Ask Abe Archives - Organizations

Don McCrery '58 asks Abe: “I was in the marching band from '54 to '58, and I look with envy at the fun present band members seem to be having. I think this is in no small part due to the fact that it is very much a co-ed activity. In what year did the band break through the gender barrier, and was there any resistance?”

Answer: According to Songs to Thee Wisconsin, the publication celebrating the 100th anniversary of Wisconsin Bands, the marching band became co-ed for the first time in its 89-year history in 1974 with the addition of Paula Schultz '77 (trumpet player) and Mary Anne Thurber (saxophonist).

The publication notes that though the Wisconsin band was the first in the Big Ten to remove the sex qualifications for marching bands (which previously read “open to all male students”) in 1971, no female students joined the band until 1974.

The two women were quickly accepted as part of the 170-member group. Today, women make up 39 percent of the UW Marching Band roster.

Don Hoffman '70 asks Abe: “Every time I watch and listen to the tuba section of the UW Marching Band parading around the stands among the fans at sporting events, I find myself wondering what the tune is they always seem to play. It is hauntingly familiar, but I'm not sure exactly what it is. Could you help?”

Answer: According to the University of Wisconsin Marching Band Web site, the tuba march you are thinking of is a tradition stemming from the 1950s. The tubas line up at the beginning of the fourth quarter and parade around the stadium playing such songs as “Semper Fidelis,” “Beer Barrel Polka” and “On Wisconsin.” There isn't one specific song the tubas play during their march around the stands. The march then concludes with the singing of “The finest fellows throughout the land are the tubas in the Wisconsin Band!”

For more information about the tuba march, visit the Wisconsin Band Web site.

Daniel Brown asks Abe: “ONline WISCONSIN provides information on local groups. We live in the Puget Sound area. Are there any groups nearby?”

Answer: The Wisconsin Alumni Association has more than 100 alumni clubs all over the United States and around the world, and you can find the one nearest you on our Web site. If you live in the Puget Sound area, the closest alumni club to you would be the UW-Madison Alumni Club of Seattle, or Rain City Badgers. If you are interested in more information about getting involved, you can visit their Web site at http://uwbadgers.org.

Fred Gaieck MA'86 asks Abe: “I heard that the band only goes to one away-game a year. Has the band's travel been reduced? One of the reasons I go to Wisconsin games is to see the band.”

Answer: You and many other Badger fans have fond memories of the UW Marching Band performing Fifth Quarter favorites like “Varsity,” “On Wisconsin” and “The Chicken Dance” at football games, win or lose. They would love to be at every Badger away-game to root for the red and white. But unfortunately, a restricted budget does not allow the marching band to travel to every game.

Traditionally, the marching band attends one Big Ten away-game each season, two if nearby teams like Northwestern or Minnesota are on the schedule. If their travel requires an overnight stay, the band usually performs at a local high school the night before the game. Members of the UW Marching Band are hosted on Friday night by parents of local high school band students and spend Saturday night at a hotel.

Since the band is technically part of the School of Music, the university provides funding for essentials like uniforms and new instruments. However, the band relies heavily on its endowment fund and annual Spring Concert to provide resources for away-game performances. To learn how you can support the UW Marching Band, Click here.

Andrew Stiles '80, MS'82 asks Abe: “When will the Statue of Liberty rise up from the depths of Lake Mendota again and flamingos party on Bascom Hill?”

Answer: The pranks you refer to were the work of the infamous Pail and Shovel Party at UW-Madison. Led by James Mallon '79 and Leon Varijan, the party was elected to the Wisconsin Student Association in 1978 and re-elected in 1980. The Pail and Shovel Party is no longer in existence at the UW.

The Pail and Shovel Party, so-named for its campaign promise to convert the UW's budget into pennies for students to collect on Library Mall with pails and shovels, threw expensive campus parties and vowed to “give campus issues the seriousness they deserve.” In the winter of 1979, they erected a gigantic replica of the Statue of Liberty's head and torch on Lake Mendota, a stunt that made it seem like Lady Liberty was emerging from the lake's bottom. The first version of the statue fell victim to arson, but when Pail and Shovel was re-elected, a second Lady Liberty was built. This time, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources demanded she be removed from the ice.

