presidency of Q. M. Smith (1938-1958) |
|
November 8, 1997 |
"Albert Gore, Tennessee and the New South: A Conference on the Senate Career of Albert Gore, Sr." |
Participants included Albert and Pauline Gore, David Halberstam, John Siegenthaler, and Ned McWherter |
|
1999-2004 |
"Reflections in Time" |
18-panel exhibit tracing MTSU's history; mounted in the Alumni Center annually for both Founders Day and Homecoming |
|
2000, Spring |
"Changing Faces: Civil Rights at MTSU, 1965-2000" |
Exhibit mounted in conjunction with Phi Alpha Theta's Regional History Conference. |
|
2000, Fall |
"From Stumps to Web Sites: Political Campaigning in TN" |
An exhibit to mark the Fall 2000 Presidential Campaign |
|
2001, Summer |
Middle Tennessee State University: A Photographic History |
Prepared by the Gore Center and published by Arcadia Press |
|
2001, Fall |
"John Bragg: A Political Life" |
Exhibit honoring the long-time State Representative |
|
2002, Summer |
"June Anderson Women's Center 25th Anniversary" |
Exhibit mounted in the James Union Building |
|
2003-2004 |
Rutherford County, Tennessee (2 DVDs) |
Bicentennial documentary prepared with substantial assistance from the Gore Center |
|
2003-2004 |
Homer Pittard Campus School 75th Anniversary |
Exhibit mounted in the foyer of the Campus School; also assisted with the preservation of the school archive |
|
2004, Fall |
Blue Raider Hall of Fame |
18-panel exhibit mounted for the grand opening of the Rose and Emmett Kennon Hall of Fame |
|
March 2005 |
"Telling Everyday Stories" |
Grand Re-opening exhibit highlighting Albert Gore, Sr.'s populist appeal and social history as portrayed in the Gore Center's collections |
Constituencies
The University Community
The Academic Community
Acquiring
Collections
The Gore Research Center
acquires collections through the thoughtfulness and generosity of individuals
who want to help preserve our region's history. In recent years, collections of photographs and historical
documents have come to the Gore Center from as far away as Seattle, Santa Fe,
Denver, and Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Not
all of the Gore Center's collections have come "home" to Murfreesboro
from such long distances. But they
all came to the Center through the generosity of people who value local history.
If you would like information and guidelines for donating historical materials to the Gore Research Center, or if you would like to volunteer (or volunteer someone else!) to participate in the Middle Tennessee Oral History Project, please contact us!
The Albert Gore, Sr., Research Center
P.O. Box 193, MTSU
128 Todd Hall
Murfreesboro, TN 37132
(615) 898-2632
Dr. Lisa J. Pruitt, Director (lpruitt@mtsu.edu)
Betty Rowland, Executive Aide browland@mtsu.edu
Monetary
donations to support the work of the Center are also welcome!