During Family Weekend students, families and friends had the opportunity to enjoy a variety of events, including student research presentations, a study abroad reception, a family mixer, band party, a fun run/walk, the Order of 1854 ceremony, a choral concert, family trivia night, men’s soccer game and football.
BACK HOME
Tiffany family presents Wofford with rare master’s diploma during Family Weekend
By Robert W. Dalton
When Pete and Katherine Tiffany came to visit their son, Barron Tiffany ’27, on Family Weekend, they brought a present for Wofford College.
Barron’s great-great-grandfather, William S. Hall Jr., an 1891 graduate, did something that few people have done. He earned a master’s degree from Wofford.
The Tiffany family presented Dr. Phillip Stone ’94, college archivist, with Hall’s master’s degree diploma. The gift also included Hall’s undergraduate diploma.
“It’s not that we didn’t want to keep them,” says Katherine, a Family Court judge in Greenville. “But we wanted them to go where they could truly be appreciated. We wanted them to be preserved and displayed in the way they should be. We didn’t want them to just be in a drawer somewhere.”
Wofford has awarded about 254 master’s degrees in its 169-year history, says Stone.
Until the early 1900s, master’s degrees were awarded to graduates who applied and met certain qualifications. From 1904 to 1951, coursework was required to earn the master’s. Many of them were awarded to women, according to Stone.
Stone says Hall’s diplomas will make a nice addition to Wofford’s collection. The diplomas are made of sheepskin and are hand-written in Latin. They are signed by the president, faculty and trustees.
“This is probably the first time these diplomas have been back here since they were awarded,” Stone says. “They’re in really good condition and still have the wax seal. It will be nice to be able to exhibit them every now and then.”
William S. Hall Jr. was well thought of on campus, according to Pete, and was nicknamed Shakespeare.
His father, William S. Hall Sr., attended Wofford from 1858-60, but left without earning a degree because of the Civil War.
Katherine’s parents passed the diplomas to her when they learned that Barron would be attending Wofford. Barron, an undeclared major, says it’s nice to be a part of bringing them home.
“It’s like coming full circle in a way,” Barron says. “They left here with my great-great-grandfather, and now we’ve brought them back.”