Armenian Nationality Room Committee collection, 1975-2011

Arrangement

Repository
ULS Archives & Special Collections
Title
Armenian Nationality Room Committee Collection
Creator
University of Pittsburgh. Nationality Rooms Program. Armenian Nationality Room Committee
Collection Number
UA.40.20.04
Extent
5.5 Linear Feet (6) Boxes
Date
1975-2011
Abstract
The Armenian Nationality Room Collection holds records documenting the planning, design, funding, construction, and promotion of the Armenian Nationality Room in the University of Pittsburgh's Nationality Rooms Program at the Cathedral of Learning. The majority of the collection was originally assembled by Charles Klanian and later donated to the Nationality Rooms Program Office, while a 2001 deposit was originally housed and maintained by the Programs Office.
Language
The majority of material in this collection is in English with select documents in Western and Eastern Armenian.
Author
Emily Reed.
Publisher
ULS Archives & Special Collections
Address
University of Pittsburgh Library System
Archives & Special Collections
Website: library.pitt.edu/archives-special-collections
Business Number: 412-648-3232 (Thomas) | 412-648-8190 (Hillman)
Contact Us: www.library.pitt.edu/ask-archivist
URL: http://library.pitt.edu/archives-special-collections

Accruals

Further accruals are expected from the activities of the Committee.

Arrangement

The collection is arranged into the following series:

Series I. Planning

Series II. Design and Construction

Series III. Active Use

Series IV: Oversized Records

Series V: Multimedia

Series IV. 2001 Deposit

History

Dedicated on August 28, 1988, the Armenian Nationality Room (ANR) took ten years to design, fund, and construct. It is located on the third floor of the Cathedral of Learning and is the twenty-first Nationality Classroom completed. Charles Klanian, Chairman of the Armenian Nationality Room Committee was the driving force behind the formation of the Armenian Nationality Committee. It began with the incorporation of the Armenian-American Club of Pittsburgh in 1977 whose purpose was to raise funds for the construction and maintenance of the room.

Due to the small size of the Armenian community in Pittsburgh, funding issues delayed the building of the classroom until notable donations by David and Lois Shakarian, and Alex and Marie Mangooian were secured. Torkom Khrimian, a Los Angeles architect, was contracted to complete the design of the classroom. Eugene V. Dotter was established as Engineer of the Record, and James Gerald as Associate Architect. John Deklewa & Sons, Inc. was selected as the project's contractor.

The Matenadran (library) at the Sanahin Monastery in Northern Armenia became the major design inspiration for the ANR. Columns supporting the ceiling and dome, a yertik (octagonal opening in the dome), and stone masonry were major components incorporated into construction and drawn from Armenian architectural tradition. The final design emulates 10th and 12th century Armenian architecture and was constructed of 22 tons of steel and Indiana limestone. Other features include the carved wood furniture, inscribed walls in Armenian script, wrought iron decorations, and replicated and authentic cultural artifacts. The goal of the committe was to create a public space that supported the visibility of the Armenian community in Pittsburgh and showcased the cultural and intellectual achievements of all Armenians.

Existence and Location of Copies

Video and audio materials of the collection have copies located in the Nationality Rooms Program office.

Processing Information

The Klanian collection was processed and the finding aid created between June 2014 by Emily Reed, Nationality Rooms Archivist Intern. The 2001 deposit was processed by Nationality Rooms Program staff in 2001.

Klanian's original chronological order was maintained. Irrelevant records and extra copies were weeded from the collection. Two boxes of previously processed Armenian Room materials (2001) were added to the collection in Series VI. Records in Western or Eastern Armenian have an abstract translated by Mariam Sogoian.

Acquisition Information

The Armenian Nationality Room Collection was created by Charles Klanian, previous Chairman for the Armenian Nationality Room Committee, and donated to the Nationality Rooms Program office by Klanian heirs after his death. In accordance with preserving activities of each classroom on the Nationality Council, the records were collected and maintained by the Nationality Rooms Program staff.

Previous Citation

Armenian Nationality Room Committee Collection, 1975-2011, UA.40.20.04, University of Pittsburgh Archives

Preferred Citation

Armenian Nationality Room Committee Collection, 1975-2011, UA.40.20.04,University Archives, Archives & Special Collections, University of Pittsburgh Library System

Scope and Content Notes

The Armenian Nationality Room collection holds records documenting the planning, designing, funding, creating, and promoting of the Armenian Nationality Room in the University of Pittsburgh's Nationality Rooms Program at the Cathedral of Learning. The majority of the collection was originally assembled by Charles Klanian and later donated to the Nationality Rooms Program Office, while a 2001 deposit was originally housed and maintained by the Programs Office.

The collection is arranged by series and subseries. There are six series in total. The first series is composed of records from the Armenian-American Club of Pittsburgh Foundation, which shows the beginning plans for the Armenian Nationality Room and Committee. These records include progress reports, event documentation, expense reports, travel expense notebooks, fundraising and donation notices, member and donor information, community news, research materials, and a documentation of a trip to Armenia during the years 1975 to 1985. The second series is composed of records from the years 1986-1988; those records contain information about progress reports, events, expense reports, travel expenses, fundraising and donations, member and donor information, research, the final design of the classroom, and publicity, plans for a dedication book, and records of the room dedication. The third series has records of progress reports, events, travel expenses, fundraising and donations, member and donor information, publicity, and room additions made in the years 1989 to 2011. The fourth series is composed of oversized design and architectural records that had to be physically separated from the rest of the collection. The fifth series contains visual and audio multimedia: slides, photographs, contact sheets, negatives, photographic prints, 3/4" umatic video tape, VHS tape, audio cassette tape, and 1/4" audio tape.

The last series, Series VI, holds the 2001 Collection which is composed of Armenian Nationality Room records that were developed into a collection by the Nationality Rooms Program staff members in 2001.This 2001 Collection is composed entirely of papers relating to the Armenian Nationality Classroom generated by, or sent to, the Nationality Rooms Program office. Researchers should note these is a more complete account of room events hosted by the Armenian Nationality Room Committee in this series.

Copyright

The University of Pittsburgh holds the property rights to the material in this collection, but the copyright may still be held by the original creator/author. Researchers are therefore advised to follow the regulations set forth in the U.S. Copyright Code when publishing, quoting, or reproducing material from this collection without the consent of the creator/author or that go beyond what is allowed by fair use.

Subjects

    Corporate Names

    • University of Pittsburgh. Nationality Rooms Program. Armenian Nationality Room Committee
    • Nationality Rooms (Cathedral of Learning, Pittsburgh, Pa.)
    • Armenian-American Club of Pittsburgh (Pa.)
    • Armenian Nationality Classroom (Cathedral of Learning, Pittsburgh, Pa)
    • University of Pittsburgh. Nationality Rooms Program

    Personal Names

    • Klanian, Charles S.
    • Shakarian, David
    • Mangooian, Alex
    • Bruhns, E. Maxine

    Genres

    • Minutes (Administrative records)
    • Video recordings (physical artifacts)
    • Sound recordings
    • Photographs
    • Financial records
    • Correspondence
    • Architectural drawings (Visual works)

    Other Subjects

    • Armenians -- Pennsylvania -- Pittsburgh
    • Armenian Americans -- Pennsylvania -- Pittsburgh
    • Universities and colleges -- Pennsylvania -- Pittsburgh
    • Classrooms -- Pennsylvania -- Pittsburgh

Container List