Martha Berry
Encyclopedia
For the Cherokee bead artist, see Martha Berry (artist)
Martha McChesney Berry (7 October 1865 – 27 February 1942) was an United States
educator and the founder of Berry College
in Rome, Georgia
.
, and Frances Margaret Rhea, a daughter of an Alabama planter. Berry was born on October 7, 1866, in Berry Cove in Jackson County, Alabama
but her family relocated to Rome, Georgia
, when she was an infant. Thomas Berry was a partner in Berrys and Company, a wholesale grocery and cotton brokerage business in Rome. In 1871, he purchased Oak Hill
, a 116 acre (0.46943576 km²) working farm on the Oostanaula River
approximately one and one half miles north of Rome. Miss Berry grew up in this home, along with her five sisters, two brothers and three orphaned cousins. Her early education was conducted through private tutors, and she attended the Edgeworth School, a finishing school in Baltimore
, Maryland
. This was the only formal education she received. Martha Berry lived at Oak Hill for the remainder of her life.
. In the late 1890s, she constructed a small whitewashed school on eighty-three acres of land given to her by her father and began to teach Sunday school classes to local children. She also taught in an abandoned church at Possum Trot, which still stands on the Berry College campus. The Sunday school classes eventually turned into day school activities and Berry opened a boarding facility for boys called Boys’ Industrial School on January 13, 1902. At the time, she had only five boarders but the need was apparent and in 1909 she opened the Martha Berry School for Girls. Both schools offered high school level education and were open to those willing to study hard and work for the school. Her teachings focused on the hands, head and hearts of her students: The ability to learn, work and the will to do both well. Her motto was and still is the motto of the college, “Not to be ministered unto but to minister.” In 1926, she established Berry Junior College, which in 1930 expanded into a four-year school. Martha Berry died in 1942 and the schools were faced with several years of transition. The Martha Berry School for Girls closed at the end of the 1955-1956 academic year. The boys’ high school was renamed Mount Berry School for Boys and in 1962 it became Berry Academy, which closed in 1983. The college continues to provide a highly-ranked educational experience coupled with worthwhile campus work opportunities.
Martha Berry had many supporters during her lifetime, such as Theodore Roosevelt
, Andrew Carnegie
, Ellen Louise Axson Wilson (wife of President Woodrow Wilson
) and Henry Ford
. Henry Ford was a generous benefactor to the schools and provided the funds necessary to build the “castle” like dorm complex at the college. The dorms are named after his wife and mother, Clara and Mary.
Martha Berry is the subject of several biographies:
Martha Berry the Sunday Lady of Possum Trot by Tracy Byers and Miracle in the Mountains, by Harnett Thomas Kane and Inez Henry. Also of note is Berry College A History: The Legacy of Martha Berry by Ouida Dickey and Doyle Mathis.
A well-rounded biography of the late Martha Berry can also be found in Evelyn Hoge Pendley's A Lady I Loved. Tracy Byers' writing is a little over-dramatic and isn't typically viewed in most circles as being historically accurate. While many of the stories he recounted may be true, as is the case with a few of the stories from Martha Berry, they are probably dramatized for story-telling purposes.
Some sources argue that Martha Berry is responsible for many similar work-study programs grounded in Christian faith that developed around the re-constructed South. While her broader impact is questionable given that her school structure was popular for the day, there is no doubt that Miss Berry was able to put her unique touch on the school through her prolific maxims that she had taught throughout the school like, "prayer changes things."
Martha Berry (artist)
Martha Berry is a Cherokee beadwork artist, who has been highly influential in reviving traditional Cherokee and Southeastern beadwork, particularly techniques from the pre-Removal period.-Background:...
Martha McChesney Berry (7 October 1865 – 27 February 1942) was an United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
educator and the founder of Berry College
Berry College
Berry College is an American accredited, private, four-year liberal arts college located in Mount Berry, unincorporated Floyd County, Georgia, north of Rome. It was founded in 1902 by Martha Berry.-Location:Berry College is located on U.S...
in Rome, Georgia
Rome, Georgia
Located in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, Rome is the largest city and the county seat of Floyd County, Georgia, United States. It is the principal city of the Rome, Georgia Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Floyd County...
.
Early years
Martha McChesney Berry was the daughter of Capt. Thomas Berry, a veteran of the Mexican-American War and American Civil WarAmerican Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, and Frances Margaret Rhea, a daughter of an Alabama planter. Berry was born on October 7, 1866, in Berry Cove in Jackson County, Alabama
Jackson County, Alabama
Jackson County is a county of the U.S. state of Alabama. Its name is in honor of Andrew Jackson, general in the United States Army and President of the United States of America. As of 2010, the population was 53,227. The county seat is Scottsboro. Jackson County is a prohibition or dry county,...
but her family relocated to Rome, Georgia
Rome, Georgia
Located in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, Rome is the largest city and the county seat of Floyd County, Georgia, United States. It is the principal city of the Rome, Georgia Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Floyd County...
