History

The history of The Chimes is long and rich, spanning all the way back to 1879–only six years after Shorter was founded. According to Dr. Robert Gardner’s book, On the Hill, a history of Shorter College, The Chimes began in February 1879 as a combined effort of the Eunomian and Polynomial societies. It was totally student-sponsored and student-supported. Students sold subscriptions for 50ยข per year. The Chimes suspended publication in 1918 and was not revived again until 1922. With its new awakening, its subscription went to $1.00, and it was issued four times per year. But it has been published continuously with the exception of these four years, making it the longest-running publication in Shorter’s history. The Chimes first appeared as a four-page tabloid newspaper. Eventually, it became a pamphlet, and then a magazine. It contained poems, short stories, essays, and jokes, and in its early days, it contained news and “gossip” of the two societies. Sometime in the 1980s, interest in creative writing waned and there was not enough Rho Delta material to fill the magazine, so it became a literary vehicle for the whole school, under the management of the English Department. It now contains art as well as literature.

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