Instead of Traveling Over the River to Grandmother's House for Thanksgiving, Crowds Will Take Special Trains to Chapel HIll to See Virginia-Carolina Football Game, 1919

From The Tar Heel, Chapel Hill, Nov. 26, 1919. Last name spelled Woollen and Woolen in original article; I don’t know which is correct.

Preparations for Big Crowd Turkey Day. . . Seats Will Be Sold Direct to Students and Alumni. . . First Virginia-Carolina Game Ever Here. . . Special Trains to be Run From Most Large Cities of the State

Preparations are being made at Chapel Hill to handle the Carolina-Virginia game Thanksgiving day, the largest crowd that ever saw a football game in this state. Bleacher seats to hold 2,500 persons in addition to the regular seating space in the concrete stands have arrived, and are being put up. 

Graduate Manager Charles T. Woollen has sent to the alumni this week application form for seats. Other arrangements are beginning to assume definite form from the point of view of the numbers and general interest, as well as in the playing itself, the game is expected to be the greatest football contest ever staged in North Carolina.

The present game is the first Carolina-Virginia contest to be played in North Carolina. Former games have been played in Richmond, except in 1907, when the game was in Norfolk. The agreement between the two universities calls for the game to be played before the student bodies of each university in alternate years and the next game will be played in Charlottesville.

The present concrete stands on Emmerson field will seat 2,500 persons and with the addition of the bleacher seats, which will be place on the opposite side of the field, seats will be provided for 5,000. Every one of these seats will be reserved. To prevent their falling into the hands of speculators, they will be sold direct to students and alumni. Several sections of the stand will be reserved for the cheering students, but all of the rest of the seats will be reserved to the alumni.

Application forms sent out by Graduate Manager Woolen call for the direct order of seats. The price will be $2. In addition to the stands on each side of the field, there will be standing room at each end of the field.

The general expectation is that the reserved seats will be sold out completely and that the crowd will number more than 5,000. The normal hotel and café service in Chapel Hill will be supplemented on Thanksgiving day by changes in the service at Swain Hall and University Inn, at both of which places light buffet lunches will be served.

Special trains are being arranged, one from Charlotte, another from Goldsboro, and others from Virginia and different parts of North Carolina. A great number of visitors are expected to come in automobile sand special arrangements are being made in Chapel Hill to handle the heavy traffic and the parking of the cars. During the day one building on the Campus, the Peabody Building, will be turned over entirely for the comfort and convenience of ladies.