Date in History: 1917
The very first Fort Atkinson High School yearbook – the Tchogeerrah – was publishing in 1917. “In moments stolen from the classroom,” the editor reported, “we have wrought this book hoping that it may lighten the burden of some weary hour or recall a pleasant memory in time to come.”
Well, the annual has certainly provided many memories for many generations of Fort graduates. That first 1917 edition set the tone for later Tchogeerrahs with its fun anecdotes and clever writing. Next to the photo of Wesley Sontag was written “Greater musicians have lived, but we doubt it.” Sontag went on to become a famous violinist, noted composer and teacher at the Juillard School of Museum in New York City.
Our favorite caption appears beside the picture of Gertrude “Polly” Beyer – it reads “never studies, never worries, never flunks and never hurries.”
This historic document aired on the radio as an Historic Minute on 05/24/2004.