A Day In The Life: 1944-1946

Even though many things were changing on campus, students still tried to take advantage of opportunities for extracurricular activities.

One club that endured the war years is the Cross and Scroll Society. Founded in 1933, the club's purpose was to foster interest among students, alumni and faculty in the liberal arts and sciences through various campus activities and lectures.

Despite limitations due to the war, the group continued to meet on Friday evenings to discuss literature and other literary topics such as Charles Dickens and English playwright, Christopher Marlowe. The president of the club at the time, Frank Donovan, spoke on John Henry Newman’s poem, “The Dream of Gerontius.”

According to the 1947 yearbook, the club was able to return to it’s “normal peacetime programm[ing],” which included guest lectures and concerts.

Holy Cross Jesuit professors and administrators, like their lay counterparts, played an important role in educating and supporting the training of future Naval officers during World War II. Professors such as Rev. Joseph LaBran, S.J., and Rev. Thomas Smith, S.J., taught classes in physics and mathematics for the Navy V-12 program, classes that certainly had a real-world application during the war.

However, many decided to leave their classrooms and, like Holy Cross's lay professors, students, alumni and staff members, answered the call to serve the war effort directly. Serving as military and civilian chaplains, Holy Cross' Jesuits saw to their flocks’ spiritual needs, helped resolve earthly problems, ministered to the sick and dying, prepared them to go into battle and in some cases, went above and beyond the call of duty. In total, 22 Jesuit faculty members served as military chaplains. Buried in the Jesuit cemetery on campus, their graves are marked with U.S. flags. This collection of images, news clippings, and other archival materials highlights the contributions these brave men made to the war effort.

After Nazi Germany surrendered on May 8, 1945, services led by Rev. Joseph Fitzgerald were held at St. Joseph Chapel. In addition to the almost 200 students and faculty in attendance, the event was broadcast across Worcester. Many tuned in to hear Fr. Fitzgerald’s prayers and words about freedom. Additionally, he spoke about Holy Cross’ “deep responsibility” to support post-war education.