Worcester Polytechnic Institute - Peddler Yearbook (Worcester, MA)

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Every member of the new Unit had to undergo a physi¬ cal examination upon arrival. Here the original medical staff (l. to r.), Archambleau, Cmdr. Lewis, and Kelleher, are shown with subjects Peters, Kull and B. Johnson standing by. whom had been traveling hours from Pennsylvania, Ohio, South Carolina, Michigan . . . men who were fresh from the campuses of Lafayette, Delaware, G. M. I., Car¬ negie Tech . . . Bowdoin. They were all coming to form a part of the new Naval V-12 Unit, and many, a part of the Class of ’46. Orders were presented. Chiefs Creeden, McNulty and Rogers signed the men in. Tickets were drawn from a hat for rooms; long lines stretched before the issue- room in the gym, the medical office, the Navy office. Everywhere there were lines; but in time these lines were knitted into the pattern of Tech’s Naval Unit. The Class now totaled 180 men. Of this number, 57 were transfers. The total number of Navy men in the Class was now 102. The hot summer months wore on. . . . Sophomore Class work . . . shop . . . surveying . . . but none will ever forget those first Navy gym classes, and the Phys Ed Depart¬ ment’s prize orgy, the Commando Course. The Rope Pull was the first big class event of the season. This proved the seaworthiness of the ’46ers, for they crossed the Pond in the record time of 2.8431 min¬ utes. A few weeks later came the Paddle Rush. This was a ’46 vic¬ tory, 37-33. Then came the Tech Carnival . . . and another victory for the Class of ' 46. This skit centered around a dream of Tech being run by the students, and the faculty A gym class starts on its way over the treacherous ordeal — the “Commando Course”, part of every gym class during the first few months after the Unit opened. This was a standard

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more Class officers were held. Carl Simon was elected President; A1 Kirschbaum, Vice-President; Walt Gleason, Secretary; Herb Slaugh¬ ter, Treasurer; and Frank Holby, Historian. The Spring Formal was Tech’s last big civilian affair. June sped swiftly by. No finals that term, and on June 3, the Class of ’46 broke up for a four-week vacation. Tech was never to be quite the same again. From early morning until late at night line went Navy Unit is formed at Tech. Here the Navy Chiefs Creeden and Rogers. tionery stores, and on the least pro¬ vocation the inmates would grab them, rush to the sink, fill them up, swing, and let go. A hefty water bag sailing down from the fourth story was an all too common sight. Some of the third floor boys con¬ tented themselves by pouring water in the corridor and soaping it up until the coefficient of friction ap¬ proached zero. Then, in nature’s own suit, they would take a short, fast run and slide the length of the building. One night some wit poured red ink on the middle of the floor as a slider came swishing down. The slider underwent an over-all change of color. Few will ever forget the inter¬ floor water fights, topped by the great May deluge. Water flowed down the stair wells in great cas¬ cades. The efforts of the single dorm proctor were of no avail, the eruption was so great. One floor was stormed by another and gen¬ eral chaos reigned. This was the climax of old dorm life. On May 18, elections for Sopho- on ... 1 July 1943, and the men for the first time met After four weeks of comparative quiet, broken only by the appear¬ ance of new civilians and frater¬ nity rushing, the Tech campus was a fever of activity. A few uni¬ forms, and many new faces sud¬ denly appeared. Taxis rolled in continuously, bringing in them bleary-eyed passengers, many of The problem of supply in the new Navy Unit was a big one. Many hours were spent here in the gym those sweltering summer days standing in line . . . stenciling, ... or just waiting.

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The Unit received its colors early in the Winter of 1943. The Unit is here standing by before passing in review. getting the traditional Golden • 4-20NC-2-LH. The play featured Bob Bartlett, Bill Dorman, the Cornstalk - Ure correcting machine, with Charlie Mayer bringing down the house with his impersonation of “Little Jeep” Meyer of the then notorious Physics Department. Winter passed quickly. Finals and the draft reduced class still further. Less than fifty civilians now remained. On 1 March a new group of Navy transfers entered the Institute and the Class of ’46 gained about ten more members. Later in the Spring, the class voted to have class rings, and orders were placed. The big social event of the season was the Junior Class “Banquet”, a mer¬ ry event held somewhere in South¬ ern New England. Inter-class com¬ petition had died down now that the Class had moved into Junior Position. The eventful early life of the Class of ’46 was now over. It was replaced, instead, by a methodical work-eat-sleep-work existence with all eyes on June 1945, which looked so far away. For most of the men, their story was the story of the Naval Unit . . . Chow lines, study hours, liberty, musters . . . “Report to Lieut. Brown at 1300” . . . “Squat Thrusts in Four Counts” . . . “Back to bed! No exercises” . . . . “Company Commanders, Re¬ port” . . . “Count Off!” . . . “Just a reminder, men” ... all of this added up to make life in the Unit what it was. That the Unit would remain at least until June ’45 ap¬ peared fairly certain ... it was chiefly a matter of work, work, and wait. The remaining civilians had plenty of headaches in the days that followed. There was always the draft, and the fraternities faced many problems with reduced civil¬ ian membership. The Class officers for the Junior year were: Carl Simon, third term President; Larry Stewart, Vice-President; Jack Laf- fey, Secretary; Herb Slaughter (for the third time) Treasurer; and Don Flohr, Historian. Before the end of Junior year, The bugle has just sounded in the Rabbit Ranch, and the inhabitants pour over Earle Bridge for another muster.