Dr. Anna Maria Gove, Lady Doctress

When it came time to form the State Normal and Industrial College (now UNCG) in 1891, student health was of the utmost importance.  And since the student body was comprised of young women, President Charles Duncan McIver wanted to provide the students with a campus physician who could care for all their needs.  Miriam Bitting served one year as campus physician before marrying and moving to New York.  The start of the second year of the young college saw a need for a new physician to take Dr. Bitting's place.   Upon the recommendations of several of her instructors and mentors, including a letter from Emily Blackwell, the third woman in the United States to earn a medical degree, Dr. Anna Maria Gove was hired as the second woman physician for State Normal in 1893.

Anna Gove was born on July 6, 1867 in Whitefield, New Hampshire to Maria Pierce and Dr. George Sullivan Gove.  As the only daughter of a physician, Anna was exposed to the profession from a young age.  It was said that she often rode with her father on the back of his buggy to visit patients around the area.  So it seemed natural for Anna to pursue a medical career, even in a time when there were so few women doctors.  She attended Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Woman's Medical College of the New York Infirmary where she graduated in 1892.  After a one year internship at the New York Infant Asylum in New York City, Dr. Gove came to Greensboro.

Dr. Gove brought progressive ideas to the little woman's college in North Carolina.  She formulated and put into practice a system for every freshman to have a physical and medical examination upon entering school.  She would then lay out plans to correct minor medical defects while the student was at college.  State Normal was the third college in the United States to adopt this practice.

Even with Dr. Gove's diligence, illness came to the school through a number of epidemics.  She saw the students through a large measles outbreak in 1895.  Keeping the sick women quarantined away from their fellow students and reassuring parents of their daughters' well-being kept Dr. Gove busy.   When the typhoid epidemic descended on campus in 1899, Dr. Gove worked night and day to discover the source of the problem and assist the dozens of sick and dying students.  Shortly after the epidemic passed, Dr. Gove took a leave of absence from the school to recoup and recover both mentally and physically.

Perhaps because the typhoid epidemic left such and impression on Dr. Gove, she had a passion for keeping up-to-date on the changing medical field.  She took several leaves of absence from the school throughout her early career to increase her medical knowledge.  In 1896-1897, she spent a year studying internal medicine in Vienna, Austria.  She returned to Vienna in 1913-1914 to continue her post graduate studies, where she met and worked with the famous orthopedist, Adolf Lorens.  Dr. Gove even assisted on one of his surgeries.

Dr. Gove in her WWI uniform

With the outbreak of WWI, Dr. Gove looked for a way to become involved in the war effort.  Women doctors were not accepted into the army medical corps, so Dr. Gove sought another way to put her skills to use.  In March 1918, she joined the American Red Cross and travelled to France to serve with the Children's Bureau in Marseille.  Dr. Gove worked with refugee children, assisting with dietary and other health concerns.  After the war, she served with the Smith College Relief Unit in Somme, France, before returning to the college in 1920.

Dr. Gove spent much of the 1920s developing a Health and Hygiene Department at the college.  She attended numerous lectures at the University of Michigan on mental and physical hygiene and brought that knowledge back to North Carolina.  Dr. Gove was a pioneer in the detection and control of tuberculosis at colleges and was asked to read a paper on the subject at the meeting of the National Tuberculosis Association.

By the time of Dr. Gove's retirement in 1936, she was being widely recognized for all her contributions to the college and to the medical profession.  The campus infirmary was named for Dr. Gove on May 30, 1936.

Dr. Gove passed away on January 28, 1948 at age 80.

Happy Holidays!

The staff of the Martha Blakeney Hodges Special Collections and University Archives wishes everyone a happy holiday season! We're taking a break this week, but please join us on Monday, January 4th for a new Spartan Story.

Woman's College students in a snowball fight on campus, 1942

Happy Holidays!

The staff of the Martha Blakeney Hodges Special Collections and University Archives wishes everyone a happy holiday season! We're taking a break this week and next, but please join us on Monday, January 4th for a new Spartan Story.

A selection of Christmas cards received by the Woman's College/UNCG Alumni Association.
Alumni wrote to the Alumni Association secretary to update her on family, work, and other major life events.

