Edmund Chavez

Fund for the Performing Arts Center Papers, 1959-1976
1 c.f.

Edmund Chavez, secretary of the building committee, donated his records of the Fund for the Performing Arts Center to the University of Idaho Library on July 14, 1983. They were processed by Judith Nielsen in January 1987.

THE FUND FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS CENTER

In the spring of 1959 drama professors Jean Collette and Edmund Chavez began drawing up plans for a new university theater, but it was not until 1966 that a building committee was formed. The committee, which met for two years, was chaired by Boyd Martin, Dean of Letters and Science; Edmund Chavez was secretary.

This would be the first building on the campus not funded by the state. On September 27, 1967, President Ernest Hartung and the Alumni Association launched a campaign to raise nearly $2,000,000 for the center.

A contract was signed with the architectural firm of C.J. Bellamy & Co. of Coeur d'Alene on July 17, 1972, and construction started soon after. A year and a half later, in December 1973, phase one of the proposed three part complex was completed. The finishing touches and final repairs and clean up took the first part of the new year. On April 17 the theater opened with a performance of Lawrence and Lee's play "Jabberwock". The following night "Of Mice and Men" by John Steinbeck, was performed.

The formal dedication took place on the morning of April 20, 1974.

SCOPE AND CONTENT

The papers in this record group span the years 1959 to 1976, with the bulk of the material covering the years 1966 to 1974.

The papers include correspondence, minutes of meetings, financial material, architectural plans and drawings, and photographs.

ARRANGEMENT AND DESCRIPTION

The material in this manuscript group was sorted by type. The correspondence is arranged chronologically and includes letters to and from the architect, consultants and suppliers, as well as interoffice memorandums to which the fund's financial statements were attached.

The second series includes minutes of several committees involved with the building of the center. This is followed by material directly related to the fund raising campaign, including the Jean Collette and chair funds, and the disbursement of that money.

Another series includes articles on theater design, specifications for the university building, and two bound volumes of architects' plans and drawings. The final series contains photographs of the kickoff rally, fund raising events, architectural drawings, and the construction of the center.

SERIES LIST

Container

I. Correspondence and Memos, 1959-1976 1

II. Meetings and Reports, 1966-1973 1

III. Financial Material, 1967-1974

A. Rally and Fund Raising, 1967-1974 1

B. Requisitions and Bids, 1972-1974 1

IV. Architectural Material, 1965-1974 2

V. Photographs, 1967-1974 2

INVENTORY

EDMUND CHAVEZ. FPAC PAPERS

Box Folder Description Items

I. Correspondence and Memos, 1959-1976

1	1	1959-1967	21
	2	1971-1972	70
	3	1973-1976	70

II. Meetings and Reports, 1966-1973

	4	Building Committee Meetings, 1966-1971	40
	5	Memorandum of Monthly Construction Meetings, 1971-1973	9
	6	Construction Inspection Reports, 1972-1973	35
	7	Memorandum of Monthly Coordination Meeting, 1973	5

III. Financial Material, 1967-1974

A. Rally & Fund Raising, 1967-1974

	8	National Kickoff Rally, Sept. 27, 1967	5
	9	McCall FPAC Dinner, Pres. Hartung's Speech, Oct. 17, 1967 (tape recording)	1
	10	Newspaper Clippings, 1967	15
	11	Letters of solicitation and responses, 1968-1974	46
	12	Work Manual for University Representatives, 1967	1

B. Requisitions and Bids

	13	Requisitions, 1972-1974	128
	14	C.J. Bellamy & Co. Bid, 1972	6
	15	Seat Plaque Bid, 1973	2
	16	Scrim Bids, 1974	6

IV. Architectural Material, 1965-1974

2	17	General Information, 1965-1967	9
	18	Theater Design Articles, 1945-1974	10
	19	Specifications and Blueprints, 1971-1972	31
	20	Punch Lists, 1974	11
	21	"Tentative Plans for a Drama Center for the University of Idaho", Submitted by Jeane Collette, Edmund Chavez and J. Hugh Burgess, (1960)	1
	22	General Specification, Performing Arts Center, Phase 1, 1972	1
	23	Performing Arts Center (1967?)	1

V. Photographs, 1967-1974

2	24	Kickoff Rally, September 27, 1967	15
	25	Fund Raising Events, 1967-1968	27
	26	Gifts, 1967-1968	12
	27	Architectural Models and Drawings, 1972	19
	28	Construction, 1972-1974	14

July 1997 / mg125.htm