Pittsburgh has been writing its own Cinderella fairy tale for a century.
The tale of the Cinderella Ball story has been brought to life complete with a Cinderella, Prince Charming, a glass slipper and a celebration that ends at the stroke of midnight for 100 years.
The annual event where young women are presented to society on the arms of their father or presenter began when a group of women came together to support a local hospital.
Little did that group — the St. Margaret Memorial Hospital’s Dispensary Board — realize the event it created would survive 10 decades.
Founded in 1923 by Anna Blair Childs of Pittsburgh’s Oakland neighborhood, the Dispensary Board was formed to support free clinics, which took healthcare into the neighborhoods of Pittsburgh. The group raised funds that went beyond medical care, according to historical archives researched by the Cinderella Women’s Committee, which took over the ball in 2001.
The Dispensary Board began to host fundraising events such as rummage sales and fashion shows before hosting the first official Cinderella Ball on Jan. 4, 1926. The debutante presentation took place at the University Club on the campus of the University of Pittsburgh.
Choosing the name
Mrs. Morris H. Slocum of Pittsburgh’s Squirrel Hill/Point Breeze neighborhoods suggested the name Cinderella Ball because the dance was supposed to stop promptly at midnight. A pair of dance slippers with rhinestone heels and buckles were given to the girl dancer whose feet they would fit as a feature of the evening’s program.
Members of the Dispensary Board recruited the city’s most well-connected and philanthropic families to take part. In the early days, families frequently hosted Dutch treat dinners before attending the ball. It was a way to formally introduce their marriage-age daughters to potential suitors.
A century later, it is the longest-running charitable event in the City of Pittsburgh and one of the nation’s oldest debutante balls.
The 100th event was held June 26 at the Duquesne Club in Downtown Pittsburgh.
“It is wonderful to see it celebrate 100 years,” said Joan Monroe Newland, 97, a former Shadyside resident who served on the Dispensary Board for many years. “It is exciting, especially for social events like the Cinderella Ball, to continue and thrive. I always had a great time at the ball.”
Mrs. Joan Monroe Newland, 97, a former Shadyside resident, served on the Dispensary Board for many years. Her roles on the board began in the 1970s and included positions such as vice president and chair of board as well as treasurer. She also chaired the ball. Newland led the decorating committee and recalled how beautiful everything looked when the event was held around the holidays.
Her daughter, Leigh Monroe Franks (Gallagher), was a debutante in 1981. Her granddaughter, Claire Monroe Gallagher, was a debutante in 2021.
“This ball is about carrying on the tradition,” she said. “I guess, back then, we never thought about it lasting 100 years. It is an enormous amount of work, but the work is well worth it because it’s a beautiful event. It has truly been a wonderful adventure.”
Celebrity dance instructor
The primary focus of the event was philanthropy, with the debutantes acting as entertainment to attract guests and supporters. Organized dance routines were popular until the 1950s with costumes and choreography that required mandatory biweekly dance practices. Other entertainment included a 20-piece orchestra, tap dances, fashion shows and a cabaret show.
The debutantes receive dance instruction, including from Pittsburgh celebrity Gene Kelly.
In an interview in the Pittsburgh Sun-Telegraph in 1933, Mrs. Willock said: “Do you remember when Gene Kelly taught us our cabaret steps for the Cinderella Ball just before he went to Hollywood? We rehearsed twice a week for three months; and then, the night of the ball, we forget everything and had hysterics?”
Mrs. Dauler also was quoted: “And all the girls fell in love with him and their mothers were frantic.”
Mrs. Wright added: “We danced to ‘American in Paris,’ I remember. Gene Kelly played in that just a year or so ago.”
These events helped raise money for St. Margaret Hospital, originally located in Lawrenceville. Proceeds of the ball helped fund a children’s ward, pay the salaries of a social worker, nurse and librarian, and purchase a vehicle for patient transport.
Monies raised helped fund nurseries for newborns and premature infants in 1956, a library for patients, scholarships for nursing students, $50,000 for advanced X-ray equipment in 1988, funding for a kidney dialysis unit in 1990, and a mammography and ultrasound suite in 1992.
Throughout the 1930s and 1940s, the ball’s reputation grew with at least 30 debutantes most years. Newspapers reported about styles worn by guests. Local stores began marketing gowns for the ball or hosting fashion shows with styles modeled by committee members and debutantes.
