Wakefield High School - Oracle Yearbook (Wakefield, MA)

Page 11 text:

George Covington Coopef. Frank Louis Sullivan. Few are left of the dozen. There are per- haps three still residing in Wakefield; two of the boys went on to college, and one of the girls is a missionary in Burmah. The rest are either gone to their last resting-place or have never returned to their liome town. The classes which will enter the new build- ing next fall may well follow the good ex- ample of this class of ' 73, which entered a new building under conditions almost identi- cal with those prevailing now. They will do well to try and re-establish the old spirit of competition between rooms and individuals in studies. MAEK L. IRELAND, ' 22. OUR ALUMNI For tlie last half century Wakefield High School has been turning out young men and women who, hiiving completed four years of study and pleasure within its walls, have gone forth to accomplish their life work. It is these of whom we speak when we use the term Alumni , although there is unfortu- nately no organized body bearing that name at present. Let us look around in our own town and see if any of our predecessors in Wakefield High School occupy positions or are engaged in oceui)ations which readily come to our attention. First, of course, we look for graduates holding offices of public trust, and immediately we find, postmaster Tliomas G. O ' Connell, town clerk, Frederick S. Hartshorne, water and sewerage commis- ioner, Stanley A. Dearborn, librarian, Helen G. Lee, president of the Chamber of. Com- merce, Lauren L. McMaster, chairman of the School Committee, J. Lowe McMahon, and our representative from this district, Loring P. Jordan. Many men prominent in the business world are either graduates of the High School or at some time have been mem- bers of it. Among them we are proud to honor Mr. Arthur G. Walton, Mr. Harry Fos- ter, Mr. Arthur Evans, Mr. Harris M. Dol- beare, Mr. Theodore Eaton of the law firm of Hamilton and Eaton, Ex-representative Eden K. Bowser, and Dr. William O ' Connell. In addition to these who are locally promi- nent as business and professional men we number among our alumni men and women who have won distinction in other parts of the world. Among these are Chester N. Greenough, Dean of Harvard College, Eev. John T. Creagh, a well-known priest in the Catholic Church, Dr. Ernest E. Tyzzer, a pro- fessor at Harvard, and Miss Mary Towle, as- sistant attorney in the City of New York. In the Great War our boys acquitted them- selves right bravely and followed their gal- lant leader, Major Connelly, over the top into the thickest of the figlit. There are many others whose names we do not know who have brought distinction to the High School. The Committee appointed by the High Scliool Parent-Teacher Association to raise money for the Charles H. Howe Me- morial Lilirary have prepared a complete list of the Alumni since the year 1895. It will be interesting to read this list. FRANK CORCORAN, ' 22. The Debater wonders how many of its read- ers know who painted tlie portraits which hang in tlic town hall. The following statement was printed in the Wakefield Daily Item, September 6, 1916. Thomas Badger, a well-known artist of Boston, painted the picture of Washington, and his son, Thomas H. Badger, painted that of Cyrus Wakefield. Tlie Badgers valued these paintings at $2500. .$1100 of it was raised by popular sub- scription, and the remaining .$1,100 was con- tributed by Dr. S. O. Ricli.-irdson of Wake- field. THE PILGRIM TERCENTENARY PAGEANT, 1921 Over three lumdrod years ago our Pilgrim fathers founded their homes on the shores of Plymouth. The Plymouth of our forefathers still stands, but what a different picture it pre- sented to the tourists visiting there less than eight months ago. It is scarcely necessary to mention that this was the celebration of the Pilgrim Tercentenary. The last performance of the Pilgrim Pa- geant was given the evening of August 13, 1921, in the presence of an audience of more than 10,000 that overflowed the grandstands, to say nothing of at least 5,000 persons who 9

Page 10 text:

measute to the fact that Mr. Howe had a fine and deep understanding of the relation that should exist between the school and the community and labored incessantly to main- tain those relations. Mr. Howe ' s sudden death occurred two months after the death of Miss Helen M. Poor, who was for twenty five years the first assistant in the school. George E. Dickey, the sub-master, acted as principal after the death of Mr. Howe until the appointment of the new principal in May, 1919. Charles J. Peterson, the present principal, is a graduate of Weslyan University and had, previous to his coming to Wakefield, twelve ye;irs ' experience in high school work. Mr. Peterson brought to his difficult task of re- organizing the school to meet the demands CHAELES J. PETERSON Principal Since 1919 of post war conditions, tact, good judgment, and great sincerity of purpose. The open- ing of the new High School witli its modern equipment will enable him to carry on the work of the school in a broader and more systematic manner Hum has been i)ossible iu tlic old building. THE FIRST SENIOR CLASS We are the last class to graduate from the present building, but before we leave this high scliool forever, out of respect for tra- dition, if for no other reason, let us turn back the pages of Time and gaze upon the class of ' 73, the first class to graduate from this building. The then new- high school was completed late in the summer of 1872, so that school began that Autumn in the new building. The Seniors were naturally proud of the new l)uilding, and did everything possible to es- tablish a reputation iu the Wakefield High School for strong school spirit and earnest cooperati6n with the teachers, and it is due mainly to this precedent that the high school still enjoys the reputation it does. Of course, in that day cooperation was much easier to obtain than it is now, for the en- tire school at that time did not number one hundred pupils. Nevertheless, we have some- thing to learn from these old timers . They established a spirit of competition between pupils which brought the marks up a great deal, and made it easier for the teachers. In those days the same subjects were taught that one finds in any high school today, only they were taught iu a different way. Then, a liberal knowledge in a great variety of sub- jects Avas considered more essential to suc- cess in life tlian an intensive knowledge in a few lines at the expense of other subjects, consequently the high school training was more broad than deep. They studied chem- istry, physics, geology, astronomy, botany, and physical geography in addition to the regular subjects, but none of these were pur- sued beyond their elementary stages. Til is class is to be especially remembered for tlie new customs which came iu with the new high school. It was at this time that the well known rhetoricals came into exist- ence. Every pupil was called upon to do his or her bit in wearing out the platform in Room 1, and each week the best speeches were printed in the high school weekly, The Scrap Bag. 1872 also marks the birth of the college division. The College Division of the class of ' 73 consisted of three boys. The members of this class were: Selini Sheflield White, Valedictorian. Ilattie Grey Mansfield, Salutatorian. Miixy Anne Burditt. Lorette Pratt Emerson. Francis Louise Hartshorne. Annie Rebecca Killorin. Julia Louise Hopkins. Frances Isabella Hubbard. Alice Rosamond Phillips. Emma Lucy Uijhani. 8

