George Perley Phenix Explained

Office:4th President of Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute
Birth Date:September 1864
Death Date:October 4, 1930
Occupation:Educator, university president
Death Place:Buckroe Beach, Hampton, Virginia, U.S.
Spouse:Maria Elizabeth Stevens
Alma Mater:Colby College
Birth Place:Portland, Cumberland County, Maine, U.S.
Termstart:April 1930
Termend:October 1930
Successor:Arthur Howe
Predecessor:James Edgar Gregg
Resting Place:Hampton University Cemetery, Hampton, Virginia, U.S.

George Perley Phenix (1864–1930), was an American educator and university president. He served as forth 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 on 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". 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.

Notes and References

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