Davies, William R.
Biography
William R. Davies served as the second president of what was then called the Eau Claire State Teachers College from 1941 to 1959.Davies was born in 1893 in Tenino, Washington. His family migrated to Cambria, Wisconsin when he was four years old. He graduated Ripon College with a bachelor’s degree in 1915 and the University of Wisconsin with a master’s degree in 1921. He taught briefly at a private school in Endeavor, Wisconsin, but left that position to serve in World War I. When he returned to the United States, he accepted a position as principal of McKinley Senior High School in Marshfield, Wisconsin. In 1925, he was elected school superintendent of Beaver Dam, Wisconsin, and in 1930, he was elected school superintendent of Superior, Wisconsin.
The enrollment of Eau Claire State Teachers College increased from about 700 to about 1,700 during Davies' years as president. Like the other Wisconsin teachers colleges, Eau Claire became a State College in 1951. The curriculum expanded to include liberal arts subjects, and planning began to add nursing and business programs.
Davies advocated for internationalizing the college by bringing in international exchange students and faculty and initiating travel-study programs for Eau Claire students. Nationally known speakers came to campus to lecture in The Forum Series, which Davies also saw as a way to involve the community more closely with the college.
After a decade of effort, Davies secured the construction of a second building on the Eau Claire campus. The Brewer Hall/Zorn Arena/Kjer Theatre/Campus School complex opened in 1952. Two dormitories and a student center were completed later in the decade, making Eau Claire State much more of a residential campus.
Having announced his intention to retire, Davies died on Dec. 10, 1959. The first UW-Eau Claire student center, the W.R. Davies University Center, was built in 1959 and named in his honor. The original student center was razed and a new facility, completed in 2012, again was named named W.R. Davies Student Center in honor of this former chancellor.
Occupations
- President -- Date: 1941 - 1959
Found in 12 Collections and/or Records:
Arthur J. Fox Papers, 1939-1948
Arthur Julius Fox, one of the original faculty members of the Eau Claire State Normal School, was a former registrar and dean of instruction at Eau Claire State Teachers College. He retired in 1948 after 32 years of service at the college. This collection includes the general correspondence of A.J. Fox from 1939 to 1948 as well as his Teacher’s Program and Service Reports, his transcript from the University of Chicago, and newspaper clippings of his death in 1958.
Cornerstones and Time Capsules Collection, 1916, 1951, 1960
Eau Claire Area Committee Records, 1946-1974
Eau Claire Normal School/State Teachers' College Clippings, 1913-1950
Newspaper clippings and a pamphlet regarding the establishment and growth of the Eau Claire State Normal School and the Eau Claire State Teachers College. A 1913 pamphlet entitled “WHY the Normal School at Eau Claire Should Be Constructed NOW” outlines the “urgent need” for the school in the Chippewa Valley. Newspaper clippings document the growth and development of the Eau Claire Normal School, which evolved into the Eau Claire State Teachers College in 1927.
Putnam Park Records, 1896-2022
University Archives Photograph Collection, 1916-2011
University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Department of Music and Theatre Arts Records, 1928-2025
University of Wisconsin--Eau Claire Faculty and Staff Publications and Information Files, circa 1930-1990
Includes original and reprint faculty and staff publications, newspaper clippings, biographical information, and memorial service programs.Also contains a UW--Eau Claire faculty bibliography (circa 1982) and University of Wisconsin System Faculty Publication abstracts from 1967-1970.
University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Foundation Records, 1936-2025 (bulk 1956-2025)
University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire Office of the Chancellor Correspondence and Subject File, 1936-2014
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- Annual Reports 2
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- University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire--Public relations 2
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- Academic Disciplines 1
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- Art 1
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- Music--Instruction and study--Wisconsin--Eau Claire 1
- National Council for Accrediation of Teacher Education 1
- Newspapers 1
- Office Files 1
- Orchestra 1
- Periscope 1
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- Putnam Hall 1 + ∧ less