Mar 1, 2026
In the fall of 1960, just a year after moving to town and seeing that there were no girls’ sports offered, Anna Iverson took on the challenge of forming the Medfield Drill Team, not knowing that it would ultimately provide opportunities for thousands of girls in grades 3 to 12 over about a 15-year period.
Anna’s daughter, Georganne, shared that her family moved to Medfield from Dedham in the fall of 1959. Her mother had been involved in similar drill team pursuits in Dedham, so when she came to Medfield, she was unhappy that there were no opportunities for girls, and almost immediately got to work to create the new team.
“My mother was very much ahead of her time – when she decided to do something, she just did it. She didn’t take no for an answer,” said Georganne, a Medfield resident who was a Drill Team member from 4th grade into high school, rising to senior captain in 10th grade. Georganne graduated from Medfield High School in 1970 and is a former MHS Alumni Association officer.
In an unidentified news clipping from May 24, 1962, it was noted that 170 girls were involved in the Drill Team that year. They were divided into three groups: grades 3 and 4, grades 5 and 6, and grades 7 to 12. The Drill Team was sponsored by Medfield Park Commission, and it made regular appearances in town and sporting-related parades. The team practiced every Saturday at Dale Street School. Each girl paid dues of 25 cents a week, which along with fundraising proceeds and team awards, made it possible for the group to purchase flags, banners, rifles, sabers, flags and other necessary equipment.
The article pointed out that the mission of the Drill Team organization “is to furnish training for girls in baton twirling and drill formation.” But beyond that fundamental purpose, the article also stated that “the group now serves as a youth participation unit for Medfield girls and an excellent community organization…” – documentation that the team was clearly achieving the original mission that Anna Iverson had envisioned.
A Dynamic Dozen Collaborate for Team Success
Throughout its duration into the late 1970s, Anna served as president of the organization. She was joined by her neighbor, Mrs. Margaret “Claire” Bouin, who was both secretary and treasurer, helping with the weekly practices and handling team finances. As the article states, other women also served on the advisory board, including Clara Hoell, Christine Ferguson, Mary Tocci, Jacqueline Miller, Beatrice Morgan and Janet Owen. Another crew of women volunteered as “marching guides,” including Barbara Blais, Hilda J. Moran and Verna Berry.
In addition, Medfield mother and seamstress Marjorie “Peggy” Toye took on the challenge of outfitting the girls in custom-fitted plaid Scottish kilts, which led to the article referring to the team as the “Scottish Lassies.” Her son, Will Mitchell, who gets credit for sharing the news clipping and prompting the idea for this article, noted in a recent social media post, “I remember my mom making all their uniforms in her sewing room at our house on Miller St. That paid the rent and kept the two of us in food for a bit. She was quite good (as a seamstress)…despite being almost legally blind.”
The entire group of Medfield women involved with the Drill Team was credited with sacrificing many hours to making it possible for the town to offer girls the opportunity.
After the passage of Title IX as part of the Education Amendments of 1972 which prohibited sex-based discrimination in federally funded education programs, girls participation in high school and college sports surged. At Medfield High School, it was only a matter of time before the Drill Team was joined by other sports opportunities available to girls.
“Especially with sports team practices taking place at the same time as Drill Team practices, the team just petered out,” said Georgeanne. Yet, even after the team disbanded, her mother continued on in Dedham as director of the Dedham Drum and Bugle Corp, and Dedham Drill Team into the 1980s.
According to her obituary, Georgeanne’s mother was also one of the first women coaches in Little League in Medfield, the first woman to officiate boy’s high school basketball, and the first president of the Medfield Boosters Group at the high school (now PTO).
Anna Iverson is one of the many examples of women who Women’s History Month is meant to celebrate. During her lifetime, she helped to redefine female roles through community involvement and leadership, ultimately paving the way for younger generations to do the same.
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/116293278/anna-l-iverson
https://patch.com/massachusetts/medfield/thirty-seventh-week-tuesdays-medfield-historical-minute
https://www.womenshistory.org/womens-history/womens-history-month