Timeline of the Class Ring
1896
Although Clemson Agricultural College opened in 1893, the first class to leave graduated in 1896. Jerome Reel mentions that "they received their diplomas, signed by the professors, president, and trustees" [1]. However, that is not all that they received.
1896 was the year students first graduated and the year that the first Clemson Class Rings were handed out to students to symbolize their graduation. "Initially in 1896, the gold ring had an unmarked stone with chasing on the shank" [2].
[1] Reel, The High Seminary, 115.
[2] Reel, The High Seminary, 164.
1901
Each year until 1940, the Clemson Class ring changes a little and person-to-person. The Tiger mentions how "each class could change the ring to suit itself, and each graduate could select a different stone for the crown of his ring. The result of these annual decisions was a ring that had to be closely examined before its slightest connection with Clemson could be proven" [1].
However, this year saw a change in the class ring that is still a part of the ring today. Students added the famous "C," palmetto, and graduation year to the main design [2]. It was a significant change from a gold ring that could be designed anyway. Now, it is more identifiable as belonging to a Clemson graduate.
[1] The Tiger Staff, "Official Clemson Rings Worn by a Fortunate Few," in The Tiger Vol. 56 No.6, (10 October 1962).
[2] Reel, High Seminary, 164.
1906
This year brought an additional change to the Clemson class ring- the addition of an eagle with a blank shield to the shanks [1]. It was proposed by the student ring committee, which many students were a member of, as shown by previous yearbooks. Designed by the electrical engineering student and committee member F. Raymone Sweeny it is thought that the "eagle represented a student disavowal of the flag incident" that had occurred in 1904 [1].
This "flag incident" is mentioned in the 1904 yearbook Oconeean. It states that on March 12th, "the old Confederate flag" was raised. However, students were soon punished as on March 13th, the "next morning at inspection- everybody burnt- trouble around the flag pole" [2]. Historian Jerome Reel goes into more detail about this flag incident in his book The High Seminary (Volume One). Students had brought the Confederate flag forward; however, as they were hanging it on the pole, Captain Edgar A. Sirmyer noticed and attempted to stop the flag's ascent on the bar. When he grabbed the flag, the students kept trying to fly it upward, and Captain Sirmyer followed the flag up into the air. After being raised a few feet, he let go to be free of the flag and the ascent upward [1].
Overall, the ring seemed to be approved by the student body as the "design has been adopted as a standard" as stated in The Tiger on May 28th, 1907. This truly speaks of the ring's "tastefulness" as there was no official standard ring put in place yet. Most students then chose this design and it became "the pride of all the seniors" [3].
[1] Reel, The High Seminary, 163-165.
[2] Oconeean Staff, "Calendar," in The Oconeen, (1904), 78.
[3] The Tiger Staff, "Classes," in The Tiger Vol.3 No.13, (7 May 1909), 4.
1915
While the side of the Clemson ring added the eagle and blank shield in 1906, this year introduced a new design to the sides of the ring. Jerome Reel describes the latest design best by stating, "the U.S. shield, originally George Washington's coat of arms, was placed below the eagle" in 1906 [1]. Along with the U.S. shield, swords, a tiger head, and a star were also added [2]. The swords were standard issues for Clemson students- cadets at the time. The tiger head represented "loyalty and self-protection" [1]. However, that is not the only new side design. Shortly after, in 1916, "the ring also bore the S.C. state seal with both faces and rifles" [2].
[1]Clemson Ring History – Clemson Alumni Association
[2] Reel, High Seminary, 164.
1937
Initially planned for the class of 1938, the first Junior Ring Dance took place in the Fall semester of 1937 for the class of 1939. The Junior Ring Committee used this dance to celebrate and distribute the sought-for Clemson Class Ring. The dance featured popular musicians at the time, such as Herb Green and his Jungaleers. They were chosen for this dance as they had performed at similar functions at Annapolis and West Point [1].
To attain the ring, students had to follow a particular procedure of steps. First, students and their date to the event will march through a eight-foot replica of the 1939 class ring. The Clemson students and their date part ways and form two separate lines. The dates will then go to a different room that looks like an old English home where they will receive the class ring. Then, the students and their dates will match up and walk through the 1939 ring replica again. However, while walking through the date will give the student their ring and seal the ceremony with a kiss [1]. Nowadays, a similar replica of the current, standard Clemson Ring can be found outside the Alumni Center facing Old Greenville Highway. The only difference is the size of the current replica; it is over twice the size at 15 feet [2].
