The Dryden High School Literary Society is one of the most established, if not the most time-honored extra curricular organization of the high school. The work of the staff and students of the Literary Society gave birth to the Argosy and the present day drama club.

During the 1930s, a school paper, consisting of personals and jokes, was read to students during meetings of the Literary Society. The paper was then known as The Review. “The Review” appeared irregularly, and had no permanent staff. In September 1939, under the guidance and support of Mr. Scott (a very well respected English teacher), a project was undertaken to publish a monthly paper available to all the students of Dryden High School. Betty (Brown) Hawke was chosen as the editor-in-chief. The monthly paper was to be called The Argosy . Click here for a definition of the word Argosy

During September of that year, the students worked furiously to make the first issue of the Argosy, but misfortune fell upon the students. The ribbon in the typewriter was damaged and the originals had to be reprinted by hand. This required numerous evenings to finish, and the first publication of the Argosy came out several days late. To reproduce the one hundred and fifty copies of the first Argosy, the students used a “ditto machine ”.

Though the copies were difficult to read and decipher, the students did at last, have their own paper to read to their friends and parents. The November issue of the Argosy was reproduced on the mimeograph machine used at the public school. The resulting paper was better and easier to read. However, the December issue found the students back on the ditto machine because of a lack of funds to purchase the stencils needed to create copies with the mimeograph. Again the students found that many long nights were needed to complete the Argosy. As the final 1939-1940 Argosy states: "Could you only have seen them at their labours copying and correcting, composing bits to fill in the corners, spreading ditto ink from nose to ear and back again … growling and grubbing, but enjoying it all despite the discomforts and the misfortunes."

The many years at Dryden High School have seen numerous groups of staff and students working late into the night composing stories for the Argosy, practicing their lines for upcoming literary performances, designing the costumes and sets, working with sheer will to overcome fatigue so that they could finally produce a performance that would be enjoyed by all.