Spartan Stories
Tales from the UNCG University Archives
Peabody Park
Celebrating “Service” with Park Night
by Erin Lawrimore From 1920 through 1935, the Friday evening of commencement weekend at the North Carolina College for Women (later Woman’s College and now UNCG) featured a ceremony known as Park Night. This allegorical drama typically took place outdoors in an outdoor theater constructed in Peabody Park. The production featured a character named Service […]
Bringing Music to Peabody Park
If you have ever walked the length of College Ave (in the direction of Market Street), you will eventually find yourself crossing a metal and concrete bridge. The structure and placement of the bridge creates for the walker the illusion of floating through and above a wooded section of Peabody Park. As you pass through […]
“A Noble Idea:” The History of Peabody Park (Part Three)
Have you ever wondered how and why UNCG has such a beautiful green space on the northern edge of its campus? Well, the founding and development of Peabody Park is a fascinating story that reflects UNCG’s overall growth as a center of higher learning and a Greensboro neighbor. Given the complexity of the story, the Park’s history […]
“A Noble Idea” The History of Peabody Park (Part Two)
Have you ever wondered how UNCG acquired such a beautiful green space on the northern edge of its campus? Well, the founding and development of Peabody Park is a fascinating story that reflects UNCG’s overall growth as a center of higher learning and a Greensboro neighbor. Given the complexity of the story, the Park’s history is being […]
“A Noble Idea:” The History of Peabody Park (Part One)
Take a look at a campus map. What strikes you about the physical layout of the school and its use of green spaces? It is a campus that is filled with looping walkways, clusters of enormous oaks and pines, manicured gathering places, secluded benches and gardens, and pristine playing fields. The largest open space at […]
The Bachelors Bench: A Forgotten Campus Monument
by Kathelene McCarty Smith Long forgotten and hidden by branches and brush in what is left of Peabody Park, sits the “Bachelors Bench.” Engraved with “Bachelors of 1903,” one might initially think that it refers to unmarried men at the turn of the century. If this were true, it would truly be a mystery as […]
Campus May Queens
by Jennifer Brooks Each year that a May Day celebration was held on campus, a May Queen was elected. From the biggest festivals of 1912 and 1916 to the final year of 1954, a May Queen was present. She was typically a senior elected by her classmates who served as the mascot of the event […]
Melville Fort, Early Advocate of Art Education
by Kathelene McCarty Smith Melville Fort (p. 15) Miss Melville Vincent Fort taught art. She may not have been as fashionable as Latin professor Viola Boddie or as majestic as Lady Principal Sue May Kirkland, but she was witty, intelligent, and friendly – a favorite with the faculty and students. Yet while many members of […]
Celebrating “Service” with a Park Night Tradition
by Erin Lawrimore From 1920 through 1935, the Friday evening of commencement weekend at the North Carolina College for Women (later Woman’s College and now UNCG) featured a ceremony known as Park Night. This allegorical drama typically took place outdoors in an outdoor theater constructed in Peabody Park. The production featured a character named Service […]
