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Special Collections and Archives

Karl Chesnutt, Papers, 1942-84

Karl Chesnutt papers, 1942-1984

Finding Aid

Prepared by Lisa S. Hicks April 15, 1991; Revised and prepared for the Web by Nancy Birk, July 8, 1996
1 record storage box, 1 cubic foot, 11th floor
Old Archives Number: 14.11.55

Scope and Content

The papers of Karl Chesnutt were originally given to Phebe Zimmerman (Hiram, Ohio), a friend of the Chesnutts when Karl became ill in 1989. She suggested to Mrs. Rosalie Chesnutt that they should go to the KSU Archives and returned them to her. They were transferred to the KSU Archives on 27 October 1989 and accessioned as U89/55.

Biographical data about Karl Chesnutt makes up the first series. A letter from Mrs. Chesnutt to the processor is included in the first folder. The letter gives information about Karl Chesnutt (February 26, 1913- ) and his career at KSU. Much of the information in the letter is not documented in the rest of this collection. It provides insights into his achievements at KSU which go beyond his tennis coaching experience. During Chesnutt's tenure at Kent State he was a football coach (originally what he was hired for in 1947) and then a basketball, track, soccer and finally a tennis coach. He also taught swimming, golf, badminton, archery, and fishing.

Series II, Varsity Tennis, makes up the bulk of the collection (folders 2-53). This series contains materials that relate to Mr. Chesnutt's career as a tennis coach at KSU from 1950-1969. There are a few gaps in the records of 1963 and 1965, but otherwise they are fairly complete. Schedules, team lists and correspondence are part of the general files. Scoresheets or scorebooks are included with every season's records as well. In addition, information about the OAC (Ohio Athletic Conference) Spring Tournament in 1950 and the MAC (Mid-American Conference) Spring Tournament from 1951-1969 are also included. The tournament folders also contain programs which have information about other spring sports at Kent State such as track and golf. Chesnutt found his tennis players to be high-caliber men and loved the years he spent coaching them. This may have been why he chose to invite some of them back for an alumni-varsity match in 1966.

Series III, Tennis Alumni, documents this event in folder 54. It consists mostly of correspondence between Chesnutt and his former players. Folder 55 in this series contains the correspondence of Frank Hicks, a former tennis player of Chesnutt's and a coach himself. The next series is Teaching Experience. There is one restricted file in this collection. It is found under the title of Grades (folder 57). This file contains the grades of students in Karl Chesnutt's gym classes. For this reason access must be restricted. The other file (folder 56) in this series is not restricted however and contains limited information about Chesnutt's teaching career. Chesnutt retired from coaching and teaching in 1974. Because he had been active all his life, he chose not to sit at home.

His retirement activities are contained in series V. He was a volunteer for several groups such as the Red Cross. He also taught physical education at the Geauga Regional Campus of KSU for a couple of years. These events are documented in folders 58 through 60. Chesnutt was involved with the Blue and Gold Club and Varsity K at Kent State even after his retirement. Correspondence as well as programs from the Varsity K Hall of Fame banquets are in folders 61 through 62. In the mid-1980s he was elected into the Varsity K Hall of Fame for his many years of service to KSU (although this is not documented in the collection).

A complete listing of the series in this collection are as follows:

  • I. Biographical Data
  • II. Varsity Tennis
  • III. Alumni Tennis
  • IV. Teaching Experience
  • V. Retirement Activities
  • VI. Printed Materials

