The Red and Blue

The Red and Blue may refer to:

There are several legends relating how these colors came to be used by the University of Pennsylvania. Whether they are fact or fiction remains unknown.

As University Archivist Francis James Dallett pointed out in 1983: "Eighteenth-century American academic institutions simply did not have colors." This leaves one inclined to relegate the above explanations to the realm of local myth.

A resolution adopted by the university trustees on May 17, 1910, states: "The colors shall be red and blue,...The colors [of the University of Pennsylvania] shall conform to the present standards used by the United States Government in its flags." Thus we have a rough idea of when Penn adopted the colors red and blue, at least officially.

"The Red and Blue," while not the official alma mater of the University of Pennsylvania, is so popular that it is often played in place of it at official university functions. (The alma mater of the university is Hail, Pennsylvania!) The song dates from the end of the nineteenth century. Traditionally men would remove their hats for this song and wave them in time to the refrain. One still sees remnants of this custom when students wave their arms while singing the song's chorus.

The words were written by Harry E. Westervelt (Class of 1898), and the music was composed by William John Goeckel (B.A. 1895, LL.B. 1896). Goeckel was known among his classmates as a musician and composer and was both a member and leader of the Penn Glee Club during his time at Penn. The song's copyright was originally held by W. H. Boner & Company.

The original lyrics are as follows:

Chorus:

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