East Stroudsburg University - Stroud Yearbook (East Stroudsburg, PA)

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Homer R. Higley these salaries seem low, it should be explained that in addition to this remuneration the teachers received board and lodging for themselves and in the case of married men, full maintenance of their families. Dr. Kemp reared his family on the campus. One of the highlights of the spring term of 1899 was Normalls first Field Day. It was held at the Stroudsburg Fair Grounds, June 23, 1899, with Professor F. E. Pierson, physical director, in charge. There were bicycle races and other field events. Prizes for the hundredayard dash were: first, unabridged dictionary; second, founr tain pen; third, fine hair brush. Prizes for the standing broad jump were: first, fountain pen; second, shaving cup and brush with name en; graved; third, :1 Dewey souvenir plate. Other prizes included large bottles of bay rum, silverr mounted tooth brush, bicycle, shoes, medals, etc. A boy named Foley vaulted eight feet to win the pole vault. 22 The school year of 1899 was brought to a close by the Commencement exercises, at which ex, governor General 0. H. Hasting was the princi' pal speaker. Twentyrfive cents admission was charged for the exercises. At the turn of the century the new Normal School was still very prosperous, and very much was expected of the school. An exhibition of the work done in the sewing department displayed very excellent needlework and sewing of all kinds. The song of woe 0f the Class of 1900 was one which told of the coming State Board examinav tions. It went as follows: The State Board is coming Oh Woe! Oh Woe! The State Board is coming Oh Woe! Oh Woe! The State Board is coming And we fear a drumming. Wish their exams were shunning. Oh Woe! Oh Woe! In 1901, showers and lockers were placed in Wayne gymnasium. There was also a room set aside for football and baseball suits and llpara' phernalia of the athletic association. Several thousand square feet of granolithic walks were laid, and crushed stone was used to 'dx the came pus roads, all of which added to the everrgrowing beauty of our campus.

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posts breaks the rails and headboards and is therefore, also prohibited? Flower pressing was quite an industry. Every student, as part of his work in botany, was re quired to gather, press, mount and completely describe fifty plants. Some of the herbariums so filled can still be found, with specimens well preserved and as little faded as the owners meme ory, with its ugolden haze of student days? The discipline of those gay nineties was that of a kindly, cordial, but welleordered family. Each boarding student was assigned to a table at whose head sat a teacher and perhaps a 11Mrs. Teacher. Husky young men from farm and mine rejoiced to find beefsteak for breakfast. The spirit was 11homeyf' The resulting friendships were often regarded as among the most valuable acquir sitions the students carried away. The seven dclock evening bell brought silence as profound as that which follows taps, a silence which lasted till ten, when a second bell signaled blights out? Those three hours were employed in uninterrupted study, with every student in his room and with no visiting except by special per mission. Nor was the hall teacher a mere police; man, as so often represented, but more often a warm friend. Sunday quiet hours were really quiet, with not a sound to be heard anywhere in the building and with no student out in the halls. A deeply religious spirit pervaded the instith tion. The Sunday evening Bible Class taught by Dr. E. L. Kemp, both before and after he became principal of the Normal School, is recalled by the 21 graduates of those days with a feeling of rev, erence. The father of Benjamin Kipp, our electrician, was the night watchman for many years. About 6:15 or 6:30 in the morning he started up and down the halls of the dormitories ringing a large bell as the first call or reveille. Breakfast was at 7:00 with classes beginning at 8:15 and contine uing until 4:20. The periods were forty minutes long, and there was a Chapel every day from 1:00 to 1 :20. Saturday classes were unknown, although other Classes met five times a week. The campus publication of this time was the Normal Echoes. It was edited and published by the senior class five times a year and sold at fifteen cents per copy. The magazine contained adverr tisements from local merchants; the Normal Hill Livery Stable advertised special rates to students. Interest in football increased. Professor H. R. Higley, coach of the football team, frequently entered the game himself when the opposition became too strong. Very probably there was nothing in the football ethics of those times that made it improper for a coach to play as a member of his team. Homer R. Higley, one of the instructors, is still widely revered as one of the ablest and most devoted teachers who have ever distinguished our faculty. Either because of his abilities as a coach or as a teacher of higher mathematics, Professor Higley received a raise from $800 to $850. Louise Hochleitner, instructor in French, German and sewing, was raised from $300 to $400. Although

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CAKES HALL All previous records for attendance were broken in the school year 1901,1902. There were over five hundred students; every room was filled and other students were boarding in the homes of the local people. The chapel was used for recitation, and members of the faculty were very busy handling additional duties. Miss Eihe P. Merchant of Glouchester, Massachusetts, was elected to teach physical education. She had had a two'year course in the famous Sargent School of Physical Instruction. Mr. E. E. Kuntz, who was instructor in mathematics, was assistant in directing physical education. He also refereed athletic contests, one in particular when Normalis basketball team was defeated by the second team. Mr. Kuntz is now the retired supervising princir pal of the East Stroudsburg Public Schools. 23 In May 1902 work was begun on the new recitation hall. An appropriation of $27,000 was received from the state for the construction of the building which was to be three stories high. It was located thirtyrfive feet north of the mens wing of Stroud Hall, made of brick, and trimmed in cut stone. It was finished late in 1902 and later named Oakes Hall in memory of the Reverend Chandler Oakes. The eighth annual commencement exercises were held in June 1902, when one hundred and fortyeeight students were given their diplomas. It was announced that additional courses to be added the following semester would make the entire school course from two to three years in length.