Gay Cat Day is an obscure former North Dakota State celebration from the 1920s which allowed for classes to be cancelled during the last week of the school year.
“Every college has its annual relaxation day, the day when all students don the most ridiculous clothes he or she can find,” The Spectrum reported in 1925.
In 1929 a number of campus deans met and decided that a day of school could not be missed due to the days already missed. The main feature of the day, being that “gay attires that may be worn to classes (throughout) the day,” still occurred despite students being unable to miss class to attend the various events put on by the student commissions.
What was the day?
The Spectrum reported in 2013 that “during the 1920s the word ‘gay’ still meant ‘happy’ or ‘bright and showy,” and cat “was used much like the word ‘dude’ is today.”
The student commission of the college supervised the day.
The celebration began at 8:00 a.m. with Bison battalion cleaning up campus, followed by lunch. The Gold Star Marching Band opened ceremonies, the comedy club was involved and activities occurred such as tug of war between classes and campus wide capture the flag.
The Spectrum reported in 1928 that Gay Cat Day was a dress-up day and that a prize for the best costume seen throughout the day would be awarded at a dance in the evening.
“The day is to be a fun frolic for State college students and indications point to a successful affair,” former senior class president Foss Narum told The Spectrum in 1928.
In 1941 Gay Cat Day had changed to All-College Day. The event was still held in May towards the end of the school year.
In the 1920s there was a large capture the flag game during Gay Cat Day where each class defended a flag which was placed either on the roof of Old Main, Ceres Hall or Science or Engineering while trying to take down the other flags and the winner was the class with the standing flag at the end of the day. Brawling was a common theme through the game.
The Spectrum reported in 1941 that the student commission (president) at the time warned all “Gaycats” to open all windows before throwing other students or sticks through.
An old fashioned sack race replaced capture the flag, though did not last more than a few years.
“The race entailed dragging burlap sacks filled with material, such as gravel, from the center of the football field across the oppositions goal line,” The Spectrum reported in 2013.
Gay Cat Day itself only lasted 9 years.
Bison yearbooks were typically released on Gay Cat Day and the Bison Brevities Variety Show also occurred on the day until the Blue Key National Honor Society took control over the event in 1929.