December 6, 1918: SATC Military Ball

Less than a month after the end of World War I, the Students' Army Training Corps (SATC) at William and Mary disbanded. On December 6, 1918, family, friends, students, and faculty were invited to an open house at the Corps' barracks and then to a parade review and ceremony at the athletic field. The day ended with the SATC Final Military Ball, "commemorating the end of the World War and the victory of the American Armies." The Virginia Gazette referred to the dance as a "celebration of the S.A.T.C. [that] will long be remembered by William and Mary boys, and will will mark a unique period in the history of the old college."

The ball was a major social event on campus, attended by students and faculty of the College, residents of Williamsburg, and out-of-town guests. Taps, a booklet commemorating the experiences and achievements of the William and Mary SATC, described the details of the dance with humor, pride, and nostalgia:

[...] the greatest part of the celebration remained for the evening, when the formal military ball, the principal social affair of the military organization, was held in the Mess Hall. It had been planned a considerable time in advance, and all members of the command attended and brought partners. In addition to the young ladies of the college, many attended from Williamsburg, Richmond, Norfolk, Washington and other cities. Many of the soldiers had their sweethearts from a distance to attend. The whole affair was so well organized and conducted that a more successful one would have been rare indeed. The walls, chandeliers, trimmings, and furnishings of the large hall were lavishly decorated with the national colors in various designs of presentment, all of which was pleasingly illuminated by the brilliant colored lights.

The guests assembled at 8 o’clock, the ladies wearing the latest creations of evening dress and the men all wearing their dress military uniforms. [...]

At 10 o’clock there was an intermission of a few minutes, during which a neat little cap, called the “Liberty Cap” by the guests designed and made especially for the occasion, was issued to each lady present, and was worn by her during the remainder of the evening.

Not the least element in the evening’s jocund entertainment was the bounteous supply of punch and other refreshments. May the reader not inquire what the punch was made of. [...]

The final dance was announced by the bugle call for taps and came to a close exactly at 1:25 o’clock in the morning. The out-of-town guests were entertained by friends at the college and in Williamsburg.

Editions of The Virginia Gazette and Catherine Dennis' scrapbook are available in the Special Collections Research Center. Taps may be viewed online. Of note, page 14 is dedicated to "The Co-Ed" and her influence on the SATC.

This post was composed by Kate Hill.

For additional information about the first women students at the College of William and Mary see: When Mary Entered with her Brother William: Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945 by Laura F. Parrish; "The Petticoat Invasion": Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945; The Martha Barksdale Papers; and the Women at the College of William and Mary page on the Special Collections Research Center Wiki.

November 23, 1918: Dance Recital

Unlike many of the classes at the College of William and Mary in 1918, physical education was not coeducational. Activities such as basketball and tennis were popular in the women's class, as well as "aesthetic dancing." Female students learned themed dances during class and later presented them to an audience - fully costumed. On November 23, 1918, The Colonial Echo noted that the women students "entertain[ed] with choral dances, Spanish and Russian specialties. The audience remained throughout."

These photos from the day are from Catherine Dennis' scrapbook.

Catherine Dennis, in Italian Dance costume

Marceline Galting, women's physical education instructor, in costume

Women's gymnasium class in costume

top row, left-right: Margaret Lee, Martha Barksdale, Florence Harris, Louise Reid, Elizabeth Scott, Alice Person, Margaret Bridges, Elizabeth Lee, Edna Reid, Janet Coleman

bottom row, l-r: Ruth Conkey, Margaret Thornton, Hope Baines, Evelyn Palmer

Editions of The Colonial Echo and Catherine Dennis' scrapbook are available in the Special Collections Research Center.

This post was composed by Kate Hill.

For additional information about the first women students at the College of William and Mary see: When Mary Entered with her Brother William: Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945 by Laura F. Parrish; "The Petticoat Invasion": Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945; The Martha Barksdale Papers; and the Women at the College of William and Mary page on the Special Collections Research Center Wiki.

Student Groups for Women, 1918-1919

Participating in campus activities was a challenge for the first class of women at the College of William and Mary. Women were not allowed in most of the activities or clubs that played a large role in campus life. Fraternities, literary societies, athletic teams, and the student newspaper, The Flat Hat, were closed to female membership. In its first year, coeducation was not expected to extend much further than the classroom.

Prohibited from joining many of the established campus organizations, women created their own groups in which they could participate and socialize. The Women's Student Council, initially presided over by Florence Harris and later by Martha Barksdale, was one such group. According to The Colonial Echo, "the purpose of the organization is to represent and to further the best interests of the women student body, to regulate the conduct of the women under authority of the college, and to promote responsibility, loyalty, and self-control."

The Alpha Club was a multi-faceted organization. Headed by Celeste Ross its first year, the group sought to "develop departments of Music, Dramatics, Literary Activities, and other interests, all united in name and general purpose in the original Club."

Members of the Alpha Club. From The Colonial Echo.

More mysterious is a group called the "P.P." Club. Catherine Dennis' scrapbook contains several photos of the club's officers (she was vice president; Alice Burke was president and Martha Barksdale served as secretary), but no mention of its purpose or interest. The club may not have been an official organization as it does not appear in the yearbook, either. The "P.P." Club: (l-r) Martha Barksdale, Alice Burke, Catherine Dennis. From Catherine Dennis' scrapbook.

