Welcome! Imaginary Shirt is a project where I research visual elements from high schools’ histories and then use them to make new t-shirt concepts. If you’re associated with one of these schools and would like to make any of these imaginary shirts a reality, let me know! I’d love to help you accomplish that. This companion newsletter gives some more details on process and on the schools featured. Enjoy!

Instagram Week in Review

Monday, 3 July 2023—Westside Warriors, Omaha, NE

In June of 2005, Apple added podcasts to iTunes. I decided to try it out, and eighteen years later, it still seems like podcasts are a magical thing invented just for me. In 2005, I didn’t even have an iPod; I downloaded the files and burned them to CDs to listen to in my car.

One of the very first shows that I tried out was Studio 360, a sort of arts and pop culture show hosted by Westside High graduate Kurt Andersen. I listened to Studio 360 pretty consistently until it ended in early 2020, and I found myself unexpectedly emotional when it ended. It’s still great to dip back into if you’re looking for something to listen to and don’t need it to be incredibly current. I learned about so many things by listening to that show.

Omaha Magazine ran a pretty good profile on local boy Kurt Andersen when the show ended. One of the very first things I remember listening to as a podcast was this short piece about a feud between Ryan Adams and Jim Derogatis. And I was so excited to unexpectedly hear my old middle and high school friend Jon Rand on a show I loved so much back in 2006.

See more designs from the Westside set here.

Tuesday, 4 July 2023—Alliance Bulldogs, Alliance, NE

I was curious to know what sort of alliance was responsible for the naming of Alliance, Nebraska, and hoping for an interesting story. Much to my disappointment, no such actual alliance exists. The 1925 work Nebraska Place-Names, Lilian Linder Fitzpatrick wrote:

The town was founded in June, 1887, and named Grand Lake. The Chicago, Burlington, and Quincy railroad opened a station for business on February 3, 1888. The name Alliance was given to the town by Superintendent G.W. Holdrege. He affirmed that Alliance was chosen for the reason that it was a single word, was different from the name of any other town in the state, was short, and would be near the top of the alphabetical list of the towns in the state. The name was accepted by thr citizens, a post office established, a town-site platted, and the plat recorded as Alliance. It apparently was named after Alliance, Ohio. It is also the junction point of two lines of the Chicago, Burlington, and Quincy railway which makes the name appropriate. The town is the county seat of Box Butte county.

So what was Alliance, Ohio named after? According to the town’s website,

Alliance was formed in 1850 by the merger of three small settlements: Williamsport, Freedom, and Liberty. A fourth settlement, Mount Union, was added to the city in 1888. The name "Alliance" was chosen because of the alliance of the small settlements into a larger entity. It also reflected the soon-to-come junction of two major railroads of the time, the Ohio and Pennsylvania and the Cleveland and Wellsville.

See more designs from the Alliance set here.

Wednesday, 5 July 2023—Aquinas Monarchs, David City, NE

The December 20, 1971 Columbus Telegram reported on an unfortunate incident at Aquinas:

Vandals broke about 60 windows on the east side of Aquinas High School Sunday night and smashed all but four windows in an Aquinas High School bus parked to the rear of the school.

According to a report filed with the Butler County Sheriff’s office, 54 windows two door panes, a basement window and gas light were smashed, apparently with a steel pipe. Only four windows remain intact in the rear of the building.

Sixty windows!

See more designs from the Aquinas set here.

Thursday, 6 July 2023—Auburn Bulldogs, Auburn, NE

Current University of Nebraska-Kearney Loper Cam Binder led Auburn to three consecutive state basketball championships in 2019-2021, including a game-winning shot in 2019. Part of Binder’s success? His dad had a full-sized basketball gym in a barn on the family property, seemingly including banners for Auburn’s state championships. Check out a news story on the barn gym here.

See more designs from the Auburn set here.

Friday, 7 July 2023—Blair Bears, Blair, NE

In reading about Blair High School’s old building, it is almost universally noted that the building was constructed in the Richardsonian Romanesque style. I hadn’t heard of it, but apparently it was the style of Very Famous Architect Henry Hobson Richardson, whose Wikipedia page credits him with influencing Architects I Have Heard Of Louis Sullivan, Frank Lloyd Wright, and Eliel Saarinen.