The Junior Ring Dance was seen as a huge success. A later printing of The Tiger states, "this year's Ring Dances were the first, but the event will probably become tradition before many more senior classes pass from the portals of Clemson" [1]. This statement would be proven true, as the Junior Ring Dance became an annual tradition until the last dance occurred in 1948. The dance was well looked forward to as the 1939 edition Taps yearbook described it as a "great thrill" and one where students "felt unlimited pride, but with this pride came a twinge of sadness as we [the students] realized that we had only one more year at Clemson" [3]. The tradition came to a slow end, most likely due to students' excitement over the event. At first, the dance would receive its own article on the front page of The Tiger, but by 1948 it was mentioned in a single sentence stating that it would occur [4].
[1] The Tiger Staff, "Kissing Order of the Day at First Annual Junior Ring Dance," in The Tiger Vol.32 No.13, (9 December 1937), 1.
[2] Photos: Clemson's Alumni Center ring statue is back (independentmail.com)
[3] Taps Staff, "The Senior Class History," in Taps, (1939), 50.
[4] The Tiger Staff, "CDA Announces Dance Program," in The Tiger Vol.42 No.6, (14 November 1948), 1.
1939
On March 4th, 1939, the Board of Trustees voted and approved an official, standard Clemson Class ring [1]. After nearly 45 years, Clemson University had an official ring for this popular tradition- a tradition almost the university's age.
The March 15th, 1940 printing of The Tiger shared opinions on this decision. However, the one main thought appeared to be along the lines of "about time." Specifically, it states that "for years The Tiger has crusaded for the adoption of a standard Clemson ring and it is with no slight degree of satisfaction that the present staff welcomes the announcement that at least the Board of Trustees has seen fit to take definite action on this pertinent matter" [2]. However, they do share that, ultimately, they are happy with the decision finally being made. This slight towards the announcement seems to be more on behalf of a previous editor of The Tiger, Joe Kinard, who fought for a standard ring in 1935 [2].
On the other hand, this same edition of The Tiger mentions tension between the sophomore and junior class of the Clemson Ring. The sophomore class seemed to have wanted to attain a class ring simultaneously with the junior class by, as The Tiger suggests, pushing "the popular cause of 'getting our rings when everyone else got them'" [2]. Overall, tensions died down after the official ring announcement as it was no longer up to anyone else but the Board of Trustees when a student could attain their ring.
[1] Board of Trustees, Clemson Trustees Minutes, (24 March 1939), 119.
[3] The Tiger Staff, "Talk of the Town," in The Tiger Vol.35 No.21, (15 March 1940), 2.
1955
This year saw the edition of female students at Clemson University. According to the October 25, 1954 Board of Trustees meeting minutes, it was approved "effective at the beginning of the second semester, the college authorized to admit women students residing at their homes (parental, marital, or personal dwelling)" [1]. 11 women were enrolled in the spring of 1955 [2].
With the addition of female students, a need to create a new ring design came. The design was finished just in time for the first female graduate, Maragaret Marie Snider, to receive the class ring in 1957 [3]. There is very little information regarding the new ring at this time. It appears local campus news, like The Tiger, mainly focused on the new housing that the Board of Trustees approved for the addition of female students [4].
[1] Board of Trustees, Clemson Trustees Minutes, (25 October 1954), 12.
[2] Reel, The High Seminary, 412.
[3] Taps Staff, "Ring Ceremony," in Taps, (2008), 67.
[4] The Tiger Staff, "Plot Planned for Dolls' Dormitories on Distant Section of College Campus," in The Tiger Vol.48 No.9, (11 November 1954), 2.
2000
The Clemson Ring tradition stayed relatively the same for almost 50 years prior to the year 2000. This year, the new ring ceremony tradition was introduced. It was not the same format as the prior Annual Junior Ring Dance but a more formal ceremony. The Student Government started this ceremony in order to "enhance the presentation of the Clemson class ring" [1]. It has now been 22 years since this tradition was introduced, and interest in it has only grown as many people view the attainment of the Clemson Class Ring as a "rite of passage" [2].
[1] Board of Trustees, Clemson Trustees Minutes, (28 January 2000), 6.
[2] The Tiger Staff, "The Clemson Class Ring," in The Tiger Vol.106 No.6, (7 October 2011), 3.