Anne Parham Papers

NOTE:  The numbers cited in parentheses, e.g. 1:5, refer the researcher to the Series#: Folder# in which that name/topic will be found.

INTRODUCTION

This collection primarily documents Anne Parham’s time as a student at the Woman’s College of the University of North Carolina (later the University of North Carolina at Greensboro), her career in Guilford County government, and her civic activities. Also included are materials relating to her great grandmother, Sally Duty Hays, and Greensboro Female College. Researchers interested in Greensboro Female College, the Woman’s College, Greensboro/Guilford County, or the activities of working women after World War II will find useful material in this collection.

Arrangement: This collection is organized into five series by document type and subject. The series are: Correspondence, 1958-2005; Greensboro Female College, 1856-1895; Miscellaneous, 1955-1977; Printed Material, ca. 1942-2001; and Woman’s College, 1908-1942.

Provenance: This bulk of this collection was donated in 2015 by Brenda Fox, who inherited it from Anne Parham. It was assigned accession number 2014.47.2. The materials relating to Greensboro Female College and First Presbyterian Church were donated by Brenda Fox in July 2016 and assigned accession number 2016.52.1.

Processing: This collection was organized by Archivist Elise Allison in 2015, and the finding aid was prepared by intern Della Owens in May 2016. The 2016 addition was incorporated into the collection and the finding aid was updated by Archivist Elise Allison in October 2016.

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE

Anne Furman Parham (1921-2014) was born to a family that had lived in Oxford, North Carolina, for several generations, but whose women had often attended college in Greensboro. Her great grandmother, Sally Duty (1835-1902), graduated from Greensboro Female College (later Greensboro College) in 1853, taught guitar there for a few years, and married John Willis Hays in 1859. Born to their daughter Lucy Hays and Henry Otis Furman, Annie Winston Furman (1886-1950) attended the North Carolina State Normal and Industrial College (later the Woman’s College of the University of North Carolina) in Greensboro from 1907 to 1909. She taught in the public schools of Oxford, Salisbury, Henderson, and New Bern, before marrying William A. Parham in 1919.

Anne Furman Parham was born in Oxford, North Carolina, on June 12, 1921. After graduating from the Woman’s College with a Bachelor of Science in Secretarial Administration in 1942, she was hired as the secretary to Guilford County Board of Commissioners Chairman George Stansbury. She worked for the county for forty-nine years, serving as clerk to the Board of Commissioners for much of that time and ending her career as Assistant to the County Manager in 1991. Changes in county government led her to retire one year shy of fifty years of service. She was a long-time member of First Presbyterian Church in Greensboro and sang in its choir. Other memberships included the Pilot Club of Greensboro, an organization for professional women, and the International City Managers’ Association. Anne Parham died in Greensboro on May 1, 2014.

Biographical Sources: The biographical information about Anne Parham was obtained from the article, “County Veteran Retires-Recent Changes Cited as Reason,” by Cathy Gant (Greensboro News & Record, March 11, 1991) and her obituary (News & Record, May 4, 2014). Information about the organizations with which she was associated was found in the collection. The biographical details about Anne Parham’s great grandmother and her mother were gathered from materials in the collection, Ancestry.com, CemeteryCensus.com, and her mother’s obituary (Greensboro Daily News, September 30, 1950).

SCOPE & CONTENT NOTE

The types of materials found in this collection include primarily correspondence, printed material, and a scrapbook.

The bulk of the collection focuses on the Woman’s College of the University of North Carolina between 1938 and 1942. Items include a student handbook (5:9), commencement programs (5:4-5), three yearbooks (1909, 1941, 1942; 5:15-17) and a scrapbook (5:12). The scrapbook may be of particular interest as it sheds light on student life during this era, showing what kind of entertainment, clubs, and social activities were available on campus.

Other noteworthy material relates to the early years of Greensboro Female College. The 1856-57 catalog provides a glimpse of the course of study and student life at the time, and one letter provides an overview of college history in the decades after the Civil War. Additional material relates to the Alumnae address that Sally Duty Hays gave in 1895.

Also included in this collection are a few items pertaining to Anne Parham’s professional life, particularly the “Boss of the Year” award that she received in 1977 (3:2, 4:8) and her service as a Notary Public (4:11). Additionally, some materials provide information about local organizations in which she held memberships, such as Beta Sigma Phi (4:1), the Pilot Club of Greensboro (1:10) and First Presbyterian Church (4:4-6).

