Although certain Homecoming traditions such as a freshman-sophomore tug-of-war and the practice of building the bonfire higher each year have faded over time, the many Homecoming traditions that remain bring alumni and students of the College together each fall.
Dartmouth Night first occurred on Sept. 27, 1895 under former College President William Jewett Tucker. The night celebrated alumni accomplishments and united students and alumni, according to an Oct. 2, 1896 article in The New Hampshire Journal.
Even then, the night's focus was the bonfire, a tradition that predates Dartmouth Night. The College's first bonfire was built in 1888 to celebrate the baseball team's victory over Manchester, according to an 1888 article in The Dartmouth. The first bonfire that was officially affiliated with the College was in 1893, according to a 1979 article in The Dartmouth.
"Men of Dartmouth," written by Richard Hovey, a member of the Class of 1885, was officially adopted as the College's alma mater at the second Dartmouth Night in 1896.
In 1904, a young Winston Churchill and Lord Dartmouth visited the College for Dartmouth Night. The tradition of students running around the bonfire also started that year, according to a 1904 article in The Dartmouth.
Dartmouth Night's location moved from inside Dartmouth Hall to Webster Hall in 1907. Today, songs and speeches are delivered outside Dartmouth Hall, near the annual bonfire.
Early Homecoming weekends did not feature a football game.
Memorial Field was officially dedicated on Dartmouth Night in 1923, and from then on Dartmouth Night and football began to be closely associated. In 1936, the College began holding football games during Homecoming weekend. In 1946, the rally for the football game against Columbia was incorporated into the Dartmouth Night celebrations, and the annual football game remains an important part of the Homecoming celebrations.
Historically, world events have affected the scope of Dartmouth Night's celebrations. During World War II, the tradition of reading aloud alumni telegrams to the students was discontinued and the celebrations were more subdued. Dartmouth Night was even canceled from 1969 to 1973 because of a lack of student interest and growing tensions over the Vietnam War, according to a 1979 article in The Dartmouth.
In 1973, Dartmouth Night and the parade that traditionally accompanies it were reinstated. In 1988, the weekend was officially named Homecoming.
The bonfire has always been a central part of the Homecoming experience. The freshman class took over construction of the bonfire in 1907, and the freshman class also often runs around the bonfire a total of 100 times plus their class year. This year, the Class of 2016 will run around the fire up to 116 times.
Bonfire traditions have changed over the years for various safety reasons.
In 1963, the bonfire was canceled because the area was hit by a drought and the Hanover Fire Department decided that making a bonfire would be dangerous.
Throughout the late 1980s, the number of tiers in the bonfire matched the freshman class year. In 1987, when the Class of 1990 were freshmen, the College capped the height of the bonfire. After 1999, when a bonfire collapsed at Texas A&M, killing 12 students, the College started hiring professionals to help with the building and made sure that an ambulance was close to the fire in case of emergency.
Some classic Homecoming traditions, however, are not condoned by the College. The administration has long discouraged both touching the fire and freshmen rushing the football field due to safety concerns.
Some past Homecoming weekends have featured pranks and dangerous activities.
In 1953, upperclassmen prematurely lit the bonfire, according to a 1953 article in The Claremont Eagle.
In 1954, three students were injured after a group of upperclassmen again attempted to prematurely light the bonfire, according to a 1954 Valley News article.
In 1983, a bomb scare forced the Class of 1987 to disassemble the bonfire, according to a 1997 article in The Dartmouth. When no bomb was found, students rebuilt the fire.
In 1986 and 1987, a group of approximately 10 women called "Womyn to Overthrow Dartmyth" protested "the bonds of heterocentrism ... and the bonds of profit-seeking education" at Dartmouth Night by throwing bloody tampons and hard-boiled eggs at the speaker's podium during Dartmouth Night, according to a 1988 article in The Dartmouth Review.
In 1992, a fight broke out between freshmen and upperclassmen when the freshmen accused the upperclassmen of trying to sabotage the bonfire. The fight eventually included over 600 students, many of whom were intoxicated, as well as members of the Hanover Police Department. Some students wielded baseball bats and hockey sticks.
In 1993, members of the Class of 1997 jumped on cars and destroyed street signs during the bonfire festivities, according to a 1997 article in the Dartmouth. Since that incident, members of the Green Key Society and Dartmouth Safety and Security have supervised the first-year students and been responsible for making sure the bonfire runs smoothly and safely.