September 12, 2011

In 1928, Walter J. Lemke was hired to direct the news bureau of the University of Arkansas (UA) in Fayetteville (Washington County). That same year, he established the university’s Department of Journalism, serving as its head until his retirement in 1959. Lemke was also a noted author, publishing many works on local history, and he also helped found the Washington County Historical Society. He died in 1968. In 1988, the UA journalism department was named the Walter J. Lemke Department of Journalism.