Records of the Department of Speech include 31 linear feet of material and 6 oversize scrapbooks, dating from 1928 to 1982. Virtually all of the records relate directly to the department's work in theater education. Included are extensive records of university theatrical productions (1938-1972); records of the University Players, a student organization dedicated to presenting live theater on campus; and general information regarding theater in Ann Arbor. Actual department records make up a small minority of the documentation found within the collection, although some information regarding a 1972 unit review and the decisions leading to the 1979 reorganization of the department are included. Photographs include images of plays and actors in various University theatrical productions.
Michigan was among the first schools in the nation to formally incorporate instruction in the field of speech into its curriculum. The subject's inclusion was largely the result of Thomas C. Trueblood's work. In the later nineteenth century, Trueblood made his living traveling from university to university offering short courses in speech. He first came to Ann Arbor in 1884 and his six week course was so popular with students that he began to return for longer and longer residences. Finally, in 1889 he became a permanent faculty member of the University of Michigan. In 1892 the Department of Elocution and Oratory was created, with Trueblood as its sole member. Trueblood remained chair of the department until 1926.
Over the years the department's formal title changed frequently, reflecting the broad area of instruction that fell under its mantle. The original name was simplified to the Department of Oratory in 1908. Subsequent titles included Department of Public Speaking (1919-1927); Department of Speech (1927-1932); Department of Speech, Phonetics, and General Linguistics (1932); Department of Speech and General Linguistics (1932-1939); Department of Speech (1939-1972); and Department of Speech Communication and Theater (1972-1979). In 1979, as part of a major reorganization of several units, the Department of Speech Communication and Theater was formally eliminated. Elements of the department's program were relocated in two new units; the Department of Theatre and Drama and the Department of Communication.
Chairs of the Department of Speech
| Date |
Event |
| 1892-1926 | Thomas C. Trueblood |
| 1926-1930 | James M. O'Neill |
| 1930-1938 | Henry A. Sanders |
| 1939-1959 | Gail E. Densmore |
| 1959-1960 | William M. Sattler (Acting) |
| 1960-1969 | William M. Sattler |
| 1969-1970 | Edgar Ernest Willis (Acting) |
| 1970-1979 | Edgar Ernest Willis |
Name Changes
| Date |
Event |
| 1892-1908 | Department of Elocution and Oratory |
| 1908-1919 | Department of Oratory |
| 1919-1927 | Department of Public Speaking |
| 1927-1932 | Department of Speech |
| 1932 | Department of Speech, Phonetics, and General Linguistics |
| 1932-1939 | Department of Speech and General Linguistics |
| 1939-1972 | Department of Speech |
| 1972-1979 | Department of Speech Communication and Theater |
