Photo Friday: Summon the Heroes

Today marks the first day of the Games of the XXXII Olympiad in Tokyo, Japan. As the Olympic Creed reads:

The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not to win but to take part, just as the most important thing in life is not the triumph but the struggle. The essential thing is not to have conquered but to have fought well.
The Olympic Symbols, International Olympic Committee.

In honor of the games, I wanted to share some athletic feats from Henry Scripps Booth’s classmates at the Asheville School. Like many schools and clubs do today, his boarding school in Asheville, North Carolina, staged their own version of the Olympics in 1918!

“The Olympian Team – Seneff, Fowler, French, Platt, and McLain,” Pleasures of Life, Album 3. Photo by Henry Scripps Booth, Courtesy of Cranbrook Archives.

Henry Slaughter competing in long jump, Charlotte-Asheville Track Meet, 1918. Pleasures of Life, Album 3. Photo by Henry Scripps Booth, Courtesy of Cranbrook Archives.

Henry Beatty competing in long jump, Charlotte-Asheville Track Meet, 1918. Pleasures of Life, Album 3. Photo by Henry Scripps Booth, Courtesy of Cranbrook Archives.

The Quarter Mile, Charlotte-Asheville Track Meet, 1918. Pleasures of Life, Album 3. Photo by Henry Scripps Booth, Courtesy of Cranbrook Archives.

Zo Walter wins the 220 yard dash, Charlotte-Asheville Track Meet, 1918. Pleasures of Life, Album 3. Photo by Henry Scripps Booth, Courtesy of Cranbrook Archives.

Henry Slaughter competes in High Jump, clearing 5 feet, 4 inches in the Charlotte-Asheville Track Meet, 1918. Pleasures of Life, Album 3. Photo by Henry Scripps Booth, Courtesy of Cranbrook Archives.

So prepare your snacks, turn on NBC, play Summon the Heroes, and get ready to cheer! Best wishes to all the athletes competing in the Olympics and Paralympics in Tokyo this summer!

– Leslie S. Mio, Associate Registrar, Cranbrook Center for Collections and Research