These past few weeks, the joy of snow has completely captivated Wooster students. I’ve witnessed (and taken part in) spontaneous caroling, hot chocolate drinking, and snowball-making. All of this for less than an inch of snow! As I walked down the salted pathways, I began to wonder about Wooster’s snowy past - was the hype what it was now? I dove into the Archives, and in a collection of The Wooster General, I struck gold - an article from March 1934 about “The Blizzard of 1934.” On Feb. 19 and 20, 1934, Connecticut was practically buried in snow. ‘No big deal, right? Just call the plow company!’ Oh no, no! Wooster and all of Danbury were very different from what they are today. Back then, there was no Coburn, Science Building, Art Center, or FedEx across the street, and most importantly, no paved roads. This town was mostly farmland! How could they survive being isolated from the rest of town? The heroic actions of Wooster’s students.
“...it struck in the night, and by morning the wind had drifted the snow in many places waist high or higher…it left its impression with a record fall of snow of over eighteen inches…The day of the storm was spent opening only the necessary paths and keeping them open so that the students might pass to and from the dining hall.”(The Wooster General) Can you imagine canceling classes so we could shovel the pathways? It might sound fun to some, but a nightmare to others! Remember, these boys lived here, so they didn’t really have a choice!
“The following day, the classes were resumed, and the many walks were cleared again, and the shoveling of the roads was quickly undertaken. The second day after the storm, the Headmaster’s house to the dining hall and cottages was cleared by the strenuous effort of the fifth and sixth forms (Juinors and Seniors today)...The entire road was covered with over three feet of snow and the quickness in which the task was finished was nothing short of miraculous.” I’m exhausted just reading!
The school then turned its attention to more pressing matters: food.
“During the height of the storm, it was necessary for a squad of four boys to travel by skis over drifts in some places close to ten feet high to a farm several miles distant to bring back milk. The trip required over four hours of exhausting effort…[they] proved their mettle by repeating the same task the following day.” Can you even imagine?! It’s pitch black, freezing cold, and the snow is practically blinding you. All you have is your skis, a coat, and a sense of direction. Death is a very possible reality - hypothermia, falling through ice, sheer exhaustion. Yet these four nameless students stuck together, stayed alive, and completed their mission twice! I’m in awe.
“In the meantime, it appeared necessary to make a trip to town for food, and another group of five boys with a master made the trip on skis with a snow-sled, which required over five hours of heavy pulling through drifts with several hundred pounds of snow.” The bravery of the Wooster community is truly inspiring! I wonder what kind of food they brought back? Today, I think a group of students would probably return to campus with a heaping load of Asian Kitchen, Shake Shack, and Chipotle!
The entire experience was gratifying to see the spirit in which the school met the various situations that demanded hard labor and, in some instances, nothing short of courage…Such a spirit and the successful outcome of the experience are a surety of the school’s success in the future.” Whoever wrote this article was right, because here we are, ninety-one years later!
Here’s to safe travels through the snow, warm mugs of Chef Rick’s hot chocolate, and plenty of snowdays! Happy (almost) Winter Break!
Hannah '26
Advanced Journalism Student
