My Life in Review: Have I been Lucky or What?

The Memoirs of John Crandall Ph.D.

Contents

• Preface 1

Part 1: Family and Early Life

• My ancestors, a fragmentary genealogy 7
• Grandpa and Grandma Crandall 8
• Grandpa and Grandma Clement 10
• Dad 12
• Mother 20
• My early childhood 23

Part 2: School Days

• Elementary School 27
• Big Stoop 28
• High School 30
• Houghton College 33
• Romance 34
• Final college years 37
• Decision to teach 38
• Cornell Graduate School 38
• My first job, Fillmore 41
• Marriage 42
• More Fillmore 43

Part 3: Officer in the Navy

• Notre Dame Midshipman's School 49
• Reporting for active duty 54
• Awaiting assignment, Solomons, Virginia Beach 55
• New York, commissioning the 430 57
• Shakedown, profile of LCI(L)'s 59
• Voyage to Australia 61
• Arrival in New Guinea 65
• Personnel of the 430 67
• Navigation and shiphandling 70
• The New Guinea Campaign 71
• The Leyte Operation 71
• Typhoon 75
• Kamikaze 76
• Skipper of the 430 77
• Return to the States 81
• San Francisco, Lake Tahoe 83
• Sewanee 84
• Separation from the Service 88
• Christmas, 1945 90

Part 4: A Teacher at Brockport

• Cornell again 93
• Attica 95
• Brockport, the beginnings 98
• Candy's arrival 102
• The Social Studies Department and Building I 104
• The Seminar on Great Historians and acceptance at theUniversity of Rochester 107
• Our first house, 339 S. Main St. 109
• Teaching at Buffalo State 112
• The busy family 113
• The Ph.D. General Qualifying Exams 115
• Starting the thesis—Boston Public Library 117
• Crammed agenda—Library of Congress 121
• Finishing the thesis 122
• A new Ph.D., new courses, and promotion to Professor 125
• Public speaking engagements 127
• The tranquil fifties 129
• Summer seminar in Europe 130
• Molly's arrival 135
• Our new house at 3907 Lake Road North 137
• Candy's graduation from Eighth Grade 139

Part 5: Administrative Interlude

• Acting Director of Graduate Studies 143
• Candy's Community Ambassadorship 144
• President Brown's impact on Brockport and Crandall 145
• The blizzard of '66 147
• Candy's High School Graduation 148
• Chair of "unspewed-out guppies" 149
• Origins of the Peace Corps/College Degree Program 149
• Director–Peace Corps/College Degree Program 149
• The turbulent sixties 153
• Candy's Graduate School and marriage 155
• Academic Vice-President 157

Part 6: Return to the Classroom

• Westward Ho in the Winnebago 165
• Back in the classroom 167
• The TV debate 170
• Jill's retirement and honors 171
• Fortieth Anniversary and Surprise Party 173
• Our experiences in Britain and the Continent 173
• New courses 182
• Molly's graduation from Allegheny 183
• "The rainy season" 184
• The passing of and portrait of Grandpa Carlson 186
• My "Meetingful" life in final years at Brockport 187
• The Selling of "3907" 188
• Jill teaching "Com Skills" at The College 189

Part 7: A New Life

• "Early" retirement festivities 193
• Our abortive transcontinental trip 194
• Involvement in Jamestown Area activities and Caribbean cruises 195
• Arrival of Jonathan Paul, "The Boo" 197
• Passing of and portrait of Grandma Carlson 197
• Expanding our chalet—new friends on court and course 199
• Becoming "A Virginian" at Pompano Beach 201
• New friends at Pompano 203
• Our Amtrak adventure, Christmas 1990 204
• Starting the memoirs—the family in print 205
• Reflections 207

Part 8: Selected Speeches and Articles

• Man's Most Dreaded Disease: Hardening of the Categories 210
• Pick a Category: The Conformists, The Cool Ones and The Committed 215
• The CBA's of Brockport's Peace Corps Policy and Program 221
• What, Then is the American? 226
• Letter to the Peace Corps/College Degree Program Alumni 232
• Way Out: The Linguistic Adventures of an American in Britain 234
• Did Spalding Get it Right? 241
• WWII, Korea, Vietnam, Desert Storm—a half century of Vox Populi 248
• Golden Anniversaries Relished in Wake of WWII Generation 252

Part 9: Memories of Dr. Crandal

• Ode to an Aging Alliterator 256
• The Teacher 259
• As We Knew Him 261
• Message from a returned volunteer 263
• Eulogy 265
• Special Thanks 271
• Final Words to Dr. Crandall 272

Photos

• John C. Crandall Ph.D. Facing Page
• Jack with Dad and Mother 4
• Early Childhood 6
• Schools Days 26
• Officer in the Navy 48
• A Teacher at Brockport 92
• Administrative Interlude 142
• Return to the Classroom 164
• A New Life 192
• Golden Memories in San Francisco 254
• Retirement Dinner with PC/CDP alumni 258
• In Uniform in Washington D.C. 272
• High School Student 272
• With Jill in First Home in Fillmore 272
• Picture in Uniform with Jill 273
• Young Professor at Brockport 273
• Senior Picture at Houghton College 273

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