Title: Harold A. Engel Papers
Inclusive Dates: 1922-1968

Creator:

• Engel, Harold A., 1903-1985

Call Number: U.S. Mss 138AF

Quantity: 2.0 c.f. (5 archives boxes)

Repository:

Wisconsin Historical Society, Division of Library, Archives, and Museum Collections

Archival Locations:

COLLECTION MAY BE STORED OFF-SITE: see catalog entry to request materials and for additional information.

Wisconsin Historical Society (Map)

Abstract:

Papers of Harold Engel, an educational broadcaster associated with WHA and WHA-TV, Madison, Wisconsin (1931-1968), as assistant director in charge of legislative and public relations. The collection deals exclusively with educational broadcasting and contains articles, clippings, surveys, and reports. Most documentation concerns the development of WHA, particularly its early history; Malcolm P. Hanson, Harold B. McCarty, and other staff members; campaigns for increased air time; television facilities; FM broadcasting; and building plans. The balance deals with Engel's other activities in educational broadcasting through the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association, National Association of FM Broadcasters, the University of Wisconsin Radio and Television Committee, and with other Wisconsin educational stations such as WMVS, WLBL, and WUMW-TV. Prominent correspondents include August Derleth and Hans V. Kaltenborn.

Language: English

URL to cite for this finding aid: http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.uw-whs-us0138af

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Harold Engel is most notable for his long (1931-1968) association with WHA radio and television, one of the oldest stations in the United States, at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. Through this association, he became a promotor of educational broadcasting in the state during the formative years of radio and television.

Born in 1903 in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, Engel attended Ripon College (B.A., 1925) and the University of Wisconsin (M.A., Economics, 1932). It was only after teaching junior high school in Flint, Michigan (1925-1928) and writing advertisements for General Motors, that Engel joined the staff of WHA radio. He began with the production of a children's safety program and helped to organize other educational programs, e.g. the Wisconsin College of the Air, 1933. A major part of Engel's career at WHA, however, was given over to legislative and public relations.

As a long-time assistant director of WHA, Engel took an active part in the expansion of the station's facilities. This included a move to Radio Hall in 1934 and the early planning and promotion in the 1950s and 1960s of a communication arts building on the University of Wisconsin campus. His desire to increase WHA services led to attempts to secure a clear channel (unsuccessful) in the 1930s, FM in the late 1940s, and television in the early 1950s.

Engel's activity in behalf of educational broadcasting extended beyond the confines of WHA's operations. He championed the construction of a state-wide FM network and fought against the encroachments of commercial radio and television broadcasters. Also, during much of his tenure at WHA, Engel served as professor of radio (and later television) education at the University of Wisconsin.

In addition to his work in Wisconsin, Engel served as a consultant to the New Mexico Radio Service (1935-1936), to the Rocky Mountain Public Radio Council (1937), and to the Philippines in 1950 (as a Fulbright Scholar) and 1966-1967. He also spent some time in 1945 studying the operation of the British Broadcasting Corporation. Engel's organizational affiliations included the Wisconsin State Radio Council, Wisconsin Broadcasters' Association, National Association of Educational Broadcasters (Executive Secretary, 1938-1941; President, 1941-1942, 1946-1948), and the National Association of FM Broadcasters (Educational Director, 1963-1964).

The papers of Harold Engel deal exclusively with educational broadcasting. Major emphasis is upon his connection with WHA radio and television. The papers are divided into six major categories. The first is personal; the next four are related to WHA: radio operations in general, radio service, television, and building plans. The final one consists of other radio and television material.

The PERSONAL material is that which concerns educational broadcasting but does not specifically pertain to WHA operations. Included here are articles by Engel, a report that Engel helped to draft for the Rocky Mountain Public Radio Council in 1937, and correspondence and printed items concerning his relationship to the Wisconsin Broadcasters' Association, State Radio Council, and the National Association of FM Broadcasters. There is also biographical data located here.

WHA RADIO, GENERAL contains a variety of information on WHA: early development, policy statements, staff (including Malcolm Hanson, an early employee, ^[1] and articles and speeches by Harold B. McCarty, station director, 1931-1968), programs, plans for growth, correspondence of Engel with Wisconsin legislators, as well as articles about WHA. Unfortunately, there are only bits and pieces of information about each topic. The same is true for the section on WHA RADIO SERVICE. For the most part this section deals with the campaigns for a clear channel and FM. In both cases there is a significant amount of opposition correspondence, clippings, and other items. Notable is Engel's involvement in refuting charges by the Chicago Tribune (1938) that WHA was controlled by the “La Follette machine” (for which he received a letter of support from Hans V. Kaltenborn, November 5, 1938), as well as his opposition to a related attempt by commercial stations to have WHA taken off the air.

WHA TELEVISION consists primarily of correspondence (including a letter, April 9, 1953, from August Derleth to Mrs. Fred Risser), resolutions, and news clippings that deal with the campaign to establish educational television in Wisconsin in the early 1950s. Again, the opposition is represented; this time by material relating to the Wisconsin Committee on State-Owned, Tax-Supported Television. A facilities improvement proposal, 1958-1960, a bid for assignment of Channel 3 (then operated by WISC-TV), and articles on WHA-TV are also included.

The section on WHA RADIO AND TELEVISION, BUILDING PLANS is not very extensive considering Engel's part in the expansion of WHA's facilities. There is some documentation of his activity for a communication arts building, dating from the 1940s and 1950s, and information on building alterations, 1938-1954.

