Frank C. Chalfant studied at France's University of Grenoble in the summer of 1909 and was exposed there to the use of phonographs in a laboratory setting for the study of foreign languages. In 1911, he installed a “language laboratory” at Washington State College, apparently the first in the United States. Students used dictaphones (phonograph recording machines) to playback their own attempts to speak foreign languages, and also listened as a class to recordings of foreign languages via a networked audio system.
The collection consists of seven 6.5" x 8.5" glass plate negatives, and five 4"x5" glass plate negatives. Four photographic prints created by MASC from these are also included. The images depict Washington State College's language laboratory in the 1920s, and include use of dictaphones. Among the images are ones depicting faculty members Chalfant and Margarete Meinhardt.
Materials are retained in their original order.
This collection is open and available for research use.
Copyright restrictions may apply.
[Item description]
Frank C. Chalfant Language Laboratory Photographs, 1910s (PC 48)
Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections, Washington State University Libraries, Pullman, WA.
Items have been sleeved for protection.
A few additional images of the language laboratory can be found in the Washington State University Photographs, Subject File, 1892-1999
This collection is indexed under the following headings in the online catalog. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons, or places should search the catalog using these headings.