From Historical Collections and Archives:
A set of photographs in the Alice F. Stewart Papers is one of the most intriguing of all the photographs in Historical Collections and Archives. Alice Stewart was the director of nurses at University Hospital for almost 25 years. In this capacity she was also the superintendent of the hospital’s school of nursing. As seen in the finding aid of her papers, Ms. Stewart retained a scrapbook and class photos of the nursing school. She was also instrumental in organizing the school’s alumnae association and reunions. The HCA has come to call this set of photographs the “Nursing History Pageant” as the nursing students are depicting historical nurses as well as nursing uniforms worn in other countries. The backside of one photograph identifies the historical nurse or country depicted in the photograph.
No information has been found in the Stewart Papers or elsewhere as to the occasion for these photographs, nor are the photos dated. However, from the names listed on the backside of one photo and using the Alumnae Association of the Old City & University Hospital Nursing Programfrom the Stewart Papers, it hasbeendeduced that the photoswere taken circa 1928-1930.
From Special Collections and Institutional Archives:
The Cotton Exchange of Augusta, constructed in the 1880’s at the height of the cotton trade, is currently a branch of the Georgia Bank and Trust. At the time when it acted as a site of the production and trade of cotton, it had offices for stock brokers and a trade floor. It was also home to cockfights and gatherings of football fans.
Augusta, Georgia had a thriving cotton industry by 1885, as evidenced by its eight different cotton manufacturers, such as Enterprise Mill (another surviving historic building), located on the recently built canal. However, due to a boll weevil infestation and the decline of cotton as a powerhouse economic factor in the South, the Cotton Exchange of Augusta was no longer operational by 1964.
In the 1980’s, the by then decaying building caught the attention of Mr. Bill Moore of Aiken, South Carolina, who had the building restored, even preserving a giant blackboard with chalk prices from the early 1900’s written on its surface. The building is now a part of the Augusta Canal National Monument Heritage Area.
About the Heritage Unit: The University Libraries has a department devoted to the preservation and archival keeping of the campuses’ unique histories. The Historical Collections & Archives (HCA) is located on the 2nd floor of the Greenblatt Library on the Health Sciences campus. Special Collections & Institutional Archives is located on the 3rd floor of the Reese Library on the Summerville campus.
