Navy V-12 trainees arrive at Hobart College
The first group of Navy V-12 trainees arrived on campus July 1, 1943. There were 390 men in the new college training program. The new trainees were made up of high school and preperatory school graduates and college students between the ages of 17 and 20 who had been selected by the Navy based on qualifying tests. They were welcomed to "the place, the purpose, and the program" by Lt. Daniel L. Evans, USNR Commanding Officer of the Unit, at a special open assembly of the whole unit in Coxe Hall auditorium Saturday, July 3, at 2015.
Emil H. Schoch, USNR, Class of 1947, reminisced on his arrival at Hobart College:
"Our Navy orders required that we go to New York City's Grand Central Station early in the morning. Hundreds of young men were being assembled under college banners mounted on the walls in the RR station. Those of us going to Hobart were mustered on the balcony and lead to the railroad passenger car. It took until early the next day before we got to Geneva. When we finally left the train at about 2AM, we were marched through the streets of Geneva to the shouts of sailors from the Sampson Naval Base yelling 'You'll be sorry.' At the campus, we were issued our Navy uniforms by a disgruntled(and very sleepy) navy storekeeper who threw clothes and shoes at us without allowing us time to see if they fit. My shoes were too small so I had to wear my civilian shoes. Obviously the storekeeper objected to having his sleep disturbed by a bunch of new recruits. I was told to go to a room in Geneva Hall where I would find two double bunks. I got there to find my newly assigned roommates sound asleep and crawled into the only empty bunk - an upper. Our introductions came as we fell out for exercises at 0550 the next morning."