A Look At Wisconsin Graduations Past

May means flowers, spring, and graduation for thousands of students across Wisconsin. These ceremonies have changed a lot over the decades.

A Mrs. McMynn left an account of the first graduation ceremony held at a high school in Racine in her scrapbook. It was held, strangely enough, on Christmas Eve, December 24, 1857. The ceremony lasted all day and included a “demonstration of the literary and oratorical excellence attained by members of the class.” Students shared essays and orations with titles like “As the Schools, So the Nation” and “Love of Liberty Our Safety.”

A study of graduation ceremonies in 1930s Wisconsin revealed that “practically every school makes a formal affair of presenting diplomas, and in nine out of ten schools a Senior play is given.” The play helped raised money for the senior class. Caps and gowns weren’t yet standard. Only 39 percent of the graduates wore them, though the report noted that the cap and grown — in gray — was growing in favor, a move the authors applauded for replacing “the haphazard dress now often used.”