Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use

The copyright status of this collection is unknown. Copyright restrictions may apply. Contact Special Collections and University Archives for assistance in determining the use of these materials.

Reproduction or digitization of materials for personal or research use can be requested using our reproduction/digitization form: http://bit.ly/scuareproduction . Reproduction or digitization of materials for publication or exhibit use can be requested using our publication/exhibition form: http://bit.ly/scuapublication . Please contact Special Collections and University Archives (specref@vt.edu or 540-231-6308) if you need assistance with forms or to submit a completed form.

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open for research.

Preferred Citation

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [identification of item], [box], [folder], G. Preston Frazer Collection, Ms2009-098, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

Source of Acquisition

The G. Preston Frazer Collection was donated to Special Collections in 2008.

Processing Information

The processing, arrangement, and description of the G. Preston Frazer Collection commenced and was completed in June 2009.

Biographical Note - G. Preston Frazer

G. (George) Preston Frazer was born in Davidson, Tennessee, February 4, 1908, to George Augustine and Sadie (Warner) Frazer. He received a BA in Liberal Arts from the Virginia Military Institute in 1929. In 1935, he completed a BS in Engineering at the University of Hawaii, and in 1937, a Masters of Architecture at Harvard University. During World War II, he served with the Second Armored Division in Europe and North Africa. He remained in the Army Reserves until 1968. From 1939 to 1940 and from 1946 to 1974, he taught in the Art Department of Virginia Tech. Following his retirement, Frazer continued to support Virginia Tech, which continues to be among the many institutions to display donations of his work. Frazer died at his home in Catawba, North Carolina, on September 10, 2003.

Biographical Note - Marcus L. Oliver

Marcus L. Oliver graduated from VPI in 1947 with a BS in Argicultural Education. In 1949, he obtained a MS from the University of North Carolina. From 1949 to 1968, he worked for the Virginia Tech Alumni Association in several capacities: Assistant Secretary (1949-1960), Secretary (1960-1965), Director of Alumni Affairs (1965-1966), and Director of Placement (1966-1968). After Virginia Tech, Oliver served as the Director of Development, then Director of Annual Giving at the University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee.

Scope and Content

The collection contains correspondence between G. Preston Frazer and Marcus L. Oliver. The letters are mostly personal exchanges, but there are also several letters relating to Frazer's donation of portraits to Botetourt County, Virginia, and the Montgomery Bell Academy in Nashville, Tennessee. Additional materials include photocopies of newspapers articles, a signed Sixteen Pencil Impressions from Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.A. , and Frazer's obituary.

Related Material

See the following materials, which are also at Virginia Tech Special Collections and University Archives:

G. Preston Frazer Artwork, Ms1992-055

Marcus L. Oliver Correspondence, Ms2009-096

Walter Gropius/G. Preston Frazer Papers, Ms1992-052

Subjects and Indexing Terms

• Faculty and staff
• University History
• Virginia Polytechnic Institute (1944-1970)
• Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (1970-)

Rights Statement for Archival Description

The guide to the G. Preston Frazer Collection by Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, is licensed under a CC0 ( https://creativecommons.org/share-your-work/public-domain/cc0/ ).