1. Historic honor
The Bell Building on campus originally was part of Ullman High School. It is named for George Bell, Ullman High's first principal, who served from 1937 until 1965. According to Joseph Volker, D.D.S., Ph.D., UAB's first president, it likely was the first building on a predominantly white college campus in the South named for an African American. In the photo below, Volker and Bell family members dedicate the building in 1971.
2. The first victory
UAB President S. Richardson Hill Jr., M.D., held up this bumper sticker at the 1977 press conference announcing the hiring of Coach Gene Bartow from UCLA. It was a big win because UCLA was the country's top basketball program at the time. Bartow served as men's basketball head coach until 1996 and inaugural athletic director until 2000.
3. Breaking ground for groundbreaking care
When the Board of Lady Managers broke ground for Hillman Hospital in 1902, this red, white, and blue ribbon adorned the shovel. Originally a private charity facility and then a county hospital, Hillman paved the way for the birth and growth of the Medical Center and more than a century of expert health care.
4. A nod from the First Lady
After a traveling exhibit honoring the assassinated President John F. Kennedy visited the Medical Center in 1964, Jackie Kennedy wrote a note of thanks to Joseph Volker. The black band around the letter indicates that it was typed on mourning stationery.
5. Show business
Birmingham's Virginia Samford Theatre once was UAB’s Town and Gown Theater, a hub for professional productions that often attracted notable talent. This photo shows the first production after UAB became an autonomous university in 1969—Hello, Dolly!, starring Alabama actress Boots Carroll.
6. Up, up, and away
Before launching into orbit aboard the space shuttle Columbia in 1992, School of Optometry researcher Larry DeLucas, O.D., Ph.D., completed the paperwork required for faculty traveling internationally—with some clever responses.
