Promenades were common in Victorian era balls. In a promenade, couples are formally announced and enter the ballroom one at a time.
At the turn of the 20th century, spring dances called cotillions also featured promenades. But over the years, the tradition began to die out.
Though the word "prom" is short for "promenade," most high school proms today don't feature the formal ceremony described above. However, the tradition is not completely lost. At Richwood High School and a few other schools scattered throughout the country, the students continue the ceremony.
Richwood has a student body of less than 500 and is located in a close-knit community -- so close that nearly everyone in town attends promenade to see the students in their dresses and tuxedos.
Longtime Richwood educator Edwin Pratt, who passed away in April, started the school's promenade tradition more than 60 years ago. In addition to the usual prom preparations of coming up with a theme, organizing all the dance's details and decorating the gym, Richwood's promenade also requires rehearsals so that students can learn the ropes of the ceremony.
The way promenade works is that students arrive around 6 p.m. to find their escorts, snap some photos and have some fun before the event begins. Then, the promenade starts at 7 p.m. and last for approximately 45 minutes.
For the ceremony itself, couples enter underneath an archway, are introduced by an emcee and parade to the front of the gym, where they pause for a moment before proceeding to an assigned spot. It's a bit nerve-wracking for some students, as the gymnasium is packed with tons of people, watching and taking pictures.
This tradition is very unique because for 45 minutes, everyone gets to see all the students in their finest outfits in a beautifully decorated gym that on that night looks nothing like a gym. For at least a few brief moments during those 45 minutes, everyone gets to be a star. It's a very special feeling, with tons of people cheering for you, clapping and taking picture.
Following all the students' entrance, friends and family have approximately 30 minutes to take pictures. Then at 8:15, the prom queen is introduced. (There is no official prom king; whoever escorts the queen is considered the king.)
After the queen promenades, the whole class circles around her. Then, she and her escort dance for about 10 seconds, followed by about 10 seconds where the entire prom court dances. After that, the rest of the class joins in, signaling the end of the promenade part of the night.
In the past few years, different graduating classes have chosen to select their queen in different ways. The tradition is that the queen is announced before the dance and wears white.
However, in 2004, the class decided to break from tradition and wait until the night of prom to crown the queen. The classes of 2005 and 2006 chose to go back to the tradition, but last year's class and this year's class chose to go with the class of 2004's way.
So all in all, Richwood's prom may seem like a typical prom night from 8:15 p.m. on, but the hour before is something that very few other high students get to experience. Though promenade may cost slightly more than a regular prom, the cost is worth it with the memories that are made that night.