This Week in History: Rugby Came to Winchester and More

This is a regular column with items drawn from past editions of the Winchester Star.

1912

Have you ever heard anyone talk about "the good old days" before?

On the front page of The Winchester Star from April 5, 1912, Charles A. Currier wrote an insightful piece titled "The Good Old Times Are A Myth, A Figment of the Imagination." In his essay/article, Currier goes on to say that while history repeats itself, "some feel that history does not repeat, that we have fallen upon degenerative days and that the golden age of our forefathers has given away to the bronze or iron age of the present; that things just aren't what they used to be." He goes on to criticize this notion, calling the good old days, "a myth, a figment of the imagination, the memory of the brighter hue and the forgetfulness of the darker shadows of long-gone past."

Play Ball!

The Symmens Corner Athletic Club played one of the first games of baseball in the 1912 season against the Junior Athletic Club at the Junior Athletic Club's field. The score was 9 to 4 in favor of the visitors.

1962

Rugby Comes to Winchester.

A Rugby Match was scheduled for April 28 at . The Westmont Ruggers Club of Montreal will take on the Boston Rugby Club. All proceeds from the match would go towards a scholarship. “The Montreal and Boston Rugby Teams are comprised of businessmen and college graduates who play not for money but for sheer love of the sport.”

Essay Contest on Voter Apathy

“Students in the 10th, 11th and 12th grade from both and Marycliff Academy are invited to participate in an essay contest sponsored by The Winchester Women’s Republican Club. Subject of the essay: Why Don’t More Winchester People Vote In Town Elections?” Word length 500 words. 

1987

Assistant Principal Ousted in Committee Tenure Vote.

A unanimous vote from the school committee sent assistant principal Karen Baker packing after she was denied tenure and a contract renewal. The superintendent informed her of this decision 10 minutes before the vote was cast. Baker had held the position for 3 years prior.

Yoga Expert Brings Classes to Winchester.

Ruth Bender, a physical education and Yoga instructor offered two classes at the Unitarian Church and at the Jenks Center. Bender received her degree from the University of Munich in Germany and studied yoga with Selvarajan Yesudian in Zurich, Switzerland.