mustard dish, George A. Flaccus; Westmoreland Specialty Glass Company

Artwork Overview

mustard dish, George A. Flaccus; Westmoreland Specialty Glass Company
mustard dish, George A. Flaccus; Westmoreland Specialty Glass Company
George A. Flaccus ; Westmoreland Specialty Glass Company
mustard dish
circa 1898
George A. Flaccus, designer
active late 1800s–early 1900s
Westmoreland Specialty Glass Company, manufacturer
founded 1889
mustard dish, circa 1898
Where object was made: United States
Material/technique: pressed opaque white glass
Credit line: William Bridges Thayer Memorial
Accession number: 1928.3183.a,b
On display: Brosseau Learning Center
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Brosseau Center for Learning: In Conversation with the 2025–26 KU Common Book

On February 15, 1898, the USS Maine exploded and sank in Havana Harbor. Journalists seized the opportunity to build support for the Spanish-American War by penning “Remember the Maine!” Milk glass mustard dishes such as this one were popular to spread the rallying cry.

Similar battle cries have been used throughout history to inspire groups to adopt the same patriotic or religious feelings and attitude. Cries can be arousing and encourage a sense of belonging and loyalty. Or they can be aggressive, ideological, and jingoistic. They’re almost always catchy and an efficient way to identify your team.

In the summer of 2011, I visited Beijing with students from KU. In a group of sixteen undergraduates, there was always a good chance that at least one of them would dress in red and blue. On the day we toured the Olympic stadium, we heard “ROCK CHALK!” echo from behind a nearby bus as we walked through the parking lot. It turns out there was a family from Olathe, KS, touring China that week, and we happened to run into them. Since my group had been in China for three weeks by then, several of the students were excited to find someone who shared a love of the alma mater they were missing.

In 1886, E. H. S. Bailey, chemistry professor, suggested “Rah, Rah, Jay Hawk” to the members of the Science Club who were looking for a cheer to unify members. The next year, a rival geology professor swapped in “Rock Chalk” to give it that extra connection to our beloved Mount Oread. And the rest is history—with the small detour of Theodore Roosevelt proclaiming it “the greatest college cheer ever devised.”

Legend holds that the Rock Chalk chant has been heard around the world from battle trenches in the European theater of World War I to the Olympics in Belgium in response to a request for an American college yell. I prefer to think of it as the best way to find my fellow Jayhawks.

Kevin Liu gives college cheers four stars. (Battle cries get three stars.)

Exhibitions

Brosseau Center for Learning: Whiteout
2022–2023
Brosseau Center for Learning: In Conversation with the 2025–26 KU Common Book
Scott Barber, curator
Wyatt Haywood, curator
Suzanne Huffman, curator
Ellen Joo, curator
Luke Jordan, curator
Arial Kim, curator
Doug Bergstrom, curator
Susan Earle, curator
Sofía Galarza Liu, curator
Kevin Liu, curator
Kate Meyer, curator
Cara Nordengren, curator
Hana Rose North, curator
Liz Pfeiffer, curator
Sydney Pursel, curator
Rachel Straughn-Navarro, curator
Eli Troen, curator
Maggie Vaughn, curator