[nagdu] NHD National History Day question

Sat Feb 4 01:20:37 UTC 2012

Dear Brook,

Pasted below is a historical time line from The Seeing Eye's Web site that
may offer some help for your project.

1930's

1929- The Seeing Eye is incorporated in Nashville on January 29. The first
class begins in February and the first graduated dogs are Tartar and Gala.

 1930- Co-founder Morris Frank meets with President Hoover.

1931- The Seeing Eye moves its headquarters to Whippany, N.J.

1932- Co-founder Dorothy Harrison Eustis approaches the Harold Strong
Company for professional fundraising counsel.

1933- Fees of $150 for a first dog and $50 for each successor dog are set
and have not changed since.

1934- This year, 57 students are served. Dorothy Eustis closes her school to
train instructors (L-Oeil Qui Voit) in Switzerland.

1935- The first issue of the Guide magazine is published.

1936- The Seeing Eye begins an association with the Canadian National
Institute for the Blind and the first blind Canadians are served.

1937- A record 100 students are served this year. For the first time, the
school anticipates that going forward, a quarter of students will be people
returning for second dogs. The school publicly acknowledges the need for an
endowment to fulfill its obligation to replace any dogs that die in service.

1938- On May 23 Buddy dies, and Morris Frank becomes one of those graduates
predicted to return soon for a second dog.

1939- This year, 150 students served, a 50 percent increase in just two
years.

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1940's

1940- Dorothy Eustis steps down as president; Henry A. Colgate succeeds her.

1941- On December 8, the day after Pearl Harbor, the Board of Trustees
passes a resolution "to supply Seeing Eye dogs, without charge, to eligible
members of the armed forces who lose their sight in the line of duty." They
are given priority over all other applicants.

1942- The Seeing Eye begins its association with 4H, and the puppy-raising
program begins.

1943- Morris Frank and Buddy II complete an eight-month tour of 39 Army,
Navy, and Veterans Administration hospitals in 15 states.

1944- The much scaled-back Guide magazine is devoted to stories of graduates
working for the war effort.

1945- The U.S. Army sends blinded soldier Yoshina Omiya to The Seeing Eye
for training. Omiya is a member of a unit composed of Americans of Japanese
ancestry, the most decorated military unit of WWII.

1946- After the war presented a serious shortage of manpower to fill
instructor positions, five instructors return to work, joined by five
apprentices. Apprentices are selected based on "intelligence, stamina,
character, size, spirit, youth, and education." The Guide reports, "While
women were considered for the work at one time, it was found they lacked
physical strength for the long, hard training."

1947- The Chicago Seeing Eye Enrollment Committee, one of several volunteer
groups established nationwide to recruit donating members, launches a drive
to add 1,000 new members.

1948- The school purchases 100 acres in Mendham, N.J., to build a farm to
breed German shepherds.

1949- Morris Frank and Buddy III visit President Truman at the White House.

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1950's

1950- Women's dormitory opens. One-third of students are women.

1951- Helen Hubbard, a benefactor who established the John Hubbard School
for Instructors in 1934, earns the rank of Commander of the French Legion of
Honor for her aid to the French people.

1952- New motion picture called "The Seeing Eye" is released by Warner
Brothers.

1953- To date, 2,100 people have been served; the Guide reports on a grad
who traveled more than 800,000 miles throughout the United States with her
dog as her sole companion.

1954- Actuarial estimates show that 3.7 additional dogs will be needed for
every present graduate. The future commitment surpasses 4,600 dogs,
exclusive of the demand from new students.

1955- The Indiana State Legislature boasts two Seeing Eye graduates among
its members: Sen. Thomas Hasbrook and Rep. Charles Rachels.

1956- Morris Frank retires as vice president. A building with a garage for
Seeing Eye vans and waiting room for students-in-training opens downtown.
The maple furniture is upholstered in watermelon pink and chartreuse.

1957- The first holiday message to graduates is recorded rather than
printed, distributed on 7-inch, 33 1/3 RPM records.

1958- National Geographic Magazine, in an article titled "Dogs Work for
Man," features three pages devoted to the work of The Seeing Eye.

1959- A Braille version of the Guide is introduced.

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1960's

1960- The Seeing Eye's 500th class is held; 2,600 have been served to date.

1961- World-renowned anthropologist Dr. Margaret Mead and two colleagues
interested in non-verbal communication visit The Seeing Eye.

1962- The school acquires property for new campus in Morris Township, N.J.

1963- Dr. Richard Hoover, the ophthalmologist who developed the long cane
method of mobility, while visiting and lecturing to Seeing Eye staff, is
asked about an electronic device for guiding blind people. He says if we
could send a space capsule into the atmosphere and control it, perfection of
an electronic device is possible.

1964- Ten-year-old Gem has logged more than 150,000 in-flight miles with her
master Robert Whitstock, visiting 46 of the 50 states in his role as field
representative.

1965- The school moves to the Morris Township location, opens an exhibit at
the World's Fair, and is assigned its first zip code.

1966- The Walt Disney Company films "Atta Girl, Kelly!" on The Seeing Eye
campus.

1967- A young Jim Kutsch watches "Atta Girl, Kelly!" on the Wonderful World
of Color. Two months later, he is blinded in a chemical explosion. Memories
of the Disney series prompt him to work toward a goal of his first Seeing
Eye dog. Today, he is the first Seeing Eye graduate to serve as president.