Not mentioned in Mr. Richardson’s Wikipedia page is John Latenser, though a September 1, 1929 Omaha World-Herald profile of Latenser bore the subheading, “If You Were to Count All the Buildings He Has Designed in Omaha and Elsewhere, You Would Be Surprised, for They Are Numerous.” One such building (elsewhere) was the 1899 Blair High School Building, built in the Richardsonian Romanesque style.

Latenser was born in Liechtenstein, and later came to Chicago. The 1929 profile notes that, “He got along fine. Developing throat trouble, he took a doctor’s advice to go west. He came to Omaha, and in a short time had no more quinsy than a little necked clam.” I was hoping this was some sort of bizarre but charming midwestern or 1920s turn of phrase, but I looked into it and it just means that his throat problem improved.

Latenser took to Nebraska, and in 1899 designed the Blair High building, which is now on the National Register of Historic Places. The application for the register notes that Blair continues to reflect Latenser’s Richardsonian influences, but also blends in some more classically influenced style that Latenser likely picked up while designing a building for the 1898 World’s Fair in Omaha.

So that’s that. Here’s a picture of the 1899 Blair building from a 1902 book called School Buildings and Grounds in Nebraska. I was hoping to quote the book, but it turns out it is as much of a dry recounting of the facts about the building as its title is a dry recounting of the facts of its contents.

See more designs from the Blair set here.

Saturday, 8 July 2023—Falls City Tigers, Falls City, NE

Writing for the New York Times, Arthur Daley once began a Febuary 24, 1943 article entitled “The Perambulating Preacher” this way:

A boy, 13 years old, once flicked a pebble at a passing automobile near a Nebraska stream, and that is why Gilbert Dodds will be defending his mile title at the National A.A.U. track and field championships in Madison Square Garden on Saturday. Had that pebble not been thrown, Dodds might now be an unknown country preacher in some forgotten country town.

The youthful Dodds was lolling on the bank of Pony Creek, just outside of of Falls City, Neb., one Summer’s day eleven years ago. Supposedly he was fishing, but the fish were not biting too well. By way of breaking the monotony, this Nebraska edition of Huckleberry Finn tossed a pebble at a passing car.

There was a screech of brakes and the irate driver bounded out of the car in hot pursuit of the fisherman. Dodds was not the slightest bit concerned at sight of the onrushing automobilist. He had always loved to run and had done a lot of it, too, during his grammar school days. He was sure he could outfoot the old codger in the car to the Nehama River, a hundred yards or so away. Then it would be an easy swim across to complete safety.

But Dodds, who would attend Falls City High School and become a famous American runner (as well as a preacher), was unable to win that particular race. His pursuer was Lloyd Hahn, “one of the great figures of American track.” Hahn went on to coach Dodds, and who would win the Sullivan Award for American’s greatest amateur athlete in 1943. A 1942, Times article concluded thusly: “Stout fella, Dodds, and a real champion.”

See more designs from the Falls City set here.

Sunday, 9 July 2023—Kearney Bearcats, Kearney, NE

Roadside attractions photographer John Margolies snapped this picture of Kearney’s Hammer Motel in 1980:

1927 Kearney High graduate Jack Hammer and his wife Nina opened the Hammer Motel (which was seemingly often referred to as “Hammer’s Motel”) in 1947 after Hammer served in World War II. The hotel was closed in 1987 and has since been demolished, but the Great Platte River Road Archway (you may recognize it from the movie About Schmidt) has a replica of the sign as part of its Licoln Highway Exhibit.

Jack Hammer ran for Kearney City Council in 1953, running an ad in the Kearney Hub promising that, “I’m proud to say that my middle name is Kearney and you can be sure that I will do my utmost to uphold my own name and the name of my home town.” Hammer came in third place in a three candidate field.

See more designs from the Kearney set here.

From the Archive

Today’s reference to the 1898 Omaha World’s Fair (or, more properly, Trans-Mississippi and International Exposition) reminded me that I did a set of concepts for that fair (and some others!) I used the same process that I use for the school shirts—researching and finding old graphics and repurposing them.

A Recommendation

I’ve been trying Threads like everybody else, and I think I like it?

See you next week! Tell your friends!

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