50 Years Of Partnership Paper Science and Engineering 1954 – 2004 1955 – 2005 History compiled by Robert Hitchings, Michael Kocurek, and Ben Chilton 2 History A History of the Pulp and Paper Program and Foundation at NC State University THE PROGRAM IS ESTABLISHED During the 1951-52 academic year, a pulp and paper program, combining the facilities and Faculty of the School of Forestry, Department of Chemical Engineering and Department of Chemistry was announced. Graduate studies and research were already conducted in the pulp and paper area both in the Department of Chemical Engineering and the School of Forestry. The equipment available to the original pulp technology program included a chipper, defiberizer, beater, sheet forming cylinders, and a digester. A search was started at this time to employ an outstanding man to head up the program in pulp technology and to establish the first undergraduate training program for the pulp and paper industry in the South. In order to attract an outstanding individual to the faculty of the School of Forestry, Dean R. J. Preston approached leaders of the industry with the aid of Mr. Reuben B. Robertson, Sr., Chairman of the Board of Champion Paper and Fiber Company. As a result of this meeting, Mr. Robertson invited a number of executives from major pulp and paper companies to Champion’s Lake Logan Camp so that Chancellor Harrelson, Dean Preston, and other School personnel could present their case for the need of a new curriculum in this field and for the necessity of industry’s support in R.J. Preston an effort to maintain a superior program in this field at North Carolina State University. During the Annual Paper Convention in New York City, February 1952, Mr. Robertson persuaded a number of industrial executives in his hotel suite to support the establishment of such a program. Mr. Larry Riegel, Mr. W. F. Bold, Mr. George Mead, Mr. Hugh Camp, and Mr. Gunnar Nicholson committed themselves and their companies to financially support a pulp and paper program at North Carolina State College of Forestry. Additionally, in the spring of 1952, Mr. Robertson, supported by his fellow paper executives, was instrumen- tal in persuading the Legislature of the State of North Carolina to approve an appropriation of $200,000 for a laboratory and teaching facility to house the embryo pulp and paper program. 3 C. Earl Libby agreed to join the faculty and reported to Raleigh on May 1, 1952. He was uniquely qualified to head the pulp and paper program at North Carolina State University and to develop an industrially oriented curriculum. Libby, a native of Benton, Maine, was born on November 14, 1892. After participating in one of the first courses offered by Mr. J. N. Stephenson in pulp and paper technology at a U.S. university, he graduated from the University of Maine (B.S.) in 1916. During the next four years, Libby was active in a number of chemical pulp operations that supported the gunpowder industry of World War I. He associ- ated himself on March 1, 1920 with the New York State College of Forestry in Syracuse, New York to teach in the department of forest chemistry. In 1932, he became head of the Department of Pulp and Paper Technology at Syracuse and continued to lead this C. Earl Libby outstanding program until 1952. Additionally, he was responsible for the establishment of Empire State Paper Research Associates, Inc. (ESPRI), an organization ini- tially devoted to improving the utilization of hardwoods in the pulp and paper industry of New York State. He received the TAPPI Gold Medal in 1962, recognizing his contribution as a leader in pulp and paper edu- cation. Libby’s long contact with education programs in the paper industry made him an outstanding selec- tion to organize the North Carolina State program. In 1952, a representation was made to the Southern Regional Educational Board concerning the establish- ment of this new curricular program. An agreement was reached with the Board which provided that North Carolina State University would establish an undergraduate program in pulp and paper science and technol- ogy to serve the South. The purpose of this agreement was to minimize the dilution of support and prolif- eration of poorly conceived programs that might be established by other colleges and universities. In 1954, Professor Libby contacted Mr. R. G. Hitchings, a former colleague in the program of pulp and paper instruction at the New York State College of Forestry and asked him to come to North Carolina to assist him in instruc- tion on the two students registered in pulp and paper for the fall 1955 semes- ter. Additionally, his responsibilities included overseeing the purchasing and installation of equipment for the new pulp and paper laboratory that was to be undertaken. Mr. R. G. Hitchings 4 The Robertson Laboratory of Pulp and Paper Technology Dedicated October 25, 1957 The