Still, men and women were not completely separated in their activities. Ruth Conkey was an assistant editor on The Colonial Echo for 1919, both sexes were encouraged to participate in the "Cercle Francais" French club, and everyone could attend events such as the literary society debates, films, dances, and sporting events. Full integration into campus life would take time, but the first class of women made a good start of it.

The Flat Hat is available online; editions of The Colonial Echo and Catherine Dennis' scrapbook are available in the Special Collections Research Center.

This post was composed by Kate Hill.

For additional information about the first women students at the College of William and Mary see: When Mary Entered with her Brother William: Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945 by Laura F. Parrish; The Martha Barksdale Papers; and the Women at the College of William and Mary page on the Special Collections Research Center Wiki.

September 25 - October 5, 1918: Quarantine

On September 25, 1918, less than a week into the start of classes at the College of William and Mary, an outbreak of influenza resulted in the quarantine of a group of students living on campus. According to the Williamburg newspaper, The Virginia Gazette, "fifteen or twenty students at William and Mary are under quarantine, being affected with the Spanish grip. Some of them are quite ill but none are in danger. They are usually confined to the rooms for a day or two, but suffer considerably while the malady is at its worst."

Further reports of the influenza epidemic (commonly known as the "Spanish flu") in Williamsburg in the Gazette are sparse, but the October 3 edition of the newspaper did note that the dance hall at the Marx Hotel had closed to help prevent the spread of the disease, and encouraged other businesses in the area to do the same. On campus, classes were cancelled during the quarantine.

Martha Barksdale, one of the first women students, mentioned the quarantine in her diary entry of November 26 and that none of the women in Tyler Hall were ill. New to the dormitory and college life, they used the break from classes to get to know each other, and even play a game of basketball. The quarantine period helped established Tyler as a center for activity for the female students. Although fewer than 14 members of the first group lived in the dorm, the women who lived off-campus in Williamsburg spent much of their free time there. As Janet Coleman Kimbrough described in an interview, "we were tremendously interested in each other [...] We spent a great deal of time discussing clothes and manners and what everybody was doing and whether to use lipstick or not and whether a girl who kissed boy was fast and so forth."

The students afflicted with the disease eventually recovered and the campus quarantine was lifted on October 5. Classes resumed, and the students returned to work.

Partial group photo of the first class of women from Catherine Dennis' scrapbook, dated 1918.

Top row, left-right: Mary Haile, Edna Reid, Catherine Dennis, Florence Black, Margaret Bridges, Lucille Brown
Middle row, l-r: Janet Coleman, Marie Wilkins, Louise Reid, Martha Barksdale, Margaret Lee

Bottom row, l-r: Celeste Ross, Elizabeth Lee, Margaret Thronton, Elizabeth Scott, Alice Person

An excerpt of Janet Coleman Kimbrough's interview is featured in the online exhibit, "The Petticoat Invasion": Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945. Full text of Kimbrough's interview, issues of The Virginia Gazette, and Catherine Dennis' scrapbook are available in the Special Collections Research Center.

This post was composed by Kate Hill.

For additional information about the first women students at the College of William and Mary see: When Mary Entered with her Brother William: Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945 by Laura F. Parrish; The Martha Barksdale Papers; and the Women at the College of William and Mary page on the Special Collections Research Center Wiki.

September 19, 1918: Mary Enters with Her Brother William

On this date ninety years ago, women entered the College of William and Mary as students. The women made up around 20% of the total number of students enrolled in the College and almost a third of the freshman class, due in large part to the country's involvement in World War I. These "pioneers," as they were often called, included:

Lilian Hope Baines, Martha Barksdale, Margaret Florence Bridges, Lucille Brown, Janet Coleman, Ruth Taylor Conkey, Catherine Dennis, Mary Haile, Florence Mae Harris, Ruth Harris, Elizabeth Lee, Margaret Lee, Evelyn Palmer, Alice Person, Edna Widgen Reid, Laura Louise Reid, Celeste Ross, Elizabeth Scott, Margaret Thornton, and Marie Wilkins.

This list is from the document "Names of girls at William and Mary, Oct., 8, 1918" from the office of Herbert L. Bridges. Bridges served as Registrar and Secretary of the Faculty from 1907 until 1928 and held several other positions at the College as well during his tenure from 1881 through 1933. Click image to enlarge.

Other lists also include Alice Burke, Winifred Goodwin, Emily Hall, and Alice Powers as part of the first class of women. President Lyon G. Tyler would later refer to these women in a letter to Catherine Dennis as the "noble band of girls who broke the ice at William and Mary, and led the way in the emancipation of their sex." Still, as of September, 19, 1918, they were also just the latest in a long line of new students to College - facing the challenges of classes and a new social environment.

The women may or may not have know it then, but this was just the beginning of a year full of change at William and Mary.


A copy of the Strode Bill that allowed women to attend William and Mary from the records of President Lyon G. Tyler. Click image to enlarge.







This post was composed by Jordan Ecker and Kate Hill.

For additional information about the first women students at the College of William and Mary see: When Mary Entered with her Brother William: Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945 by Laura F. Parrish; "The Petticoat Invasion": Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945; The Martha Barksdale Papers; and the Women at the College of William and Mary page on the Special Collections Research Center Wiki.