Wesleyan University George Washington's birthday commemoration programs

This essay by University Archivist Suzy Taraba was originally published in Wesleyan: the University Magazine in the Winter 2003 issue.

Did you know that Washington's Birthday was once one of the most festively celebrated holidays at Wesleyan? From at least 1863 until 1929, this holiday was a focal point of social life at Wesleyan, perhaps as important as the proms of later years.

Nationally, George Washington's birthday was first celebrated in Richmond, Va., in 1782, even before he became the first President of the United States in 1789. Early celebrations were erratic and sometimes controversial, particularly among the Antifederalists. By the time of Washington's death in 1799, however, he was considered a national hero. The celebration of his birthday united political factions in near universal support for honoring his memory. By 1832, the centennial of Washington's birth, commemorative celebrations in February were firmly established. At the University of Pennsylvania, for instance, festivities began as early as 1794 and had become so important by the end of the 19th century that President Grover Cleveland was an invited speaker.

At Wesleyan, the earliest documented celebration of Washington's Birthday was in 1863, although earlier celebrations may still come to light. Two tickets to the 1863 events survive in the Wesleyan University Archives, as does a nearly complete set of Washington's Birthday celebration programs from 1866 through 1929. From the 1860s through the 1880s, the sophomore class hosted the events, which focused on music, orations, and, most important, the public reading of Washington's famous farewell address. Throughout the 19th century, the tone of the celebration was primarily patriotic. Decorating efforts of the sophomore class proved to be particularly memorable in 1885, as reported in the College Argus: "[These are the] finest decorations which have ever been seen in Memorial Chapel. The stage was draped with red, white, and blue, with a background of flags. Over the speakers was suspended an imitation of the Liberty Bell, made by ivy leaves on a wire frame. White immortelles marked the fissure in the bell, while the tongue was of white and purple flowers. . . . The organ-loft was draped with flags, in the midst of which hung a portrait of Washington, and above that a mounted eagle." In 1888, a spoof of the program was apparently staged--or at least a satiric program was prepared--featuring irreverent activities with "Fatty Hancock" serving as master of ceremonies.

By 1891, the tradition of patriotic music and declamations had given way to a gala banquet, at which the celebration of the country's Founding Father merged with revering Wesleyan, the Alma Mater. Alumni figured prominently among the prime revelers, and a series of toasts became a central feature of the program. The banquet was held at a variety of local venues until the opening of Fayerweather Gymnasium in 1894. Not all Wesleyan men were equally enthusiastic about the festivities: One copy of the program for the 1896 banquet includes unsigned manuscript annotations listing the order of speakers and commenting "Newhall at every opportunity," in reference to William Rice Newhall, the toastmaster that year.

In the early 20th century, the Washington's Birthday bash became ever more focused on Wesleyan alumni relations. In 1902, the alumni office mailed a postcard to announce the events and encourage alumni to attend, stating, "We believe that the Washington's Birthday Banquet will bring together the largest and most enthusiastic body of Wesleyan men ever assembled."

In this period, such longstanding Wesleyan traditions as the "cannon scrap," a contest between the freshman and sophomore classes, became part of the weekend of Washington's Birthday festivities. In some years, Washington's Birthday was a time for "sub-freshmen" (the "prefosh" of their day) to visit campus; in others, it was an alumni weekend, featuring seminars and vocational programs. The 1920 Washington's Birthday events were among the most elaborate. In addition to the banquet, events included Visitors' Days, during which classes and laboratories were open to visitors; the Fourth Annual Wesleyan University Teachers' Conference, aimed at the 26 percent of Wesleyan graduates engaged in teaching; and athletic events, concerts, and a student theatrical presentation, "The George Washington Follies," preceded by a very early performance of jazz by the college orchestra.

Although Wesleyan's celebration of Washington's Birthday began as a reflection of a national holiday, by the 1920s it no longer mirored the national scene so closely. In fact, the national celebration of Washington's Birthday peaked in 1932, the bicentennial of his birth. At Wesleyan, the main event that year was an exhibition of Washingtonia in Olin Library, a very distinguished collection of documents and memorabilia from a variety of sources, but a far cry from the heyday of the gala banquet just a few years earlier. The final documented Wesleyan Washington's Birthday celebration was in 1941, when New York alumni gathered at the Hotel Roosevelt for a banquet and reenactment of the cannon scrap of 1917. Many of the attendees were graduates from the World War I era, fondly remembering their college days.