June 9, 1919: Annual Report from the President

On June 9, 1919, outgoing President Lyon G. Tyler submitted his final annual report to the Board of Visitors. President Tyler provided an overview of the academic year at the College of William and Mary including attendance numbers, average age of the students, and resignations of professors. Within his report, which was also published as his farewell address, President Tyler commented on the state or experience of admitting female student to the College of William and Mary:

"The experiment of admitting women to the College has been fully vindicated by the results of this year. The young ladies were models of decorum and stood among the first in their classes. I rejoice that it helped in the Legislature to have William and Mary take the lead among Virginia colleges in this particular, and hope soon to see women fully accorded all the rights of the law and suffrage, which justly belong to them. Miss Baer's Department of Economics was also put upon a good footing, and she was herself useful to the state by visiting at the request of the State Superintendent many of the high schools of the Commonwealth. It is to be hoped that next year, with the certain influx of women students already guaranteed to us, her classes will be fully attended, which was too much to expect from the late hour at which she was called to the College last session. She asks for an assistant to round out her courses."

Later in President Tyler's report, he mentions the pioneering class of women when discussing the history of enrollment at the College:

"When we come to the attendance of students at the Institution we note that the largest number ever at the College before 1888 was in 1840 when the number reached 140--30 of whom were law students. The year before the European War (1916) the number was 237. The introduction of women, through the Bill introduced in the Legislature by Hon. Aubrey Strode, doubles the opportunity for development, and when normal times return the attendance of the College should reach readily 500."

It is clear from President Tyler's comments in this report to the Board of Visitors and in previous reports, the addition of women as students was beneficial to the College of William and Mary. In addition, President Tyler's support of the women students and their rights as human beings was important to Tyler, as he mentions his desire for women's suffrage. While this may have been a political and financial move, the College of William and Mary and President Tyler, were pioneers in furthering the social, cultural and political stance of women in Virginia.


This post was composed by Jeffreen Hayes.

For additional information about the first women students at the College of William and Mary see: When Mary Entered with her Brother William: Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945 by Laura F. Parrish; "The Petticoat Invasion": Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945; The Martha Barksdale Papers; and the Women at the College of William and Mary page on the Special Collections Research Center Wiki.

April 15, 1919: The Death of a Board Member

James N. Stubbs, a member of the Board of Visitors of the College of William and Mary from the institution's reopening in 1888 until his death, passed away on April 15, 1919. His death was noted on the front page of the April 16th issue of The Flat Hat. Stubbs attended the College of William and Mary from 1858-1860, was trained as a lawyer, served as a major in the Confederate Army during the Civil War, and was a member of the General Assembly from 1869 until his death.

Faithful readers will remember Mr. Stubbs as the member of the Board of Visitors who offered a resolution at the June 25, 1918, meeting of that body "to the effect that the Strode Bill was in direct opposition to the 1906 contract by which the Commonwealth of Virginia had taken full responsibility for the College of William and Mary and that therefore the College should refuse to accept women."



For additional information about the first women students at the College of William and Mary see: When Mary Entered with her Brother William: Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945 by Laura F. Parrish; "The Petticoat Invasion": Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945; The Martha Barksdale Papers; and the Women at the College of William and Mary page on the Special Collections Research Center Wiki.

April 14, 1919: Dr. Chandler Accepts Offer

On April 14, 1919, Julian Alvin Carroll Chandler accepted the offer from the College of William and Mary's Board of Visitors to become the College's president with the pending retirement of President Lyon G. Tyler. Chandler served as president from 1919 until his death in 1934. President Chandler is credited with transforming William and Mary into a modern coeducational institution of higher learning. Chandler's acceptance is detailed in the April 16, 1919, issue of The Flat Hat.

Professor Carolyn Whittenburg has written and spoken extensively about President Chandler's impact on the College of William and Mary, especially related to women faculty and students. For more information, there is a short profile of President Chandler written by Prof. Whittenburg online; students from the Williamsburg Documentary Project interviewed Prof. Whittenburg in 2008 with the audio and index available through the College of William and Mary's digital repository; and her dissertation is available for checkout in Swem Library (call number LD6051 .W5m Educ., 2004, W58), reading in the Special Collections Research Center reading room, or for downloading via ProQuest database (linked from the dissertation's record in Swem Library's online catalog) for those with College of William and Mary privileges.

For additional information about the first women students at the College of William and Mary see: When Mary Entered with her Brother William: Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945 by Laura F. Parrish; "The Petticoat Invasion": Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945; The Martha Barksdale Papers; and the Women at the College of William and Mary page on the Special Collections Research Center Wiki.

