1894 Stryker High School Commencement Program

     Here you see a 1894 Stryker High School commencement exercises program, donated by Ralph Rupp. The program is printed on plain white paper (yellowed with age) and measures 8 inches by 6 inches, folded in half.
     The program was held at the Opera House, built in 1887 by Prettyman King at the northwest corner of Defiance and Short streets (current site of the Stryker Public Library). The Opera House was destroyed by fire in 1899.
     The program notes a baccalaureate service held at the Universalist church. The Universalist church was built in 1882 at the southeast corner of Defiance and Curtis streets and was purchased by the First Lutheran Church of Stryker about 1922, serving the congregation until the present church was completed in 1965.
     It is believed two of the 1894 graduates, Maud Knight and William Knight, were children of Medal of Honor Recipient William J. Knight