Calva Watson Wootton

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Calva Watson Wootton
Born
Calva Watson

1886
Nottoway County, Virginia, U.S.
DiedAugust 3, 1961(1961-08-03) (aged 74–75)
Petersburg, Virginia, U.S.
Burial placeBlandford Cemetery
Alma materFarmville Normal School
OccupationTeacher
Known forFounder of Alpha Sigma Alpha
RelativesWalter Allen Watson (brother)

Calva Watson Wootton (1886 – August 3, 1961) is an American educator and one of the five founders of the national sorority Alpha Sigma Alpha.[1][2]

Early life[edit]

Calva Watson was born in on the Woodland plantation near Crewe in Nottoway County, Virginia.[1][3][2] Her parents were Josephine and Meredith Watson, a lawyer, judge, and chairman of the Nottoway County Republican Party.[1][4][3] Her father died in 1893 and her mother followed in 1913.[3][5]

Wootton's family affectionately called her "Pig".[2] Wootton loved sports and would often go hunting birds with the men.[2] She had three sisters, Rebekah Watson Sutton, Hilary Watson Rolall, and Lois Waton Royal, and three brothers, H. Hunter Watson, M. Leon Watson, and congressman Walter Allen Watson.[6][7][8][9][3]

She was educated by private tutors before attending Farmville State Female Normal School, now Longwood University.[2][1] On November 15, 1901, Wootton was one of the five women who started Alpha Sigma Alpha sorority.[2] She also served as the sorority's historian and secretary and participated in campus literary societies and language clubs.[2][10] She graduated from college in June 1905.[11]

Career[edit]

After college, she became a teacher in a one-room school Sheppards, Virginia.[12][2] She continued to teach in Petersburg after her marriage.[1]

Personal life[edit]

She married Percy Walton Wootton of Petersburg, Virginia on April 25, 1917, at her sister's home in Richmond, Virginia.[1][6][13] Wootton was a farmer and a wholesale seed and fertilizer salesman.[2] The couple lived in Petersburg at 2020 Matoax Avenue.[1][14] They did not have children.[2]

She was raised a Presbyterian but was a member of the First Baptist Church of Petersburg.[14][3] In 1957, she was one of the founders of Alpha Sigma Alpha honored when a plaque was decidated at Longwood College.[15][16]

Wootton died on August 3, 1961, in Petersburg at the age of 75.[17][1] She was buried in Blandford Cemetery in Petersburg.[2][7][14]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h "Mrs. Percy W. Wootton". The Progress-Index. Petersburg, Virginia. 1961-08-04. p. 9. Retrieved 2023-07-25 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Williamson, Barb J. (2008). "Calva Watson Wootton". The Phoenix (Spring): 15 – via issuu.
  3. ^ a b c d e "Mrs. Josephine L. Watson". The Presbyterian of the South. Atlanta, Georgia. 1914-01-14. p. 21. Retrieved 2023-07-25 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "Nottoway Recalcitrant". Richmond Dispatch. Richmond, Virginia. 1884-08-27. p. 1. Retrieved 2023-07-25 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "Funeral of Mr. Merdith Watson". Richmond Times-Dispatch. Richmond, Virginia. 1893-08-25. p. 5. Retrieved 2023-07-25 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ a b "Society at Richmond". The Washington Post. Washington, D.C. 1917-03-25. p. 10. Retrieved 2023-07-25 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ a b "Obituary for Calva Watson Wooton". Richmond Times-Dispatch. Richmond, Virginia. 1961-08-05. p. 4. Retrieved 2023-07-25 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Sutton-Waton". The Daily Star. Fredericksburg, Virginia. 1915-05-26. p. 2. Retrieved 2023-07-25 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "Cut Cake with a Sword". The Baltimore Sun. Baltimore, Maryland. 1904-09-29. p. 10. Retrieved 2023-07-25 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "The Farmville Normal". Richmond Times-Dispatch. Richmond, Virginia. 1905-05-07. p. 22. Retrieved 2023-07-25 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Farmville Normal: Thirty-Seven Young Ladies in the Graduating Class". Richmond Times-Dispatch. Richmond, Virginia. 1905-06-04. p. 21. Retrieved 2023-07-25 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ "Buckingham Bits". Richmond Times-Dispatch. Richmond, Virginia. 1906-04-01. p. 22. Retrieved 2023-07-25 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "Virginia News". The Daily Star. Fredericksburg, Virginia. 1917-05-01. p. 1. Retrieved 2023-07-25 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ a b c "Mrs. Percy W. Wootton". The Progress-Index. Petersburg, Virginia. 1961-08-06. p. 14. Retrieved 2023-07-25 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ "Sorority's Star to be Marked at Longwood College". The Roanoke Times. Roanoke, Virginia. 1957-11-07. p. 14. Retrieved 2023-07-25 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ "Soroity Plaque to be Dedicated". The Richmond News Leader. Richmond, Virginia. 1957-11-07. p. 42. Retrieved 2023-07-25 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ "Mrs. Calva Watson Wootton". The Richmond News Leader. 1961-08-04. p. 4. Retrieved 2023-07-25 – via Newspapers.com.
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