The 1940s: World War II
Although the United States did not enter World War II until December 1941, the possibility of American involvement concerned many of Miss Hewitt's students as early as the mid-thirties. As the decade progressed, news from Europe became increasingly gruesome. Students who shrewdly perceived the approaching war began writing about the discerned societal anxiety. In 1934, The Venturer held a competition which was open to all classes for the best essay, short story, poetry, description, and dialogue. Elizabeth Lanier Fenno's "Aftermath of War," which was deemed the upper school's best essay by a panel of student judges, demonstrates the national unease at Hitler's rise to power:
Elizabeth Lanier Fenno, Class of 1934
Four years of bitter strife and bloodshed; a backward step in human progress and civilization; a period of inestimable damage all ended with the great climax of the armistice… Allies, and Germans alike, returned home with smiling faces to join loved ones, forgetting those millions whose lifeless bodies still lay in France…
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The greed for power seems inextinguishable. Is it not possible for people of the world to live in peace and happiness? Apparently not. Power seems to be the world's idea of greatness…
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​The ravaged nations have forgotten those years of suffering and bloodshed. Today we read in the newspapers that Hitler is strengthening his army, and endeavoring to annex Austria… The world in general is breathlessly waiting for a climax… The future welfare of a greedy world lies in the hands of fate. Will it be kind to us, or will it plunge us into darkness and chaos again?… The supplication of a world rises to ask God that those who died to promote world peace may not have died in vain.
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Deeply concerned about the conditions in war-torn Britain, Miss Hewitt sought to educate her girls about the daily hardships faced by Europeans. Despite her teachings, the likelihood of war still seemed "romantic and far away" to most students. In her essay, Fenno described an imminent war, but one nevertheless remote and distant from the American people. Following the surprise military strike on Pearl Harbor, however, the grim reality of U.S. involvement materialized. After the attack, faculty organized an assembly and summoned the entire school to hear Miss Hewitt outline plans for air raid drills, blackouts, and other safety procedures in the event of a bombing attack in New York City. Slowly students began to perceive the threat of American intervention. Anne Bishop Cannon wrote, "Looking back across the years, I am ashamed to say that, without exception, we found this thrilling." As time progressed, however, the war became "increasingly real to us… The sight of the darkened city and the incessant wail of air raid sirens was no longer a novelty." By the mid-forties the danger had become a reality to everyone.
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Miss Hewitt avidly supported the war effort and encouraged her pupils to contribute in any way possible. Betty Lee Cutler-Bissell explained how some students played their part: "We knitted squares for afghans and bought War Stamps with our allowances. Older girls ate lunch at Hamburg Heaven or Schrafft's so that little ones could have food allotments for lunch at school." Students, alumnae, and patrons of the school also joined forces to aid charities devoted to providing essential items for war-torn communities. Miss Hewitt greatly emphasized the importance of supporting New York–based organizations like Bundles for Britain. Founded in 1940 by a former Upper-East-Side debutante, the charity began as an intimate knitting circle, eventually expanding to embrace over a million volunteers who knitted socks, gloves, sweaters, scarves, and hats for British soldiers. The New York Times made several reports in 1941 about Hewitt students' participation in the war effort:
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An excerpt of a New York Times article from
May 11, 1941
Excerpt of a New York Times article from
June 26, 1941
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Even before tensions had erupted in Europe, Miss Hewitt was brainstorming ways to improve conditions for British children. In 1939, the school established the boarding department, which was situated in the neighboring building of Mrs. Virginia Ryan, the school's music teacher. In a letter, Miss Hewitt explained her expectations for the dormitory: "We want to augment the group to a number of not more than eight, so that the household will remain a small one without the formal aspects of a larger boarding school." The home was chaperoned by longtime teacher Mrs. Dorice Taylor, described by Miss Hewitt as "a sweet woman with a rare understanding of girls." The department survived in various buildings until the seventies.