The Pail and Shovel Party also put a flock of thousands of pink plastic flamingos on Bascom Hill in the fall of 1979. Within hours most of the birds were stolen and appeared on lawns throughout the city. Although many students were amused at Pail and Shovel pranks, some were angered at the use of their student fees. Sixty students demanded their student fees be returned, and Pail and Shovel responded by issuing sixty checks for ten cents each. Though they weren't re-elected for a third term, their pranks live on in stories passed down from students at UW-Madison.

Michael McQuestion MS'94, PhD'00 asks Abe, “When I completed my PhD at the UW in 2000, I obtained a lifetime Union membership. I've since lost the card. How can I get it replaced?”

Answer: To get your replacement membership card, simply call (608) 262-2263. The Wisconsin Union has your information on file and should be able to replace it. Another option is to go to the membership department on the fourth floor of the Memorial Union next time you're on campus.

You might be interested to know that the Union is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year, so getting your card replaced will come in handy! Visit the Union Web site at http://www.union.wisc.edu for details. An open house celebration is scheduled for June — the community will be invited to kick off the summer season at the Terrace with fireworks, food and music.

Peter Christianson asks Abe, “In the 1930s, the marching band had a really BIG drum with a picture of Paul Bunyan on the side. Paul was depicted wearing a red coat, blue pants and a blue hat, and he carried an axe over his shoulder. Scrolled around the top it read “UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN BANDS,” and scrolled around the bottom it read “FOUNDED 1885.” The drum was about six feet in diameter.

“I have a framed formal picture of the marching band (taken at Camp Randall) in which the drum was prominently displayed. In addition, the 1935 Homecoming button was based on the drum. Whatever happened to the drum?”

Answer: On Saturday November 9, 1935, the Elks Lodge number 338 of Appleton, Wisconsin, presented the drum to the Wisconsin Band as a 50th birthday gift. According to the band department, it had a real drumhead on it and was played, but playing it moved the wooden joints around and it eventually fell apart. The band department threw it away when it moved from Music Hall to the Humanities building. The drum was recreated for the band's centennial in 1985, but it broke again. Unfortunately, the famous drum you remember is no longer around.

Maureen McCabe '80 asks Abe, “The Statue of Liberty on Lake Mendota like the Flamingos on Bascom Hill was a 'Pail and Shovel Parties' creation. I saw there is still a postcard available. Was that something that was done more than one year? What years were the Pail and Shovel party in power? Who were they? What else did they do? What have they gone on to do with their lives?”

Answer: The Wisconsin Student Association (WSA) is a government body representing the then 39,000 students at the University. It controlled a budget of more than $70,000 of student funds. In the spring of 1978, a party named Pail and Shovel swept the WSA elections, getting 1,500 of the 4,500 votes cast. They were re-elected in 1980 for their second term. The Pail and Shovel campaign consisted of bribing voters with play money and slinging mud. “Campaign promises” included installing escalators on Bascom Hill, misusing their funds, flooding Camp Randall for faux naval battles and having all deans stuffed and mounted. These promises never materialized.

The Pail and Shovel Party was a student government organization dedicated to absurdity.

Party leaders were James Mallon and Leon Varjian. Their most well-known stunts are the ones you mentioned, the flamingos on Bascom Hill and the Statue of Liberty on Lake Mendota. They also had a toga party in 1979 and 1980, called Toga I and Toga II, respectively.

Since then, Jim Mallon has gone on to directing. In 1986, Mallon directed the horror film Blood Hook. Mallon also produced and directed Mystery Science Theater 3000.

Larry Jahn asks Abe, "As a member of the 1960 Rose Bowl band, I'd like to know the first time that a UW band marched at half-time for a football game? Did they march from Music Hall to the stadium at that time?"

