Senior Bench

The Senior Bench at Wheaton College is one of the oldest and mostlegendary rivalries in the school's 150 year history. According todusty archives files and whispers of oral tradition, the graduatingclass of 1912 is believed to have bequeathed a hefty concrete monumentto solidify its place in the annals of her alma mater. Anchored infront of Blanchard Hall and first photographed for the 1934 Toweryearbook, it was intended for seniors only, but through the decadesenvious undergraduates soon coveted it's prized status. A great rivalrybegan in fall of 1948 when juniors from the class of 1949 stole the top twofoot by seven foot section.
Many ingenious, inventive, and sometimes illegal methods have beenemployed by rival classes in their passionate pursuit of securing thisnearly 800-pound stone slab. During the 1950s an exact replica was castby the class of 1957 in a fool hearty attempt to trick the otherclasses, yet to no avail. The class of 1959 is heralded for one of themost amazing bench showings as it suspended the bench from a helicopterand flew it over the Homecoming football game.
Another infamous bench caper was hatched when seniors from the classof 1963 traveled by train to Colorado for their yearly retreat. As thetrain stopped at Mendota, Illinois the bench was shown by the juniorswho had arrived by car to taunt the seniors. A melee ensued and ascheduled thirty second stop erupted into a two hour delay as railroadagents, local police and the Interstate Commerce Commission were allsummoned to sort out this violation of federal law.
The current rules surrounding possession of the bench were enactedafter seniors from the class of 1966 showed the bench in chapel andwere greeted by slashed tires and cut ignition wires in the parkinglot. The bench was confiscated by the Dean of Students and mysteriouslydestroyed while under lock and key. A replica soon surfaced and thetradition was resurrected. Henceforth all bench activity has beenlimited to the junior and senior classes, the bench must remain withina fifteen-mile radius of Blanchard Hall, half of the bench must bevisible at all times, and the bench must be shown twice a year andnever in chapel.
In subsequent decades the passionate rivalry has ebbed and flowed assoil analysis kits, airplanes, wiretaps, high-speed car chases, BillyGraham, wishing wells, and even eBay, have all been employed in pursuitof this elusive prize for all Wheaton students.