Thursday, October 03, 2019
KSHS resumes
After a hiatus of several months, the Kansas State Hist Soc has resumed posting items, and they're making up for lost time. This 1892 picture is a total puzzle. It's about 100 young folks, maybe college age, posed on the porches and balconies of a Sullivanesque building in Wichita. (It's not the courthouse; more like a mansion?)
Description:
A group of people from the Normalites of Sedgwick County, Kansas are seen together in front of a large building. A few individual names are listed on the back. The photograph was taken by Nereus Baldwin in 1892.The group seems to be something like a fraternity or sorority, but it's about half male and half female, which might imply a choral group. What does the name mean? Later thought, resetting my mental calendar: In 1892 normal didn't mean typical, it meant a teacher training school. The main Normal Schools in Kansas were in Emporia and Hays, later turned into State Univs; but most cities had summer 'Normal Institutes' where current teachers could update their knowledge. This could have been such a group.
Labels: Bemusement
¶ 7:05 AM
