The Texas Aggie. (College Station, Tex.) 1921-current, September 01, 1933, Image 4
CANOR TRIP AND FALLING IRON PLAY IMPORTANT PART IN LIFE G. E. ILLUMINATING ENGINEER SCHENECTADY, N. Y.—Fate, in the form of a canoe trip up the Mohaw and a falling piece if iron on turbine test, kept A. F. Dick- erson a resident of Schenectady, where he was slated to become eventually the manager of General Electric’s lighting section and the illuminating engineering labora- tory. That is quite a lengthy title —and not too illuminating to the uninitiated, despite the use of the word—but to General Electric and to the rest of the world it means— light. Street lighting systems in the largest cities in the country, colored lighting on a heroic scale at Niagara Falls, boulevard light- ing from Jones Beach on the At- lantic to Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles, exposition flood- lighting in North and South Amer- ica. Born in Cuero, Texas, in 1888, “Dick” graduated in electrical en- gineering from Texas A. & M. at College Station, in 1910. Effective- ly giving the slip to bronco-busting or any of the other favorite Texas sports, he came to General Elec- tric’s test course at Schenectady immediately after leaving school. But he found Schenectady weather and a few other local features not to his quick liking. He was not the only one who has felt that way about the Electric City at first contact. He felt so strangely about it that he began saving a small margin from a small salary for fare back to Texas, where it was warmer. He had just about saved enough when he went for an after- noon paddle on the Mohawk against a head wind. During the exertion required to hold a course, the “first national bank” slipped quietly out of his rear pocket inte a watery safe deposit box. The trip was off, and Schnectady had won another citizen, albeit by questionable means. Then on turbine test somebody dropped a piece of iron on Dicker- son’s foot, and it became impera- tive that he be given a job where | he could sit down. The only test offering this luxury was lighting and he became a calculator in the illuminating engineering labora- tory. This was in September, 1911, and the laboratory had just been removed here from Lynn by Wal- ter D’Arcy Ryan, its chief moving spirit. The small red building on Erie Boulevard seems to have made life interesting and pleasant for its workers, for most of the orig- inal crew is still there. Under Ryan, Dickerson’s work was largely engineering in charac- ter. When the former was looking about for a resident engineer for San Francisco in connection with the spectacular illumination of the Pan American Exposition, he se- lected Dickerson. The preliminary work on the plans for the Rio de Janeiro Exposition also fell to his lot. His work in street lighting has been extensive, some of the nota- ble installations being in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, Salt Lake City, El Paso, and Augusta, Georgia. Proving that he was salesman as well as engineer, he sold the idea of flood-lighting Niagara Falls to the sponsors— municipal officials on both the American and the Canadian side. The magnificent job done on the famous American site is still an object of admiration for thousands of visitors at Niagara. In June, 1932, Dickerson was ap- pointed manager of lighting sales for General Electric and head of the illuminating engineering lab- oratory, combining the activities of the general office commercial lighting section with the labora- tory in order better to co-ordinate selling and engineering activities. Ryan, the original director, was named consulting engineer for the division. The illuminating engineering laboratory is essentially an appli- cation research institution. Spec- tacular lighting has made it fa- mous, but it also plans comprehen- sively municipal street lighting systems, even to the design of the lighting units and fixtures. Its field of endeavor is the outdoors, internal jobs going to Nela Park at Cleveland. In developing flood- lighting to its present state, the laboratory has made a lasting con- tribution to architectural beautifi- cation. It will contract to light anything—and do it well. In the | | electric fountain it conceived not only a new product for the first time as a unified job, but added a | new factor to outdoor landscaping science. The first electric fountain | was installed in Schnectady and | more than a hundred have been sold throughout the depression. Unlike so many men, Dickerson is fortunate in being privileged to see evidence of his work wherever he goes. Now he has probably ceased feeling badly about losing his wallet. WICHITA CLUB— (Continued from Page 1) new students back to school with them this year was greeted with applause. The club laid plans for aiding these new and old students in any possible way, and for the dissemination of information about A. & M. to prospective students and their families. Another meet- ing, just before the opening of school in September, was planned by the club, with full details to be announced