Each year, in Mrs. Espenschied’s AP US History class, students dress up as reformers from the antebellum time period and host an Antebellum Ball. Antebellum means “before the war,” with the antebellum time period referring to the time before the Civil War.
Junior Hayden Klink said Frederick Douglas, played by junior Quinton Shore, was his favorite reformer at the ball “… because he seemed to know what he was talking about and did a good job with explaining what he did.”
A big part of the ball is dressing up. Students have found many places to get their outfits. Klink said he found his in his “dad’s closet,” while junior Sylvie Harvey said, “Mrs. Malone and I went through the theater dressing room and found clothes that looked like Sarah Ingrahm would wear.”
There were many different reformers from the time period to choose from. Junior Jobi Smith chose to be Harriet Beecher Stowe. Smith said, “I just saw that she was an abolitionist and a writer, and I wanted to see what she wrote, and I thought it was interesting.”
One of the main reasons the Antebellum Ball takes place is for the APUSH students to learn more about the people involved and the time period. Klink said, “I think it [the ball] did a pretty good job because it showed how the Second Great Awakening affected the time period.”
Tynley Jackson, Staff Writer
jacty24@sages.us
The Sage Informer 
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