SERIES DESCRIPTIONS

1. Correspondence. 12 folders (ca. 25 items).  1958-2005.

This series contains personal letters to Anne Parham, some with enclosed newspaper clippings or certificates. Most letters congratulate her upon receipt of the “Boss of the Year” award in 1977. Some relate to her membership in organizations such as the Lou-Celia Chapter of the American Business Women’s Association (1:1), the Insurance Advisory Committee (IAC; 1:7), the Pilot Club of Greensboro (1:10), and UNCG’s Alumni Association (1:11). Materials that relate specifically to Guilford Country and North Carolina are a Greensboro Daily News article (1:12) about Parham’s view of Guilford County’s growth and a 1964 letter from Governor Terry Sanford (1:9) about the Economic Opportunities (Anti-Poverty) Bill.

2. Greensboro Female College.  6 folders (11 items).  1856-1895.

This series consists primarily of materials relating to the Alumnae address given by Sally Duty Hays during commencement week in 1895. Correspondence from President Dred Peacock invites her to give the address and provides an overview of college history since the Civil War (2:4). The address itself is contained in full in a handwritten draft (2:5) and the first half in a proof of the September 1895 issue of The College Message (2:2). Also included are programs from the 1861 and 1895 commencements (2:3). The college’s early years are reflected in the 1856-57 catalog (2:1), which lists all graduates since 1848, current students and faculty, and the course of study, as well as discussing discipline, costs, and other details of student life.

3. Miscellaneous. 3 folders (4 items).  1955-1977.

The miscellaneous items include a Greensboro Water Department Receipt (3:1), Parham’s 1977-1978 “Boss of the Year” plaque (3:2), and a speech she gave at the dedication of the Whitsett Fire Station in 1973 (3:3).

4. Printed Material. 13 folders (ca. 65 items).  ca. 1942-2001.

The printed material includes certificates, newspapers, newspaper clippings, programs and pamphlets. Materials that relate directly to Anne Parham include her 1942 National Clerical Ability Test (4:2) and certificates from her service as a Notary Public (4:11). Items from First Presbyterian Church include two sermons given by Dr. John A. Redhead Jr. (4:6), worship bulletins from the 1940s, and materials relating to the Letourneau Organ dedicated in 2001 (4:4). Parham’s interest in local history is reflected in pamphlets about Tannenbaum Park (4:13), College Hill, Fowler House, and the Troy-Bumpass Inn (4:3), and “Millstream” in McLeansville (4:7). Miscellaneous newspapers and newspaper clippings include one about the oldest part of the Greensboro Historical Museum building turning 100 years old (4:9).

5. Woman’s College. 18 folders (ca. 35 items).  1908-1942.

The highlight of this collection is its material relating to the Woman’s College of the University of North Carolina. Anne Parham graduated from the college in 1942, the year it celebrated its 50th anniversary. Materials relating to the anniversary include a mailing from Dean of Administration W.C. Jackson detailing celebratory events (5:1), the April 1942 issue of The Alumnae News (5:2), the program for the 50th Anniversary play entitled We, the Women, and the program for the Alumnae Homecoming (5:5).

Items from the State Normal and Industrial College acquired by Parham’s mother include a 1908 commencement program (5:4), a schedule of devotional services at the Y.W.C.A. in January and February 1909 (5:18), and the 1909 yearbook entitled The Carolinian (5:15). The series also contains two yearbooks belonging to Parham herself and entitled The Pine Needles (1941 and 1942; 5:16-17). Additional items she kept from her college years include a student handbook (5:9) and the constitution, by-laws and regulations of the Student Government Association (5:13).

The most interesting item in this collection is probably Anne Parham’s scrapbook chronicling her final year at Oxford High School through her graduation from the Woman’s College (5:12). Arranged by date, it consists primarily of printed material but also contains some handwritten items. Included are programs from Woman’s College organizations, the majority relating to the Civic Music Association, the Play-Likers, and the College Choir. Invitations and tickets to formals and dances include some that provided opportunities for students to interact with soldiers, such as the “Soja Dances” and a “musical concert of soldier talent” entitled “Meet the Boys from Bragg.” Numerous newspaper clippings and pamphlets depict life at the college during this time. Some articles of interest may include “Students Compose Campus Dictionary,” “Renovated Hall Claims Interest of Whole College,” “Famed Violinist Will Give First Concert of Year,” or “Students Accept Reports of War without Hysteria.”

FOLDER LISTING