When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
1886 antique WILLIAMS COLLEGE class of 86 williamstown ma STATISTICS PHOTO ADS
SCROLL DOWN for MORE PHOTOS in DESCRIPTION
ClickHEREto view or search ANTIQUE.COTTAGE listings.
This description was prepared with the assistance of AI using the photographs and information provided by the seller.
DESCRIPTION
Original 1886 “Statistics of the Class of Eighty-Six” for Williams College, Williamstown, Massachusetts. This is an unusually detailed Class of 1886 publication compiled by Class Secretary George Weston Anderson and printed by The North Adams Transcript Print, North Adams, Mass.
Far more than a simple commencement program or class roster, this publication gives a remarkably detailed—and frequently humorous—portrait of the Williams College Class of 1886. It records individual students, their backgrounds, college activities, opinions, preferences, plans, athletics, societies, expenses and numerous aspects of everyday college life.
The volume also includes an excellent full-page group photograph of the Class of 1886 and 13 additional pages of period advertising, including businesses in Williamstown, North Adams, Boston and New York.
DETAILS & CONTENT INCLUDE:
- 1886 Williams College Class of Eighty-Six
- Compiled by George Weston Anderson, Class Secretary
- Dated June 1, 1886
- Printed by The North Adams Transcript Print, North Adams, Mass.
- 38 numbered pages
- Plus 13 additional pages of period advertisements
- Original printed wrappers
- Decorative period typography throughout
- Full-page Class of 1886 group photograph
- Class roster giving names and addresses
- Section devoted to “Sometime Members”
- Individual biographical information on former class members
- Tables recording students’ birth dates, birthplaces and preparatory schools
- Students’ intended postgraduate courses and vocations
- Humorous column recording “Matrimonial Prospects”
- Class opinions concerning compulsory chapel, gymnasium requirements and Greek
- Favorite class officers and professors
- College society and fraternity affiliations
- Opinions concerning the college marking system, cane rushing and hazing
- Preferred electives and favorite subjects
- Students’ stated “Most Admirable Qualities in the Fair Sex”
- Fathers’ alma maters and occupations
- Clothing statistics including hat, shoe, glove and collar sizes
- Opinions concerning the temperance question
- Favorite orators, songs and hymns
- Table titled “The Direction of Our Influence” recording religion, philosophy, politics and tariff opinions
- Extended narrative history of the Class of 1886
- Discussion of student behavior and “Our Morals”
- References to smoking, drinking, card playing, dancing, hazing, rushing and other aspects of student life
- Detailed list of class officers
- Honors and Prizes
- Class festivities and suppers
- Studies and Instructors
- Societies and Clubs
- YMCA and other student organizations
- Journalism at Williams, including discussion of college publications
- College Expenses, including reported yearly averages and individual high/low expenditures
- Extensive Athletics section
- Track and field performances and records
- Detailed Base Ball and Foot Ball section
- Players, positions, batting and fielding statistics
- Game results and scores
- Discussion of the development of football at Williams
- Section titled “Improvements in Our Time” discussing changes to the Williams campus and curriculum during the class’s four years
The advertising section is particularly attractive and collectible in its own right, with elaborate Victorian typography and advertisements for businesses catering to Williams students and travelers. Visible advertisers include the Grand Union Hotel opposite Grand Central Depot in New York, F. L. Dunne tailor in Boston, Harrington’s hats, Young & McCann merchant tailors of North Adams, Severance & Co. druggist and apothecary of Williamstown, Aborn Hatter of Boston, Crawford House of Boston, J. G. Roberts & Co. college album manufacturers, J. W. Brine Harvard outfitter, local livery stables, clothiers, druggists, grocers and other Williamstown and North Adams merchants.
One especially interesting advertisement contains an 1886 Fitchburg Railroad condensed local timetable, showing service between Boston and North Adams with intermediate stops including Ayer Junction, Fitchburg, Gardner, Athol, Greenfield and Shelburne Falls.
This is a terrific primary-source document for research into Williams College history, American higher education, Victorian student life, college athletics, early football and baseball, fraternities, social customs, genealogy, Massachusetts history and 1880s advertising. The unusually personal statistical tables preserve information about individual members of the class that would rarely appear in a conventional college catalog.
Authentic period piece related to family, historyor local heritage - well-suited for historical collections, genealogical /genealogy research, or museum acquisition.Vintage or Antique.
CONDITION: See listing description and photos.
- International buyers are responsible to pay VAT or other Taxes to their countries as required.
- collects and remits sales tax on behalf of several states.If you are a dealer, you can write to to file a form to become tax exempt.
LOC:
LOC2: PAPERBOX39-TMKTK-MULTI(4)-F2609BCG600G
Powered by SixBit\'s eCommerce Solution
