With the growth of men’s athletics in the postwar period, homecomings emerged as the biggest campus event between the start of classes in the fall and commencement in the spring. The concomitant growth of school identity under the popular rubric of “the pirate” added a colorful, captivating, and surely adventurous theme to the festivities. When East Carolina’s president, John Messick, and the Board of Trustees decided to allow fraternities and sororities, school spirit soared, at least in those corners, adding new dimensions to the fall celebrations. Fraternities made their presence known far and wide with festive yet appropriately masculine floats, designed and constructed for homecoming parades. Fraternities thus projected themselves as contributing, in their own way, to the seminal campus events.
The 1959 Homecoming parade, held on Saturday morning, October 10, including “pretty girls atop convertibles, marching bands, cars full of dignitaries, and elaborate floats,” was the longest in ECU history. SGA officials reported that over seventy units appeared in the procession. In the parade was the Pi Kappa Alpha float, pictured here while under construction in the Imperial Tobacco Warehouse in downtown Greenville. At half-time, the Pi Kappa Alpha float, featuring a large cannon along with the message, “Blast Elon,” took third place, following the floats fielded by competing fraternities, Theta Chi and Sigma Nu, which won, respectively, first and second place awards. Alpha Phi Omega took fourth place. Kappa Alpha’s float, a river boat with a Confederate flag flying from its forward mast, did not receive a prize.
Pi Kappa Alpha had been one of the first four fraternities chartered in 1958. The others included Theta Chi, Lambda Chi Alpha, and Kappa Alpha. They had been temporarily chartered in 1956 after ECC President John Messick and the school’s board of trustees bowed to campus requests for them. The 1959 homecoming parade offered the newly chartered fraternities their chance to make a creative contribution to school spirit. Pi Kappa Alpha’s third place award established that its efforts had been appreciated.
It should be added that eight sororities were first established in 1959, with the backing of dean of women, Ruth White. These sororities included Alpha Xi Delta, Kappa Delta, Alpha Delta Pi, Sigma Sigma Sigma, Delta Zeta, Alpha Phi, Chi Omega, and Alpha Omicron Pi. They too promptly added to the colorful, Greek injections in homecoming events.
The 1959 homecoming game was played in Memorial Stadium on the east end of campus. The ECC Pirates dominated the Elon College Christians with a 31-8 win before a crowd of ten thousand. For the first time in East Carolina history, local Channel 9, WNCT, a CBS affiliate, televised the game. The East Carolinian commented, “Imagine it, ECC on TV. Wow. Look out big four, we’re pushing you harder.” In years to come, the homecoming parade was added to the list of locally televised events, giving the parade fame and broadcast far beyond the sidewalks bordering Fifth Street along the route downtown.
In addition to float awards and the crowning of Dottie McEwen as homecoming queen, half-time featured the ECC marching band, led by Herbert Carter, offering a “musical exhibition centered around hits from great Broadway musicals.” Later that evening, Sam Donahue and his jazz orchestra provided swing for the homecoming dance in Wright Auditorium. “Packed to capacity,” the dance attracted “one of the largest crowds ever to attend a function at EC.” Pi Kappa Alpha’s large cannon float seems to have well captured the monumental spirit that pervaded homecoming in 1959.
Sources
- "Homecoming '59 … All This And More." The East Carolinian. October 15, 1959. P. 5.
- Jackson, Tom. "Homecoming Brings TV; Pirates Come Through." The East Carolinian. October 15, 1959. P. 2.
- "Pi Kappa Alpha." Seeds of Change: The Daily Reflector Image Collection. J. Y. Joyner Library Identifier: 741.19.d.15. East Carolina University. Greenville, N. C. https://digital.lib.ecu.edu/reflector/4110.
- "Pi Kappa Alpha float." Seeds of Change: The Daily Reflector Image Collection. J. Y. Joyner Library Identifier: 741.19.d.19. East Carolina University. Greenville, N. C. https://digital.lib.ecu.edu/4112.
- Walker, Derry. "Thousands See Homecoming Activities." The East Carolinian. October 15, 1959. P. 1.
Citation Information
Title: Homecoming Float, 1959, Pi Kappa Alpha
Author: John A. Tucker, Ph
Date of Publication: 7/29/2019