Graduation à la 1895

As I look at documents dated 1895, I think, “That hasn’t been such a long time ago.” Of course, none of the people from that time period are around now. As we discussed yesterday, neither are many of the buildings where they gathered their memories.

Not only are those historic markers—the buildings of bygone eras—gone, but the manner in which people conducted life in and around those edifices has disappeared, also. Looking at the “closing exercises” program from Agnes Tully Stevens’ collection of memorabilia, I realize that graduation exercises were conducted quite a bit differently at the Saint Anne's School in 1895 than those I attended this past June. Even the stories those groups hoped to tell are different from the stories we wish to remember now, as we’ll see when I post the continuation of this graduation program tomorrow.

Of course, I’m hoping that anyone searching for some strand indicating the manner of their ancestors’ lives will stumble upon this posting—whether through a link on a social media site, in a genealogy forum, or through a search engine like Google.

I’ve been tempted to try and find online documentation for some of these names listed on the program below. Thinking I’d get the best result by checking the most unusual name, I tried looking on FamilySearch.org for Valada Dubreuil. However, sometimes looking for the most unusual name can yield a quite common result: nothing.

It may be best, in light of that, to let these graduates’ descendants do the searching, and remain content to be merely the conductor serving to facilitate that journey of their own.

Programme.

“To Thee O Heart of Jesus”………………………..Senior Boys

Acc’d by Lillie Archibald

PANTOMINE.

Josephine Hall, Valada Dubreuil, Agnes Lyons, Jennie Morrissey,

Nellie English, Kittie Casey, Gertrude Emo, Myrtle Hubbard

TABLEAU.

Blessed Virgin……………………………………Mary Jordan.

Angels……………………………….Willomena Vail

Edith Staley

Rosalind Wind

Deborah Conic

Eddie O’Neill

Walter Gillice

“Battle of Chancellorsville”

Senior Boys.

Song, “Joys of Spring” ………………….Geibel

Acc’d. by Jeanne Thomas.