February 19, 1919: "Pres. Resigns: Dr. Lyon G. Tyler Resigns After Thirty Years of Faithful Service"

After serving as president of the College of William and Mary since 1888, the February 19, 1919, article regarding President Lyon G. Tyler's resignation appeared in the student newspaper The Flat Hat. The article chronicled the tenure of President Tyler, highlighting his most important accomplishments on behalf of William and Mary. For example, Tyler secured state funds for the College by overseeing its transfer to the Commonwealth of Virginia, transitioning its private institution status to a public institution. Another significant highlight during Tyler's tenure and the college's history is the historic admittance of women, as mentioned in the article:

"Another and more recent development in William and Mary was the establishment of the women's department. At the last legislative meeting, a bill was introduced with sympathetic support of the president, admitting women to all the courses at William and Mary. This great innovation in the higher educational field in Virginia was successfully begun this session with a promising enrollment of representative students."

The article continues to discuss the new Home Economics department established and the role of the dean of women. It ends with:

"This victory for the higher education of women by the state marks with distinction the closing session of President Tyler's thirty years of service and of the first quarter of the third century in the history of William and Mary."

Regardless of how the male and female students may have felt about their co-education, there appeared to be a consensus of the monumentality of educating women in addition to President Tyler's vision of William and Mary. What a way to end one's career, on a historic high note.

This post was composed by Jeffreen Hayes.

For additional information about the first women students at the College of William and Mary see: When Mary Entered with her Brother William: Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945 by Laura F. Parrish; "The Petticoat Invasion": Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945; The Martha Barksdale Papers; and the Women at the College of William and Mary page on the Special Collections Research Center Wiki.

Feburary 11, 1919: President's Report to Board of Visitors

At the February 11, 1919, Board of Visitors meeting, President Lyon G. Tyler submitted his report of happenings at the College of William and Mary since his last report at the June 25, 1918 meeting.
In the president's report, he mentions the admission of women and the hiring of two women to oversee the female students:

"Another feature of the session was the admission of women to the College in pursuance of an Act passed by the legislation at its last session. There were 21 of these young ladies, who were placed under the immediate care of Miss C. F. Tupper, Dean of Women and Miss M. Gatling, Lady in Charge. These have proved fine students and I believe very little friction has resulted from their presence."

President Tyler further stated: "Miss Gatling resigned as Lady in Charge of the Women's Department and Miss Tupper, Dean of Women is trying to find another party to take her place."

This post was composed by Jeffreen Hayes.

For additional information about the first women students at the College of William and Mary see: When Mary Entered with her Brother William: Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945 by Laura F. Parrish; "The Petticoat Invasion": Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945; The Martha Barksdale Papers; and the Women at the College of William and Mary page on the Special Collections Research Center Wiki.

June 25, 1918: A Visitor Protests and Preparing for the Marys

At the June 25th meeting of the Board of Visitors, member Major James New Stubbs "offered a resolution to the effect that the Strode Bill was in direct opposition to the 1906 contract by which the Commonwealth of Virginia had taken full responsibility for the College of William and Mary and that therefore the College should refuse to accept women. The 1906 act had specifically stated that William and Mary was to educate men, and admitting women was a violation of that contract. Stubbs argued that the contract would have to be renegotiated before women could be admitted." (Laura Parrish, When Mary Entered with Her Brother William: Women Students at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945, M.A. thesis)




The Visitors voted six to one against Stubbs' resolution. Stubbs had not been in attendance at the Board's February 12th meeting where members Hughes, Richardson, and Hutcheson voted against a motion of support for the Strode Bill, but within the week Stubbs contacted William and Mary President Lyon Gardiner Tyler in protest to no avail.


After voting down Stubbs' motion, the Board of Visitors moved on to other business including allocating funds to prepare a Women's Department and the salary for a woman to oversee the women's dormitory.

The Board of Visitors approves the compensation of the lady in charge of the women's dormitory.

The section of the 1918-1919 budget with expenses for fitting a Women's Department and compensation for a lady in charge of the women's dormitory.









For additional information about the first women students at the College of William and Mary see: When Mary Entered with her Brother William: Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945 by Laura F. Parrish; "The Petticoat Invasion": Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945; The Martha Barksdale Papers; and the Women at the College of William and Mary page on the Special Collections Research Center Wiki.

June 10, 1918: Assembling the Faculty

Routine business at the June 10th meeting of the College of William and Mary's Board of Visitors included the formal election by the BOV of faculty for the 1918-1919 academic year including Miss Caroline F. Tupper as the College's first Dean of Women.

The Boarding House Committee of the BOV made several recommendations at this meeting including hiring a "Lady in charge" in the women's dormitory who would report to the Dean of Women.

Finally, the Finance Committee reported that there was up to $1,000 to spend repairing the dormitory for the women due on campus in September.




For additional information about the first women students at the College of William and Mary see: When Mary Entered with her Brother William: Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945 by Laura F. Parrish; "The Petticoat Invasion": Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945; The Martha Barksdale Papers; and the Women at the College of William and Mary page on the Special Collections Research Center Wiki.

