Weymouth High School - Campus / Reflector Yearbook (Weymouth, MA)

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Class History Committee JOHN DELAHUNT, Chairman, High School FRANK COLBY, Chairman, Vocational School JOAN AUSTIN BETSY BROWN MARGARET CRONIN ROBERT FITTS JOHN GRANT ANN GREENE DONALD KARSTUNEN JUNE KENNEY ELSIE McKINLEY GEORGE McMULLEN ALLAN PATTERSON MANUEL PIRES NANCY REMINGTON MARGARET STEEVES HILBERT THORNBERG

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HIS TOR r

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' JpiiK loUowing lew pages are lormally dedicated to the liistory of the Class ol and anyone not in that distinguished group (correction, please— anyone wlio reads it) is liable to be sentenced to a jjeriod of not more than (ilteen, nor less than live minutes ol boredom. Ol ' course, the above paragraph is written in jest. For in the following ])ages of black print, there are many words that help to recapitulate uidorgetful events that occurred during tlie lour, wonderful years that we, the graduating class of ' 49, spent together. It is not an easy task, as Mr. Kearns will testily, to express in an interesting way those events that will be forever dear to us. Our class history is written in an indirect way. The eventful parts of our four years at W.H.S. are written so as to coincide with a series of events that also took place in the year ' 49, one century earlier, 1849, when gold was discovered in the Sacramento Valley of California. To California many thousands of people went by wagon across the plains from the North, the East, and the South, always subject to the attacks of Indians and death by starva- tion or thirst. Their journey to the West is not much unlike our four-year journey through Weymouth High School. While they had hoped to attain at the end of their long and perilous trijj a pot of gold , we dreamed of the great, now historical day, when we would receive our sheepskins. So remember as you read this class history, to try to synchronize the two expeditions. STAGES ONE AND TWO Notice was given by Mr. Mapes of a caravan forming for a trip to the gold country in September of 1945. All interested members were to report to rcxmis 101-206A of Weymouth High School for further information. A Maroon and Gold circular containing instructions and directions relating to the four-year journey to be tmdertaken was given to those reporting. The head coachman, Mr. Whittle, with his assistants, welcomed the pioneers, who were just starting on their perilous journey. Supplies were given to all, and the forty-niners who had assembled from the various sections were soon well acquainted. When the caravan began to move onward, various reactions were noted among the group. Most were extremely serious, being frightened by the size of the caravan and by the numerous rumors they had heard about all the impending dangers. Our first difficulty occurred when a group that had been sent out for food failed to return, so a scouting party had to be dispatched to locate them. They were finally safely returned to wagons No. 101 and No. 114. (Remember those split lunches?) However, after miles of walking, pushing, and ricling in those hard uncomfortable wagons, all became adapted to the routine of the trip. The first two years of the undertaking were rather uneventful. Each year fol- lowed more or less the same routine. To break the monotony, however, sports events were planned with a series of football games being played when other caravans were met along the route. Thanksgiving Day was celebrated by our team, coached by Paul Sweeney, playing a team from Cronin ' s Creek. To pep up the group and to cheer the team on to victory, a Booster ' s Club was formed under the leadership of Miss Toomey and Mr. Ghiorse. Once a week this group provided pre-game entertainment by a series of skits which were usually presented at some loclge along the route. The season closed by paying honor to the athletes by a banquet, at which awards were given to the most outstanding ones, followed a few days later by a Victory Dance which all who attended greatly enjoyed. During the winter season, a new group, the Chess Club, was organized by Mr. Matthews to provide entertainment for chess players and any interested spectators. The leaders were Bob McCarthy, Robert Marr, Allan Patterson, and Ronnie Bresnahan. Page Seventeen