Walter Eugene Ranger (1855-1941) was an American academic administrator and who served as the Commissioner of Education of the Rhode Island State Board of Education.
The collection includes the tip of a pen used by Water E. Ranger, secretary of the State Board of Education. A description with the pen tip reads “The first State teacher’s certificate in Rhode Island, and probably the first in America, was signed, with this pen, by Walter E. Ranger, Secy [S]tate Board of Education, 1908.”
Researchers are advised to contact Rhode Island College Special Collections for questions regarding permissions to reproduce, distribute, or otherwise publish material from this collection. Although Rhode Island College has physical ownership of the collection, it does not necessarily hold literary rights. It is up to the researcher to determine the owners of the literary rights and to obtain any necessary permissions from them.
The collection is open for research.
Water Ranger pen, MSS-0114, Special Collections, James P. Adams Library, Rhode Island College.
The collection is arranged in the order in which it arrived in the Rhode Island College Special Collections.
The item was given to Rhode Island College Library Director, Richard A. Olsen, in 1972 by Charles B. Willard, who was Vice President of Academic Affairs at Rhode Island College at the time. It was subsequently added to Special Collections.
The collection was described by Special Collections intern, Melissa Moniz, in 2023 under the supervision of Digital Archivist and Special Collections Librarian, Veronica L. Denison.
Sometime prior to 1972, Charles B. Willard, who was Vice President of Academic Affairs at Rhode Island College at the time, came into possession of this item.
This collection has not been digitized. For information about obtaining digital copies, please contact the Rhode Island College Special Collections.