May 8, 1918: The Flat Hat Recaps the Meeting of the Board of Visitors

The May 8, 1918, edition of the Flat Hat provided a brief summary of the April 19th meeting of the Board of Visitors on its front page including continuing preparations for the arrival of the College of William and Mary's first female students in the fall. Meanwhile, the newspaper's second page (incorrectly dated March 8, 1918) included a plea over two columns entitled "Urged to Stay in College." The presence of the article offers further illustration of William and Mary's precarious enrollment as numbers declined due to the ongoing conflict of war, personal economics, and other reasons.


For additional information about the first women students at the College of William and Mary see: When Mary Entered with her Brother William: Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945 by Laura F. Parrish; "The Petticoat Invasion": Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945; The Martha Barksdale Papers; and the Women at the College of William and Mary page on the Special Collections Research Center Wiki.

April 19, 1918: News from the Board of Visitors Meeting

The meeting of the Board of Visitors of the College of William and Mary on April 19, 1918, included the typical business of the group related to College infrastructure, faculty, and students. Among the new positions the BOV authorized President Lyon G. Tyler to hire was a Dean of Women who would be paid $2,000 annually-the same amount as the proposed new professor of Chemistry and $400 more than the proposed associate professor of Modern Languages. Click to enlarge.


The BOV also authorized President Tyler and a member of the faculty to visit women's colleges on fact-finding trips to learn more about the education of women and report back to the BOV at their next meeting in June. Click to enlarge.



For additional information about the first women students at the College of William and Mary see: When Mary Entered with her Brother William: Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945 by Laura F. Parrish; "The Petticoat Invasion": Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945; The Martha Barksdale Papers; and the Women at the College of William and Mary page on the Special Collections Research Center Wiki.

February 19, 1918: The Flat Hat

The February 19, 1918, issue of The Flat Hat shared more details of the activities of the previous week's meeting of the College of William and Mary's Board of Visitors, including mention of the endorsement of the Strode Bill. There was no commentary from the student newspaper on the BOV's decision at that time.

The Flat Hat is a rich source of information, announcing events taking place on campus as well as reflecting student opinion. It began publication in October 1911 and, except during the fall of 1918, has been continuously published ever since. Until a few years ago, library staff indexed the The Flat Hat (as well as the Alumni Gazette and the William and Mary News) by subject and personal name. This index is still available as a card file in the Special Collections Research Center (SCRC) for public use. All three of these publications are available in the SCRC in Swem Library on microfilm and in paper format. Contact the staff of the SCRC for further information or search assistance (spcoll@wm.edu or 757-221-3090).

The Flat Hat is available online from the Special Collections Research Center. All issues from September 1939 through May 1950 and most issues from August 2004 through February 2007 are available for browsing and keyword searching online. The remaining issues from 1911 through April 1990 and August 1992 through March 1999 are available for browsing only at present. Current issues of The Flat Hat can be found online at http://www.flathatnews.com/.



For additional information about the first women students at the College of William and Mary see: When Mary Entered with her Brother William: Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945 by Laura F. Parrish; "The Petticoat Invasion": Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945; The Martha Barksdale Papers; and the Women at the College of William and Mary page on the Special Collections Research Center Wiki.

February 12, 1918: The Flat Hat

The Flat Hat's page 1 coverage (see the bottom of the page) of the February 12, 1918, meeting of the Board of Visitors made no mention of the endorsement of the Strode Bill revealing simply: "The Board of Directors of the College met today to discuss and decide some important things to be carried through in the near future." Further information would follow in the next issue of the student newspaper.



For additional information about the first women students at the College of William and Mary see: When Mary Entered with her Brother William: Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945 by Laura F. Parrish; "The Petticoat Invasion": Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945; The Martha Barksdale Papers; and the Women at the College of William and Mary page on the Special Collections Research Center Wiki.

February 12, 1918: Board of Visitors Endorsement

On February 12, 1918, the Board of Visitors of the College of William and Mary adopted a resolution of support for the Strode Bill, the legislation which would open William and Mary to women. The Board of Visitors' resolution passed with three dissenting votes: Rector Robert M. Hughes, Samuel W. Williams, and H.F. Hutcheson.

College President Lyon Gardiner Tyler was a long-time supporter of women's rights speaking on the issue numerous times including off campus in 1911 and 1912 (see page 4).

Proposed by Senator Aubrey E. Strode of Amherst County, the varying versions of legislation to establish a women's college in Virginia had been proposed at each session of the General Assembly since 1910. In the version of legislation submitted by Strode in late 1917, making the College of William and Mary co-ed was included.


For additional information about the first women students at the College of William and Mary see: When Mary Entered with her Brother William: Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945 by Laura F. Parrish; "The Petticoat Invasion": Women at the College of William and Mary, 1918-1945; The Martha Barksdale Papers; and the Women at the College of William and Mary page on the Special Collections Research Center Wiki.