A Brief History of the Knickerbocker Greys

About one hundred and twenty years ago, and only five years after Alexander Graham Bell patented the telephone, The Knickerbocker Greys Cadet Corps was founded.

Mrs. Edward Curtis started the Corps as an activity for her son and those of her friends. Schools did not have sports, after-school programs did not exist and there was no TV. The boys used to 'hang-out' at local candy stores with nowhere to go.

The name was derived from the knee-length pants that were known as "Knickerbockers: and worn in the original uniform. The Corps was led by a Drill Master and consisted of merely twelve boys.

A year after the Corps began, Mrs. Curtis started the Board of the Knickerbocker Greys, composed of mothers of cadets. To this day, the Corps is run by a Board of parents who are responsible for everything concerning the Corps off the Drill Floor. The Drill Floor is run by the Commandant and his assistants.

As the Corps grew, they drilled in a number of different Armories. In 1902 they were invited to come to the renowned 7th Regiment Armory on Park Avenue at 66th Street by Colonel Daniel Appleton, who was then the Commanding Officer of the Regiment. The Corps was known as Colonel Appleton's "Little Grey Jackets."  Today, the restaurant on the fourth floor of the Armory, the Appleton Mess, is named for this Colonel.

From the start of twelve cadets, the ranks of the Corps increased to over two hundred on their 50th Anniversary in 1931. At that time there was a two year waiting list to join the Greys. The popularity was such that many schools were forced to actually close their athletic programs on Tuesdays and Fridays due to the many students leaving to report to duty at the Armory.

With the exception of the war years in the 1940's, the Corps remained fairly constant. In the 1950's the addition of the entire St. Thomas Choir School did much to swell the ranks. Changing times in the 1960's took their toll on the Corps' membership rolls, but with the admission of the first girl in 1986 and active involvement from parents and Corps Veterans over the past decade, the Knickerbocker Greys are once again resurgent and heading into the twenty-first century as one of New York City's pre-eminent institutions.