Members of the Class of 1933 faced the Great Depression and conflicts abroad while at the College, but they remember their years as students at Dartmouth fondly. About 29 members of the class returned to Hanover this weekend to celebrate their 65th reunion.
Class President Mansfield Sprague '33 said things were much more difficult for members of his class than they are for students today.
In addition to the Depression, "a lot of us had to go to war and start all over again," Sprague said.
Robert McDonald '33 said the class graduated in the depths of the Great Depression, and many students had difficulty getting jobs after college.
Class Secretary John Monagan '33 said the stock market crashed only four weeks after the class matriculated in the fall of 1929, and 184 classmates out of 624 had to drop out of the College because of a lack of finances.
"A lot of families couldn't afford the cost of education -- even though tuition was $300 a year," Monagan said.
"The Depression was a black cloud over everyone," Class Treasurer Alexander Cunningham '33 said. But he added that most of his classmates were successful after graduation.
Many members of the Class of 1933 pursued careers in politics. Parker Hart '33 served as Ambassador to Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey. Sprague became a successful lawyer and Assistant Secretary to the Navy under President Dwight Eisenhower. Justin Stanley '33 was the President of the American Bar Association.
Monagan went to Harvard Law school, was elected mayor of Waterbury, Connecticut. and served as a Congressman for 14 years. He also authored several books and is currently working on a memoir. The late Henry Smith '33, a Republican Congressman from New York, served on the judiciary committee that investigated President Nixon.
Others followed different, but equally rewarding, paths. Paul Zamecnik '33, whose biological experiments led to breaking the DNA code, received the Presidential Medal of Science. Paul Weston '33 became a great musician and worked on arrangements for well-known singers, including Tommy Dorsey and Rudy Vallee. He also wrote accompaniments for Frank Sinatra.
Cunningham credits the College with starting him off on a banking career. He eventually became vice president of a Wall Street bank, The Irving Trust Co.
McDonald said he has a "checkered past." After graduation he worked in marketing and advertising, then did public service for seven years, working for the Foreign Policy Association in New York. Most recently he and his wife ran a hardware store in Connecticut.
The Great Depression was not, however, the only challenge the '33s faced. They also had to deal with the restrictions of prohibition.
Federal agents were on campus during Winter Carnival looking for alcohol one year, and Beta Theta Pi fraternity decided to play a trick on them, Cunningham said.
The Betas drew attention to themselves by driving up to their fraternity house, located behind South Massachusetts hall at the time, and running in with suitcases. Federal agents noticed the suspicious behavior and chased the brothers into the house.
Cunningham said the students threw the suitcases out the window and into the cemetery, where the agents opened them and found nothing but toilet paper. The fraternity's liquor was safely hidden in their snow sculpture the entire time, Cunningham said.
Despite the hardships they endured, members of the Class of 1933 still have fond memories of the College.
While the '33s were students, Dartmouth was suffering from a "jinx," unable to win a football game against Yale, McDonald said. Hazing of freshmen also ended while the Class of '33 was at the College, although they were still required to wear freshman "beanies."
Cunningham said the White Church, built in 1780, burned down on the spot where Sanborn Hall stands today. He said he remembers students rushing from all points on campus to see the blaze.
Sprague said the College "was a wonderful place then and still is." He said the teachers, sports and atmosphere of the College were great.
However, Sprague said, before women were admitted to the College, "it was kind of a lonely place." He said the admission of women was the best thing to ever happen to the College.
Monagan, who was captain of the swimming team, a member of Alpha Delta Phi fraternity and a member of the Glee Club while at the College, said he was as happy in Hanover as he had ever been in his life.
"We're looking forward to coming up," Monagan said.
McDonald, who serves as Reunion Chair along with his wife Mary Jo, anticipated about 70 guests, including the wives, widows, children and grandchildren of alumni, would come to Hanover this weekend.
McDonald said, during the reunion, there would be a memorial service at the Aquinas House for all the class members who have passed away.
He said other events would include a meeting with Professor of Chemistry and Environmental Studies Emeritus James Hornig to discuss happenings at the College today, a dinner and reception with President James Freedman and a Glee Club concert.
Members of the class also planned to watch a film with footage from their college years and from their 25th reunion, and to march through the graduation ceremony.
