University Archives launches site profiling ECU icons

Published Dec 17, 2014 by
Filed under:

By Steve Tuttle

Minna Towner Inglis Fletcher (1879-1969) wrote 12 novels in her “Carolina Series” set during the colonial era in state history. She lived for many years at Bandon Plantation in Edenton. A world traveler, here’s she’s dressed in costume during a tour of Africa. Fletcher Residence Hall on main campus is named for her. (Contributed photo)

Minna Towner Inglis Fletcher (1879-1969) wrote 12 novels in her “Carolina Series” set during the colonial era in state history. She lived for many years at Bandon Plantation in Edenton. A world traveler, here’s she’s dressed in costume during a tour of Africa. Fletcher Residence Hall on main campus is named for her. (Contributed photo)

Ever wonder about the people whose names are on campus buildings? Who were they?

A new web site answers those questions with profiles and pictures of the people who made lasting contributions to East Carolina University. The site is a joint effort of University Archives, Joyner Library Digital Collections, Application & Discovery Services, and East magazine.

The ECU Icons Gallery, at https://digital.lib.ecu.edu/ecu-icons/, launched recently with an initial collection of six biographies. The site will be expanded at regular intervals with biographies of other notable individuals in ECU history.

The gallery is an effort to communicate the university’s rich history to a wider and younger audience at the click of a mouse.

Each icon will include a biography, photos, memorabilia and a link to additional resource material housed within the Special Collections Division of Joyner Library. East magazine will contribute occasional content to the site, mainly the stories in its “Upon the Past” feature.

Among the first group of icons is East Carolina founding father Thomas Jordan Jarvis. A former governor, ambassador to Brazil, and veteran of the Civil War, Jarvis is largely responsible for securing Greenville as the site of what was then East Carolina Teacher Training School. He also influenced the unique architecture of the six original buildings on campus, with their distinctive red tile roofs.

Also in the first group are two women who have residence halls named for them – early feminist Sallie Cotten and novelist Minna Fletcher. Three others are former faculty members, Wellington Gray, Howard McGinnis and Wendell Smiley.

New groups of icons will be added to the site quarterly.

To suggest an individual to be profiled, or to learn more about using materials housed in Special Collections, please contact Arthur Carlson at 252-328-6838 or carlsonar@ecu.edu.