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The Senior Bench at Wheaton College is one of the oldest and mostlegendary most legendary rivalries in the school's 150 year history. According todusty to  dusty archives files and whispers of oral tradition, the graduatingclass graduating class of 1912 is believed to have bequeathed a hefty concrete monumentto monument to solidify its place in the annals of her alma mater. Anchored infront in front of Blanchard Hall and first photographed for the 1934 Tower Tower yearbook, it was intended for seniors only, but through the decadesenvious decades envious undergraduates soon coveted it's its prized status. A great rivalrybegan rivalry began in fall Fall of 1948 when juniors from the class of 1949 stole the top twofoot two foot by seven foot section.

Many ingenious, inventive, and sometimes illegal methods have beenemployed been employed by rival classes in their passionate pursuit of securing thisnearly this nearly 800-pound stone slab. During the 1950s an exact replica was castby cast by the class of 1957 in a fool hearty attempt to trick the otherclassesother classes, yet to no avail. The class of 1959 is heralded for one of themost the most amazing bench showings as it suspended the bench from a helicopterand helicopter and flew it over the Homecoming football game.

Another infamous bench caper was hatched when seniors from the classof class of 1963 traveled by train to Colorado for their yearly retreat. As thetrain the train stopped at Mendota, Illinois the bench was shown by the juniorswho juniors who had arrived by car to taunt the seniors. A melee ensued and ascheduled a scheduled thirty second stop erupted into a two hour delay as railroadagentsrailroad agents, local police and the Interstate Commerce Commission were allsummoned all summoned to sort out this violation of federal law.

The current rules surrounding possession of the bench were enactedafter enacted after seniors from the class of 1966 showed the bench in chapel andwere and were greeted by slashed tires and cut ignition wires in the parkinglotparking lot. The bench was confiscated by the Dean of Students and mysteriouslydestroyed mysteriously destroyed while under lock and key. A replica soon surfaced and thetradition the tradition was resurrected. Henceforth all bench activity has beenlimited been limited to the junior and senior classes, the bench must remain withina within a fifteen-mile radius of Blanchard Hall, half of the bench must bevisible be visible at all times, and the bench must be shown twice a year andnever and never in chapel.

In subsequent decades the passionate rivalry has ebbed and flowed assoil as soil analysis kits, airplanes, wiretaps, high-speed car chases, BillyGrahamBilly Graham, wishing wells, and even eBay, have all been employed in pursuitof pursuit of this elusive prize for all Wheaton students.