By: Devynn Brown
Sadies has come and gone and many questions have risen on what that dance means. There is far much more to the story behind Sadies, not just the typical “women ask men to the dance”. One of the biggest myths behind Sadies is that it was originated after a dance. However, that is incorrect because it actually originated after a race.
Sadie Hawkins was the product of the fertile imagination of Al Capp. She was a character in his popular cartoon, “Lil’ Abner” set in the town of Dogpatch, that began its wildly successful 40-year run in 1934.
Sadie Hawkins, daughter of Hekzebiah Hawkins, was known as the “hill billy girl” in the county. As a result, no men came to be her suitor and her and her father worried she wouldn’t be married.
After 15 long years, still no suitors had come for Sadie so her father called all of the unmarried men of Dogpatch together and declared it Sadie Hawkins Day. In reverse of the usual Atlanta race, the race placed Sadie in hot pursuit of the towns lucky bachelors. Whoever she managed to catch would be her “lucky” and lawful husband.
This inspired other hilly billy girls of Dogpatch to make the race an annuel one so that they could all get suitors. According to the comic, if a girl caught a man and dragged him through the finish line then by law they would have to marry.
The actual dance part of Sadies didn’t occur until a bit later. The Sadie Hawkins dance took place on the evening before the race, and the spinster girls typically wore hob-nailed boots. The boots would help the girls “unintentionally” stomp on the men’s feet so that when the race took place they would be slowed down.
Through many generations, the story of Sadie Hawkins was passed down. This inspired real world events, such as the premise where women ask men to the dance. Instead of the traditional where men ask the women.
All in all, Sadie Hawkins had a rather interesting origin story and teaches women to chase after their dreams and men to run faster.
Devynn Brown
Devynn Brown'22 is a second year Gigantea member. She enjoys writing stories on trendy to serious topics. Uncovering stories and spreading the new found knowledge to the world is her passion.
Tags: features, originstory, rangers, Redwood, redwoodgigantea, redwoodjournalism, sadiehawkins, sadiesdance
