Bob Musselman was excited about his interview for admission to the University of Virginia. A senior at Woodberry Forest School in Orange, Va., Musselman wanted to attend Mr. Jefferson’s University in the fall of 1931.

On the eve of his interview, Musselman received a telephone call from the dean of admissions telling him the interview was cancelled and that he should not come down to Charlottesville the next day. Disappointed, Musselman asked why.

"Haven’t you heard?" the dean asked. "University President Alderman passed away, and the funeral is tomorrow."

Despite the minor setback, Musselman ultimately had his interview, was admitted, and entered the University as a first-year student in the fall of 1931. So began a lifetime relationship with the University of Virginia and The Cavalier Daily that continues to this day.

The Undergraduate Experience

After spending the first couple months of his first year settling in to life on Grounds, Musselman tried out for College Topics, as The Cavalier Daily was then known. As a former editor of his high school paper, Musselman had a strong interest in journalism, particularly editing.

As expected, Musselman was selected to join the College Topics staff. He spent his first two years as a news reporter, working from the basement of Madison Hall were the newspaper offices were located.

Musselman still remembers the first story he wrote for College Topics that fall of 1931—it was a front-page story about the appointment of Dean Manahan as head of the School of Education.

While he spent a good deal of time writing during his first two years at the University, Musselman admits that he was not enamored with the task.

"I have always been more of an editor than a writer," Musselman said. "My goal was to be able to edit what others wrote for the paper."

That goal was achieved when Musselman was elected managing editor of College Topics in April of 1934. College Topics elections occurred in early April each year, between the third and fourth quarters.

As managing editor, Musselman was responsible for overseeing the staff of about 35 to 40 people and directing the content of the paper, which generally ran four pages. The managing editor was also a key person on the 15-member managing board of College Topics.

Like with many groups, the College Topics staff was divided into different factions. The managing board generally was controlled by persons from the Madison Lane fraternities, particularly St. Anthony’s Hall.

After a year as managing editor, Musselman decided to run for editor-in-chief. The Hall did not have anyone to run for EIC, so the competition came down to Musselman and Ed Hirschler, a member of ZBT. The Madison Lane fraternity faction backed Musselman, and he was elected EIC in April of 1935. (Hirschler, who later went on to found a prominent Richmond, Va., law firm, was elected managing editor.)

"Editor was the perfect job for me," Musselman said. "We published on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, so we worked from 6 p.m. until 1 or 2 a.m. each night before."

During his tenure on the managing board, the paper moved from publishing at the Michie Company to using the printing press at the Albemarle News, a small local newspaper.

As EIC, one of Musselman’s responsibilities was to supervise the production of the paper. In the 1930s, production involved the painstaking process of hand-setting linotype.

"It obviously was much different than printing today," Musselman said. "Linotype was tedious and involved a great deal of patience."

As would be expected, Musselman’s tenure as EIC did not pass without controversy erupting in the University community. Musselman remembers fondly—as only a former Cavalier Daily/College Topics staffer can—his run-ins with the administration and student government.

"In my fourth-year, we had a big row with the Honor Committee about the election of student officers," Musselman said. "The Honor Committee controlled its own elections, and the paper had been pushing for reforms to make the election process more fair."

According to Musselman, the Honor Committee finally bowed to pressure from College Topics and agreed to certain reforms, including requiring candidates to be in good standing academically. Such a requirement disqualified several football players who were the candidates supported by the Honor Committee. On the day before the election, the Honor Committee reversed itself and said the new rules would not go into effect, thereby placing all the candidates on the ballot.

"We got out an extra paper that night," Musselman said. "We were mad that the Honor Committee would use such tactics." (See Extra Edition.)

Due to public outrage generated by the Honor Committee’s actions, the elections were voided by the Student Senate later that week, and new elections were held with the reforms in place.

Later during his year as EIC, College Topics drew fire from the administration. A College Topics editorial sharply criticized the resident assistant system, pointing out a number of flaws that students saw in its structure and implementation. (See Resident Life Editorial.)

Musselman was summoned to the dean’s office and directed to print an apology in the next issue.

"We printed an apology, but it was worded such that the apology was more damaging than the original editorial," Musselman said, a smile coming to his face as he remembers the event. "That was the only time the administration ever stepped in."

A Lifetime of Service

Even after he graduated with a B.S. in German, Musselman remained actively involved with the University community. He taught accounting and law at the University for more than 23 years, from 1936 through 1959. In addition to teaching, Musselman got a master’s degree in political science in the late 1930s and then earned a law degree from U.Va. in 1945.

"I was turned down for military service during World War II, so I went to law school in 1942," Musselman said. "The law school was in Clark Hall then, and the enrollment never got over 45 students. When the war ended in 1945, the law school enrollment increased to about 450 in less than four months."

After graduating from the Law School in 1945, Musselman continued to teach at the University while starting his own law firm with an emphasis on tax law and accounting. He stopped teaching in 1959 in order to spend more time with his family and concentrate on his legal practice.

Today, at the age of 84, Musselman continues to go to work every day as the head of Musselman & Associates law firm in Charlottesville. He also has remained active with the University, and especially with the Cavalier Daily Alumni Association.

As one of the early directors of the CDAA, Musselman has been actively involved in helping The Cavalier Daily and its staff members through the years. Musselman is a current member of the CDAA board of directors and one of the most consistent attendees at CDAA board meetings.