This week in nmh history #6
35 Years Ago
Blake Cornerstone Placed
The laying of the cornerstone of the new Blake Student Center, given by Mr. S. Prestley Blake in memory of Herbert P. Blake and in honor of Benson P. Blake, took place on October 12, the beginning of the Trustees Weekend. The ceremony began with an invocation offered by The Rev. Philip Rider. After the invocation, Dr. Howard L. Jones introduced Mr. Blake and his son, Benson P. Blake. Mr. Blake, assisted by George F. Kiefer, Jr., then put the cornerstone into place. Mr. John L. Grandin, Chairman of the Board of Trustees, offered his thanks and was followed by Mr. William R. Compton of the Mount Hermon Center, and Monie H. Thomas, student representative.
Contained in the cornerstone are the Mount Hermon School transcripts of Herbert P., S. Prestley, and Benson P. Blake. Also included are biographies and pictures of the Blakes, a picture of the yacht, "America," and the front page of the "Springfield Union" from October 12, 1973. The other contents of the cornerstone are the story of the Blake Brothers and Friendly Ice Cream Corporation, and pictures of the Friendly Ice Cream plant in Wilbraham, Massachusetts. In addition, the financial records of Friendly's first year of operation (1935) are included with the 1973 reports.
The Blake Student Center, a beautiful addition to the Mount Hermon campus, is due to be completed early in 1974.
Those who note that the date of the cornerstone on the Blake Student Center is 1994 may be perplexed. The present student center replaced the 1973 structure, noted above, in the mid-1990s. –ed. (Source: the Reading Room)