Kelly Stables

Did you know that Grinnell College used to have horse stables?  I didn't, either, until I found the Kelly Stables plaque (pictured right) in the Vault.  Sometimes, in the course of processing material for special collections or the archives, we come across items like this that capture our attention, but for which we have little information.  It is unclear whether this plaque ever hung in the stables, who made it, or the date it was made.  In fact, we do not have a whole lot of information about the stables in general, and what we do know mostly comes from some Scarlet and Blacks issued in the fall of 1934 and one from the spring of 1937.  It seems that in the fall of 1934, Harriett Schmidt '37 and some classmates arranged to establish a riding academy, if enough people showed an interest.  And because 30 young women enrolled for horseback riding lessons, it was decided that a riding academy would be established.  We would be very hapy to hear from those of you who have memories of visiting or using the stables, and especially excited if anyone can share more information about the Kelly Stables plaque in our collection.