The event evolved into a more traditional affair with a program similar to today’s presentation, including the choosing of Cinderella by Prince Charming and a Grand March of debutantes.
The first Cinderella and Prince Charming were selected in 1939: Miss Rachel Reed of Oakland and Mr. E. Trudeau Thomas, then headmaster at Shady Side Academy and future dean of admissions at Hofstra University.
During World War II in 1943 and 1944, an informal dinner was held in place of a presentation. In 1945, Lt. Com. Herbert A. May Jr. served as Prince Charming.
Fifty-four debutantes were presented in 1947, the largest group since the 1930s. One of the debutantes flew in from college in Massachusetts on her grandfather’s private plane. Over the years, debutantes traveled far distances, including from Naples, Italy, and Buenos Aires, Argentina.
White ballgowns and long gloves
By 1949, debutantes appeared in white ballgowns and long gloves, a tradition that continues today, with debutantes now being presented on the arms of their fathers or other presenter.
“Most of the mothers wept happily, all the fathers beamed proud smiles, and the debutantes looked fresh and lovely with excitement,” wrote Patricia Pitt in the Pittsburgh Sun-Telegraph in 1956.
The ball has been held in various months of the year from just before Thanksgiving to near Christmas at the Omni William Penn Hotel in Downtown Pittsburgh.
The first year it was held at the Omni was 1939.
In 2020, the ball took place just before the pandemic in January. It was held June 26, 2021, at the Allegheny Country Club in Sewickley Heights before moving to the Carnegie Museum in Oakland.
Cinderella initially was chosen when debutantes each pulled a string from a giant pumpkin, hoping to retrieve the string with the golden Cinderella slipper or carriage on the end.
One of the most notable Prince Charmings was Henry J. Heinz III, crowned in 1961 before he became a U.S. senator. In 1954, a former Prince Charming, John Gile, composed a waltz just for the event.
In 1959, one-third of the debutantes presented were daughters of past debutantes.
On Dec. 23, 1963, a snowstorm cut the expected crowd of 1200 guests nearly in half and delayed the event by hours. With the band stuck on icy roads, local orchestra leader Jack Purcell stepped in to provide music for both the presentation and to start the dancing. Purcell and his orchestra performed for many years. His son, Rick Purcell, now follows in his footsteps and has played the presentation and dinner music for countless years.
Latrobe legendary golfer Arnold Palmer and his wife joined as guests in 1969.
In the late 1990s, the Leadership Forum for Young Women was introduced. The forum provides experiences that prepare debutantes for the future through volunteerism and personal development opportunities, such as networking events with guest speakers and professional development training.
A new organizer
At the 2001 Cinderella Ball, it was announced that the Cinderella Women’s Committee, a nonprofit organization, had been founded for the purpose of continuing the event.
This effort was spearheaded by Catherine Hughes Baker, Rebecca Parkinson Keevican, Jamie Wise Lanier and Elizabeth Townsend Winson Sweeney.
The women were told the ball wasn’t going to be carried by the Dispensary Board so they invited others to join and asked them to bring at least five people.
They established a fund in memory of longtime Dispensary Board member Ann Gordon Steele of Squirrel Hill. The Ann Gordon Steele Founder’s Circle provided the seed money to continue to host the ball, which donates money to a chosen charity each year, where the debutantes volunteer.
Throughout the years, debutantes have volunteered at the Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium, Phipps Conservatory, Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, The Frick, UPMC Children’s Hospital Foundation, The Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre and the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh.
Money is raised through fees to participate as well as through donations and sponsorships.
“We do this for all the daughters,” said Baker, originally from Fox Chapel, whose daughters, Mallory Hughes Baker and Meghan Baker, were presented in 2005 and 2000, respectively. “It has so much history and so much tradition, and to have a 100th anniversary is just pretty amazing. We’ve been able to keep this tradition alive and that’s wonderful.”
It is fitting the 100th anniversary of the Cinderella Ball coincides in the same year with the 250th anniversary of the United States, said Andy Masich, president and CEO of the Senator John Heinz History Center in Pittsburgh’s Strip District.
“Both are about tradition and recognizing the leaders of the next generation,” said Masich, who attended the ball with his wife, Deborah, as guests of honorary co-chair Catherine Loevner. “Both recognize hope for the future. I am proud to be here at the 100th Cinderella Ball. There is such great energy.”