Emmylou Harris: From UNCG to the Grand Ole Opry

Emmylou Harris in The Tempest, 1965

In April of 1976, country music star, Emmylou Harris, returned to Greensboro for a concert at the Piedmont Sports Arena. In celebration of this homecoming and her April 2nd birthday, the Greensboro Chamber of Commerce and local promoter, Bill Kennedy, declared it “Emmylou Harris Day” and held a “welcome back” party, inviting friends and professors who had known her when she was in college.  It had been only a little over a decade since Harris left The University of North Carolina at Greensboro to pursue her dreams, and on that April day in 1976, she was quickly on way to realizing them.
Born in Alabama and raised in North Carolina and Virginia, Harris entered UNCG in the fall of 1965 on a drama scholarship. While on campus, she appeared in plays, such as Shakespeare’s The Tempest and a children’s theatre production of The Dancing Donkey, before deciding that she would rather pursue a musical career.


The Dancing Donkey, 1966

It was during her time at UNCG, that Harris became part of a folk music duo called “The Emerald City” with University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill graduate, Mike Williams. Singing primarily folk songs by artists such as Bob Dylan and the Everly Brothers, they booked local venues as well as clubs as far afield as Virginia Beach and Washington D.C.


Harris also sang at the Red Door, a bar on Tate Street that had a “coffee house” atmosphere. She later admitted to actively trying to imitate the sounds of Joan Baez and Judy Collins, popular folk singers of the time. In a 1992 interview, Harris recalls that the Red Door paid $10 a night and all the beer that you could drink – a poor deal considering that Harris did not drink beer. Those who saw her perform remember her as tall, pretty, and talented.




Emmylou Harris performing in 2008
(CC BY-SA 2.0 Eric Frommer)

Realizing that her true love was not drama but music, she dropped out of college and headed for Virginia Beach, singing and waiting tables. After brief stints in New York and Nashville, Harris landed in the Washington D.C. music scene where she would catch her big break. While playing at a Georgetown nightclub, she met Gram Parsons, a young singer and songwriter with The Byrds and The Flying Burrito Brothers, who was about to break out with his first solo album. Parsons’ blend of country and rock was a good fit for Harris and they recorded two albums and toured together before his death of an accidental drug overdose at the age of twenty-six. Harris considers Parsons her mentor and credits him for shaping her into the artist that she is today. Her style evolved as a successful combination of country, folk, and bluegrass, which has made Harris an extremely innovative and influential artist. She would continue to collaborate with other musicians, such as her friends Linda Ronstadt and Dolly Parton, and record her own albums as well, eventually winning a total of thirteen Grammys and inductions into the Grand Ole Opry and the Country Music Hall of Fame. In addition to making beautiful music, Harris has raised two daughters and become an advocate for causes such as animal rights and global landmine awareness. 

An Original Spartan -- Tom Martin (Class of 1970)

C. Thomas Martin has been a part of UNCG for most of his life. Originally from Burlington, North Carolina, Martin's family moved to Greensboro and lived near campus in houses on Tate and Spring Garden streets. He attended the university-owned Curry School from grades 4-12. While he was at Curry School, he played on the Men's Basketball team and set records for most rebounds (25) and points (50) in a game.

After graduating from Curry, Martin attended Gardner-Webb junior college before returning to Greensboro to enroll at UNCG. It wasn't long before he recognized some fellow rival basketball players from his Curry School days. They encouraged him to join the newly-formed Men's Basketball team at UNCG. Martin later said he didn't even know they had a men's team at that time. This was understandable since UNCG had only started accepting male students in the fall of 1964. It was the introduction of men's athletics that also necessitated the need for a mascot for the school's intercollegiate athletic teams. Martin joined the nascent team with eleven other students under coach Jim Swiggett and became the UNCG Spartans.

Although the team's early seasons produced few wins, the team was largely competitive and Martin was a large reason for that. Martin, who was one of the team's tri-captains, averaged 15 points a game and still holds the record for rebounds in a single game.

Tom Martin #50

When he wasn't playing basketball, Martin worked hard on his degree in Political Science and also met his future wife, and fellow UNCG student, Mary Hoyng (Class of 1971).

