1932 edition of Mountaineer unearths its origins

1932+edition+of+Mountaineer+unearths+its+origins

Happy birthday to the Mountaineer, Stroudsburg High Schoolai??i??s venerable newspaper. Why make this announcement today? Ai??Well, until this year, the Mountaineer staff had been unsuccessful in tracing the roots of the schoolai??i??s newspaper. Ai??That is until we were enlightened by Mrs. Ann Horvath, a long-time kindergarten teacher at Ramsey Elementary School.

Annai??i??s mother, Mrs. Hazel Kartans Rau (SHS class of 1931 graduate and salutatorian) is now 102 years of age. Ai??She has kept several items related to the Stroudsburg Area School District for all these years. Ai??Among her memorabilia is a Mountaineer newspaper (dated February 1932), and in it is a story that traces the history of the schoolai??i??s newspaper right back to the actual day and date that the first edition was released. Ai??Below is the article that appeared in the Feburary 3, 1932 edition of the Mountaineer.

 

MOUNTAINEER FOUR YEARS OLD TODAY

HISTORY OF OUR SCHOOL PAPER, February 3, 1932

This is the fourth birthday of our school paper ai???The Mountaineer.ai??? Several years before in 1914, a group of pupils endeavored to print a school paper. It was called the ai???Maroon and White.ai??? Hubert Dutton, the first editor, is a brother of the well known writer, William S. Dutton, who was graduated from Stroudsburg High in 1912. Mary Frances Melchoir, the assistant editor, wrote our Alma Mater. The advertising manager, Lawrence Cook, was editor in 1915-16. He is now Professor of Chemistry and Santa Clara University, California. Tunis Clarks, a brother of Mr.Vere Banks, the business manager. Charles completed the staff list.

Only three issues appeared in two years, because of financial difficulties and lack of student interest.

In January, 1922, a new group tried to put across a paper bearing the same name. Walter Dreher was editor and his assistants were: Ada Fenner, Marion Edinger, Elmer Kiefer, Arlington Williams, and Ruth Kistler. They succeeded in printing several issues but again the project failed. The Maroon and White was a magazine of many pages and was printed on very expensive paper. This plus lack of interest was again the cause of the failure of the attempt to start something new in Stroudsburg High School.

In 1929, the group of Jim Hagerty, Mary Shaeffer, Marian Gruver, and Tony Gilpin determined that they would produce a successful school paper in the form of a newspaper rather than a magazine.

The first work on this new paper was done in the 8th period study hall by the Senior group. The work was interrupted by Miss Maurer and Miss Geating, in their desperate attempts to keep a quiet study hall.

Studying French together was one of the many excuses offered. We may note that Jim was studying third year French, Mary and Ai??Marion second year French, and Tony was taking no language at all.

It was soon learned, however, that Miss Geating was their friend and helper. She became the first faculty adviser.

They called their paper the ai???Study Hall Democratai??? because all four were democrats, but the title was changed when a contest for a name was held, and Tommy Fellencer won the honor of naming the paper the ai???Mountaineer.ai???

Other names were added to the staff and soon many people were interested. This time our paper was on the road to success.

The following year, Forrest Smith, took the responsibilities of editor on his shoulders. Last year Dorothy Pennington edited the publication. Each year it has developed. We hope that in future years it will develop much more and create still more interest in our school.

A school paper is a fine thing. It should represent the school and be the production of the students.

It is up to you, you classes who will follow the class of ai???32, to make the Mountaineer of future years a paper of which we may all be proud.