Answer: The University of Wisconsin-Madison Marching Band has had a vast and varied past. The exact date to which the band was formed has been narrowed down and put into official record as starting in 1885, at which time the band went by the name of the University Regimental Band. The band started out as a military institution, but on February 1, 1886, the UW Band made its first nonmilitary performance, with 16 total members, at the UW's 10th Annual Joint Debate.

The UW Band made its first Badger football game appearance, then as the University Band, in 1894 with 26 members (quite a contrast compared to the approximately 280 to 300 band members who performed at this year's football games!). Judge John "Ikey" Karel has been quoted as sharing this memory from the inaugural event: "After parading around the capitol square on my 'dish pan' (snare drum), we returned to the lower campus (Library Mall), when I removed my band uniform, which I had over my football suit, and played in a game of football." During these early years, the band performed at all of the sporting events - especially during football season, when they played throughout the city on an open streetcar.

However, the University Band's performances weren't always on the streets of Madison. Music Hall was built in 1879 to be used as an assembly hall and library, but in 1900 it became the residence of the School of Music. Because the University Band came under partial control of the Music Department in 1909, it was only fitting that Music Hall become the "home" of the UW Band. Music Hall was the headquarters for the band until 1969, when the School of Music and the University of Wisconsin Band department were moved to the Humanities building.

The University of Wisconsin Band, with its vast number of unforgettable performances on campus and across the nation, has been a treasured institution of the UW for over one hundred years.

Kevin J. Nikutta '75 asks Abe, "Is the Polygon Engineering Council still active? Could you share some of its history and past activities?"

Answer: Polygon began in the early 1920s and is still alive today. This organization is an engineering student council as well as an event-planning unit for events such as the Pre-Engineering Bash, offering parents, freshman, pre-engineering and transfer engineering students the opportunity to meet and to get acquainted with the engineering campus and major; the Spring Advising Fair, an event that provides pre-engineering students with information about what classes to take before they begin mandatory advising; Battle of the Bands, an entertainment-based event offering students a chance to sit back, relax, eat and listen to a live music competition; the All-Campus Party, an event that helps students celebrate spring and the end of the semester; and various other outreach, diversity and engineering-based activities.

In order to make this organization different from the engineering student councils at other schools, the founding fathers decided to give it the unique name of Polygon (which by definition means many faces or many sides) as a way to "exemplify the many faces of the engineering campus, its organizations, and the university." In the earlier days of its existence, when engineering majors were a larger percentage of the UW student body, Polygon planned events for the whole campus. Now, as a member of the National Association of Engineering Student Councils (NAESC), Polygon coordinates events chiefly oriented toward uniting the College of Engineering and its students.

Polygon is set up like a student government, so there are council elections and meetings every month in which voting and council issues are raised. The mission statement of Polygon is "to foster cooperation and communication among students, student organizations, the College of Engineering administration, and industry." Polygon proposes to be more than just a student government. By planning philanthropic and entertaining events, the members of Polygon hope to meet and fulfill the needs of engineering students every semester.

Answer: Dr. Paul A. Chadbourne, MD, DD, LLD, was the third chief administrator of the UW, from 1867 to 1871. Chadbourne had some old fashioned views of education, believing that because women were a distraction for men, they were not serious students. In an effort to follow through with his beliefs, he fought long and hard to have a sexually segregated campus. So, Ladies Hall was constructed in 1871 to house the Wisconsin Female College. This facility was a place for women to live and study — apart from men.

In 1874, after Chadbourne had left UW-Madison, education was desegregated, and men and women began to share classes. It was then that Ladies Hall stopped housing classes and became just a women's dormitory. In 1901, Dean Edward A. Birge, after quite a bit of coercing, renamed Ladies Hall to "Chadbourne Hall," in honor of President Chadbourne. The current Chadbourne Residential College, built in 1959, stands where the old Chadbourne Hall previously stood. The Chadbourne facility was occupied by women only until 1995, when it opened its doors to coeducational living.

