Herbert V. Hake Papers

Archives Record Series: 14/10/10

Herbert V. Hake, (1903-1980).  Papers, (1942-1980).  17 linear feet.

Biography

Herbert Victor Hake was born in Hoyleton, Illinois, on August 10, 1903.  He earned a bachelor's degree from Central Wesleyan College in Warrenton, Missouri, in 1928, and a master's degree from the University of Iowa in 1933.  He taught art and theater and worked as a commercial layout artist.

Mr. Hake joined the Iowa State Teachers College staff as a theatre scene designer and technical director in 1938.  He became the first radio program director in 1942 and the first director of radio and television in 1947.  He was UNI's pioneer broadcaster.  His programs, including "Landmarks in Iowa History", were known throughout the Midwest.  Another program of special note is "Behind the Headlines" which he broadcast with Donald F. Howard for many years.

Herbert Hake was also well-known as a cartoonist, columnist, and local historian with many popular publications to his credit.

In 1973, the call letters of campus station KTCF were changed to KHKE in honor of Mr. Hake.  He was inducted into the Hall of Fame by the Iowa Broadcasters Association in 1978 and received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from UNI in 1979.

Herbert Hake was married to Monabelle Hake.  Mr. and Mrs. Hake had two daughters:  Patricia and Priscilla.  Mr. Hake died March 10, 1980.

Papers

The Herbert V. Hake papers consist of:  a subject file created by Mr. Hake and relating mostly to broadcast services at UNI; a file of material relating to the Lecture-Concert Series during Mr. Hake's years as chairman; and extensive photographic material relating to the production of television series, especially "Landmarks in Iowa History"; and sketches done by Hake.

The subject file in Boxes 1-4 contains the best sources of information on radio and television broadcasting at UNI during the 1940's, 1950's, and 1960's.  Of special interest is the file "Correspondence, Policy concerning Radio Broadcasts, 1942-8":  this file contains early policy statements developed by Mr. Hake, Irving Hart, and President Malcolm Price as well as correspondence relating to the controversey with radio station KXEL.  The "Campus (Student) Radio Station" files include policy statements, budgets, and minutes of the radio governing board meetings.  Of special interest is a letter from J. O. Perrine on the first uses of radio transmissions on the UNI campus in the years from 1914 through1920.  Much of the rest of the subject file consists of correspondence and schedules of television programs including Mr. Hake's long-running "Landmarks in Iowa History".

Boxes 5 and 6 contain correspondence and programs dealing with the Lecture-Concert Series from 1951 through 1959.  Some of the correspondence consists of routine arrangements and confirmations with performers' agents.  But, taken as a whole, these records offer a close look at the mores and tastes of the day.

Boxes 7-37 consist primarily of material associated with the production of the "Landmarks" series, including photographs with negatives of series sites; large photos used in production; and sketches of historical figures.

In March 2013, Priscilla Hake Lauris, one of Mr. Hake's daughters, sent two boxes to the University Archives.  They became Boxes 38 and 39.  These two boxes reflect and supplement the contents of Boxes 1-4.  That is, Boxes 38 and 39 contain correspondence and policy on the establishment of radio and television services on the UNI campus; radio and television programming in the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s; and photographs relating to the facilities and programming.  There are also good files relating to Mr. Hake's presentations and chalk talks; the Arcturus Club; Faculty Men's Club; and the College Hill Interdenominational Church.

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Container Inventory

Box 1

Biographical data--Herbert Hake; 101 Stories of Cedar Falls; Archives; Campus (Student) Radio Station, 1954-73; Correspondence, Policy concerning Radio Broadcasts, 1942-8; First Campus Radio, 1914--J. O. Perrine; Conservation; ETV Net, 1952, 1966, 1967--Report of the Committee on Educational Television Broadcasting to the Interinstitutional Committee on Educational Coordination; F.C.C.; Film Production Unit; Highway Commission; History and Archives--Des Moines; Humanities; Hytone; Bicentennial Outlines of Cedar Falls;
 

