14C
HOMECOMING SECTION
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2008
TRADITIONS
A brief guide of campus history
Junior Dan Wessel, 1973, prepares to attempt his flight over Potter's Lake.
BY HALLIE MANN hmann@kansan.com
Courtesy of University Archives
The University of Kansas has a long and grand history. When the University was founded in 1865, it was barely a university. It had no money and only three professors. There used to be days when people could swim in Potter's Lake and the KU colors were yellow and blue like Michigan. There was once a time when the state was proposing to put the university in Manhattan.
Although the history of the Jayhawks has been a quite interesting series of events, some students don't know much about it. Overland Park sophomore Lauren Beebe is a first generation Jayhawk, and she said she wasn't up to par with the University's history. Fewer students know of the obscure events like the Maypole Scrap and the burning of the Kansas Union, both of which held great significance to KU's history.
According to Mark Hersey, Kansas Department of History from kuhistory.com, the rivalry with Missouri is the second oldest Division 1 college football rivalry in the country. Kansas' first game against MU was played on Halloween Day in 1891 in Kansas City's Exposition Park. This was the first time the Jayhawks wore Crismon on the gridiron and it was also the first in a series of many victories for the Jayhawks with a score of 22-8. The Rock Chalk chant could be heard for hours in the streets of Kansas City celebrating the Jayhawk Victory.
Since the beginning of the Border War, the rankings now stand at 54-53-9 with Missouri in the lead (no game was played in 1918 due to an epidemic). This is
a disputed count because of the game in 1960. Kansas, who used an illegal player (Bert Coan), counts this game as a victory but the official NCAA record and Missouri see it the other way.
Alyson Smith, Overland Park sophomore, is prepared for this year's game.
"Everyone should get so excited and I think we'll be better prepared this time," Smith said.
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The first University of Kansas football squad in 1891 poses for a team picture before plaving against Missouri.
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This rivalry is one of KU's oldest and better known traditions by most students.
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Kansas has many rivals throughout the Big 12, but the annual Maypole Scrap allowed KU student rivalries to let off some steam.
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According to Henry J. Fortunato, Kansas Department of History from kuhistory.com, this almost annual event every May 1 or May Day, allowed male students to engage in a campus wide brawl, pitting classes and colleges against each other, taunting and jeering at professors and students, and taking temporary captives.
A few days later on May 20, 1952, a mob attempted to force their way into several sorority houses screaming "We want silk!" to the startled sorority girls. This epic panty raid was followed up by
"Right before I came to Lawrence, there was a lot of violence and dissidence on campus," Antonio said.
Campus rivalries between the greek houses have also stirred up memorable events. According to Kevin Armitage, Kansas Department of History from kuhistory.com, in May of 1952, a 1,500-man mob attempted the largest panty raid in KU history. The raid was caused when a few of the male students antagonized by a group of female students a few days earlier that had stolen some furniture from two fraternities.
This event was mainly seen as an expression of school spirit and harmless fun. Although some sustained minor injuries, only two freshmen were severely injured. In 1905, the Maypole scrap was officially laid to rest with a mock funeral condemning the annual event.
In April 1973, junior Dan Wessel, also known as "The Great Wessellini" and "Lorenzo the Magnificent" attempted to take flight in a home-made flying contraption.
These extreme demonstrations attracted the attention of President John F. Kennedy who made an appearance on campus and ABC, who made a movie filmed in
Sociology professor Robert Antonio, who came to Lawrence in 1971, remembers the turbulent times at KU.
a harsh reprimand of Chancellor Franklin D. Murphy warning that further forced entrances and theft would not be tolerated on the KU campus.
Nora Burt, Chicago junior said one of the current rivalries in the reek system is Derby Days. "All the sororities compete against each in different events to find this hat," Burt said. "We try to outsmart the rest of the sororities to win."
The late '60s and early 70s were a time of dissent and protest on the KU campus. On March 8, 1965, a sit-in was conducted in the Chancellor's office to protest the
racial policies of the university. A few years later, the Kansas Union was burned down via a firebomb explosion on April 20, 1970.
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According to Douglas Harvey, Kansas Department of History from kuhistory.com, on the afternoon of April 23 Wessel launched his cruse flying machine down Campanile hill and vowed to make it over the scoreboard of Memorial Stadium. Unfortunately, Wessel barely made it past the ramp and his 32-foot flyer was snapped in half. Wessel emerged unharmed and was cheered, despite his failure.
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But this would not be Wessel's final stunt. In his senior year, Wessel attempted to turn himself into a human cannonball. Wessel, dressed in tights and a cape, attempted to roll down a ramp inside of a Plexiglas bubble on a skateboard. On April 27, 1974 a crowd of 4,000 students turned up to watch "Lorenzo the Magnificent" attempt to fly over Potter Lake. This event was so exciting that professors cancelled class and one physics class even tried to calculate Wessel's probability of success. Again, Wessel's launch was a failure after the ball repeatedly got stuck on the launch ramp. To Wessel, neither of these events was a failure because he was able to draw so many people to watch.
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Each year, students try to leave their mark on campus and find a way to put themselves in the history books. Although all of these events may seem random, they have each played their part in Kansas' history. Kansas has changed so much over the years that current students might not even recognize parts of the campus. All in all, the Jayhawks have made their mark in the Big 12 and the nation both academically and athletically and hopefully will continue to do so long into the future.
Tk
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