later. DINNER DANCE (Continued from Page 1) were taking a large number of “gel, ’15, head of the Animal Hus- bandry Dept., of Texas Tech, spoke briefly. A word of welcome to those present and their visitors was given by Mr. C. E. Davis, Superintendent of Schools of Plain- view. The meeting proved one of the most pleasant and best attended affair of its kind ever staged in Plainview. President T. B. War- den, ’03, of the Association, who was scheduled to be present, was unable to get to Plainview in time for the meeting. Plainview has a fine representation of its boys as students at A. & M., with a nice group of freshmen expected to -en- roll from that city this fall. “Jimmie” Nagle, ’11 ~ Houston’s Busy Man J. M. “Jimmie” Nagle, ’11, is one of the busiest men in the coun- try. He is Director of the Depart- ment of Public Works of the city of Houston. All he has to do is to act as the directing head of the Park, Street and Bridge, Engineer- ing, Zoo, Sewerage, Water and Gas, Motor Repairs and the Pub- lic Service Commission of the city of Houston. He was formerly City Engineer, being promoted to his present place upon the election of Mayor Holcomb. Prior to becoming City Engineer he was doing engi- neering work at Wharton. He gra- duated in C. E. with the class of 1911. Dr. Frank S. Palmer, 23, Dal- las city health department veteri- narian, recently caught a fifty pound Sting Ray while on his va- cation near Texas City. He spear- ed the big fellow one night, later finding it was the largest of its kind seen along the coast in some time. C. P. Dodson, ‘11, -is- District Manager for the Texas P. & L. Co., and makes his home at De- catur. He is president of the De- Catur Lions Club and active in other civic and business affairs of that city. His son, Ralph, will be a Junior at A. & M. this year. S. C. Smith, ’32, underwent a horrible experience on July 13th., when his boss and six other men, including his room-mate, were killed by a fire and explosion at Smackover, Arkansas. Smith for- tunately escaped. His address is Box 142, Smackover. A. L. McKnight, ’31, is still with the American Airways, Inc., at El Paso and delighted with his work. He is handling all the operations work on the night shift at El Paso at the present time. He reports a recent vacation trip to the World’s Fair where he ran into Henry Ed- dins, ’31, and took in the fair with him. On his way home he talked with T. C. McGuire, ’31, who is with the Continental Supply Co., in St. Louis. One of the pilots of the American Airways line is Paul A. Vance, ’18, who has been flying since the World War. McKnight’s address is 3524 Tularosa, El Paso. What a Crowd This Would Be The grapevine telegraph brings news of a proposed meeting of South Texas Ag- gies, to be held sometime early in September, under the joint auspices of the Houston, Beaumont, Port Ar- thur and Galveston A. & M. Clubs. Final details have not been announced, but if the meeting should be held it promises to be quite a gath- ering. A possible location would be somewhere between Houston and Beaumont. Charles C. Speed, '10, was a re- cent visitor to the campus, accem- panied by his son who expects to enter A. & M. this fall. Mr. Speed is farming at Kerens, Texas. C. C. Baughn, 23, is in the min- eral water crystal business for himself at Mineral Wells, Texas. His address is 601 N. E. 7th. Ave,, that city. Wm. E. “Bill” Morgan, 30, has returned to College Station after a year’s graduate work at the Uni- versity of California. He will be in the office of the Registrar of the College during the coming year. He did similar work before going to California last year. Myron D. Lacy, ’30, is located at Mt. Pleasant, Iowa, where he is a County Agent for the Iowa Ex- tension Service. He has been tak- ing graduate work at Ames, Iowa, since his graduation, took his M. S. in 1932 and was working upon his Ph.D., when he took the above job. Richard E. “Dick” Homann, ’27, is living near Junction, Texas, and working for the Federal Interme- diate Credit Bank of Houston. He is livestock inspector for the bank in Kimble, Sutton, Menard and Edwards counties. He reports Mrs. Homann and their young son as joining him in sending regards to his many A. & M. friends. He was formerly County Agent at June- tion. Z. W. “Willie” Bartlett, Jr., ’29, with the Freeport Sulphur Co., has been transferred from New Or- leans back to Freeport, Texas, where he will be for the rest of this year. He expects next year to be sent back to Louisiana, but is glad to be in Texas during the fal football season. He captained the Aggie Eleven in 1928 and was ar All-Conference center. E. P. “Skid” Haltom, ’19, of Ft. Worth, has become one of the most skillful and most enthusiastic sailors of the state. He recently won a feature sailing race at Lake Worth against representatives of the Houston Yacht Club. W. E. Humphreyville, 07, of Houston, is an outstanding member of the sail- ing fraternity of his city, and came in close behind Haltom in the above mentioned race. Carleton D. Speed, Jr., ’26, re- cently moved from Corsicana to