Mary Dorothy Lyndon: First Female Graduate from the University of Georgia
In 1889, the movement for women being allowed to attend the University of Georgia began. However, the efforts of the movement were shut down numerous times and by 1902, Georgia was the only state that did not allow women access to higher education. Finally, in 1914, Mary Dorothy Lyndon was the first ever female student to graduate from the University of Georgia (UGA). She graduated with a Masters of Art Degree. Asides from being the first woman to graduate from UGA, she was also involved in extracurricular activities on and off campus such as the Thalian Dramatic Club, founded the Pioneer Club, served as the secretary for the Daughters of the Revolution Chapter, taught Sunday school at the First Methodist Church of Athens and classes at the Peabody School of Education, and was very involved in organizing the Phi Mu Sorority chapter at UGA. She graduated five years before women were considered to be full students at the university. In 1919, university Chancellor David C. Barrow nominated Lyndon to be a part of UGA’s Board of Trustees. Soon after, Lyndon was officially elected. It was definitely a fitting position for her considering the efforts she put into helping other women be able to study and graduate from UGA. Even though Lyndon had so much to offer to the university with her unrelenting work ethic and brill, she unfortunately passed away due to a case of pneumonia on April 5, 1924. To honor her, the university built an all female dormitory in 1936 and named it “Mary Lyndon Hall.”
Citations
Dadisman, Carrol. “100 Years of Women at UGA.” Myajc from the Atlanta Jounral-Constitution, Get Schooled, 15 June 2014, www.myajc.com/news/opinion/100-years-women-uga/eKi9udTfhDfXFaZWMus43I/.
Mary Dorothy Lyndon. 1914, Hargrett Rare Books and Manuscript Library, Athens.
Mary Lyndon with her Portrait. 1919, Hargrett Rare Books and Manuscript Library, Athens.
Lyndon's Diploma from the University of Georgia. 1914, Hargrett Rare Books and Manuscript Library, Athens.
Lyndon's Certificate of Daughters of the Revolution. 1914, Hargrett Rare Books and Manuscript Library, Athens.