PIONEER DAY

Philip William Hickey
Let’s revisit special days at Graland School. As always, with thanks to Mrs. Gorham.
Let’s revisit special days at Graland School. As always, with my thanks to Mrs. Gorham.
 
“The spring Pioneer Day had an interesting beginning. One day we found an old stagecoach in a stable on our way to visit Brookridge Farm Diary. The owner agreed to rent it . . . for a day so that the children studying American history could discover at first hand what it was like to ride across prairies in such a vehicle. We took lunches and spent the driving east and back, with children taking turns beside the driver. Other grades were invited to join us. It was a phenomenal success.
 
“After this simple beginning, year after year, Pioneer Day became a major event. The whole school went by coach, wagon, the Glasier family’s hayrack, or any early-day conveyance, out on the Smoky Hill Trail to have a pioneer meal cooked over a campfire, to hunt arrowheads, and to square dance. Everyone dressed in old-fashioned clothes: the boys wore overalls; the girls wore long dresses or blouses and skirts and sunbonnets.
 
 “Pioneer Day was great fun -- a day much anticipated and long remembered. Also, every few years, in the spring the school had a fair much like the carnival we have now.”
 
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Graland Country Day School

Graland Country Day School is a private school in Denver, Colorado, serving students in preschool, kindergarten, elementary, and middle school. Founded in Denver in 1927, Graland incorporates a rich, experiential learning approach in a traditional classroom setting, emphasizing the development of globally and socially conscious leaders who excel academically.