Berry History Week 2025

Congratulations to our Winners!

Top Points Winners on Facebook & Instagram Combined

• First Place: Julia Woodward & Chris Hayes (tied!)
• Second Place: Karen Dowen Myers Barrett
• Third Place: Holly Hodge, Blake Howard (tied!)

ALWAYS BERRY T-shirt Winners from Facebook & Instagram

• Bethfrom Archer Senn

• Mary Lara Hardesty (@marylarahardesty)

• Charlotte Brown (@charlotte.browniee)

• Guelda Harris

• Katie Messinger Unger (@kmunger22) ​

Matrix Makers Monday (Multiple Choice)

1. Which of the following was one way Martha Berry identified names of potential donors?

• A. Country Gentleman magazine
• B. Good Housekeeping magazine
• C. Fortune magazine
• D. LinkedIn

C. Fortune, a copy can be seen in the library at Oak Hill

2. Which Berry Pilgrim taught bird calls to students at Possum Trot?

• A. Emily Vanderbilt Hammond
• B. Sarah Delano Roosevelt
• C. Mina Edison
• D. Mary French Rockefeller

C. Mina Edison, wife of Thomas Edison, who introduced Martha Berry to Clara Ford.

3. Martha Berry donned a bathing costume to swim in a pool while visiting this friend in New Jersey, who also introduced her to Emily Vanderbilt Hammond.

• A. Harriet Harwell Wilson High
• B. Clara Ford
• C. Mary Reynolds Morton
• D. Kate Macy Ladd

D. Kate Macy Ladd

4. This donor sewed and sold her needlework and then contributed her earnings to the schools. Over time her contributions totaled over $2,500. A building is named in her honor.

• A. Alice Lemley
• B. Kate Macy Ladd
• C. Louise Inman
• D. Elizabeth Brewster

A. Alice Lemley. Kate Macy Ladd gave both Lemley Hall and an endowment for its upkeep in honor of Alice Lemley, her nurse companion.

5. Martha Berry's friendship with this social influencer of the 1920s led to multiple donors and funding for the House o' Dreams (1922), Pilgrim Hall (1929-30), and Friendship Hall (1925-26).

• A. Clara Ford
• B. Louise Inman
• C. Eleanor Roosevelt
• D. Emily Vanderbilt Hammond

D. Emily Vanderbilt Hammond, who is the great-granddaughter of Cornelious Vanderbilt and a close friend and longtime supporter of MB and her schools.

True-False Tuesday

1. All of the supporters of the Berry Schools were from the north in the early days.

False. There were Berry Circles in Rome, Marietta, and Atlanta as well as on the campus of Agnes Scott College, and in other places like Colorado, New York, and Massachusetts. In fact, Atlanta Hall, on the log cabin campus was built in 1910 with funds provided by the Martha Berry Circle in Atlanta headed by Louise Inman, namesake of Louise Cottage (built in 1909 as the first girls dormitory).

2. The Berry Pilgrims were a women-only group.

False. Husbands and wives were members as well as some other gentlemen. For example, religious author Dr. Robert E. Speer and his wife, Christian author Rev. Dr. Robert Norwood, and Pennsylvania attorney Lynwood Biddle were all on the roll of the Berry Pilgrims.

3. Many artists supported the Berry Schools.

True.

• Lucille La Verne, who was the voice of the Evil Queen in Snow White was a supporter of Martha Berry and put on a stage play called "Sun-up" for which the proceeds went to the Berry Schools.

• Ellen Axson Wilson held a show of her works and the proceeds went to the Berry Schools.

• In 1909, a little-known artist and social reformer named Louise Brigham published Box Furniture: How to Make a Hundred Useful Articles for the Home, a collection of instructions for producing simple, modular furniture from repurposed wooden packing crates. The book was on a list of requested books Ms. Chisholm sent Martha Berry the book and gave money for "Box Cottage" that is now "Hope Cottage," and was furnished with box furniture.

• Frank Gottshall taught industrial arts at the Berry Schools from the 1920's to the early 1940's and authored over 20 books on reproducing antique furniture.

4. Miss Berry's membership in the League of Women Voters led to meeting Mina Edison, which led to an introduction to Clara Ford (and later Henry) and the Ford Buildings.

False. Miss Berry was a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution (the DAR) and that is where she met many friends.

5. There was no dancing at the Berry Schools during Miss Berry's lifetime

False. All of the Berry children took music and dance lessons, so when the Fords visited and brought their own band, campus members, including Martha Berry, danced the waltz, watched as the Fords demonstrated the Varsouvienne and then taught the campus children the Grand Right and Left. The band stayed for a week and continued to offer dance workshops in the old log cabin gym. Some campus members were against dancing, however.

Winsome Women Wednesday

1. Inheriting $5 million from her husband in 1900, this female donated money to build the first permanent brick building, which bears her name. This building began as a dining hall and over time has also housed the library, a student lounge, an apartment, and the Military Sciences Department for a decade. Which building is it?

• A. Evans
• B. Blackstone
• C. Moon
• D. Green

B. Blackstone is named for Isabella Farnsworth Norton Blackstone and became E. H. Young Theatre in the 1980s. Blackstone was remodeled and a new wing, called Sisters Theatre, was added in 2017.