After graduation, Martin put his UNCG degree to work in a career that spanned 33 years of service in the Planning Department of the City of Greensboro. Beginning work as a Planning Technician and rising through the ranks to become Director of Planning, Martin retired in December of 2003.

Even while busy with an important job with the City of Greensboro, Martin still made time for UNCG. He has volunteered and served in many capacities for UNCG including, but not limited to: Chairman of the Spartan Club (1992-1996), Tournament Director of 1997 and 1998 NCAA's Women's Soccer Championships (held at UNCG), Excellence Foundation member, UNCG Hall of Fame Committee Chairman, and University Planning Council member.

In 2002, Martin made history again when he was elected president of the UNCG Alumni Association, the first male to hold that post. That same year, Martin was inducted into the UNCG Athletics Hall of Fame.

Martin and his wife, Mary, continued to show support for current UNCG athletes by establishing the C. Thomas Martin Athletic Scholarship, an endowment fund that is awarded to women in the basketball program who have demonstrated a high level of competition and academic performance.

Martin has also been recognized as one of UNCG Athletic's biggest fans with the Super Spartan Award and more recently, was a recipient of the Alumni Association's UNCG/WC Legacy Award (2014) for alumni who have made significant contributions that exemplify value, character, and high integrity.

An original Spartan, Martin continues to support current Spartans to this day.

A History of Adult Students at UNCG

When the doors of the State Normal and Industrial School (now UNCG) opened on October 5, 1892, for the first day of instruction, 176 women from across North Carolina arrived in Greensboro to attend. The number would grow to 223 by the year's end. Many of the students who arrived were non-traditional students with previous degrees from other institutions. One was 26-year-old Minnie Lou Jamison from Rowan County, NC. She had attended a local academy in her home county and worked for a number of years teaching in order to save money for her tuition. In 1896, after graduation from State Normal, she remained on campus in a faculty position in the Department of Home Economics.

Minnie Lou Jamison

Jamison reflected President Charles Duncan McIver's statement in the 1902 Annual Catalogue that the "State Normal and Industrial College stands for a public educational system that will educate all people." The institution attracted about one-third of its enrollment in the early years from local "town students," including one who commuted daily to class on horseback. A steady commitment to non-traditional students continued to grow.

This commitment can be seen in Margaret Rowlett (Class of 1925), who began working at the age of 14 in a North Carolina rag mill to earn money to support her education. She enrolled in the North Carolina College for Women (now UNCG) as a 25-year-old freshman. After graduation, she was able to pursue a career in writing and illustrating children's books and creating textiles and draperies aimed at children.

During World War II, the college's focus shifted to supporting the war effort. Spouses of many active military servicemen enrolled at Woman's College (now UNCG) after the institution shifted its previous policy banning married students. Following the war, the enactment of the G.I. Bill affected higher education throughout the country, and Woman's College was no exception. By 1946, 54 veterans of the women's branches of the armed forces had enrolled at WC on the G.I. Bill.

The first group of WWII veterans to enroll at WC

One of these returning veterans was Reva Fortune of Greensboro, who served with the Army Air Force while in the Women's Army Corps (WAC) from 1943 to 1948 and with the Women in the Air Force (WAF) from 1948 to 1952. In 1954 at the age of 37, she enrolled at Woman's College on the G.I. Bill. She had long wanted to attend college, but noted that "before the War [she] did not have the means." Fortune graduated in 1958 with a degree in biology and a minor in Spanish.

In the late 1950s, college administrators began to recognize a growing need for higher education for a group that was described as "special undergraduate students." In a 1958 report, Chancellor Gordon Blackwell projected a steady increase in the number of adult students at WC, "from 40 in 1957 to 230 by 1970." This growth did continue and, in the late 1960s, an Ad Hock Committee to Study Non-Traditional Students was formed. Following the committee's recommendation, the first Office of Adult Students was created in 1972 to "recruit, admit, and monitor non-traditional students at UNCG."

UNCG's support for non-traditional students continues, with the UNCG Campus and Activities Program (CAP) coordinating many events and activities aimed at assisting adult and commuter students. Through these types of programs, UNCG continues to provide opportunities for students to learn, grow, and be active on campus.

