Big moments await students in college.
From an introduction to the Razorbacks in childhood to a diploma received at graduation, we explore those big moments and how they define us.
Early Years
Razorback Barbie
1996
U of A Museum Collections
This doll is a 1996 Special Edition University Barbie. The University of Arkansas was one of a number of schools to license a Barbie in their image. Donated to the museum from the University Licensing Office, this Razorback Barbie still has her box and all of her accessories. Though dolls like this one are no longer available for purchase through the Barbie store, updated versions of the doll were released in 2012, and the University of Arkansas is one of eight schools currently represented with a University Barbie on the Barbie website.
Co-Curator Lane Lunsford: My own Razorback Barbie was given to me, still in the box, when I was a child. In the years since, I’ve asked my mother repeatedly why she decided to give a mint condition, special edition Barbie to a child who had a history of chewing on any plastic thing they could get their hands on. She stands by her reasoning: toys are meant to be played with.
As time went on, I slowly lost the Barbie’s accessories, (I remember being devastated when I couldn’t find her shoes and socks, but I forgot she even had pom-poms or a hairbrush), but, though I no longer play with dolls, I still have her. She sits on my bookshelf at home, shoe-less and un-chewed on, among the rest of my collections.
Razorback Cufflinks
21st Century
Personal Item of Jess Carroll
What does being a Razorback mean to you?
Whether you are here for football, academics, or the landscape, we are all bonded to each other through this campus. While these cufflinks may represent one person’s ties to the University, they can be connected to everyone that steps foot on this campus. Universities herald major life milestones and while it may seem insignificant to most, these cufflinks represent a monumental change in someone’s life.
Co-Curator Jess Carroll: These cufflinks were a gift from my father before I left for my freshman year of school here at the university. He gifted me a small box of pins and cufflinks that are now representative of my time here. While a small gesture, they are a symbol of starting a new chapter.
Friendships
Photographs
1919-20, 2021
U of A Museum Collections
Left: Julia English (far left) smiles with her friends at the University of Arkansas.
Right: Harrison Lowe smiles with his friends Jon, Baylie, Andrew, and Raven at the University of Arkansas.
Photographs captured from the scrapbook of Julia English. Julia attended the University of Arkansas from 1919-1920, in which she was a member of the Chi Omega Sorority. Julia’s scrapbook contains images depicting her and her friends during their time at the University.
Co-Curator Harrison Lowe: When I think of UARK, the first thing that immediately comes to mind is the friendships that it has given me. I decided to juxtapose a photograph of Julia English’s friends next to two candid polaroids featuring my friends at the university. My decision largely stemmed from the observance that although attending the University is a transitory period in one’s life, the memories from the friendships will remain with them forever.
When I observe these images side by side, taken over a century apart, what resonates most with me is that although we are all here from many places for a brief period, the ability to make the University of Arkansas home through the friendships we make has always been a constant.
Photograph of First U of A Graduates
1875
U of A Museum Collections
Front row (left to right): Olive Carson, Emma Bridgeford, Anna Putnam, Laura Botefuhr.
Back row (left to right): W. J. Waggener, Belle L. Gorton, Lizzie Davis, Charles McKinney, Eva McCart.
Before we were the University of Arkansas, home to almost 30,000 Razorbacks, we were the Arkansas Industrial University. This photo captures the first graduating class of 1876 posed atop a pile of rocks.
Co-Curator Alison Fong: I chose this artifact because graduation represents a conclusion to my undergraduate career. It is the result of four years of studying, hard work, and cherished memories, which is why it is an important part of my life as an adult. Although I will be continuing my education after I graduate, I will always remember my time as a Razorback fondly. This graduation photo was one of many ways for the first graduating class to remember such a memorable time of their lives, and I am sure that Bud Walton Stadium will be full of families and friends snapping pictures of the very moment they walk across the stage and receive their diploma.
How will you remember your graduation? Or if you’ve already graduated, how do you remember that moment in your life?
First U of A Diploma
1876
U of A Museum Collections
W.J. Waggener, received his B.A. degree, in Latin, on June 10, 1876. This is his diploma, the first one to be issued in university history. Though difficult to read, it is a physical symbol of the ambition of students at the university.
Co-Curator Nikki Gross: After years of hard work, one of the moments I am most looking forward to is walking at graduation to receive my diploma. Hundreds of thousands of students have done so before me, yet the moment is still individually defining. As an object, a diploma is merely a sheet of fancy paper, but it symbolizes the dedication and culminating moment in which a student is finally rewarded.
What does a degree mean to you?
What do you have in common with the first students of the university?