Mystery surrounds the origin of North Carolina A&T’s homecoming celebration.

The university has recognized homecomings since 1926. The date is printed on banners and shared across online promotions. But, according to James Stewart Jr., the Archives and Special Collections Librarian, historians have struggled to find documentation or newspapers to corroborate.

A “mild controversy,” in Stewart’s words.

Here’s what is known:

Concerts, a major homecoming tradition, began with a “chitlin circuit” band named “Smiling Billy Stewart and His Celery City Serenaders” in 1929.

The award for Miss A&T did not start until about 1930, two years after women were reinstated on campus.

In 1934, alumni hosted a reunion, the school hosted an agricultural fair, and the A&T Register announced an “Alumni Pa

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