The housefellow program was put into effect in 1926. With the opening of Tripp and Adams halls that same year, the Dormitory Committee decided to create a system of student advisers as the proponents of educational programs in the dorms. The name "housefellow" comes from the combination of the "thirty-man subunits or 'houses' within the dorm halls and the instructional responsibilities of the academic graduate 'fellows,' the male student advisers."

The housefellow program was initially led by graduate students. In-state resident housefellows received room and board, and out-of-state resident housefellows received a nonresident student tuition waiver as compensation. The housefellow system lasted like this until 1971, when the university stopped giving out-of-state tuition waivers. This was a major downfall, since most of the graduate students who were housefellows were not from Wisconsin. This, in collaboration with increased federal research grants and the rising need for teaching assistants, allowed undergraduate students to emerge into the housefellow program.

Mark Bowie '86 asked Abe: "When I was in the UW Marching Band in the early 1980s, we used to sing a barbershop-style song that began "My heart is in Madison, M-A-D-I-S-O-N." Can you find any information about this song?"

Answer: "My Heart is in Madison" was first introduced by a group of varsity football players in 1940. Fred Gage '42, Mark Hoskins '46, LLB'48, LWC '48, and John Tennant '42, also known as "the grid trio," entertained the football team with the song, which was previously sung around campus with wide variations in lyrics. After the three sang "My Heart is in Madison" at an all-campus football rally in 1940, the song became an immediate hit with Badger fans. The UW Marching Band started singing the tune soon after, and it was a beloved tradition through the late 1980s. The song was last performed at a Varsity Band concert in 1990. Although relatively unknown to fans in recent years, many Badgers will remember these lyrics:

"My heart is in Madison M-A-D-I-S-O-N.
Where the boys are the squarest the girls are the fairest of any old town I've been in;
My heart is in Madison M-A-D-I-S-O-N.
In all kinds of weather we'll all stick together in M-A-D-I-S-O-N."

Peter A. Reinhardt asks Abe: "I would like to know the relationship, structure, mission and benefits of WARF, the UW Foundation and the Wisconsin Alumni Association. How are they related? How do WARF and the UW Foundation benefit the university?"

Answer: The Wisconsin Alumni Association (WAA), the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF) and the UW Foundation are UW alumni-created organizations working to support the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

WAA was established in 1861 to connect UW-Madison alumni to the university and each other. Today, many of the 330,000 alumni living around the world are connected through lifelong learning programs, student scholarships, alumni travel opportunities, career services, and a network of affiliate groups and regional chapters. WAA is an independently financed, nonprofit alumni organization funded by dues-paying members from all parts of Wisconsin and around the world.

Founded in 1925, WARF serves UW-Madison's scientific community by patenting the discoveries of UW-Madison researchers and licensing technologies to leading companies worldwide. The Graduate School refers to WARF's annual gifts of over $30 million as its "margin of excellence" funding, since the money can be used to support important research when other funding sources are not available.

The UW Foundation, created in 1945, is the official fund-raising and gift-receiving agency for UW-Madison and other donor-designated units of the UW System. An elected board of directors oversees the foundation's assets and activities, such as raising money for the UW by seeking contributions from alumni and friends.

Don Janke '50 asks Abe: "You have covered several radio stations from the campus but did not mention WHA, which headlined itself as 'the oldest station in the nation.' Does it still exist and if not, when did it die?"

Answer: Journalism Professor Jack Mitchell is happy to report, "WHA is alive and well at 970 AM" and is the lead station for the statewide "Ideas Network" of Wisconsin Public Radio.

WHA, under the call letters 9XM, began transmitting voice and sound throughout campus in 1917. In that year, under the leadership of Professor Earle M. Terry, UW students built and operated the "wireless telephone" transmitter in Sterling Hall. Since then, the radio station has continuously broadcast - even during World War I, when it received special authorization to communicate with U.S. Navy stations of the Great Lakes.

After returning to public service, the station changed its call letters from 9XM to the famous WHA on January 13, 1922. The Wisconsin Official Marker at Vilas Hall upholds the station's reputation as the "the oldest station in the nation."