The section of OTHER RADIO AND TELEVISION MATERIALS, in addition to a volume of annual reports, 1938-1957, for the University of Wisconsin Radio-Television Committee, is limited to material relating to other Wisconsin stations in which Engel took interest as an educational broadcaster. Represented here is Engel's involvement with WLBL (a related state-owned station at Steven's Point, later Auburndale), the role that he played in the fight of WMVS-TV, Milwaukee Vocational School, against a takeover of its channel by a commercial station, 1953-1955, and the establishment of WUWM-FM, 1957-1964, the Milwaukee campus station of the University of Wisconsin.

Acquisition Information

Presented by Harold Engel, Madison, Wisconsin, January 1964, December 1965 and June 1968. Accession Number: MCHC64-4, MCHC65-137 and MCHC68-66.

Processing Information

Processed by R.H. Tryon, October 4, 1976.

U.S. Mss 138AF	Series: Personal
Box   1 Folder   1	Biographical information
Box   1 Folder   2	Articles by Harold Engel
Box   1 Folder   3	Survey for the Rocky Mountain Public Radio Service, 1937
Box   1 Folder   4	Wisconsin Broadcasters' Association
Box   1 Folder   5	Wisconsin State Radio Council
Box   1 Folder   6	National Association of FM Broadcasters, 1962-1964
	Series: WHA Radio, General	⇧
Box   1 Folder   7	Early development, 1922, 1936-1962
Box   1 Folder   8	Oldest station controversy
Box   1 Folder   9	Twenty-sixth anniversary, 1945
Box   1 Folder   10	Historical marker, 1957-1964
Box   1 Folder   11	Articles concerning WHA radio
Box   1 Folder   12	Announcer's manual, undated
Box   1 Folder   13	Policy statements, 1928-circa 1950
	Staff members
Box   1 Folder   14	Malcolm Hanson, 1922, 1947-1958
Box   1 Folder   15	Harold B. McCarty
Box   1 Folder   16	Others (i.e., former WHA employees at other stations, 1937-1942)
	Programs
Box   1 Folder   17	College of the Air
Box   1 Folder   18	School of the Air, 1933-1935 Note: Includes survey, 1935.
Box   1 Folder   19	Radio study groups sponsored by the National Youth Administration, 1936-1937
Box   1 Folder   20	Legislative Forum, 1941-1953
Box   1 Folder   21	Finances, 1933-1939
Box   2 Folder   1	Wisconsin State Prison (Waupun) listeners, 1934
Box   2 Folder   2	Statistics and studies concerning the operations of WHA radio, 1932-1937
Box   2 Folder   3	Plans for future growth considered from 1934 to 1940
Box   2 Folder   4	Controversy, 1935-1939, concerning the broadcasting of music
Box   2 Folder   5-6	Correspondence of Harold Engel with members of the U.S. House and Senate (primarily from Wisconsin) concerning WHA radio, 1938-1947
Box   2 Folder   7	Miscellaneous material concerning WHA radio
	Series: WHA Radio Service	⇧
	Campaign for a clear channel (increased power and hours)
Box   2 Folder   8	General, 1933-1939
Box   2 Folder   9	Letters and resolutions of support, 1933-1938
Box   2 Folder   10	Letters of support from Wisconsin mayors, 1934
Box   2 Folder   11	Correspondence between Harold Engel and A. Ballard Walton, a supporter of educational broadcasting, of Lakeside, Ohio, 1937-1939
Box   3 Folder   1	Opposition by commercial radio stations WTMJ, Milwaukee, and WIBA, Madison; includes their attempt to eliminate WHA and WLBL (Stevens Point), 1933-1934
Box   3 Folder   2	Charges by the Chicago Tribune, 1938, that WHA is controlled by the “La Follette machine”
	Campaign for FM
Box   3 Folder   3	General, 1946-1952
Box   3 Folder   4	Opposition by the League of Wisconsin Radio Stations, 1946-1948
Box   3 Folder   5	Use of Rib Mountain State Park as a site for an FM antenna, 1945-1948
Box   3 Folder   6	Interference from WTCH, Shawano, Wisconsin, 1948-1951
Box   3 Folder   7-8	Application to the Federal Communications Commission for 750 kilocycles, 1959-1964
	Series: WHA Television	⇧
	Campaign for Educational Television
Box   3 Folder   9-11	General, 1951-1955
Box   3 Folder   12	News clippings, 1952-1954
Box   4 Folder   1	Opposition by the Wisconsin Committee on State-Owned, Tax-Supported Television, 1953-1954
Box   4 Folder   2	Opposition by the Republican (State) Convention, 1954
Box   4 Folder   3	Miscellany
Box   4 Folder   4	Facilities improvement proposal, 1958-1960
Box   4 Folder   5	Assignment of Channel 3 (WISC-TV), 1961, sought by WHA-TV
Box   4 Folder   6	Articles about WHA-TV
	Series: WHA Radio and TV, Building Plans	⇧
Box   4 Folder   7	Building alterations, 1938-1954
Box   4 Folder   8	Radio arts building proposal by William Tamminga, 1949 Note: M.A. thesis, Architecture, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Box   4 Folder   9	Building proposals for WHA and related departments of the University of Wisconsin, 1946-1958
	Series: Other Radio and Television Material	⇧
	Annual reports, 1938-1957, of the University of Wisconsin Committee on Radio and Television Physical Description: 1 volume
Box   5 Folder   1-2	WLBL, Stevens Point and Auburndale, Wisconsin
Box   5 Folder   3	WMVS-TV, Milwaukee Vocational School, fight against channel takeover by a commercial station, 1953-1955
Box   5 Folder   4	WUWM-FM, Milwaukee campus of the University of Wisconsin, 1957-1964

See also the Malcolm Hanson Papers, 1906-1947, for additional material.