Samuel Gompers Vocational Technical High School - Artisan Yearbook (Bronx, NY)

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Dear Graduates Back IH 1849 thousands of men struggled across the plalns to reach the gold fields of the far West Those who took part ln the rush became known as the 49 ers I am 1n formed that the co1nc1dence of your class numerals w1th th1s colorful chapter ln our natlon s hlstory has resulted 1n your adoptmg the name for your class The choxce IS approprlate and may be symbollc You present day 49 ers are start1ng on the Journey of lrfe as those of long ago started the1r trek to Cahforma All Journeys have to be prepared for yours and the1rs Those who wm through to the goal w1ll be those who have not neglected therr preparatnon and who possess the necessary strength of character Those old tlmers faced many dangers Some fell by the wayslde Most of them would not be de feated and they reached the1r goal They were self rehant courageous hard workmg ploneers and they helped make our country great They knew the lmportance of teamwork Yes you can learn a lot from a study of the days of 1849 Now as you leave your school to go forth on the Journey of llfe seeklng goals I wlsh you all a safe journey and hope that you l1ke the 49 ers of old w1ll drsplay the same sp1r1t of teamwork and character that gave success to them and just as the ones they left behmd looked forward to hear1r'v of the1r progress so we teachers hope to hear of yours Srncerely EDWARD N WALLEN Prmczpal , . and hardships. You can learn a lot from their experiences. . . , ' 'D

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Chief Swat MR. EDWARD

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Xl' THE Knowing not what was before them carmg not what was behmd the fearless Forty nmers pressed forward mto the wxlderness ln search of newer peace and securrty These men had a job to do It was they who had to forge ahead to hack out of forests what was to be our great C1tleS and our flourlshmg farms Flrst came the coonskm garbed men who had to iight Indlans to w1n peace Then arrived the homespun farmers who were to start our great corn and wheat belts More and more ploneers followed A man named Perry m order to secure more frlends for our country led an expedltlon to Japan Some tlme later a cousm of h1s by thelr mutual uncle Sam at tempted to ploneer rn a newer way He started a League of Nat1ons for bettermg natlonal relatlonshlps H15 name was Woodrow Wxlson Exploring to the south went Admlral Rlchard Byrd Through these exploratlons we clalm an area called Llttle Amerlca To the north many hardy men went to chop a c1v1l1zat1on from the frozen wastes of Alaska Reahzmg the necesslty for mamtarmng good relatlons a ploneer by the name of Franklln Delano Roosevelt establlshed what he called a Good Nerghbor Pollcy whereby our country helped our nerghbors to the south ln return for thelr frlendshlp and understandmg Symbollc of the lnternal expanslon of our peace lovmg democracy were the Forty Nmers and thelr followers They sought somethmg more than gold or glory They made lt posslble for our country to attain the prnnacle of securlty lt has today become a haven for the oppressed provlde a home for the homeless and offer a protectorate for the persecuted Now one hundred years later new Forty Nmers appear the Class of Nineteen Forty Nlne Our Job IS to attempt to follow ln the footsteps of the great men who have preceded us for we too are ploneers But lt IS not gold for whlch we search lt IS somethlng more valuable We must find the means of msurmg ever lastmg peace ln thls world and grvmg a sense of securlty to all men ln all countrxes George Duncan 6 T X -- X ' 1 f , Y Y Y u Q 7 1 - ' ' u ' ' yu Y ' ' ll . . ,, . Y V U , . .4 - n 1 Y - 1 I Y I ' v .