Knox College - Gale Yearbook (Galesburg, IL)

Page 20 text:

The ccntcr ol' interest for the alunmi and friends ol' the college was thc George Davis Science llall. lt reprcscntcd the spirit ol' progress and cllicicncy which has grown in strength during the last l'ew years and it showed that results had actually been accomplished. The building was thronged by eager visitors each day. Alumni rc- mcmbcrcd the grimy room on the third Hoor ol' Old Main with smiles at the contrast between the splendid new chemistry equipment and the crowded desks ol' old. Ardent biological students thought of' their quarters in Old Main and physics lovers remembered their former room now graced with the tables and rugs ot' the Y. M. C. A. Every Knox person was proud ol' thc splendid building. Undergraduates and town people were particularly interested in the Stl'2tllg'61'S who thronged the campus and in the academic pro- cessions. The seventy-iifth anniversary marked the occurrence of the first genuine academic procession ever seen in Galesburg. The sight ot' seniors in caps and gowns had never been too familiar around town, but a long line ot' professors. college presidents and other prominent people in stately robes with their signiiicant colors was something to remember many days. No doubt there were some wl1o thought that the robes and the procession were absurdities ibut even such people recognized a special meaning in the college and in its work. They had a kind of reverence forthe institution.

Page 19 text:

If the birthday celebration of an individual is a glad occasion, how much more delightful is the anniversary of a beloved college! For then, old friends meet again, days long past a1'e re-lived and everyone grows young. It was so with Knox. The campus echoed with the cheery greetings of old comradesg college pranks and college worries again came to mind, but the worries had faded into smile-pro- voking remembrances and the pranks had gained an added delight. The usual excitement of Commencement time was heightened hy the importance of the anniversary. The occasion meant that Knox had grown in importance in the educational world. It meant that the time had arrived when the true position of Knox in the field of educa- tion was appreciated not only hy a host ot' her own sons and daughters but by colleges and universities. It meant that the seventy-five years of growth and service had accomplished definite results and that defi- nite tasks lay in the future.

Page 21 text:

ill .l...- 4.-. li But most of us did not have time to ponder nmch concerning the appearance of things for we were too busy going to parties, reunions, musical programs, speeches and gatherings of all kinds. From the time we entered Central Church for the organ recital until the last moments of the Alumni dinner there was no cessation of interesting events. If you did not like to listen to a lecture or to an address, you could stroll out on the campus and watch the Coburn Players. Or you could go into Central Clmrch and listen to wonderful music, or you could attend a banquet and hear witty toasts. Certainly the man who found nothing of interest in the whole affair was on the outside,- he was not a member of the Knox family. It was a happy thought that the glad festivities began with an event which perfectly symbolized the spirit of the whole anniversary Week. That event was the dedication of the Triumvirate lNIemorial Organ in Central Church at eight o'clock on Saturday. The new organ, the beautiful gift of a host of loyal friends, pupils, and rela- tives of the three grand old men of Knox, Albert H. Hurd, Milton L. Comstock, and George Churchill, recalled the fine spirit of present day progress. Its real meaning, the meaning of the thought which placed it there and the music, recalled the present generation's debt to the three great men and the splendid ll3.l'lllOIly of their purposeful lives.