Box 2

Inventory 0402, 1966, 1968-1970; Iowa Heritage; Kamerick, John J.; KCRG-TV; KGLO-TV; K&M Electronics; KOKZ; KTCF Assistants; KTVO; KXEL; KYNE-TV; "Landmark" Tour, 1962; Motion Picture Production; The Lewis and Clark Expedition Leaves its Park on Sioux City, Iowa; State of Iowa; Personnel; Quick-Print; Radio Survey (50:367); Inside Iowa (Correspondence); Inside Iowa (Scripts), 1964-1969; Iowa Index (scripts), 1962; Inventory Iowa (script), 1968;
 

Box 2a

Radio-TV Budget; Radio and TV Programs & Budgets, 1961-1972; Sites; Speech; Term Papers; TV and Radio Center;
 

Box 3

Visual Instruction Service; WOI; WSUI; Bernhard, Harold; Hansen, Delores; Harris, Henry; Hill, Frank W.; Holmes, George H.; Jennings, Philip C.; Voldseth, E.V.; Al Fresco Favorites; Behind the Headlines; Everyday Science;
 

Box 4

Historic Hymns; Iowa Index; Iowa TV Schooltime Series #1,#11,#111; Landmarks in Iowa History; Open Mike; Song in the Air Keeping Time; Stories of Iowa; Story Hour; T.C. on TV;
 

Box 5

Lecture-Concert Series, 1951-1956, with some information on earlier series including:

• 1940-1941: Sigrid Undset, Lauritz Melchior, and Mischa Livschutz;
• 1941-1942: Caroll Glen, Charles Morgan, Chekhov Players in "Twelfth Night", Marian Anderson, and Carl Sandburg;
• 1945-1946: Jesse Stuart;
• 1946-1947: Arthur Wittemore and Jack Lowe and Ernesto Montenegro.
   

Box 6

Lecture-Concert Series, 1956-9
 

Boxes 7-11

Clippings, correspondence, pamphlets, maps, articles, and plans for the places visited in the Landmarks series. Material is arranged alphabetically by the name of the site.
 

Boxes 12-20

An extensive collection of photographs (with negatives) taken by Mr. Hake in the 1950's and early 1960's of sites visited in the Landmark series. Material is arranged alphabetically by the name of the site.
 

Boxes 21-28

Photographs of sites visited during the Landmark series. These photos are large copies of some of the photos in Boxes 12-20. There is a list of the sites on a finding aid available in the Special Collections reading room.
 

Boxes 29-37

Drawings by Hake primarily of historical figures and locations featured in his television series. They are as follows:
 

Box 29

• Blueprint of outdoor commencement setting(3-16-63)
• Drawing of Lux Medallion, State College of Iowa
• Caricatures of UNI administration in gear mechanism next to oil can
• Lux Medallion, 1962
• Fort Madison
   

Box 30

• 3 Pine Creek Mill Drawings
• Drawing of bearded man
• Drawing of middle aged man wearing glasses
• Drawing of bearded man (middle-aged)
   

Box 31

• Father Rapp (left), founder of Rappites and Robert Owen (right), founder of Owenites at New Harmony, Indiana
• Fort Sackville and map of campaigns of George Rogers Clark
• Drawing of building
• Drawing of domed building
• Julien Dubuque
• John Deere, inventor of self-scouring steel plough
   

Box 32

• Caricature of man with camera standing next to bear in necktie
• Man holding caricature of microphone
• Man in toga holding umbrella in rain
• M.E. Church
• Rev. Manasseh Cutler (left) and Gen. Rufus Putnam (right) organizers of The Ohio Company and Founders of Marietta, first settlement in territory established by Northwest Ordinance
   

Box 33

• Lewis(left) and Clark(right) leaders of Lewis and Clark expedition
• Abraham Lincoln
• Pioneer with gun being chased by bear
   

Box 34

• Herbert Hoover at time of his election to presidency
• Jesse James, Train Robber, near Adair, 1873
• Billy Robinson, Pioneer Aviator of Grinnell
• Charley Williams, Owner & Trainer of Champion Trotting Horses Independence
• Family in Mormon Handcart Brigade Leaving Coralville in 1856
• Johann Gaertner, Builder of the "Smallest Church" near Festina
• Annie Wittenmeyer of Keokuk, Founder of Civil War diet kitchens
   

Box 35

• Portrait of bearded man--Unidentified
• Large iron meteorite from Greenland. Weight: 36 and a half tons
• Fort Atkinson
• Peter Cartwright, Famous Methodist circuit rider
• Ansel Briggs, First governor of the state
• Original display of Cardiff Giant on "stub" Newell Farm, Cardiff, N.Y.
   

