• Chevy Amazons, Page 2

    "School of Dancing and Physical Training" in 1911

    In the 1911 school catalog, each area of educational curriculum is described as a “school” – the school of music, the school of expression, the school of art, and the “School of Dancing and Physical Training.”  The development of grace and self-possession are the focus of this physical training program:

    “The complete physical development of the person is here considered.  Rhythm, poise, self-control, proper carriage of the body, are the points to be gained.”

     

    Students playing croquet
    Croquet, Chevy Chase Seminary Yearbook 1914-1915, CCHS 1991.09.04

    But sports as amusement or vigorous experiences were soon to became a permanent part of the Chevy Chase environment, for in the 1914-1915 catalog, there are photographs of girls in basketball clothing, and girls playing billiards, tennis, golf, and croquet.

     

     

     

     

     

     

    "The Blacks and the Golds,"  Intramural Competition in the 1920s

    Students demonstrating rhythmic dancing
    Rhythmic Dancing, Chevy Chase Yearbook 1922-1923,
    CCHS 2003.19.04

    In the 1922-23 yearbook, photographs show girls playing basketball, dressed in skirts and white blouses.  Other photos portray girls getting ready for a horseback ride, practicing archery, and demonstrating rhythmic dancing.  This last activity may have been a performance, for something like a May pole stands next to five girls.  They are dressed in gauzy nymph-like costumes, and they hold hands as they dance on the grass.

     

     

     

     

     

    In the same yearbook, we learn how the intramural sports teams operated throughout the year:

    “In order to avoid individual competition and yet to keep alive the competitive spirit, the students were divided arbitrarily into two groups, denominated respectively the Blacks and the Golds.  Keen rivalry between these groups prevailed throughout the year in many phases of school activity, notably in athletics, scholarship, penalties for infraction of school regulations, and church attendance.  The Blacks won the tennis tournament, but the major part of the scholastic honor went to the Golds.  The Blacks likewise accumulated a smaller number of “warnings” (the technical name for school penalties) during the year, while the Golds had a better church attendance record.”

     

     

    Black and Gold Teams
    Black and Gold Teams, Chevy Chase School Alumnae Bulletin 1930-1931, CCHS 500.32.01

    The year-long intramural competition integrated sports with the entire curriculum, and removed the possible dangers of individual competition.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

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