Alice Spencer Geddes Lloyd
Encyclopedia
Alice Spencer Geddes Lloyd (November 13, 1876 - September 4, 1962) was an American
social reformer who founded Alice Lloyd College
in Pippa Passes
, Kentucky
.
Alice Spencer Geddes was born in Athol, Massachusetts
on November 13, 1876 and later studied at Radcliffe College
. In her early career in Boston
, Alice Geddes worked as a journalist
. In 1902, she was publisher and editor of The Cambridge Press, the first United States publication to have an all-female staff.
In 1915 Alice Geddes Lloyd and her husband Arthur Lloyd moved to Knott County, Kentucky
, with the goal of improving social and economic conditions, living at first in Ivis. Their initial work involved provision of health care, educational services, and agricultural improvements to the Appalachian region
, funded by donations from East Coast
states. In 1917 Alice Lloyd and her mother moved to Caney Creek, where she had been offered land for a school. She separated from her husband in 1918 and remained in Knott County. She named her Caney Creek home "Pippa Passes
" after a poem by Robert Browning
and in honor of donors from the New England Browning Society
.
Together with June Buchanan
, a native of Syracuse, New York
, who joined her in Kentucky in 1919, Lloyd founded 100 elementary school
s throughout eastern Kentucky and opened Caney Junior College in 1923. The college offered a free education to mountain youth, who were required to promise to remain in the region or return after completing their education. There was a long waiting list for admission. Lloyd imposed strict rules on the students, including no jewelry, cosmetics
, slang
, or high-heeled shoe
s for girls and no tobacco
, gambling
, liquor, gun
s or "unauthorized meetings with the opposite sex" for boys.
Both Lloyd and Buchanan worked without pay at both education and fund-raising. Lloyd is said to have raised some $2.5 million for the college, mainly by typing
and mailing fund-raising appeals. On December 7, 1955, Lloyd appeared on the This is Your Life
television show, whose host Ralph Edwards
made a direct fund-raising plea on her school's behalf, resulting in a large influx of donations which totaled nearly $250,000. In 1997, the college's director of marketing and communications at the time, Stephen Reed, told a journalist, "We've still got people on our mailing and donor list who saw the show."
Lloyd served the college until her death on September 4, 1962. After her death, the college was renamed in her honor. Miss Buchanan served at Alice Lloyd College until 1988, when she died at the age of 100, having lived to see the 1984 opening of the June Buchanan School
, a K-12
school on the Alice Lloyd College campus named in her honor. A statue of Lloyd was dedicated on October 10, 2009 during a ceremony at the college.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
social reformer who founded Alice Lloyd College
Alice Lloyd College
Alice Lloyd College is a four-year liberal arts work college in Pippa Passes, Kentucky. It was co-founded by the journalist Alice Spencer Geddes Lloyd, a native of Cambridge, Massachusetts and June Buchanan, a native of New York City, in 1923, at first under the name of Caney Junior College, as an...
in Pippa Passes
Pippa Passes, Kentucky
In the census of 2000, there were 297 people, 48 households, and 30 families in the city. The population density was 557.3 per square mile . There were 50 housing units at an average density of 93.8 per square mile...
, Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
.
Alice Spencer Geddes was born in Athol, Massachusetts
Athol, Massachusetts
Athol is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 11,584 at the 2010 census.-History:Originally called Pequoiag, the area was first settled by five families in September 1735. When the township was incorporated in 1762, the name was changed to Athol...
on November 13, 1876 and later studied at Radcliffe College
Radcliffe College
Radcliffe College was a women's liberal arts college in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and was the coordinate college for Harvard University. It was also one of the Seven Sisters colleges. Radcliffe College conferred joint Harvard-Radcliffe diplomas beginning in 1963 and a formal merger agreement with...
. In her early career in Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, Alice Geddes worked as a journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
. In 1902, she was publisher and editor of The Cambridge Press, the first United States publication to have an all-female staff.
In 1915 Alice Geddes Lloyd and her husband Arthur Lloyd moved to Knott County, Kentucky
Knott County, Kentucky
Knott County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. It was formed in 1884. As of 2000, the population was 17,649. Its county seat is Hindman. The county is named for James Proctor Knott, Governor of Kentucky . It is a prohibition or dry county. Notable inhabitants include U.S....
, with the goal of improving social and economic conditions, living at first in Ivis. Their initial work involved provision of health care, educational services, and agricultural improvements to the Appalachian region
Appalachia
Appalachia is a term used to describe a cultural region in the eastern United States that stretches from the Southern Tier of New York state to northern Alabama, Mississippi, and Georgia. While the Appalachian Mountains stretch from Belle Isle in Canada to Cheaha Mountain in the U.S...
, funded by donations from East Coast
East Coast of the United States
The East Coast of the United States, also known as the Eastern Seaboard, refers to the easternmost coastal states in the United States, which touch the Atlantic Ocean and stretch up to Canada. The term includes the U.S...
states. In 1917 Alice Lloyd and her mother moved to Caney Creek, where she had been offered land for a school. She separated from her husband in 1918 and remained in Knott County. She named her Caney Creek home "Pippa Passes
Pippa Passes
Pippa Passes is a dramatic piece, as much play as poetry, by Robert Browning. It was published in 1841 as the first volume of his Bells and Pomegranates series, in a very inexpensive two-column edition for sixpence, and next republished in Poems in 1848, when it received much more critical attention...
