Coe College People: C.D. "Dad" Meyers, Custodian of Coe

The People tab on the site "Coe College History: the First Hundred Years" is broken down into sub-categories.  Are you interested in Coe's Alumni or it's Presidents?  How about Friends or Visitors?  You can also choose from Faculty, Staff and Trustees.  In all more than 60 individuals from Coe's history are recorded here.  You may be surprised on who you find.

One of the individuals remembered is C.D. "Dad" Meyers, Custodian of Coe.  Mr. Meyers, or Dad as he was affectionately nicknamed,  was Coe's custodian from 1893-1922.  He dedicated 29 years to the college and retired only when health complications made it difficult to complete his work.  He was 80 at the time.  A search of student publications from those years will reveal poems, verses, and cartoons depicting this beloved custodian, one of which is recorded on "Coe College History: the First Hundred Years":

In the halls of old Coe College
Of the great and famed Coe College
Stands our Prof of Dust and Ashes
Mr. Myers of dust-pan fame.
How he sweeps and dusts and shovels,
How he rakes and mows the campus,
How he yells for old Coe College,
For the great and famed Coe College.

You can find another one on page 6 and 7 of the Ditty Book by Don Chilcote and "Buddy" Burrows.  Most often Mr. Myers was depicted in his duties taking care of the lawn:

Known for his lawn care, Myers would instruct students at the beginning of each school term to keep off the grass. "Then, as if by magic, fences spring up across the places where people have been accustomed to make short cuts, and flower beds are dug up and planted. Soon comes the time when Mr. Myers can show his true worth. When this green grass springs up and begins to lengthen, then his portly form may be seen calmly and serenely following the lawn lower as it makes its regular trips across the campus...thus comes our beautiful campus," The Acorn, 1903.

A busy man, he still found time to attend Coe's athletic events and swap stories with the boys.  You can find the full article on this beloved custodian here.

~Sara Pitcher, Archives Assistant