Spotlight on WC Alumna and American Red Cross Worker, Emily Harris Preyer (Class of 1939)

Emily Irving Harris Preyer was born in Reidsville, NC in 1919 and grew up in Greensboro. Preyer attended Greensboro Senior High School (now Grimsley High School) and then went on to the Woman's College (WC) of the University of North Carolina (now UNC Greensboro). While at the WC she double majored in English and French and was a member of several campus organizations including president of the Student Government Association.

1939 Pine Needles

For the first three years at the WC, Preyer was a Town Student (now called Commuter) because her family could not afford the cost to live on campus.

In 1939, Preyer’s senior year, The Dean of Women Harriet Elliot brought her friend First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt to campus. In this excerpt from her Oral History, Emily Preyer discusses her encounter with Roosevelt. "I was president of the student government, so—Dr. [Walter Clinton] Jackson lived right there on campus, and so he had a—Miss Elliott had a tea for her, and I never will forget Mrs. Roosevelt came down and we were all so excited. I had somebody from every class saying I was pouring the tea, and I said, "Mrs. Roosevelt, will you have tea or coffee?" And she said, “Well, honey, I’ll have it in my cup, whatever,” because I was pouring it right on the silver tray. Oh, she was a wonderful lady, Mrs. Roosevelt."

College Judicial Board, 1939 Pine Needles yearbook

In addition to being president of the Student Government Association, Preyer was the Dance Chairman for the Adelphian Society, Chairman of the Honor Board, Class Cheerleader, Le Circle Francais member, Clogging Club, Town Student’s Board member, May Day Court, Young Democrats Club, College Judicial Board, and the Carolinian Business Staff. Preyer was also a participant in various sports such as Tennis and Basketball, as well as other organizations and honors.

In 1943, Preyer joined the American Red Cross. She chose the Red Cross over the Navy WAVES or the Army WAC because the training time was only two weeks. Preyer was stationed in Perth and Brisbane, Australia and Subic Bay, Philippines.

Preyer in her Red Cross uniform

Preyer talks about her time in Australia with the Red Cross: "Perth and Western Australia was the most beautiful place. We had the cutest little house on a lake, and it was called the Swan Lake because Perth is the only place in the world that has black swans. So we called our Red Cross club the “Swan Dive,” and they could come in and dance and do whatever they’d want to, and we’d write letters for them. Then when they would be sent to the hospitals in Perth we would go and write letters. We weren’t nurses, but we did whatever the nurses asked us to do…We went to the hospitals and did everything we could for those boys. I mean, we learned to do bandages and all. We weren’t trained nurses, but we learned to do, anything to comfort them and help them get well."

Fremantle Submarine Base was near Perth and the Red Cross worked with many of the enlisted submariners.

"They [U.S. Navy submariners] called me 'the Rebel.' This boy that was on a submarine said, 'Rebel, you know what? You always make me feel homesick because I lived up in Maine, and every winter when the wild geese were flying over my house going south for the winter, they’d go 'Waah! Waah! Waah!' and you just remind me of those geese.' And of course they just kidded me about my twang till I could scream."

Emily Preyer and her husband in the 1975 Alumni News

Preyer remained in Perth with the Red Cross until 1945. After her return to the United States, she married the Honorable L. Richardson Preyer, U.S. Congressman and Federal judge. Their eldest son joined the Peace Corps in the 1970s and her daughter worked with the VISTA program. Through the rest of her life, Preyer continued to work with the Greensboro Chapter of the American Red Cross and served the Triad Community in various ways. From 1955-57, Preyer also served as President of the WC Alumnae Association. In 1998, Preyer was awarded the North Carolina Award in Public Service, the state's highest honor, in recognition for her leadership and philanthropy in Greensboro. Emily Irving Harris Preyer passed away in December 1999.

Learn more about Emily Preyer and other women who served in the American Red Cross and the United States Armed Forces at the Betty H. Carter Women Veterans Historical Project.

This story was written by Sara Maeve Whisnant, a student in the Master's in Library and Information Studies program at UNCG. Sara Maeve has worked with the Women Veterans Historical Project as a student assistant since 2014.