" after a poem by Robert Browning
Robert Browning
Robert Browning was an English poet and playwright whose mastery of dramatic verse, especially dramatic monologues, made him one of the foremost Victorian poets.-Early years:...
and in honor of donors from the New England Browning Society
Browning Society
Browning societies were groups of people who met regularly to discuss the works of Robert Browning. Emerging from various reading groups, the societies were an indication of the poet's fame and, unusually, were actively forming during his lifetime...
.
Together with June Buchanan
June Buchanan
June Buchanan was an American educator and the co-founder of Alice Lloyd College in Pippa Passes, Kentucky.-Early life:...
, a native of Syracuse, New York
Syracuse, New York
Syracuse is a city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States, the largest U.S. city with the name "Syracuse", and the fifth most populous city in the state. At the 2010 census, the city population was 145,170, and its metropolitan area had a population of 742,603...
, who joined her in Kentucky in 1919, Lloyd founded 100 elementary school
Elementary school
An elementary school or primary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as elementary or primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in some countries, particularly those in North America, where the terms grade school and grammar...
s throughout eastern Kentucky and opened Caney Junior College in 1923. The college offered a free education to mountain youth, who were required to promise to remain in the region or return after completing their education. There was a long waiting list for admission. Lloyd imposed strict rules on the students, including no jewelry, cosmetics
Cosmetics
Cosmetics are substances used to enhance the appearance or odor of the human body. Cosmetics include skin-care creams, lotions, powders, perfumes, lipsticks, fingernail and toe nail polish, eye and facial makeup, towelettes, permanent waves, colored contact lenses, hair colors, hair sprays and...
, slang
Slang
Slang is the use of informal words and expressions that are not considered standard in the speaker's language or dialect but are considered more acceptable when used socially. Slang is often to be found in areas of the lexicon that refer to things considered taboo...
, or high-heeled shoe
High-heeled shoe
High-heeled footwear is footwear that raises the heel of the wearer's foot significantly higher than the toes. When both the heel and the toes are raised equal amounts, as in a platform shoe, it is technically not considered to be a high heel; however, there are also high-heeled platform shoes...
s for girls and no tobacco
Tobacco
Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...
, gambling
Gambling
Gambling is the wagering of money or something of material value on an event with an uncertain outcome with the primary intent of winning additional money and/or material goods...
, liquor, gun
Gun
A gun is a muzzle or breech-loaded projectile-firing weapon. There are various definitions depending on the nation and branch of service. A "gun" may be distinguished from other firearms in being a crew-served weapon such as a howitzer or mortar, as opposed to a small arm like a rifle or pistol,...
s or "unauthorized meetings with the opposite sex" for boys.
Both Lloyd and Buchanan worked without pay at both education and fund-raising. Lloyd is said to have raised some $2.5 million for the college, mainly by typing
Typing
Typing is the process of inputting text into a device, such as a typewriter, cell phone, computer, or a calculator, by pressing keys on a keyboard. It can be distinguished from other means of input, such as the use of pointing devices like the computer mouse, and text input via speech...
and mailing fund-raising appeals. On December 7, 1955, Lloyd appeared on the This is Your Life
This Is Your Life
This Is Your Life is an American television documentary series broadcast on NBC, originally hosted by its producer, Ralph Edwards from 1952 to 1961. In the show, the host surprises a guest, and proceeds to take them through their life in front of an audience including friends and family.Edwards...
television show, whose host Ralph Edwards
Ralph Edwards
Ralph Livingstone Edwards was an American radio and television host and television producer.-Early career:Born in Merino, Colorado , Edwards worked for KROW-AM in Oakland, California while he was still in high school...
made a direct fund-raising plea on her school's behalf, resulting in a large influx of donations which totaled nearly $250,000. In 1997, the college's director of marketing and communications at the time, Stephen Reed, told a journalist, "We've still got people on our mailing and donor list who saw the show."
Lloyd served the college until her death on September 4, 1962. After her death, the college was renamed in her honor. Miss Buchanan served at Alice Lloyd College until 1988, when she died at the age of 100, having lived to see the 1984 opening of the June Buchanan School
June Buchanan School
The June Buchanan School is a private K-12 prep school located on the campus of Alice Lloyd College in Pippa Passes, Kentucky. It is named after founder June Buchanan, who, along with social reformer Alice Spencer Geddes Lloyd, founded the college. It has a student-teacher ratio of 10-1...
, a K-12
K-12
K–12 is a designation for the sum of primary and secondary education. It is used in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand where P–12 is also commonly used...
school on the Alice Lloyd College campus named in her honor. A statue of Lloyd was dedicated on October 10, 2009 during a ceremony at the college.
Further reading
- A College for Appalachia: Alice Lloyd on Caney Creek. By P. David Searles (1995). Lexington: University Press of Kentucky. ISBN 0-8131-1883-2
- Miracle on Caney Creek. By Jerry C. Davis (1982). Pippa Passes, KY: Caney Creek Community Center, Inc.