Littlejohn, James C. (James Corcoran), 1888-1959

James Corcoran Littlejohn was born November 27, 1888 at Jonesville, S.C. He graduated from Clemson Agricultural College in 1908 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical and Mechanical Engineering. He worked for the college as electrician and instructor in woodwork and engineering until he was appointed Clemson's registrar in 1910. Littlejohn became Clemson College's Business Manager in 1926, a post he held until his retirement in 1954. During this period Clemson weathered the Great Depression and the effects of World War II as well as the post war return of veterans to college. Littlejohn oversaw the management of many construction projects during these years and took an active interest in the cadet corps and Clemson alumni. In 1952, Littlejohn was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Engineering degree. He was active in the Clemson Baptist Church, the Rotary Club, the Masons, and was a member of the Phi Kappa Phi, Tau Beta Pi and Blue Key fraternities, as well as the Tiger Brotherhood and Alumni Association. He was instrumental in planning Class Reunions. He was married to Mary Poats and had two sons, James P. and Samuel M., and one daughter, Mary Katherine. After his retirement in 1954, Littlejohn continued gathering material for a history of Clemson College which was never published but serves as the source for the material found in Mss 68 J.C. Littlejohn Papers. He died on January 30, 1959.

Mary Katherine "Sooky" Littlejohn was born to James Corcoran and Mary Poats Littlejohn on March 9, 1921. Growing up at Clemson College Mary Katherine developed a deep affection for the institution. After taking summer sessions on Clemson's all-male military campus, Mary Katherine graduated with a degree in commerce from Winthrop University in 1942. Soon she began working in the Clemson College Registrar's Office. She volunteered for the Army Special Services and was selected as a host at the Allied Expeditionary Force Clubs. Mary Katherine was posted in London and later Paris during the last year of the war. Upon her return to the United States after World War II, Mary Katherine went to New York to pursue a master's degree at Columbia University. In New York she worked for Columbia University and the Finch International Study Program and was on the faculty of New York City University. She later returned to Clemson and served as director of adult education at Tri-County Technical College until her retirement in 1983. She was often asked to speak to groups about the early Clemson she knew as a child and the tales about it told by her father. Recognizing the interest in those stories and hoping to preserve the heritage and spirit of Clemson, she penned "Tales of Tigertown," which was published in 1979. She established a scholarship in honor of J.C. and Mary Poats Littlejohn with the proceeds from the book. Her stories proved to be so popular that she later published a second volume, "Twice Told Tales of Tigertown." Those proceeds went to nursing scholarships. She died January 18, 2001 and is buried along with her parents in Clemson University's Woodland Cemetery. She donated her home, built by her parents in 1937, to the University. (Mary Katherine Littlejohn biography based upon "Clemson World" article, winter 2005).

From the description of Littlejohn family papers, 1904-1995, (bulk 1906-1969). (Clemson University Libraries). WorldCat record id: 429916190