Cannon, Isabella, 1904-2002

<p>Elon’s Isabella Cannon Leadership Program is endowed by the late Dr. Isabella Walton Cannon, former mayor of Raleigh and one of North Carolina’s most distinguished leaders.</p>

<p>Involved in public service most of her life, Cannon made history in 1977 when, at age 73, she became the first woman elected mayor of Raleigh. Known as the “little old lady in tennis shoes,” she had never run for office before her election. Working 16-hour days and using a no-nonsense style, she developed a comprehensive plan that still guides the growth of the city.</p>

<p>Born May 12, 1904 in Dunfermline, Scotland, Cannon emigrated with her family to the United States at age 12. She graduated from Winecoff High School in Concord, N.C., before graduating from Elon in 1924. She was awarded an honorary doctor of laws degree from Elon in 1978. She married Claude Cannon, Elon’s registrar and business manager, in 1924. His subsequent career in diplomatic service took the couple around the state and the world. They lived in Liberia, West Africa and Iraq before returning to Raleigh, where Claude Cannon died in 1954.</p>

<p>Isabella McLean Bett Walton Cannon (May 12, 1904 – February 13, 2002) was an American politician who served the first female mayor of Raleigh, North Carolina from 1977 until 1979. At the age of 73, she defeated the incumbent Mayor, Jyles Coggins, during the election of 1977. Known as "the little old lady in tennis shoes," she served one term as mayor of Raleigh until 1979. Isabella Cannon died at the age of 97 on February 13, 2002.</p>

<p>Cannon was born Isabella McLean Bett Walton (daughter of Helen Bett Seamans and James Walton) on May 12, 1904, in 15 Downieville Crescent, Dunfermline, Scotland, and came to the United States with her family in 1916. After graduating from Winecoff High School in North Carolina, she attended Elon College where she received a Bachelor of Arts in English and Science in 1924. While working as a teacher at Elon College high school, she married Claude M. Cannon in 1924, who was a registrar and business manager at Elon College. In addition to working as a high school teacher, she encountered a variety of work experience, including her position as the mayor of Raleigh. She served as the director of the Elon College weekday experimental school of religious education from 1925 to 1928, worked as a cashier at the Elon Banking and Trust Company from 1928 to 1930, and later became an assistant registrar and manager of the college bookstore at Elon in 1932. Ten years later, she became a bookkeeper and payroll manager at WRAL Radio Station in Raleigh and worked until 1943. She then held a position as a supervisor with the French Supply Council in Washington D.C. from 1944 to 1945. For the next two years, she was an interviewer for overseas financial clearance for returning and terminating personnel in the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration. From 1947 to 1954, she traveled overseas to Liberia, West Africa, and Iraq with her husband, Claude Cannon, who was serving in diplomatic service. After returning to the United States, he died in 1954 in Raleigh. Soon after, she became the director of the library at North Carolina State University and maintained her job for the next fifteen years.</p>

<p>Isabella Cannon was elected as the first female mayor of Raleigh in 1977. On November 13, 1977, the New York Times reported, "Rather than the simple, senior-citizen Cinderella story of a 73-year-old political novice who upset a vigorous, veteran incumbent, the victory of Isabella Cannon as Mayor-elect is considered here as the latest skirmish in a continuing power struggle over the economic future of this capital city of 150,000". Her victory over the previous mayor, Jyles Coggins, was surprising news for many people, not only because of her age, but also because of his widespread support from the city residents. Based on her motto of "planned growth," however, she was able to win the election by 14,508 to 13,315. She was sworn-in in December and served one term until 1979. She was defeated for re-election by city councilman Smedes York.</p>

<p>First, I would like to point out my international background. I was born in Scotland and came to this country when I was twelve years of age.</p>

<p>Later in life, I had the privilege of living in Monrovia, Liberia, on the west coast of Africa.</p>

<p>From Liberia, we were assigned to Baghdad. We were there for almost three years.</p>

<b>Isabella Walton Cannon</b><br>
<b>BIRTH</b> 12 May 1904<br>
Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland<br>
<b>DEATH</b> 13 Feb 2002 (aged 97)<br>
Raleigh, Wake County, North Carolina, USA<br>
<b>BURIAL</b><br>
Saint Marks Episcopal Church Memorial Garden<br>
Raleigh, Wake County, North Carolina, USA