Centennial Celebration

In 1924, the first Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade took place. Dum-dums and Bit-O-Honey candies were launched. Gas cost 13-25 cents per gallon, and Babe Ruth was the most famous athlete in the world. 1924 was also the year the Madison Junior School & Madison Senior High School were built, and one hundred years later, the Madison community will gather to celebrate its centennial.

Madison Junior School’s centennial celebration will begin on Saturday, October 6, 2024, at 10:30 on school grounds. All are welcome to attend the festivities. The ceremony itself has been modeled after its original Cornerstone Laying Ceremony that took place on June 14, 1924. The events include musical performances by student soloists as well as the MJS chorus and orchestra. Presentations and speeches will feature Madison’s mayor, Robert Conley, Board of Education President, Sarah Fischer, Parent Teacher Organization leader Irene Rodin, Madison Education Foundation’s president, Marlene Fass, Superintendent Danielle Shanley, Principal Frank Perrone, as well as student council officers.

As part of the celebration, attendees are encouraged to walk through 100 Years of History, in a museum that will be set up inside the school. Among many other items, the 100 Years of History Museum will feature historical artifacts dating back as early as 1922, such as 1950s military uniforms of students who served in the Korean War, pictures, a school-issued Civil Defense Radio designated for attacks during the 1950s Cold War, and various WWII items and relics.

Other festivities include student performances by Spotlight Kids Company, and a Generation Photo Contest to count how many generations of MJS/MHS graduates are in attendees’ families. Food vendors will be onsite, and the public is encouraged to tour the building.

The centennial’s highlight will be unveiling the contents of the 1924 time capsule, which was buried in MJS’s cornerstone, as well as the placement of the 2024 time capsule for future Madisonians to discover after December 31, 2024.

If you have any pictures or items from 1925-1958 for MHS or MJS items from 1925-2024, then please reach out to Stephen Finkelstein, MJS 6th Grade Social Studies Teacher, at finkelsteins@madisonnjps.org.