McHenry High School - Spectrum Yearbook (McHenry, ND)

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SENIOR HISTORY We, the Class of 1949, began our school days on a bright autumn day in September, l937. An inspection of our class roll of that group of first graders revealed such names as Bernice Messner, Norvel Ethen, Beverly Klien, Harold Johanson, Shirley Sheen, Bill Bartlett, Betty Wixom, Palmer Hayden, Mary Hoggarth, Elaine Hoggarth, Albert Ferris, Lorrain Hickman, La Donna Smith, Clarice Haakinson, Helen Smith, Gordon Ronholm, Melvin Midgley, Perry Thompson, and Betty Baker. Our class, as the records show, was not one lacking in intelligence, or in the ability to create mischief. Very early in our school days there began the journeys to the Superintendent's office to be reprimanded for some deed or other which was frowned upon by the teacher. Our second year was truly an eventful one. It was the year of the big fire'. Despite the help of neighboring fire departments, our school building was burned to the ground, starting about 9:00 o'clock on a November evening. But we students, happy at the thought of an extended vacation, sadly learned that emergency classrooms were being set up. The second story of the fire hall was cleared, and an old-fashioned coal heater was set up in the front of the room. Long bench-type desks were improvised, and the seventh and eighth grades convened, and there Mr. Ted Oberg reigned. The old movie theatre, long idle, was cleared of its cobwebs and musty age, and the upper-classmen sought to continue their education. The Congregational Church Know the Lutheran Church Parlorsl served as a classroom for the Intermediate Grades. The Prirnary Grades held school in the Old Lutheran Church Parlors lsince destroyed by the 1943 tornado., Those were trying years for the Principal, Mr. Hildur Braa, and his staff. Textbooks of ancient vintage were supplied by neighboring schools, gathered from their storerooms. But great were these years for we McHenry students. With school spread over the town, control was difficult, and we students left no trick untried to reap a harvest of fun. Great must have been the worries of Miss Johnson, our teacher, for we recall scenes of students jumping out the windows, Melvin Midgley chasing his teacher about the room, and oh! those eraser fights! During those difficult years ffor the teachers we meanl the community was active in replacing our school with a structure equal to the finest in the state. In 1942, our new building was completed and fully equipped with the latest teach- ing equipment. We were in our sixth year and oh! the thrill of that year in our new surroundings shall ever remain vivid in our patterns of memories. The class roll of our sixth grade read as follows: Melvin Midgley, Mae Hoyt, Albert Ferris, Calvin Greatsinger, Clinton Anson, Perry Thompson, Mary Hoggarth, and Betty Baker. The roll call at the Eighth Grade Graduation revealed that of the nineteen who entered eight years before, only seven remained. They were Melvin Midgley, Don Borlaug. Perry Thompson, Mae Hoyt, Betty Baker, and Betty Gilbertson. Our entire group appeared the next year to take our place as Freshmen, and to our class roll must be added Alvina Bergstad. The most vivid memory of that year was our initiation. The girls dressed as boys, and the boys as girls, paraded before our classmates for a day, and it is only now that we are able to see the humor of the upper-classmen on that day, compelling us to sit in the middle of Main Street and wash each other's feet with a tooth brush. fl 12

