George Perley Phenix

George Perley Phenix
4th President of Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute
In office
April 1930 – October 1930
Preceded byJames Edgar Gregg
Succeeded byArthur Howe
Personal details
BornSeptember 1864
Portland, Cumberland County, Maine, U.S.
DiedOctober 4, 1930
Buckroe Beach, Hampton, Virginia, U.S.
Resting placeHampton University Cemetery, Hampton, Virginia, U.S.
SpouseMaria Elizabeth Stevens
Alma materColby College
OccupationEducator, university president

George Perley Phenix (1864–1930), was an American educator and university president. He served as the fourth president of Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute (now Hampton University), a historically Black university.[1] He was the namesake of George P. Phenix High School, a segregated public secondary school for African-Americans affiliated with Hampton Institute.[2]

Biography

Phenix was born in September 1864 in Portland, Maine.[3] He attended Colby College, where he received a D.S. degree (1883) and was a member of Phi Beta Kappa.[4][5]

After graduation Phenix worked as an instructor of the natural sciences at the State Normal School in New Britain, Connecticut, before he became a principal of the State Normal School at Willimantic.[6] He was married to Maria Elizabeth Stevens, and together they had son George Spencer Phenix.[7]

In 1904, Phenix moved to Hampton, Virginia to teach at Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute (now Hampton University).[8] He initially worked as a vice principal and director of the summer school at Hampton.[9] In 1930, he was selected as the president of Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute (now Hampton University), a role in which he served for only 6 months before drowning.[10] He was the first person to be granted the title of "president"; prior to his tenure the title used was "principal".[10] During Phenix's time as president, the name of the school was changed from Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute to the Hampton Institute, and the school established the School of Nursing.

He died on October 4, 1930, of a heart attack, while swimming at Buckroe Beach.[11] Phenix is buried in the Hampton University Cemetery.

References

  1. ^ "Dr. Phenix's Funeral Service Solemn Affair". Richmond Planet. 1930-10-18. p. 1. Retrieved 2023-03-10.
  2. ^ Mason, Felicia L. (2012-12-27). "Did you Know? Little-known or rarely cited facts about Hampton". Daily Press. pp. G2. Retrieved 2023-03-10.
  3. ^ A Guide to the Archives of Hampton Institute. Greenwood Press. 1985. p. 50. ISBN 978-0-313-24968-6.
  4. ^ "In Memoriam". The Phi Beta Kappa Key. 7 (12): 807–818. 1931. ISSN 2373-0331. JSTOR 42914542.
  5. ^ "Dudley Holman Honored". Fall River Daily Evening News. 1911-06-28. p. 9. Retrieved 2023-03-10.
  6. ^ "Educational Intelligence". The Journal of Education. 38 (9 (934)): 165. 1893. ISSN 0022-0574. JSTOR 44038267.
  7. ^ "Dictionary of American English Is Phenix Gift to the Colby Library". The Colby Echo. October 7, 1936. p. 1.
  8. ^ "Educational Intelligence". The Journal of Education. 59 (20 (1480)): 316–319. May 19, 1904. doi:10.1177/002205740405902016. ISSN 0022-0574. JSTOR 44058977. S2CID 220780692.
  9. ^ "Virginia Leads with 256 at Hampton Institute". Evening Star. 1923-07-13. p. 11. Retrieved 2023-03-10.
  10. ^ a b Fairfax, Colita Nichols (2005). Hampton, Virginia. Arcadia Publishing. pp. 26–27. ISBN 978-0-7385-1810-7.
  11. ^ "Hampton Educator is Victim of Heart Attack at Buckroe". Daily Press. 1930-10-05. p. 1. Retrieved 2023-03-10.