Page 12 text:

were crowded on every point of vantage try- ing to get a glimpse. Tlic performance opened by a Prologue, the Voice from the Rock. Then followed the Pilgrim adventurers and their coming to Ply- mouth, headed by the Norsemen who came in tlie year 1000 A. D. Following in line, Episode II, Pilgrims of the Soul, outlined the rebellion in England, the martyrs of the cause, and depicted finally Haltonskitters- liavcn on the east coast of England where the Pilgrims prepared to depart for Holland. The scene changed. Episode 111, the Pil- grims in Holland, opened with the gorgeous picture portrayed in the March of the Dutch Cities of Charity. But the Pilgrims were not satisfied in Holland, so at Leyden, July, 1G20, tlie decision for New England was made. Tlicii came the departure at Delftshaven, August 1, 1020. The little band of 300 shrank from privation and disease to a lit- tle over 100 on the way over. Again was heard the Voice from the Rock. Then followed the Pilgrims in the New World, the compact in the cabin of the Mayflower off Cape Cod, November 21, the first landings at Plymouth, December 21 and 20, the treaty with Massasoit, the return of the Mayflower to England, and the coming of new colonists. In all of these the spirit- ual guidance of John Robinson and the lead- ership of William Brewster and William Bradford played a great part. The climax was reached with the grand finale wliich was a most gorgeous spectacle and one not soon to be forgotten by those who were privileged to see it and feel the thrill it evoked Avhen the Mayflower, a glori- fied, illuminated silhouette, stood out against the sky. Tlio music and chorus singing played an effective part throughout the en- tire Pageant aud almost every spoken Avord could be heard distinctly. Dr. Francis Trevelyan Miller, founder of the Journal of American History, saw the p.ageant and proclaimed it, one of the great- est pageants, probably the greatest that any Nation has ever known, excelling England and even France in this ancient art of ex- pressing the spirit of a people, and I -am sure all those that had the privilege of see- ing this pageant will agree with Dr. Miller, that it was one of the greatest and most gor- geous pageants ever given. MARGARET CORBET, ' 22. HOW WASHINGTON WAS CHOSEN TO BE OUR NATIONAL CAPITOL In 1800 a scat of government was estab- lished in the United States. It was not an easy matter to determine where the National Capitol should be located. Many states de- sired that the seat of government should be within their boundaries. New York desired tlie Town of Kingston ; M.aryland offered Au- na])olis and Charlcstown ; New Jersey con- sidered several of her towns; Williamstown, wliich at tliat time was the capital of Vir- ginia, was also suggested; and Pennsylvania chose Germantown. George Washington conceived the idea tliat in order to avoid an; feeling of jeal- ousy, a tract of land belonging to no par- ticular state should be ised. Accordingly, both Maryland and Virginia offered to give a ixirtion of their territory on the Potomac to the Federal Government, and it was ac- cepted as an ideal site for our National Capi- tol. It Mas at first called the Territory of Coluniliia, but later changed to the District of Columbia. It was named Washington in lienor of our first President and Father of our Country. Washington always referred to this as the Federal City, being too modest to use his own name. George Washington had in his mind ideas of what he desired the city should be like, and so made known his plans to a civil en- gineer, L ' Enfant, a Frenchman, in whom he had great confidence. This man commenced plans for the work, but they wore on such a lai-ge scale that he was ridiculed by many govcrnnuMit officials. Washington, however, (lid not mind these criticisms for ho had a vision of tlie future growth of the republic. L ' Enfant selected Capitol Hill and from this lie ])la lined the streets and avenues to ra- diate like the spokes of a wheel which should lie named after the States of the Union. The city grew slowly, one by one the Iic.-iiitiin] liuildiiigs were completed; visitors who came to the Ca])itol during the years of its slow construction thought that Washing- ton had ] laimed more than he could accom- plish. For sixty years this city was far from attractive, but after the Civil War the Americans began to reali .o the need of a beautiful Capitol City. It was then that the citizens awoke to the l:iit that they must make their city more at- 10