Johnson, Lilian Wyckoff, 1864-1956

Lillian Wyckoff Johnson was born on June 19, 1864 in Memphis, Tennessee. Her family was active in education. During her childhood Lilian''s parents taught classes to needy children. At age 15, Lillian attended Wellesley and later received her bachelor''s degree from the University of Michigan. She returned to Memphis and joined and joined the faculty of Clara Conway Institute. From 1893 until 1897 she taught at Vassar College and then went to Europe where she studied at the Sorbonne and the University of Leipzig. Johnson received a Doctor of Philosophy degree in history from Cornell University and was the first woman in the United States to receive a doctorate from Cornell. Johnson taught history at the University of Tennessee during that time and led a campaign which resulted in the founding of Western State Teachers College for Women at Memphis. President Johnson was characterized as one of the south''s greatest female pioneers in the educational field. She was the third president of Western College for Women and served from 1904 until 1906. She was inaugurated June 7, 1904 and is credited with leading the celebration of the Golden Jubilee Fund. As the college entered upon it second half-century, in the fall of 1905 with the ever present problems of faculty salaries, changing curriculum and the need for new buildings, a Living Endowment Fund was created. This fund was to increase the amount already received for the Golden Jubilee. The goal was set at $250,000, in hopes for a promised Carnegie gift. Johnson was supported by a strong Board of Trustees and an able faculty. She worked continously to present the cause of Western College. Johnson was in demand as a public speaker and missed no opportunity to address audiences on behalf of the college. She was also credited with originating Senior Day, College Day. In 1906, due to poor health Dr. Johnson became ill and was forced to resign. After her departure from Western she returned to Europe to study agricultural practices. Returning to the United States, Johnson was appointed a collaborator with the United States Bureau of Rural Organization and taught at Central High School in Memphis. When the movement began to locate a normal school in Memphis, she was appointed by the Nineteenth Century Club and worked on raising funding for the purchase of land. She traveled and studied at the International Institute of Agriculture, and also studied with Maria Montessori, the noted child educator. In 1913, Johnson initiated an American commission to study European agricultural cooperatives. She lectured for the Department of Agriculture and settled at Summerfield near Monteagle in Grundy County, Tennessee in 1915. While there she assisted in establishing a high school and county health unit. In 1932, Johnson gifted her Summerfield home for the establishment of the Highlander Folk School where courses were taught to industrial an agricultural workers. She retired to Bradenton, Florida and while there worked for the Women''s Christian Temperance Movement serving as state secretary and organized the Bradenton Community Welfare Council. She died in Bradenton on September 22, 1956.

From the description of Johnson, Lilian Wyckoff, 1864-1956 (U.S. National Archives and Records Administration). naId: 10677604

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