WHA's current programming schedule can be found online.

Emily Meter '59 asks Abe: "When did Haresfoot Productions end?"

Answer: The University of Wisconsin Haresfoot Club performed their final production, "Destry Rides Again," in 1964, after years of dwindling membership and financial struggle. For those who have never heard of Haresfoot, we offer a brief history:

For 65 years, the Haresfoot Club of the University of Wisconsin-Madison delighted audiences throughout the state, with performances of their annual all-male revue. The Haresfoot Club was the UW's oldest dramatic organization and the nation's third oldest collegiate dramatic organization. Started in 1899 by Earnest Kronshage, a UW student, the club's name was derived from a bit of theatrical lore. A hare's foot, at one time, was the standard tool for applying stage make-up. The tradition of all-male casts began in the early 1900s for several reasons. First, not many women attended the university at that time. Second, Haresfoot embraced the tradition of the great clubs at the all-male universities of the East Coast. Third, when the group began touring the state, it was unthinkable for women to travel out of town with men. By 1909 all-male casts were a tradition. The Haresfoot motto became "All Our Girls Are Men; Yet Every One's a Lady." In 1907 the club produced its first musical, which was so well received that history records an almost unbroken string of musicals from that time on. The group began touring at the suggestion of the university who viewed the tour as a good public relations venture. They were also instrumental in the building of the Wisconsin Union Theater, after they complained about having no space for rehearsal.

Haresfoot persevered through World Wars I and II, the depression and, finally, the Korean War before eventually calling it quits. Competition from radio, television and movies made it increasingly difficult to attract audiences, the cost of continuing tours on a private railway became too expensive, and by the last few years, it was difficult to find enough cast members to put on a show. While the group no longer exists, it is fondly remembered among Madisonians and former members, and forever holds a place in university history.

Steve Lesgold '74 asks Abe, "Back when I was in Madison, Hoofers was a really big deal. Its ski club was the largest in the nation. Is it still as popular as it used to be?" Jim Dillinger also recalls, "Hoofers would have a ski jump erected each winter just northwest of Science Hall. Ski jumpers would land on the hill and then ski out onto the lake about where the boathouse is now. Please pass on any info you may have about this activity."

Answer: Hoofers is credited with introducing skiing in Wisconsin and first made its outing club available to the general student population in 1931. In the early 1920s, the Norwegian students at UW-Madison built a wooden ski scaffold on Muir Knoll, just a stone's throw from the Union. It was used by ski jumpers who would land at the bottom of the hill at the lake shore and ski out over the ice on the lake. A steel model replaced the original wooden scaffold in 1931, which lasted until the late '40s or early '50s when the university decided to put a parking area on the bottom of the hill.

Today, Hoofers is still the largest outing club of any public institution in the country. Its ski club boasts 600 members who travel to Vail, Utah, Jackson Hole, Lake Louise, Steamboat and Europe.

Glenn Wilpolt '52 asks Abe: "Whatever happened to the Iron Cross honorary society for senior class men?"

Answer: The Iron Cross Society was founded as an honorary society for campus leaders in 1902. These leaders protected the iron cross that once hung on Bascom Hall. Now, the Iron Cross Society recognizes the achievements of juniors and seniors, and membership is open to women. The society serves as a forum for discussion about critical issues facing campus.

Recently, John Colombe asked "What was the slogan of the old Haresfoot Club back in the '40s, '50s and possibly '60s?"

Answer: The Haresfoot Club, started in 1899 as UW-Madison's first student theater group, thrived for 64 years under the motto, "All our girls are men, yet every one's a lady."

The troupe didn't have the budget to take females - who required chaperones - on the road, so the male cast donned gowns to play women's roles. While the gender-bending shtick became a trademark, the students' acting and writing were exceptional, inspiring the 1937 film "Varsity Show."

Kenneth Henry ’72 asks Abe: “I remember a junior honor society called the Society of the Mace. What is the history of that group and does it still exist?”