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LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT We, the Senior Class of 1949, of the McHenry High School, the city of McHenry, in the county of Foster, the state of North Dakota, the United States, the continent of North America, the Western Hemisphere, and the Universe, being of unsound, disarranged mind, lacking in memory, swelled with understanding, full of conceit and wisdom, and broken down by the rising inflation, do make our last will and testament in the manner and form about to be related. To the Freshmen, we hereby will Superintendent Smith To the Sophomores, we hereby will our first date. To the Juniors, we hereby will our straight 'A's'. I, Melvin Midgley, do will and bequeath my fTonil curled hair to Mr. Billigmeier. I, Perry Thompson, do will and bequeath my freckles to Doreen Hoyt. I, Donald Borlaug, do will and bequeath my condecending attitude to Carol Brown. I, Gladys Grafsgaard, do will and bequeath my teaching position in the Primary room to Joan McNeese. I, Perry Thompson, do will and bequeath my job as Secretary to Marlin Erickson. I, Donald Borlaug, do will and bequeath my typing abilities to Leonard Derr. I, Gladys Grafsgaard, do will and bequeath my ability to get to school on time to Doreen Hoyt. I, Betty Baker, do will and bequeath my dancing ability to Dale Ehlers. I, Melvin Midgley, do will and bequeath my calmness to Irene Hoffman. I, Perry Thompson, do will and bequeath Doris to any man who gets there first. I, Donald Borlaug, do will and bequeath my green cords to Mr. Billigmeier. I, Gladys Grafsgaard, do will and bequeath my boy friend Herbert to any girl who wants him. I, Betty Baker, do will and bequeath my school sweater to Maxine Conant. ikilllkllvlvk AIN'T IT THE TRUTH? NAME: Melvin Midgley COURSE: Trying to get an education. ASSIGNMENT: Study Schedule 8:00-Alarm goes off. 8:05-Rolls over in bed. 8:10-Father's call lrolls toward the edge of bed., 8:15-Father's last call frolls out., 8:20-All dressed, eats breakfast. 8:30-Sits down to milk. 8:45-Through milking lforgets to get up., 8:55-Starts peddling milk. 9:15-Starts for school Qlate as usual.j 9:20-Goes to Algebra. 9:50-1:30-Reads sports page. 12: 10-Goes to Pool Room. 1:05-Back at school, but he left his mind and heart at pool room. 3: 10-On time for Basketball practice. 5:30-Goes home to do chores. 8:00-Getting ready to go to Bordulac--tis the call of the Wolf! 9:00-Arrives at Wolf's house, knocks at door, calls Wolf! Wolf! 2'30-Home in bed. 2:31-Sound asleep. ll

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Our Sophomore year added many happy scenes to be recalled. It was the year. that Mr. Skinnemoin and Mr. Nunn turned grey with worry and frustration, trying to anticipate the moves of a rather lawless group. Tales of the antics of we McHenry students are legendary, the nature of which we would rather not leave in print. In the middle of this year, Mrs. Frajola joined the teaching staff and things began to right themselves. But alas, the damage had been done--we failed our Algebra, and a few other subjects besides. It was in this year that Don Borlaug enrolled at Oak Grove Seminary at Fargo. Gladys Grafsgaard joined our class this year, while Alvina Bergstad and Betty Gilbertson left school, Betty to continue her school work by correspondence. In our Junior year, school again became a place to learn as well as to have fun. With graduation drawing a little nearer, the desire to graduate and the realization that certain credits are a necessary requisite to a diploma, we made serious effort to apply ourselves to our school work, and if possible to make up for lost effort. With a new teaching staff under the direction of Robert D. Smith, many phases of school life began to get the new look. A student Association was formed in place of the individual class and athletic groups, with all funds placed in a general fund. The activities of the student group were planned, and in many instances, dir- ected by the students through their Student Council. Our Student group sponsored a carnival and such activities to provide funds to purchase an electric score board, new basketball uniforms, and to provide funds for our school parties and dances. In this year we actively participated in the sponsoring of the First County Tournament Banquet for players and coaches of neighboring schools. We created a Recreation Room, and equipped it with a coke dispensing machine, and a candy shop where we gathered before and after the school hours to dance or just monkey around. There was introduced a ten-minute break period in both the forenoon and afternoon, which appealed to all. It was also in this year that our Commerce Department, under Mrs. Koloen, was improved, and equipment was provided for seven typists. The spring activities of this year were highlighted by two events. The Senior Spring. dance in which we Juniors, with the assistance of the underclassmen made the gymnasium into a beautiful garden and terrace, with real trees through which a golden moon glowed down on the dancers below. Under the garden, chairs in their seclusion offered a retreat for the couple who wished to sit a dance out. The entire community was invited to this gala affair. Lest we forget it, it should be left for records that we Juniors of that year joined the Seniors, and the rest of the Student Body in an illegal skip day, in which we spent an exciting day at the Lake, only to return and learn that he who plays must pay the fiddler, and pay we did! Our Senior year was marked by still more changes. Mr. Smith remained as head of the school, with Mr. Billigmeier taking over the Athletic and Commerce departments, while Miss Grytness headed the English department. During this year the Student Association under the leadership of Melvin Midgley promoted many fund-raising activities to provide certain badly needed pieces of equipment which the school district was unable to provide from the general fund. From this fund we students were able to secure for the school a movie projector, a public address system, new girls' basketball uniforms, new sweaters for the cheer- leaders, and pads for the gymnasium. This was the year that we passed the course in Algebrag the boys took wood- working for the first time: and the boys and girls both won first place trophies in the County Tournament. That we again assisted in the sponsoring of the County Tournament Coaches and Athletic Banquet, at which Senior Melvin Midgley as . Master of Ceremonies came through to give prestige and lustre to the great record of the Class of '49. 13