Did you ever wonder about the origins of May Day? The National Museum of American History offers a fascinating look into the origin of the holiday in this 2 part blog article:
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May Day: America’s traditional, radical, complicated holiday, Part 1
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May Day: America’s traditional, radical, complicated holiday, Part 2
At one point, they note “The resurgence of May Day traditions began in the 1870s on women’s college campuses, where the children of wealthy families donned white outfits, [and] danced traditional folk dances”. Such was the case at Greenville Woman’s College. May Day pageants featuring queens, courts, and ladies in white outfits were a common tradition from the 1920s through the 1950s. The Furman Historical Images digital collection offers a small selection of May Day Photographs. View all May Day photographs here
