Fitchburg State University - Saxifrage Yearbook (Fitchburg, MA)

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ALMA MATER— SCHOOL SONG Words by Mollie Wild, 1927 Music by Elizabeth T). Perry = t S £=t =t • w w , when life, we dreamed, Was z zfc: : : = : 4=- s -I - -I — :p=± -4=2- :S5: a - go, when lite, we dreamed, was i - deal as it seemed, And to come, if life laid bare Seems far more gray than fair, Or :(= S % IS = =fc q — Hid- =£ -o- ■ ± + v + V ¥ v tho ' ts of un-taught youth soared high, While on-ly joy came nigh. ' Twas then with vi - sion clear we if suc-cesswith us climbs high While on-ly joy comes nigh; Tis then, in plight or might,we ' ll -m— —m- ±= :i C E= : h — - t— S - 4=2- -£2—§ r- - —P- - fr- r — % - ri i 4= :t : - - ■ 3t fe = J - iS «i V-tr r-NZfJ—i S3 : ■r- ' -r- chose,And to that choice we rose, With cour-age strong and hearts of song To car - ry thy ideal on. rise — Thyspir-it nev - er dies — With courage strong and hearts of song To car - ry thy ideal on. -f=2- ■»■—»■ — » L P (=2- C2I :te: t± = f = t = i =, - .— — =! =£= F fr -»-|»-j»— If;; 8» - : F=F Ft- t: Chorus 3= i J- SEfcSFS « iEgEiE , SE = So Flag of Al - ma Ma- ter float, On e -ter - nal wings of praise, For thee un-numbered hosts to-day EB3 ES:! fcrftezfrrz fcp=tfcz=ta=t=f=l M— —m- :t=t 4=2- 2=N= =5 z. Eg I Lo I U» U J :|= gEtX ElEp Their will -ing voic - es raise; Thru- out the world their ti- ny flame From thy quick light still gleams, jt£=k s M= =F= 4=2- = = : -P-- -m- r P—»- S — S !• L fcS==t= : =M =t =r =t ± . U2. £ While youth and age u - nit - ed claim The home where for-tune beams, The home where fortune beams ffi :t: - — 4»- = =£= W U :|K=te-±: U U» jt= - - : — fc - 1 • - -r£-

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year on September 2, 19 13, the latest and most important addition to the school equipment was the new $75,000 dormitory, Palmer Hall, located directly across the campus from Miller. In 1914, Mr. George H. Hastings, a member of the school faculty, purchased the greenhouse which bears his name, and gave it to the school. Mr. Thompson was succeeded as principal by Mr. William D. Parkinson, who served faithfully in that capacity up to 1927. In the fall of that year, our own Principal Charles M. Herlihy took up the work of guiding and teaching young men and women who are preparing to carry on the work of education. During the thirty years since the beginning of the school, 3,251 men and women have graduated and now call Fitchburg Normal School their Alma Mater. Many changes have taken place in and around the school, and yet there are many traditions which were started thirty-five years ago which are still carried on today. The first graduating class inaugurated the custom of planting a class tree, while the second class conceived the idea of ivy exercises. Besides these, the Junior arches through which Seniors marched, the display of school and class colors, May Pole dances, hoop rolling contest, and the Saxifrage formed part of the annual class day exercises — traditions which have been kept faithfully all through the years. Yet we have gleaned some information concerning equipment and customs which might be amusing to students of today. When the school opened, there was no telephone in the building, and when one was installed around 1900, it was the cause of such disturbance that school officials threatened to remove it. There was no Senior Prom, but rather a very stately reception, to which the dignitaries of the city and the gentlemen friends of the Seniors were invited. We gain an idea of its dignity from the following excerpt taken from the Fitchburg Sentinel of June 24, 1898: The hours were from 8 to 10, and the building was thronged all the evening with the hosts, graduates, members of the faculty, parents and friends. The charms of music lent their aid to the occasion, and that most delightful form of social intercourse, the moving about and greeting of friends, occupied the attention of all most satisfactorily. As a necessary requirement for graduation, each senior gave a speech, or platform exercise, as it was called, in the Assembly Hall, before faculty and students. Long theses were also required, but the two were later discontinued and projects were substituted for them. The athletics of the school were not sufficiently developed to encourage competition with other schools, but inter- class games were frequently enjoyed. In order to bring about a feeling of kinship between the graduates of the different years, and to increase the loyalty of the students for their school, an elaborate Alumni Reunion was held on June 21, 1930, under the direction of Miss Maud A. Goodfellow, President of the Alumni Association, and a graduate of the first class. The theme of the reunion was The Good Old Days, and the idea was carried out by all participants, who showed, by acting, pantomine, and pictures, the habits of their school days. The program began early in the afternoon with an address of welcome by Principal Herlihy, and continued until the banquet which was held at six o ' clock. In the evening, an Alumni dance was enjoyed, at which many people renewed acquaintances. Such a large gathering of graduates showed clearly the love which these people bear for the Fitchburg Normal School, which has upheld through the years a splendid quality of work, and has ever adhered to the motto, Learn to do by doing , which was a vital factor in early school days, and which is a recognized principle of progressive education today.

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