2024: 150 years of the Swans

[Ruck'n'Roll]

I think the real impetus for the celebration (other than the natural desire to celebrate) is that the club started putting 1874 on their jumpers - and once you've made such a public commitment like that there's no going back on that - regardless of the facts.

The club writes "1874" on the back of our jerseys, in colours that have been worn since 1867. You have to appreciate the irony of that act if nothing else - it's special.
And I don't see why we can't enjoy the irony and the celebrations.

That’s probably true, to a large degree, but South Melbourne did publicly celebrate 1924 as its 50th season, in retrospect, in early 1925. So they have been honouring 1874 for nearly a century.

Absolutely correct about the 1924 celebration.
Need to consider the context though, 1924 was slap bang in the midddle of Australia's period of daliance with prohibition. The demon drink was successfully banned in some areas and availability was severely restricted in others - these are some images of materials promoting the cause https://www.australianculture.org/wp...e1710x1112.jpg and https://www.rmit.edu.au/content/dam/...ote%20YES.jpeg
So the Upstanding Citizens (or wowsers, it depends on your point of view) of the increasingly gentrified suburbs south of the Yarra were extremely keen to celebrate the anniversary of a club that was founded in a Temperance Hall. They certainly weren't going to celebrate a club that was founded in a pub!
The 1874 foundation story is just that, a story, a half truth that grew from a particular political/social imperative, but after a century in place - it's traditional.