Burning with pride
Many years ago, the girls at Franklin College had a curfew. It was this rule that led to the privy burning tradition at the corner of Monroe and Forsythe streets that is still continued today, said Martha Vance, president of the Student Entertainment Board. Privy burning began when the men, who all lived off-campus, would steal a privy (also known as an outhouse) off of a local farm and light it on fire in front of Bryan Hall, one of the residence halls, the night before the Homecoming football game. When the fire began, the women would all run out of the dorm and break curfew while the administration dealt with the burning bathroom on campus. After a while, however, the administration tired of dealing with the yearly inferno. "At some point, someone didn’t like the idea of burning up a privy, and so the curfew was lifted," said Keri Ellington, the director of student activities and organizations. The only thing that has changed about the tradition is that now, S.E.B. builds the privy instead of young men stealing one with hopes of wooing young women out of the dorms. Ellington said that this year, fireworks will be set off for the first time. "This year there are fireworks to commemorate 175th anniversary and make things like the privy burn and spirit stick competition a little more special," she said. Coordinator of Greek Life and Activites Assistant Kristy Moede said that it’s a "unique" tradition that has become an integral part of the Homecoming festivities, even though the motivations have changed. "You can’t put a value on tradition," she said.
