Looking back at the PHS Class of 1949

Posted September 30, 2024

This year marks the 75th anniversary of the graduation of the Plymouth High School Class of 1949. Here is a look back at its senior year!

Homecoming

Homecoming 1948 featured:

• Homecoming was postponed 2 weeks because of a polio outbreak.
• All events were held Friday Oct. 22 and included parade, bonfire, pep meeting, football game victory over Sheboygan Falls, and a dance with a live orchestra.

Sports

Interscholastic sports for boys included:

• Basketball
• Football, which was undefeated
• Track, which sent a shot putter and a relay team to State

Girls could be part of the Girls Athletic Association, which offered basketball, volleyball, baseball, and other sports after school. There also was a Rural Girls Athletic Association, which provided similar activities during the noon hour once a week.

The arts

Performing opportunities included:

• One-act plays “The Case of the Glass Slipper,” “The Wedding,” and “The Valiant”
• Senior class play “Our Hearts Were Young and Gay”
• Musical festivals in April and May
• Senior Band, Junior Band, Marching Band, and Twirlers
• Chorus

Extracurriculars

Other student activities and extracurriculars included:

• Cheerleaders
• Class officers
• Debate
• Future Farmers of America
• Future Homemakers of America
• German Club (new that year)
• Hi-Lights student newspaper
• Hi-Y, a branch of YMCA
• Letter Club
• Library Club
• National Honor Society
• Quit-Qui-Oc yearbook
• Student Council
• Tri-Hi-Y service club

Other highlights from the year:

• Mixer Dance in September
• Sadie Hawkins Dance (where girls invite boys) in November
• Valentines Dance in February
• Junior Prom in May

PHS staff

The PHS faculty and staff included:

• Principal (who also taught a class called “American Problems”)
• 3½ English teachers
• 3 typing, shorthand, & bookkeeping teachers
• 2½ history, geography, citizenship teachers
• 2 math teachers
• 2 music teachers
• 2 physical education/health teachers (including Werner Finke, for whom Finke Field is named)
• 2 science teachers
• 1 agriculture teacher
• 1 art teacher
• 1 home economics teacher
• 1 librarian
• 1 manual arts (i.e. tech ed) teacher
• ½ German teacher
• ½ Latin teacher
• 4 custodians

Thanks to Quit Qui Oc yearbook for sharing its archives!

Learn more:

• Learn about PHS in 1973-74.
• Learn about PHS in 1998-99.
• Learn about PHS in 2013-14.
• Visit the PHS Alumni Information webpage.
• Explore the District History webpage.