Answer: Mace was an honorary fraternity founded at UW-Madison in 1950. The organization for junior-year male students was sponsored by the Wisconsin Men’s Association, a branch of the Wisconsin Student Association that represented “the voice of men on campus.” Mace created a forum for discussion between male student leaders and members of the UW faculty. The group remained active on campus until 1987, when it presumably disbanded.

Tracy Woolever '81 asks Abe: "Other schools have their not-so-secret secret societies. Does the UW have any secret societies? I know if we knew about them they would not be secret."

Answer: You make a very good point, Tracy. Even Honest Abe isn't privy to information about truly secret societies on campus. The definition of a secret society is generally agreed upon as one that is exclusive, shares special secrets only with members, includes rituals that others are not allowed to observe and does not disclose guidelines for membership or acceptance.

Wisconsin's oldest and most exclusive society is the Iron Cross. Founded in 1902, the society once maintained strict secrecy and only extended membership to senior men. Now more well-known and welcoming of both women and juniors, the Iron Cross Society is considered by some as the highest honor an undergraduate can receive. Faculty, staff or student groups must nominate members, however, the specific selection process is unknown.

The group "exists to recognize UW-Madison juniors and seniors who have improved the campus community through their past leadership and service, and to bring those outstanding students together as a single and diverse group that works to further improve the university." In the early years, after being asked by the university president, members turned a failing YMCA into the second student union in the United States. Founding the Memorial Union in 1907 is the society's most notable contribution to UW-Madison.

The Iron Cross Society has several traditions. After induction, new members sign their name to a book where every previous member has signed before them. The oldest member is then in charge of safeguarding the book and assembling the first meeting. The tallest member has the honor of bearing the iron cross, the group's symbol of "strength without ostentation."

Despite its undercover beginnings, the Iron Cross Society now keeps a Web site.

Julia Myre ’58 asks Abe: “How long has Wisconsin had drum majors for the Marching Band?”

Answer: The UW Marching Band was established in 1885 and drum majors, student leaders within the band, have led the musicians on the field nearly that entire time. According to Songs to Thee Wisconsin, a book that chronicles the history of the UW Marching Band, details are sparse on the first few drum majors.

In the years before 1920, the Marching Band had close ties to the military, so there was little of the showmanship we expect to see today. Drum majors were dignified, no-nonsense leaders, easily recognizable in their tall white, military-style hats. They were responsible for giving commands (keeping time with their baton or using a whistle) to ensure the rest of the band marched in sync.

The first drum major to capture fan attention was Charles Williston, who took up command of the band in 1927. A member of the press wrote that he was “the neatest strutter in the Big Ten, and the handiest with the baton.”

In 1972, Director of Bands Mike Leckrone ushered in a new era of drum majors at UW-Madison. He wanted the drum majors to show more flare, so he instituted shorter twirling batons, and replaced the regulation-style trousers with breeches and boots. That year, when drum major John Strickler ’75 strutted onto the turf at Camp Randall and executed a graceful backbend at the beginning of the On Wisconsin Fanfare, a tradition was born.

Today, the UW’s drum majors are well known for their high energy. Any member of the band can try out for the coveted position of drum major at the beginning of the fall semester. Leckrone and the band’s field assistants judge the drum major candidates’ ability to twirl and toss the baton, invent a creative way to catch it, march, give vocal commands and bow — extra points to those who can bend so far backward that the tip of their tall white hat touches the ground. Hopefuls must also come up with inspiring words for the band, because the drum major always gives the final address after practices and football games. Finally, Leckrone and the field assistants interview all drum major candidates. Because drum majors are the only members of the Marching Band who do not play their instruments, candidates are not judged on their musical abilities.

After the tryouts, one drum major and one assistant drum major are selected. (The assistant drum major suits up for the Homecoming game.) The drum major starts each pre-game show with five whistle blasts and later a sixth to start the “run-on” to the field. The drum major makes a final appearance during the finale of the UW Varsity Band’s spring concert at the Kohl Center.