FOLDER -- CONTENTS

  1. Karl Chesnutt--Biography, April 1991
  2. Tennis: Schedules, correspondence and general information about the 1950 men's tennis season
  3. Scoresheets, 1950
  4. Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) Tournament, 1950
  5. Tennis: Schedules, correspondence and general information about the 1951 men's tennis season
  6. Scoresheets, 1951
  7. Mid-American Conference (MAC) Tournament, 1951
  8. Tennis: Schedules, correspondence and general information about the 1952 men's tennis season
  9. Scorebook, 1952
  10. MAC Tournament
  11. Tennis: Schedules, correspondence and general information about the 1953 men's tennis season
  12. Scorebook, 1953-54
  13. MAC Tournament
  14. Tennis: Schedules, correspondence and general information about the 1954 men's tennis season
  15. MAC Tournament, 1954
  16. Tennis: Schedules, correspondence and general information about the 1955 men's tennis season
  17. Scorebook, 1955-57
  18. MAC Tournament, 1955
  19. Tennis: Schedules, correspondence and general information about the 1956 men's tennis season
  20. MAC Tournament, 1956
  21. Tennis: Schedules, correspondence and general information about the 1957 men's tennis season
  22. MAC Tournament, 1957
  23. Tennis: Schedules, correspondence and general information about the 1958 men's tennis season
  24. Scoresheets, 1958
  25. MAC Tournament, 1958
  26. Tennis: Schedules, correspondence and general information about the 1959 men's tennis season
  27. Scoresheets, 1959
  28. MAC Tournament, 1959
  29. Tennis: Schedules, correspondence and general information about the 1960 men's tennis season
  30. Scoresheets, 1960
  31. MAC Tournament, 1960
  32. Tennis: Schedules, correspondence and general information about the 1961 men's tennis season
  33. Scoresheets, 1961
  34. MAC Tournament, 1961
  35. Tennis: Schedules, correspondence and general information about the 1962 men's tennis season
  36. Scoresheets, 1962
  37. MAC Tournament, 1962
  38. Scorebook, 1963
  39. MAC Tournament, 1963
  40. Tennis: Schedules, correspondence and general information about the 1964 men's tennis season
  41. Scorebook, 1964
  42. MAC Tournament, 1964
  43. Scorebook, 1965
  44. MAC Tournament, 1965
  45. Tennis: Schedules, correspondence and general information about the 1966 men's tennis season
  46. Scorebook, 1966
  47. MAC Tournament, 1966
  48. Tennis: Schedules, correspondence and general information about the 1967 men's tennis season
  49. Scoresheets, 1967
  50. MAC Tournament, 1967
  51. Tennis, Schedules, correspondence and general information about the 1968 men's tennis season
  52. MAC Tournament, 1968
  53. MAC Tournament, 1969
  54. Varsity-Alumni Matches: Correspondence between Chestnutt and his former players to arrange a challenge match--Varsity team vs. Alumni players in 1966
  55. Frank Hicks: Correspondence from a former player, Frank Hicks, includes Admiral King Tennis Schedule. Also, correspondence from Hicks' former player, Paul Falencki, about admission into the Lorain Sports Hall of Fame, 1983-84
  56. Teaching Materials, n.d.
  57. RESTRICTED FILE Grades, n.d.
  58. Retirement: Letters congratulating Chesnutt on his retirement in 1974
  59. Emeritus Professor--Geauga Regional Campus: Chesnutt's teaching experience after retirement, 1978
  60. Community Work Chesnutt was involved in in 1978
  61. Blue and Gold Club letter from Assistant Athletic Director, John Konstantino, 1984
  62. Varsity K: Correspondence, list of Varsity K winners in Men's Tennis invitations and programs from the Varsity K Hall of Fame, and commemorative materials relating to Varsity K from 1947-1985
  63. Roosevelt School Newspaper, 1942
  64. Newspaper clippings about Chesnutt and his family, n.d.
  65. Tennis Postcard promoting Kent State University Tennis, n.d.
  66. Athletic Information Booklets, Miscellaneous--promoting KSU, and discussing the student-athlete and his or her study habits, n.d.
  67. Kent State Directory, 1947
  68. Tennis Yearbooks from the United States Lawn Tennis Association (USLTA) documenting the years 1970, 1973 and 1974
  69. Team Photo, 1948
  70. Team Photos, c. 1948-49
  71. Photo of Karl Chesnutt, 1951
  72. Team Photo, 1954
  73. Photo of Karl Chesnutt, 1955
  74. Team Photos, 1958
  75. Team Photo, 1959
  76. Team Photo, 1960
  77. Team Photo, 1961
  78. Team Photo, 1962
  79. Team Photos, 1963
  80. Team Photos, 1965
  81. Team Photos, 1967
  82. Photos, n.d.