"Atmosphere of Magic and Unreality"

Starting in the 1940s, May Week was organized as a co-ed program around a set of existing traditions. Those traditions began to evolve and emphasize different elements. By the late 1960s and early 70s, broader social change put pressure on the shape of May Week and shifted the role of campus tradition.

1950s and 60s May Week programs

A New Co-Ed May Week

1946 saw the renewal of Deru, the senior men’s honorary society, and the men’s inter-house sing, part of what the Daily described as a “return to normalcy” (courtesy of The Daily Northwestern) on campus after men returned following World War II. That year, Northwestern’s men and women organized the first May Week together, combining the women’s sing and May Court with the men’s sing, plus a joint honors ceremony. The Daily reported (courtesy of The Daily Northwestern) that the women chose to eliminate the element of competition from their sing, while the men voted to keep their sing competitive. The junior class also organized an informal “All-U-Sing” to which everyone on campus was invited.

Listen to a recording of the 1964 May Sing. Courtesy of McCormick Library of Special Collections and University Archives. If you are not a member of the Northwestern Community, email repository@northwestern.edu to request access.

A poster for May Week 1966.

In 1950, with the goal of putting it on sound financial footing, May Week was centralized under a steering committee of fraternity organizations and Mortar Board. Deru and Mortar Board would each select a member to serve as co-chairmen. The committee added a formal ball and a chapel service. For honors day, two outstanding juniors were elected from each campus house, Mortar Board members were tapped, and various awards and scholarships were handed out.

The 1954 May Week committee stressed that they wanted to provide all-school events, maintaining old traditions while adding elements like an informal dance in the street. In 1957 the planners wrote that “theoretically, May Week is the all inclusive finale of the school year…the only activity based on participation by all students of Northwestern University.”

In contrast to the earlier beauty contest for the May Queen title, the May Week organizers stressed overall contribution to campus life. The crowning of the May Queen and Court were made a highlight of the annual Honors Day. “This cherished honor is given to the junior girls, who, in the opinion of Northwestern women, are the most desirable and deserving,” the 1957 program said. “The girls are elected on the basis of activities, contribution to the school, and outstanding leadership.” In 1950, the Daily looked back at older May Day traditions (courtesy of The Daily Northwestern) and commented that while the form had changed, the spirit remained the same. A spread in the Daily later that month (courtesy of The Daily Northwestern) chronicled the ceremony and the many people honored. Cameramen from Encyclopaedia Britannica were there to record the men’s sing, which was attended by an estimated 1,500 people as well as broadcast on Northwestern’s radio station. The ceremony, held in Deering Meadow, was consistent through the 1950s and 60s, with the Court emerging from Deering Library.

Entrance of the 1962 May Court. Courtesy of McCormick Library of Special Collections and University Archives.

Even while May Week’s organizers tried to update the significance of the traditions involved, the social activities remained similar. Early in the morning on Honors Day, as the Daily reported in 1963 (courtesy of The Daily Northwestern), the new May Court members were “kidnapped and blindfolded.” The previous year’s court delivered instructions to each member (such as to wait on the university president’s front porch), gathered them in a car, put pillow cases over their heads, and had them chew bubble gum. The new court was then assembled in one spot and their pillow cases removed, each given one of the “traditional balloon-like May court dresses” to get ready, had pictures taken, and were finally blindfolded again and delivered to the library.  

By the late 1960s, there were expressions on campus of disinterest in May Week. In 1969, the yearbook featured a column by Bob Greene (courtesy of Syllabus Yearbook), associate editor of the Daily, claiming that Northwestern’s students were “concerned with more important things now.” “May Sing, and May Week, and just about everything else that has been a habit at Northwestern for how many years, are anachronisms now,” Greene wrote. “In this time of change and stress, people don’t seem to have any time for tradition.”

1969 yearbook spread featuring Greene’s column. Courtesy of Syllabus Yearbook.

The following year, critical events forced the cancellation of May Week altogether. On May 4, 1970, soon after the announcement of the expansion of the Vietnam War into Cambodia, National Guard troops killed and wounded anti-war protestors at Kent State University. On May 5, the Northwestern student body began a week-long strike. The May Week executive board soon announced with an ad in the Daily (courtesy of The Daily Northwestern) that May Week activities were cancelled in acknowledgement of “contemporary issues which, in our opinion, are vastly more important.”

Watch footage of the 1970 student strike. Courtesy of McCormick Library of Special Collections and University Archives.

Front page of the May 25, 1971, issue of the Daily. Courtesy of The Daily Northwestern.

Changing priorities were reflected again when May Week resumed in 1971. Not only was Eva Jefferson, the previous year’s president of the Associated Student Government and a leader during the strike, crowned as the May Queen, but the Daily reported (courtesy of The Daily Northwestern) that students threatened to boycott or halt commencement if Jefferson were not allowed to speak as a representative of the student body. After the administration decided against allowing a student to speak, over 1,200 students signed a petition. Seniors discussed wanting to have more control over their graduation exercises.

In 1972, the May Week organizers expanded the concept of the May Court, including “the equally hardworking male counterparts as escorts.” Each campus organization was invited to nominate two junior men and two junior women who excelled in leadership and service. In the following years students honored both a May Queen and King.

These pages draw on archival collections and other resources from Northwestern University Libraries, in addition to some external publications. Visit the Resources page for more information about these sources. Certain library resources may only be accessible online to those with Northwestern University credentials. All library resources are accessible for on-site research at the McCormick Library of Special Collections & University Archives. For assistance with access or reference questions, please contact specialcollections@northwestern.edu.