Order of the Spoon Records, 1928-1939
The Order of the Spoon Records document the policies and activities of this faculty club at Oregon State College. The collection contains materials pertaining to the establishment and organization of the Order, meetings and banquets it held, and membership.
ID: MSS OrderSpoon
Extent: 0.35 cubic feet
Statement on Access: Collection is open for research.
Preferred Citation: Order of the Spoon Records (MSS OrderSpoon), Oregon State University Special Collections and Archives Research Center, Corvallis, Oregon.
Acquisition Note:
The materials were transferred to the University Archives before 1974.
Container List
- Series 1: Articles of Organization and Membership, 1930-1939 Add to Shelf
- Series I contains the Articles of Organization describing the function of the Order of the Spoon as well as membership eligibility. The Articles also establish that the emblem of the organization be a "good sized spoon (shape and size to be determined)" and that the officers of the Order be referred to as "the chief spoon bearer, an assistant chief spoon bearer, and a ladler." Also included within this series are lists of charter and other members who joined the Order throughout the 1930s.
- UnitID: Series I
- Box-Folder 1.1: Articles of Organization and Membership Add to Shelf
- Series 2: Meeting Notices, 1928-1939 Add to Shelf
- Series II contains meeting notices sent to the members of the Order as well as detailed summaries of those meetings. This series also contains information about the establishment of the Order of the Spoon, from its humble beginnings within the Triad Club, to its position as an organization of which the majority of doctoral degree holding faculty were a part.
- UnitID: Series II
- Box-Folder 1.1: Meeting Notices Add to Shelf
- Series 3: Programs for Ceremonies, 1936-1937 Add to Shelf
- Series III consists of programs for banquets and ceremonies held by the Order of the Spoon. Programs contain invocations, detailed descriptions of orders of events as well as accompanying scripts, responsibilities of each member of the Order's committee, lists of candidates, and "Questions for Examination" which were asked of candidates as part of the ceremony of their entrance into the ranks of the Order. This series also includes a statement which was recited in chorus by all the new members of the Order of the Spoon.
- UnitID: Series III
- Box-Folder 1.1: Programs for Ceremonies Add to Shelf
- Series 4: Correspondence, 1934-1938 Add to Shelf
- Series IV consists of correspondence produced by the Order with topics of discussion including membership invitations and responses; invitations to speakers to present at Order meetings (and responses); reports about finances (mainly concerning the purchase of spoons with membership fees); and other activities of the organization, such as officer elections and recruitment of new members.
- UnitID: Series IV
- Box-Folder 1.2: Correspondence Add to Shelf
- Series 5: Financial Reports, 1935-1938 Add to Shelf
- Series V consists of financial reports documenting fees collected and the ways in which they were spent -- mainly on spoons and banquets. The member of the Order's committee responsible for these tabulations was the Ladler.
- UnitID: Series V
- Box-Folder 1.2: Financial Reports Add to Shelf
- Series 6: Artifacts, circa 1935 Add to Shelf
- Series VI consists of table place cards labeled with names of Order members as well as a number of spare decorative spoons that are a part of the place cards. The series also contains a large spoon, presumably the emblem of the Order.
- UnitID: Series VI
- Box-Folder 1.3: Decorative Spoons and Place Cards Add to Shelf
- Box-Item 2.1: Oversize Spoon Add to Shelf