One hundred years ago – in September 1915 – Hamline University welcomed its largest first-year class to date. Dr. James S. King, professor of German, penned a prosaic tribute to the future class of 1919 in the October 1915 edition of the Alumni Quarterly.
“The Hamline family has received this new-comer into its circle, and extends to it all the prerogatives of sonship and daughterhood,” King wrote. “Like all babes, too, it has become the biggest member of the family, demands more time, consumes more energy, and occupies more space than any of its older brothers of sisters.”
King noted Hamline’s largest class was “widely representative.” “They come from the north, south, east and west,” he wrote. “Some are tall, some stubby; some lean, some stout; some blond, some brunette; some are athletic, some musical, some religious, and some even studious.”
King declared, “Knowing of their excellent qualifications, we await eagerly their entrance into all the varied and wholesome activities of the college.”
In conclusion, King left his readers with the following thoughts: “And may we add in closing that we believe this confidence in their alma mater on the part of ‘Old Hamline Grads’ is in no wise misplaced. The Hamline of today is far stronger than the Hamline of yesterday, and the Hamline of tomorrow will rise high above the Hamline of today.”
You can read Professor King’s essay and the full list of the 1915 first-years and their hometowns in the 1915 Alumni Quarterly of Hamline University.
A hearty welcome to our future Pipers, the class of 2019!