Boston Latin School - Liber Actorum Yearbook (Boston, MA)

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JOHN J. DOYLE

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CREWCRD For a period of 320 years Latin School has been preparing boys for liberal arts colleges by means of its vigorous insistence on a classical curriculum. The usefulness of this course may be questioned by modernists and so-called practical men, but the school continues to hold to its objectives. We live in an era in which science and technology are dominant in the pattern of life and consequently in the realm of education. Of late, complaints about the inability of high school graduates to write satisfactorily, read understandingly, or figure accurately have become more and more frequent. The explanations for this state of affairs are manyg but one of the most reasonable is the de-emphasis and decline of the classical disciplines, once considered essential to the successful training of our youth. These disciplines have disappeared from the curricula of most schools. Latin School, however, has stood firm since 1635. We are proud of that fact, for the proof of the value of our course may be found in more than three centuries of well-tested experience. It may be proved by listing the many gradu- ates who have become prominent., even famous, in the learned professions, the arts, or commerce and industry. lt is our good fortune to be students of a school with a tradition and a history such as ours. We feel, therefore, that it is only fitting to honor our alumni and their accomplishments. As we honor them, we are in fact, paying tribute to the School. Let us. the Class of 1955, in the future be worthy of them, and Boston Latin School. CONTENTS FACULTY .... 6 SENIORS. . . 16 ACTIVITIES. . 88 ATHLETICS ..... . . 108 ORGANIZATIONS. . . . . 126

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HEADMASTER'S MESSAGE lt is with great pleasure that I speak to my first Graduating Class at the Boston Latin School, the Class of 1955. During my years here as Master and later as Head of Department I had little hope that I should one day be speaking to the Graduating Class as the Head Master of the school. During the past year you have done much to make me proud of you and of the school you will represent in your later years. You have helped to maintain the high standards of the school and to uphold its traditional ideals. You are leaving us as graduates of the oldest public school in the lnited States. You have become alumni of an institution world-famous for its classical course of study and its rigorous standards of discipline. You have joined the ranks of an alumni body famous the world over for its high type of character and its unquestioned success in all walks of life. Many honors may come to you, but none will surpass the honor conferred upon you when you are granted a di- ploma from the Boston Latin School. You have been successful in a hard and tedious battle. Many boys who entered the school with you have fallen by the way. They either did not have the will to work or lacked the mental equipment necessary for the tasks set for them. You have proved your worth. You have persevered in a task that took every ounce of will, energy, and intellect you possess. You have conquered your- selves: and, despite handicaps and disappointments, you have succeeded where others have failed. You have a right to be proud of your success. Your parents are proud of you today. You should be very proud of your parents. You should be thankful that God has given you parents who have stood by you in all your trials and tribulationsg who have been interested enough in you and your welfare to make the necessary sacrifices so that you might have a Latin School diploma: and who have made the plans necessary to send you on to college. You should be thankful to the City of Boston and to all its citizens, who have provided you with this fine building and its excellent corps of instructors, so that you might have a good start on your way to success. The best way you can express your appreciation for all that has been done for you is to continue the same high type of work in your future endeavors that you have done here. lf you make a success of yourself in your chosen field, you will have shown us all the appreciation that is necessary. You have already shown that you have the ability and perseverance necessary for this success. Never let up! Make us all proud of you in whatever field you select for your future life.