Box 36

• Choir Monk, Lay Brother
• Portrait of Man wearing glasses (unidentified)
• Joseph Smith, First prophet of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Mormon)
• Portrait of bearded man--unidentified
• Portrait of man--unidentified
• Portrait of Man--unidentified
   

Box 37

• Robert Lucas--First Governor of the Iowa Territory (2 poses)
• Father Dobberstein--Builder of the Grotto of the Redemption West Bend
• Ma-Ka-Tai-Me-She-Kia-Kiak (Black Hawk)
• William F. Cody "Buffalo Bill" born in LeClaire
• February 26, 1846
• Portrait of Man--Unidentified

 

Box 38

Alumni meetings

Arcturus Club presentations

• Antics of architecture, 1961
• Painless painting, December 8, 1962
• Silence and salvation, May 10, 1963
• Portrait parle,1964
• Radio revisited, 1965
• Sounds of the state, 1968
• The cartoonist--critic or clown?, July 24, 1970
• A hassle of historians, April 16, 1971
• Radio reminiscences, 1972
• Mainly Main, March 15, 1974
• The comics, May 2, 1975
• Tenacity or talent?, February 27, 1976
• Cartoon or caricature?, January 21, 1977
• Crusaders, 1978
• Vanished voices, May 25, 1979

Behind the Headlines

Bertha Martin Memorial Fund

Bicentennial chalk talk and material

Bouquets

Brickbats

Cedar Falls history slide script

Cedar Falls Record, correspondence

Cedar Falls Utilities presentation, 1967

Chalk talks

College Hill Interdenominational church, correspondence

Conservation radio program contest, 1969

Copyright

Correspondence

Coward-McCann, publishers

Des Moines Register, correspondence

ETV, 1964

Extension correspondence, Irving Hart and E. L. Ritter

Faculty Men's Club

Folk Theater, 1968-1970

Here's How

Hoover, Chauncy--new transmitter

Inside Out

Iowa Society for the Preservation of Historic Landmarks, correspondence

KXEL

Miscellaneious programs and illustrations

Piano Profiles--Henry Harris

President Malcolm Price, correspondence

 

Box 39

President J. W. Maucker, correspondence

Pendergraft, Daryl, correspondence

Pioneer Woman statue

Play production class

Play production conference

Playwriting course

Portrait Parle, 1964

Preserving the past

Public Instruction, Iowa Department of--Leroy Pratt

Public relations and promotion

Radio guests

Radio miscellany, 1942-1949, correspondence

Seeing the State, 1946-1949, 1957-1958 (Bob Davis, assistant)

Speech 20

Speech 367 (radio survey course)

Stagecraft 109

Story Hour--Amy Arey

Talks--arrangements and correspondence

Tall Corn Network

Television Animal Farm

Television demonstration

Vanished Voices--Mary Hayes, 1948-1040

Photos

• Stage sets designed and built by Mr. Hake
• Photos with notables--Jan Peerce, Peter Freuchen
• Campanile
• Stone barn
• Johnnie Mae as "Widow Cagley"
• Olson brothers, 1968
• Segments of Birdseye View of Cedar Falls
• FM tower construction, 1972
• Iowa Inside Out, copy negatives, December 8, 1965
• Radio faculty and staff, Ask the Scientist, 1956
• William Lang
• Other identified photos
• Unidentified photos 

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Papers initially arranged and described by University Archivist Gerald L. Peterson, 1992; finding aid revised April 1996; last updated, April 15, 2013 (GP).