Minette Cooper Papers

Collection

Collection ID: MG 110

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The bulk of the collections consists of Virginia Squires basketball programs, as well as Minette Cooper's correspondence and directories related to civic organizations such as Young Audiences of Virginia, Virginia Symphony, Chevra T'helim, Inc., and Hampton Roads Center for Civic Engagement.

Dates

1952-2018, undated
Other: Date acquired: 05/22/2012

Creator

Cooper, Bettie Minette (Person)

Extent

.8 Linear Feet

Conditions Governing Access

Open to researchers without restrictions.

Conditions Governing Use

Before publishing quotations or excerpts from any materials, permission must be obtained from Special Collections and University Archives, and the holder of the copyright, if not Old Dominion University Libraries.

Biographical or Historical Information

Bettie Minette Cooper is active at all levels in the community. She has been President of the Cultural Alliance of Greater Hampton Roads, The Virginia Symphony (1986-1988), and Ohef Sholom Temple, the Chair of the Norfolk Commission on the Arts and Humanities and Vice President for Virginians for the Arts. She is currently serving as the President of Young Audiences of Virginia and as a national board member for Young Audiences, Inc. and on the board of the Future of Hampton Roads. She also sings in the Virginia Symphony Chorus. Minette Cooper is equally involved in education. She is currently a Trustee of Virginia Wesleyan College and a board member for the Institute for Southern Jewish Life in Jackson, Mississippi. She has been a Trustee of the Chrysler Museum, a board member of the Upward Bound Program at Norfolk State University, Director of the YWCA of South Hampton Roads and Director and Officer of the Jewish Community Center of Tidewater. In this collection are programs for the Virginia Squires, an American Basketball Association team that formed in 1970 and lasted until the National Basketball Association-American Basketball Association merger in 1976. The Squires were founded in 1967 as the Oakland Oaks, a charter member of the ABA. The team colors were green and gold. The Oakland Oaks basketball team played in the American Basketball League in 1962 and was owned by Pat Boone. Boone sold the team to Washington, D.C. lawyer Earl Foreman, who moved the team to Washington for the 1969-70 season as the Washington Caps. Merger talks with the NBA were already underway, but a major stumbling block was the presence of the Caps in Washington. Baltimore Bullets owner Abe Pollin wanted to move his team to Washington, but didn't want the Caps there. The other ABA owners persuaded Foreman to move the Caps for the second time in as many seasons. Foreman decided to make the Caps a regional franchise, the Virginia Squires. The team would be based in Norfolk, and also played home games in Hampton, Richmond and Roanoke. However, Roanoke was dropped from the list of "home" cities after only one season. The Squires are most famous for having Julius Erving (Dr. J) on the team from 1971 to 1973.

Note written by Mel Frizzell