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The Creation of the Exhibit
A note from David Hursh, ECU music librarian and designer of the exhibit... A Special Donation In the fall of 2000, ECU alumnus and great, great grandson of Alice Person, Harry Stubbs, came to me with two pieces of Alice's published music, wishing to donate them to the music library. As I examined the well-used, century-old sheets, Harry related to me snippets of the composer's colorful life. My curiosity was piqued, so in the days that followed Harry's visit I did some research on Alice. I was delighted to find that she had been given some attention in the published literature, and that her papers were part of the Southern Historical Collection at UNC-Chapel Hill. I could not, however, find any indication of efforts to preserve the tangible results of Alice's musical activity-the pieces donated by Harry. I hoped to fill that gap by preserving and cataloging these pieces for the benefit of future generations.Dedication My interest in Alice's music spurred Harry to arrange dinner with his cousin and Alice's great granddaughter, Louise Scott Stephenson. At our dinner I learned that Louise, or "Scottie" as she preferred to be called, had donated Alice's papers to the Southern Historical Collection, and also that she had in 1971 produced a typescript of the handwritten manuscript of Alice's unpublished book, a copy of which she presented to me for addition to the music library's collection. She verified my findings with regard to the lack of attention to Alice's published music, and was pleased to learn of my desire to preserve her cousin's donation. We also discussed the possibility of a lecture recital featuring Alice's music on the ECU campus. Scottie was certain there were more pieces that should be included in such an event, and set about to locate them.Before she could complete the task of rounding up the stray pieces of music, Scottie passed away on April 15, 2002. When Harry Stubbs informed me of Scottie's death, he apologized for the fact that our plans with regard to a recital had been for naught. I suggested that perhaps they were not. What better tribute to a great lady and champion of Alice Person's memory than to dedicate an Alice Person digital exhibit and opening lecture recital to Louise? Serendipity Just a few months after my dinner with Louise, I mentioned Harry Stubbs' donation to the Friends of Joyner Library board at one of their luncheon meetings. After the meeting, board member Franceine Perry Rees shared with me the fact that not only was she a native of Franklin County, the county in which Alice Person resided for the better part of her life, she was by marriage a distant relative of Alice's. Several weeks later, Franceine brought me a folder full of invaluable information about Alice, her home, and her family. This information was either used directly in the creation of the digital exhibit, or it led to the discovery of other important facts, articles, and pictures that added much to the exhibit's quality. Thank you Franceine! |
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Page Updated 20 August 2004
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