Woodville, Texas, where his ad- dress is Box 71, and where he is continuing his work as a Petroleum Geologist. After working his way through A. & M. Speed took two years graduate work in Geology at the University of Chicago, working all his way through that institution. He has been working as an independent geologist for the past few years and was previously with several oil companies. As a student at A. & M. he was a letter- man at guard on the championship team of 1925. Rock Tabor Made General Manager Michigan Concern Rock G. Tabor, '10, was recently | made General Manager of the | ' Michigan Federated Utilities at | Mt. Clemens, Mich. He was pro- | ' moted to that position from his | post as Vice President of the Fall | | River Gas Co., in Massachusetts. Until 1930 he was in charge of | the Stone and Webster Engineer- | | ing Co. branch in Ft. Worth, go- ing from there to El Paso where he was in charge of the construc- | tion of a big power plant for | Stone and Webster. He has been | | with the Stone and Webster orga- | nization for many years and has engaged in various engineering and | supervisory work in various sec- | tions of the country. C.F: Hansen»: '32,% and. A. | Dietz, ’31, are rooming together in Port Arthur at 939 Lakeshore Drive. M. S. Denman, ’32, is doing flood control work with the U. S. Engi- neering Dept., and lives at 1704 Cherry St., Vicksburg, Miss. J. E. Barbee, 31, writes to ask the address of his classmate, F. G. Sleeper, who lives at 5606 Merri- mac, Dallas. Barbee lives at Water- proof, La., Box 121. Mack Severn, 22, is traveling out of Mt. Pleasant, Texas, for the Sinclair Oil Co., having been recently transferred there from Tyler. He was on the basball squad at A. & M., and pitched profession- al ball for several years after leaving school. W. C. “Heinie” Weir, ’23, was a recent campus visitor. He is head coach and athletic director of the Vernon, Texas, high schools. He had a great year last year in foot- ball and other athletics. As a stu- dent at A. & M. he was a star in both football and track and served as captain of both these sports. He was a half-back and a sprinter. Francis McGinnis, ’32, who has been attending Harvard University the past school year, was recently awarded the Austin Scholarship in Landscape Design and City Plan- ning and will work under that scholarship at Harvard again next year. The scholarship is one of the most sought-for honors awarded by Harvard University, and car- ries with it a substantial award. Young McGinnis is the son of F. K. McGinnis, ’'00, well-known Landscape Architect of Dallas. W. E. “Sweetie” Davis, 32, is on active duty at Barksdale Field, La., with the U. S. Air Corps. He completed the flying course at Randolph Field early this year. He is a former baseball and foot- ball letter-man, and is doing nicely in his flying. He recently received many compliments for a fine bit of flying when he made an emergency landing of a large plane loaded with soldiers in a cotton field. His address is Box 24, Barks- dale Field, La. Seven A. & M. men are listed among the 19 Texans as members of the recently opened Western Universities Club, occupying the four top floors of a 60-story sky- scraper located at 42nd St. and 15th Ave., in New York City. The A. & M. men are, W. E. Giesecke, '93, Fred J. Bechert, "11, J. C. Har- digg, ’15, Frank M. Leverett, 21, H. A. Sawyer, ’16, George C. Mor- ris, '19, and Edgar C. Rack, ’15. The new club is one of the finest in the big city and was organized for the pleasure and_ benefit of College and University men from the Western States. Our Guarantee The Guarantee “Satisfaction or Your Money Back” written when it was—45 years ago—created a new era in advertising. and trade” with “let the buyer beware” to a new and higher plane. of all our assets. Sears Roebuck & Co. of the World’s Largest Store It lifted selling from “barter It is the most jealously guarded 7 FLOYD & LOCHRIDGE CONSULTING ENGINEERS O. N. FLOYD J. F. LOCHRIDGE, ’10 Mem. Am. Soc. C. E. Mem. Am. Soc. C. E. Hydraulic Investigations, Water Supply, Irrigation, { Flood Control, Drainage, Sewers and Power Development. 411-414 TOWER PETROLEUM BLDG.—DALLAS, TEXAS Telephone 7-4402 § —17 \ SAMSCO MACHINERY AND SUPPLIES Irrigation Plants — Cotton Gins — Power Plants Foundry and Machine Shops SAN ANTONIO MACHINE & SUPPLY CO. San Antonio Waco Corpus Christi Q a — Breathe again the Spirit of Aggieland— - When at or near College Station By Stopping at THE AGGIELAND INN On the Campus Good Food For Reservations address the AGGIELAND INN College Station, Texas Modern Conveniences Va \\ [7 Wm. CAMERON & Co. (INCORPORATED) OUR IDEAL BUILT IN FURNITURE WILL MODERNIZE YOUR HOME ATTRACTIVE — STEP SAVING Ninety Lumber Stores To Serve You 7 | GRAHAM HALL ’13 When You're In Houston Lift the LATCHSTRING AT THE BEN MILAM “Where a Friendly Welcome Awaits You.” Coffee Shop BARBER SHOP Garage Adjoining Rates $2.00 to $2.50 Qe Operation of T. L. POWELL - GRAHAM HALL 250 Rooms 250 Baths We have a Roster of Houston A. and M. Club. You're welcome to see it any time. 7 7 \