1968- Seeing Eye Graduate Sherrill Rae Peterson of Galesburg, Ill., is one
of three blind college students who are presented with scholastic
achievement awards by President Lyndon Johnson at a ceremony in the White
House Cabinet Room.

1969- In celebration of its 40th anniversary, The Seeing Eye honors some of
its earliest pioneers with presentation of the Buddy Award to Morris Frank,
Elliott Humphrey, Gretchen Green, G. William Debetaz, Elizabeth Hutchinson,
and Marian Jobson.

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1970's

1970- The Seeing Eye moves to a new downtown student center/garage on
Schuyler Place.

1971- William Debetaz retires as vice president of training and a statue of
him with a German shepherd is unveiled.

1972- First Lady Pat Nixon visits The Seeing Eye.

1973- The Training Division reports that it completed 200 follow-up visits
to graduates this year.

1974- Walker Dillard Kirby, a member of The Seeing Eye Board of Trustees, is
the first trustee to take a blindfold walk with a dog.

1975- Sharon Griswold and Sherrie Freshley become the first female
instructors at The Seeing Eye since the resignation of Adelaide Clifford in
1930.

1976- Five new buildings open at the breeding facility in Mendham, N.J.

1977- The first 4H dog camp is held at the Somerset County, N.J.,
fairgrounds, where puppy raisers demonstrate their puppy handling skills.

1978- Morris Frank is the first person to reach the half-century mark as a
Seeing Eye dog user.

1979- The Seeing Eye opens its first onsite canine clinic, and the U.S. Post
Office issues a stamp commemorating the school's 50th anniversary.

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1980's

1980- Morris Frank dies on November 22.

1981- Jack Humphrey, the man who trained Morris Frank and Buddy I, dies at
age 92.

1982- The four major dog guide schools in the country - The Seeing Eye,
Guide Dogs for the Blind, Leader Dogs for the Blind, and Guiding Eyes for
the Blind - collaborate on a publication detailing federal and state
legislation on public access for guide dogs.

1983- A new brochure titled "Seeing Eye Dogs are Good Tenants" is prepared
for use by landlords and rental agents.

1984- The Seeing Eye launches a new tour program in November. The effort is
spearheaded by Trustee Walker Dillard Kirby and her committee of volunteer
guides.

1985- Construction begins on the third downtown garage/student center on Mt.
Kemble Avenue.

1986- Walt Disney's "Love leads the Way," a Disney Sunday night movie, tells
the story of Morris Frank and Buddy.

1987- Director of Instruction and Training Richard Krokus travels to Madrid
to share his expertise with an organization seeking to establish a Spanish
dog guide school.

1988- The Seeing Eye hosts 10 other U.S. dog guide schools to exchange
information about breeding and training of guides.

1989- The Heritage Society is established for people who have planned gifts
to the school through their wills, life insurance, or other resources.

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1990's

1990- President George Bush names The Seeing Eye the 138th Point of Light in
honor of its corps of volunteers.

1991- The Seeing Eye matches the 10,000th dog with a student and hires its
first full-time veterinarian, Dr. Dolores Holle.

1992- Ground is broken for a new training kennel and an addition to the
student residence.

1993- The Walker Dillard Kirby Canine Center opens, offering larger, more
canine-friendly kennel facilities for dogs in training.

1994- The Seeing Eye's breeding program has reduced the incidence of hip
dysplasia from 30 percent to 5 percent in its German shepherds and from 18
percent to near zero in its Labrador retrievers.

1995- In response to the more challenging world in which its dogs must guide
people, the school increases its training period for dogs from three months
to four.

1996- The one-man show by Bill Mooney, "With a Dog's Eyes," premieres on New
Jersey's public TV station and airs on PBS nationwide.

1997- The Vincent A. Stabile Canine Health Center opens.

1998- The Seeing Eye undergoes its first-ever assessment by the
International Guide Dog Federation, resulting in full accreditation.

1999- For the first time, a graduate is trained by two generations of
instructors; Gene Forsyth was trained with his first dog by Gary Mattoon and
returns this year to be trained with his fourth dog by Gary's son, Chris
Mattoon.

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2000's

2000- Research partially funded by The Seeing Eye results in a new test to
identify genetic markers for a degenerative eye disease.

2001- The organization's first accessible website is launched.

2002- The first puppies are born at the new breeding station in Chester,
N.J.

2003- A $2 million grant from the Jane H. Booker Charitable Foundation
establishes the Jane H. Booker Chair in Canine Genetics, a position held by
Dr. Eldin Leighton. The veterinary clinic earns its first accreditation from
The American Animal Hospital Association.

2004- The school installs wireless internet in the student wing.

2005- A statue of Morris Frank and Buddy by J. Seward Johnson is dedicated
on the Morristown Green. It is a 75th anniversary gift from the Board of
Trustees.

2006- Placement of a Seeing Eye dog in Hawaii makes this the first time
there are Seeing Eye partnerships in all 50 states at the same time.

2007- The school begins offering microchipping for its students' dogs,
providing a method of permanent identification.

2008- The Jane H. Booker Student Center opens in downtown Morristown.

2009- The Seeing Eye proudly celebrates its 80th year of providing
independence.

2010- The Seeing Eye celebrates its 15,000th human/canine partnership!