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Lights Out at 10 PM, OR ELSE: Dorm Life

Laurel Parade, 50th Class Reunion

"10 PM Nights / Out went our lights / OR ELSE"

Dorm rooms and campus (Four Picture Collection)

Do you know where these buildings are?

Dorm Decor

Elegent dormitory furnishings

Rockefeller Hall 1915-1916

Students gathered on the steps of Rockefeller.

31 Rockefeller Hall

Typical dorm decor.

Eunice and her Suitor's Letters

Beaus exchanged letters. 

Five men in a dorm

A rare event, captured. 

Ruth Parker described some of the touches of dormitory life in 1913. While there are some enduring features of campus life at Mount Holyoke, students in 1913 were governed by strict rules and routines. The campus issued regulations that guided the day-to-day lives of students such as 10 PM bedtime, no men in residence halls, and daily physical exercise. Many outside connections were best maintained with weekend visits and letters. How will you maintain connections to home during your first months at Mount Holyoke? 

Lights Out at 10 PM, OR ELSE: Dorm Life