2. Which winsome woman said, "I wish we would all consider people in their positions according to their individual aptitudes and not at all regarding their sex," adding, "Many girls should be wielding carpenters' hammers, and many boys would be better off making pies,"?

• A. Amelia Earhart
• B. Susan B. Anthony
• C. Clara Ford
• D. Gloria Steinem

A. Amelia Earhart, female aviation pioneer who was the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic visited the Berry Schools on Monday, February 5, 1934

3. Lila Irwin Laughlin Carlisle was an early benefactor of the schools. Which of the following did she NOT donate directly?

• A. Steam laundry and college store building
• B. Endowment to keep up Roosevelt cabin and surrounding grounds.
• C. Three campus staff cottages, the first dairy barn, blooded cattle for the dairy herd.
• D. First grand piano, a Steinway.

D. She convinced her mother to donate that.

4. American portrait painter, Margaret Fitzhugh Browne, included portraits of Martha Berry and Marth Freeman in exhibits in galleries in what two cities in 1926 and 1929?

• A. Atlanta and Washington, D.C.
• B. Atlanta and New York
• C. New York and Chicago
• D. Chicago and Boston

B. Atlanta and New York. Margaret Fitzhugh Browne (1884-1972) was an American artist, most well-known as a portrait painter. Browne's portraits of Martha Berry and Martha Freeman were included in exhibits of her work at the Ainslie Galleries in New York, Dec. 1-16, 1926, and in October 1929 at the High Museum of Art in Atlanta. Fitzhugh also patented other Georgians such as Bobby Jones; Scott Hudson, president of the Atlanta Athletic Club; E. Rivers, president of the Capital City Club; and Asa Candler. The portrait of Martha Freeman hangs at Oak Hill. If you're interested in more about Browne and her portraits of Martha Berry and Martha Freeman: https://libguides.berry.edu/berrywomen/benefactors

Where's Martha Thursday?

Picture #1: Martha Berry with Amelia Earhart

Taken in front of the College Chapel

Picture #2: Martha Berry and Martha Freeman

Taken in front of Oak Hill

Picture #3: Clara Ford, Henry Ford, Martha Berry

Taken in the Mary Archway, facing towards Ford Gym (north)

Picture #4: Martha Berry

Taken atop Lavendar Mountain

Picture #5: Martha Berry with students and birthday cake

Taken as part of the Grand March festivities in front of Pine Lodge

Family and Friends Friday

1. Which Berry family member raised $2 million in war bonds and named a WWII Liberty Ship after Martha Berry?

• A. Eugenia Enfield Berry Ruspoli, Martha Berry's sister
• B. Laura Berry Campbell, Martha Berry's sister
• C. Virginia Campbell Courts, Martha Berry's niece
• D. Frances Rhea Berry, Martha Berry's mother

C. Virginia Campbell Courts, Martha Berry's niece.

2. Established in 1940, the J. Bulow Campbell Foundation has made many generous gifts to Berry, and The Campbell Business School honors their name. What is Bulow Campbell's connection to Martha Berry?

• A. He was the friend of a friend.
• B. A cousin on Martha Berry's mother's side of the family
• C. Martha Berry's nephew
• D. Martha Berry's brother-in-law

D. J. Bulow Campbell married Martha Berry's sister, Laura Grifflin Berry Campbell. Their daughter, Virginia Campbell Counts was instrumental in developing and operating the J. Bulow Campbell Foundation during her lifetime.

3. Martha Berry traveled to a resort town in Maine in the summer of 1907. By the end of her trip, she had made friends with the other guests who contributed funds for a new boys dormitory. Which dorm was funded by these gifts?

• A. Thomas Berry Hall
• B. Robinwood Cottage
• C. Dana Cottage
• D. Poland Hall

D. Built in 1907-08, Poland Hall is named after the resort town of Poland Springs, Maine, famous for its mineral water. In 1907, Hiram Ricker and Sons Co. opened a new bottling plant and spring house on their property. This was perhaps the most modern bottling facility of its time, installed with glass and silver piping, non-porous Cararra glass for easy cleaning, and even showers for the workers to use prior to beginning their shift. The company was able to churn out over 450 cases of water per shift and continued their dominance in the water business. Poland Springs water is distributed nationwide, so you may have consumed some!

4. Which of Martha Berry's sisters helped teach at the Sunday schools in the early days?

• A. Rebecca "Bessie"
• B. Laura
• C. Lila
• D. Frances

D. Frances, according to Martha Berry A Woman of Courageous Spirit and Bold Dreams by Joyce Blackburn

5. Moses Wright, a local judge and Martha Berry's brother-in-law, served as the first trustee for the Boys Industrial School. To whom was Judge Wright married?

• A. Rebecca "Bessie"
• B. Lila
• C. Laura
• D. Jennie

A. Rebecca "Bessie" Clark Berry married Moses Rochester Wright, and they later had 3 children.

• The contest will be held on the Berry Alumni Facebook and Instagram accounts. You must respond on the posts each day in these accounts to receive points.
• A point will be given for every correct answer.
• Points can only be earned with correct answers on one social media account. In other words, you get a point for a correct answer on Facebook or Instagram but not for both if answering for the same question.
• The top three individuals with the highest point totals will receive an Always Berry prize pack.
• Five random names will be drawn out of ALL participants for the week and these individuals will win an Always Berry T-shirt.