The photo of the Class of 1898 monument’s painting was taken on April 14, 2007.  The rock celebrates the 100th birthday of Lucile Calvert.

This photo of the Class of 1898 monument was taken on March 22, 2009.

Class of 1898 monument. Photo from the Oberlin College Archives, Oberlin, Ohio.

Yitka Winn writes that she snapped a picture of this rock her freshman year at Oberlin, on October 23, 2005.  Class of 1898 monument. Thanks, Yitka, for sending in this photo.

This photo was contributed by Katie Laushman who writes: This one was done for the Goldsmith family, when Peter Goldsmith, the Dean of Students, died in 2004. His son Ben and I are good friends. I believe we painted on April 23rd or 24th to honor Peter. Thank you for the photo, Katie.

Views of the class of 1898 monument and the class of 1882 monument taken on March 20 and March 21, 2009.

The 1882 class monument celebrates this young man’s “graduation” from the Kendal For Kids daycare program, thanking the teachers for their wonderful care and work. Photo taken August 17, 2006. Thanks for sending in the photos.

On the Shipherd/Stewart memorial rock today, March 20, 2009. Happy First day of Spring.

The Class of 1898 monument and plaque in pristine condition. The clear photo of the plaque is from the “Class of ‘98″ 1932 Class Letter, page 36. Photos and information from the Oberlin College Archives, Oberlin, Ohio. The shovel, pick ax, and lantern are recognizable on the plaque. What is in the lower right corner?

Class of 1898 reunion photo. Found at the Oberlin College Archives, Oberlin, Ohio.

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Excerpted from the 1899 Hi-O-Hi. One co-ed’s account of the night of December 3, 1897.

“How They Did It”

Oh weren’t they just too perfectly lovely for anything! Our boys, I mean. I think they were regular heroes to stay up all night like that and work so hard down in that nasty hole. I asked Professor Jewett if there was ever another such a class of boys as ours. He said no, and there likely wouldn’t be. I wonder what made him look so funny when he said it. The mean thing! But then he couldn’t have meant that, I know he couldn’t. And it was down so deep in the mud, too, and they had to dig so hard to get it up. Oh, dear! How I wish I could have been there. But I’m only a girl, you know, and couldn’t. All the girls wished they could have been there. One of them kept her head out of the window nearly half the night, listening while the boys were digging. She said that she stopped wishing that she had a man long enough to wish she were a man. But she must have wanted to go awfully, though. But there! I haven’t told a bit about how they did it. Now I’m going to begin right from the beginning and tell all about it. continued