Crop of page 176 of the 1953 Pitt student yearbook, the Owl. Originally this issue of The Owl was seemingly published without a copyright notice, but even if it was published with a copyright notice of 1953, this issue of The Owl student yearbook would have had to be renewed in 1980.

This work was originally published before 1964 had to have the copyright renewed sometime in the 28th year. If the copyright was not renewed the work is in the public domain. Renewals for copyrights from 1951 onward (and some, but not all, renewals for 1950 copyrights), as well as original registrations from 1978 onward are available online from the Copyright Office's Copyright Records web site. Online searches, regardless of year, of Copyright Office's Copyright Records web site for The Owl, editor Barbara Millen, the business manager Karl Meyers, or the University of Pittsburgh revealed no renewal entries.

The Owl was either not copyrighted or the copyright of the yearbook was not renewed and therefore it is in the public domain according to either criteria.