No, there is too much. Let me sum up (in 2 parts)
I am in Cleveland, OH, this weekend for a fencing tournament. My daughter is fencing here (epee), and I know several St. Albans current students who fence and some who are fencing in college. So that got me wondering, what's the history of fencing at St. Albans, or is there even one before the past few years? There is, and in this newsletter, we'll get into a few of the highlights.
"THE NEW GYMNASIUM: The school authorities have secured the Bishop’s approval of the plan, and the Cathedral architects, Messrs. Frohman, Robb and Little, of Boston, are engaged in making plans for the proposed building. In addition to a large hall—50 by 100 feet—the building will contain ample locker rooms, a room for boxing and fencing, a room for the two school periodicals, 'Albanian' and The Albanac, an apartment for a married master, bowling alleys, athletic director’s office, etc. At this writing the exact location has not been fixed, but it will be on the Massachusetts Avenue line somewhere between the main entrance and the corner of Garfield Street." The Weekly Albanac, 05161924
When the Activities Building was being planned in the mid-1920s, it was intended to be a multi-purpose building, as can be seen from The Weekly Albanac article above. When it was completed in 1938, it was relocated to Garfield Street and there was a fencing room. It was part of the current weight room (see image below), and for a gift of $3,400, you could purchase the naming rights. That would cost the donor nearly $725,000, $1,450 a square foot, today.
Since the Activities Building was not opened until 1938, the first named St. Albans fencer I have found, Thomas William Dunstan Wright (STA 1937) was not able to use it. ?However, in 1935, he tried to inform the School about the history of fencing in a lunch-time speech. ?"Tom Wright, who related the history of fencing to the present day, made up in enthusiasm whatever he might have lacked in technique," The St. Albans News, February 19, 1935. ?
The next news we have of Tom Wright, is in The Saint Albans News, April 13, 1938. ?"T. Wright Fencing Captain: Tom Wright, 1937, was elected captain of the Freshman Fencing Team at Harvard. His team had an undefeated season, beating Yale in its final match." ?Go Crimson! Mr. Wright graduated from Harvard in 1941 and was selected as an honorary member of the 1940 US Olympic Fencing Team. ?During WWII, he served as a Lieutenant Commander on a minesweeper in the Mediterranean and returned to Harvard for a master's degree in architecture (1950). ?Tom had a long and distinguished career as an architect -- see his full obituary HERE -- but at 45, he gave up fencing for 25 years. ?He resumed his early passion for the sport in the 1990s at the NIH club and quickly ascended to the U.S. Seniors Saber Fencing Team, becoming an American Saber Fencing Champion, Gold Medalist, in the 70 to 74 age group. ?In his honor, The Tom Wright Memorial Fencing Tournament is hosted by the Capitol Division and held annually at the DC Fencers Club in Silver Spring. ?
Fencing continued at St. Albans, but the team photo from 1957-58 shows the only team photo in any Albanian. ?Fencers competed outside of school as well, and mentions of "fencing" occur on senior pages in the Albanian up through the 1970s. ?Andrew Stifel was photographed for the March 10, 1987, St. Albans News in nearly full gear in a mock bout with fellow senior Chris Kirkpatrick, who was an avid cyclist. ?The article was entitled Students Excel in Unusual Sports.
And for the moment, that will have to do on the history of fencing at St. Albans, but that is not all for certain. ?Stay tuned for part two! ?This was the attack, so please return again next week for the riposte. ?