The boarding department found success during the war, providing homes, schooling, and safety for children whose parents wanted them far away from Europe. The most famous of these girls were Pamela and Patricia Mountbatten, the first cousins of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Student Anne Bishop Cannon described them as "pleasant girls, but somewhat bemused by their abrupt immersion in what must have seemed to them a strange and alien environment." The older sister, Patricia, made the most of her limited time at Miss Hewitt's Classes. By the time she graduated in 1942, she had participated in varsity basketball, baseball, skating, and tennis. She also served as chairman of the Yearbook Committee and editor-in-chief of The Venturer. The envy of other students, the girls stayed with Mrs. Grace Vanderbilt at 640 Fifth Avenue during their time at Hewitt. Indeed, the tabloids were captivated by the royal Mountbatten girls and frequently reported on their glamorous life in New York.
Soon the media's characterization of Miss Hewitt's Classes as "one of the most exclusive girls' schools in the East" had found its way to Europe. For the kindness she had shown to English children in America, Miss Hewitt received two of her proudest possessions: a letter from Clementine Churchill in 1942 and another written at Queen Elizabeth's request in 1944. In the years following the war, Miss Hewitt framed the letters and put them on display.
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Newspaper article about Hewitt student Patricia Mountbatten's graduation, 1942
Letter to Miss Hewitt from Queen Elizabeth's lady-in-waiting, 1944
Letter to Miss Hewitt from Clementine Churchill, wife of Prime Minister Winston Churchill, 1942
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Despite the exciting media attention, Miss Hewitt was determined to keep her students cognizant of the harsh realities of war. Throughout the early forties, the school organized assemblies in which first responders discussed their experiences with students. In October 1942, former student Miss Pope of the American Red Cross spoke about the many branches that offered aid to communities affected by the war. Then in December 1942, an assembly was held for students to ask experts about their view on the war. Hanson W. Baldwin, the Pulitzer Prize winning military editor for The New York Times (and brother of Hewitt's own Miss Baldwin), stressed the "importance of the Pacific theatre of the war." Later that month, representatives from the American Women's Voluntary Service spoke about available work and classes for interested students. Faculty dedicated one January assembly to show students various films from the British Library of Information, including "British Women in the War" and "How to Put Out an Incendiary Bomb." These various discussions doubtless inspired students to contemplate their own relationship with the war. The 1943 edition of The Venturer featured many pieces about the fighting, including one poem titled "I am the American Girl":
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Untitled sketch that accompanied "I am the American Girl" in The Venturer
I think more about the war news, far off lands
And battlefields that I never even knew existed until so recently
I've learned to recognize the insignias of all the branches of the
armed forces.
I write letters to the boys that war them overseas
And in training camps all over the country.
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I spend my spare time working in the U.S.O. or some canteen
Or taking Red Cross courses
But I still feel that I am not doing enough.
I have less time for movies, Harpers Bazaar,
And last years suits are more fashionable than new ones.
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I am young and in many ways inexperienced
But I have faith in the future,
In the bright new world of tomorrow,
In laughter, in love and in tolerance.
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I am the American girl.
The war transformed Miss Hewitt's Classes. Unlike Elizabeth Fenno's 1934 essay, "I am the American Girl" indicates a student body now acutely aware of the war's affect on the American population. The shared difficult years brought Hewitt girls together; subsequent editions of The Venturer commonly report on the activities of wartime students. Of these alumnae, the Mountbatten girls retained their popularity. Hewitt students watched in fascination as Pamela and Patricia resumed royal life in England. Pamela would later serve as Queen Elizabeth's lady-in-waiting until 1954.
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Former student Lady Pamela Hicks (née Mountbatten) with Gandhi during a 1947 tour of India
Patricia Mountbatten, right, and Lady Pamela Hicks, left, in 1946
Queen Elizabeth II holding the baby daughter of former student Lady Pamela Hicks (far right) at the child's christening in 1961. Patricia is pictured far left.
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The school's structure also began to change following the war. The presence of women in the post-war work force had become commonplace, and the school embraced the changed educational prerequisites for young women. In its pre-war years, the school almost resembled a finishing school with the drama program at the center of its curriculum. Former student Jane Austrian explained the changed school atmosphere: "By the time I got there, it was a pretty standard curriculum. Of course, French and German were available until just before I started going to the school… Spanish came in some time later. We also had biology, and we had chemistry, which you had the option of not taking, and could take economics instead." The war saw Miss Hewitt's Classes undergo dramatic changes that would only strengthen its position as a leading institution of its time.
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Page by Valerie Blinder
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