laboratory building which was authorized by the 1953 Legislature with an original appropriation of $200,000 was started during the late fall of 1954. The sum appropriated to construct the laboratory build- ing proved to be inadequate and a transfer of $25,000 of surplus funds left from the D. H. Hill Library appropriations and a modification in the construction contract allowed the building construction to get under way. Due to some minor problems in construction, the original building was finally occupied for class in September 1956. Although the laboratory of 13,500 square feet was not fully furnished and equipped, laboratory classes for eight senior students were conducted during the 1956-57 academic year. THE FOUNDATION IS ESTABLISHED In an effort to strengthen the industrial support of the many programs of the emerging School of Forestry, a series of advisory committees were appointed for the several programs of the School and were asked to meet in Raleigh on November 6, 1952. Representatives of the corporations who initially gave their support to Mr. Robertson in the early part of the year were present as the Pulp and Paper Policy and Technical Advisory Committees. These men met in several subcommittees concerned with student enrollment, building and lab- oratory facilities, and curriculum. As a result of their recommendations, it was felt a broader industrial base would be necessary to support scholarships for outstanding high school graduates in the south. Based on the recommendations of the industrial contacts of Dean Preston and Professor Libby, invitations to join the sup- port of the program were sent to the majority of the pulp and paper industry in the South. As a result of this meeting, the pulp and paper advisory committee sought the incorporation of the Pulp and Paper Foundation, Inc. The meeting of the incorporators was held on February 4, 1955 and Mr. E.J. Gaynor, III of Brunswick Pulp and Paper Company was elected president of the Corporation. A budget was proposed and accepted by the group with a total of $25,000 appropriated. This budget included funds for salaries and salary supple- ments, undergraduate student scholarships, a graduate fellowship, and travel funds. Early memberships in the Foundation were held by Paper companies. A few years later suppliers were invited to join and serve on the Board. 5 In the initial development of the Pulp and Paper Foundation, gifts of approximately $100,000 worth of papermaking equipment were obtained from companies interested in the Pulp and Paper Program and $25,000 was used from the initial appropriation for the laboratory building for the equipping of the labo- ratories. These monies and gifts were not enough to completely furnish the laboratory building and during the 1956 legislature, a request for $127,000 was approved to complete the equipment for the laboratory building. During this year, monies were approved for scholarships for outstanding high school students by the newly formed Foundation. Dean Preston and Professor Libby spent considerable time to recruit these students from several southeastern states, thus reinforcing the South and Southeast "regional" concept for the program. THE FIRST 25 YEARS 1954 - 1979 To assist in the instructional program in the areas of pulp and paper engi- neering and additives, Mr. Hillard D. Cook was hired in the fall of 1956 as Assistant Professor of Pulp and Paper Technology. Cook was a B.S. gradu- ate of Massachusetts Institute of Technology and had worked in industry for seven years in a research laboratory and for over 25 years in paper production. He worked as a consultant in the three years prior to his joining the staff and brought an interesting combination of practical engineering and applied tech- nology to the instructional program. Professor Cook, affectionately known as Hilliard D. Cook “Doc,” retired during 1968 after 12 years as a teacher. Assistant Professor, Pulp & Paper Technology On October 25, 1957, the completed Reuben B. Robertson Pulp and Paper Laboratory was dedicated by ceremonies at the Third Annual Meeting of the Pulp and Paper Foundation. Mr. Reuben Robertson, Jr., son of the senior Mr. Robertson and President of the Champion Pulp and Fiber Company gave the dedicatory address. Also, dur- ing this year, President Dwight J. Thompson, who was then Vice President of Champion Paper and Fiber Company, led the Foundation. In 1957-58, the Foundation scholarship recipients rose to a total of 44. The program continued to grow and it was evident that additional faculty in the area of wood chemistry would be required. In the search for the most attrac- tive individual to fill this position, Dean Preston contacted Dr. Alfred J. Stamm who had completed over 30 years with the USDA Forest Products Laboratory at Madison, Wisconsin. Dr. Stamm had authored over 120 papers relating to wood and paper chemistry.