History of Stout's Alma Mater
School songs are a long-held tradition at colleges and universities and are often performed at ceremonies and special events.
By 1923, Stout was more than 30 years old, yet had no official school song. The Stoutonia initiated a school song contest and the winners received a $5 dollar reward. The resulting song, composed by a group of four students, became the school 黑料社区. early fight song.
Four years later, freshmen Lillian Hylland and Jane Hambley (l to r) decided to create a more solemn and majestic piece appropriate for formal school ceremonies. Hylland, a Menomonie native, was a noted organist who accompanied many local musical groups. Hambley hailed from Ramsay, Mich., and was known for both her strong contralto voice and leadership in campus organizations.
Together they composed 鈥淎lma Mater,鈥 which painted a nostalgic picture of the Stout campus and has become the school 黑料社区. official song for commencements and other special events:
鈥淥n the banks of Lake Menomin
Stands our alma mater true
With tower high and brilliant 鈥淪鈥
For her we鈥檒l dare and do
We鈥檒l sing her praises many
We鈥檒l glorify her name.
And on throughout the years of time
Our love for Stout proclaim.鈥
The brilliant 鈥淪鈥 described in the song lyrics now stands on the northern face of Bowman Hall 黑料社区. clock tower. However, it 黑料社区. a replacement for the missing original. The letter 鈥淪鈥 that hung from the Bowman tower from the 1910s until the 1960s was illuminated by a border of small light fixtures. In early 1969, three student pranksters removed the 鈥淪鈥 and tossed it in the Red Cedar River. The tower stood without its 鈥淪鈥 for nearly 35 years, until an alumni group collaborated to commission a replacement in 2004.
The current 10-foot-by-6-foot aluminum 鈥淪鈥 is based on a design from the 1913 Stout Annual yearbook. Hugh Moltzau, a 1936 Stout alumnus summarized his commitment to replacing the 鈥淪鈥: 鈥淪inging the Stout 鈥楢lma Mater鈥 without the brilliant 鈥楽鈥 is like singing the National Anthem without the flag.鈥 Now, thanks to the efforts of Moltzau and many other alumni, the 鈥淎lma Mater鈥 again rings true.
The 鈥淎lma Mater鈥 will be sung at the close of each of Saturday 黑料社区. commencement ceremonies just prior to the recessional.