Homecoming, welcoming back of former residents and alumni, is a tradition in many universities, colleges and high schools in North America. It usually includes activities for students and alumni, such as sports and culture events and a parade through the streets of the city or town. Additionally, many smaller American Protestant congregations conduct special services called homecomings, often annually but sometimes as one-time-only events, to celebrate church heritage and welcome back former members or pastors.

United States

Homecoming is an annual tradition of the United States. People, towns, high schools and colleges come together, usually in late September or early October, to welcome back former residents and alumni. It is built around a central event, such as a banquet and, most often, a game of American football, or, on occasion, basketball, or ice hockey. When celebrated by schools, the activities vary widely. However, they usually consist of a football game played on the school's home football field, activities for students and alumni, a parade featuring the school's marching band and sports teams, and the coronation of a Homecoming Queen (and at many schools, a Homecoming King).

Origins

Both the University of Missouri and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaignhttp://www.admin.uiuc.edu/homecoming/history.pdf lay claim to establishing the tradition of homecoming on college campuses. In 1909, Baylor University was the first university to hold an organized alumni event whose focus point was a varsity sports match; however, the event was an isolated event that wasn't replicated again at Baylor until six years later. As a result, Illinois and Missouri are generally given credit for establishing the annual tradition that has become known as homecoming. However, Indiana University (Bloomington) also held its first annual alumni "Home-Coming" event the same year. The University of Missouri has received the most recognition, as it was recognized by the NCAA, Trivial Pursuit and Jeopardy as being the birthplace of the tradition. Additionally, Missouri remains home to the largest student-run homecoming event in the United States and includes the largest blood drive on a college campus.

The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign credits two senior members of the class of 1910 with establishing the tradition of homecoming at Illinois. These two men were Clarence F. Williams and W. Elmer Ekblaw. According to recollections Williams in 1930, the idea came to the two men in 1910 while they were sitting on the steps of the YMCA discussing ways of contributing to their alma mater. The men's idea culminated in Illinois' first homecoming event on October 15, 1910. The event celebration centered around the football game against the University of Chicago, and it also included various alumni reunions, initiations, and banquets.