, when she was an infant. Thomas Berry was a partner in Berrys and Company, a wholesale grocery and cotton brokerage business in Rome. In 1871, he purchased Oak Hill
Oak Hill Berry Museum
Oak Hill & The Martha Berry Museum is the home and museum about Berry College founder Martha Berry located in Rome, Georgia. It is also an All-America Selections Display Garden, a part of Berry Schools on the National Register of Historic Places, and a AAA Star Attraction.-Oak Hill:Oak Hill is a ...
, a 116 acre (0.46943576 km²) working farm on the Oostanaula River
Oostanaula River
The Oostanaula River is a principal tributary of the Coosa River, about long, in northwestern Georgia in the United States. Via the Coosa and Alabama rivers, it is part of the watershed of the Mobile River, which flows to the Gulf of Mexico. Its name is said to come from a Cherokee Indian term...
approximately one and one half miles north of Rome. Miss Berry grew up in this home, along with her five sisters, two brothers and three orphaned cousins. Her early education was conducted through private tutors, and she attended the Edgeworth School, a finishing school in Baltimore
Baltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...
, Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
. This was the only formal education she received. Martha Berry lived at Oak Hill for the remainder of her life.
The Berry Schools
The founding of the Berry Schools was inspired by Berry’s desire to help the children of poor landowners and tenant farmers in Georgia, who did not have access to quality education. As a consequence of this desire, Martha Berry never married and devoted her life to developing the schools that would eventually become Berry CollegeBerry College
Berry College is an American accredited, private, four-year liberal arts college located in Mount Berry, unincorporated Floyd County, Georgia, north of Rome. It was founded in 1902 by Martha Berry.-Location:Berry College is located on U.S...
. In the late 1890s, she constructed a small whitewashed school on eighty-three acres of land given to her by her father and began to teach Sunday school classes to local children. She also taught in an abandoned church at Possum Trot, which still stands on the Berry College campus. The Sunday school classes eventually turned into day school activities and Berry opened a boarding facility for boys called Boys’ Industrial School on January 13, 1902. At the time, she had only five boarders but the need was apparent and in 1909 she opened the Martha Berry School for Girls. Both schools offered high school level education and were open to those willing to study hard and work for the school. Her teachings focused on the hands, head and hearts of her students: The ability to learn, work and the will to do both well. Her motto was and still is the motto of the college, “Not to be ministered unto but to minister.” In 1926, she established Berry Junior College, which in 1930 expanded into a four-year school. Martha Berry died in 1942 and the schools were faced with several years of transition. The Martha Berry School for Girls closed at the end of the 1955-1956 academic year. The boys’ high school was renamed Mount Berry School for Boys and in 1962 it became Berry Academy, which closed in 1983. The college continues to provide a highly-ranked educational experience coupled with worthwhile campus work opportunities.
Martha Berry had many supporters during her lifetime, such as Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...
, Andrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie was a Scottish-American industrialist, businessman, and entrepreneur who led the enormous expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century...
, Ellen Louise Axson Wilson (wife of President Woodrow Wilson
Woodrow Wilson
Thomas Woodrow Wilson was the 28th President of the United States, from 1913 to 1921. A leader of the Progressive Movement, he served as President of Princeton University from 1902 to 1910, and then as the Governor of New Jersey from 1911 to 1913...
) and Henry Ford
Henry Ford
Henry Ford was an American industrialist, the founder of the Ford Motor Company, and sponsor of the development of the assembly line technique of mass production. His introduction of the Model T automobile revolutionized transportation and American industry...
. Henry Ford was a generous benefactor to the schools and provided the funds necessary to build the “castle” like dorm complex at the college. The dorms are named after his wife and mother, Clara and Mary.
Martha Berry is the subject of several biographies:
Martha Berry the Sunday Lady of Possum Trot by Tracy Byers and Miracle in the Mountains, by Harnett Thomas Kane and Inez Henry. Also of note is Berry College A History: The Legacy of Martha Berry by Ouida Dickey and Doyle Mathis.
A well-rounded biography of the late Martha Berry can also be found in Evelyn Hoge Pendley's A Lady I Loved. Tracy Byers' writing is a little over-dramatic and isn't typically viewed in most circles as being historically accurate. While many of the stories he recounted may be true, as is the case with a few of the stories from Martha Berry, they are probably dramatized for story-telling purposes.
Some sources argue that Martha Berry is responsible for many similar work-study programs grounded in Christian faith that developed around the re-constructed South. While her broader impact is questionable given that her school structure was popular for the day, there is no doubt that Miss Berry was able to put her unique touch on the school through her prolific maxims that she had taught throughout the school like, "prayer changes things."