George Washington Whitfield Stone, Sr.
1818 - 1889
G. W. W. Stone Sr., patriarch to one of the founding families of Oxford, was in the second graduating class of Emory College in 1842. His record was so outstanding that he was immediately asked to become a member of the faculty. His descendants have attended Emory/Oxford College for six generations and have had a direct connection to Emory College for over 176 years; they represent some of the city’s most distinguished citizens.
Stone became professor of mathematics at Emory in 1843, however he left for a brief time to teach at the Cokesbury School in South Carolina and Wesleyan College in Macon. He returned to Emory in 1853, where he taught natural science, Latin, and mathematics until his death in 1889. He earned a reputation as one of Emory’s most notable teachers. No mathematical or engineering problem proved out of his reach and he was continually sought out by faculty from other colleges and by businesses all over the South.
In 1851, Stone purchased what is now known as the Thomas/Stone House on Wesley Street from Edward Lloyd Thomas, the surveyor of Emory College and the town of Oxford. Stone’s descendants have lived in the house almost continuously to this day.
In 1860, Stone joined with James E. Palmer, William J. Parks, Dr. Henry Gaither, and Luther M. Smith as trustees of the Oxford Female Academy when it was re-chartered by the state. On that site, they built a brick schoolhouse, open to both male and female students, and named it the Palmer Institute. It would later be re-named the Palmer-Stone School.
During the Civil War years, Emory College served as a military hospital and so was closed to academic study. When the college re-opened after the war, Stone was one of three Emory professors who were willing to return. During those lean years, Professor Stone used his own money to support the other professors at the college, enabling the college to survive. He is remembered as a soft-spoken man who often served as a counselor to others and a peacemaker when there were disputes.
G. W. W. Stone Sr. was also a successful farmer. He owned the “Texas Field” and the “Gin House” in Oxford as well as land in Walton County near Hightower Trail.
Stone became professor of mathematics at Emory in 1843, however he left for a brief time to teach at the Cokesbury School in South Carolina and Wesleyan College in Macon. He returned to Emory in 1853, where he taught natural science, Latin, and mathematics until his death in 1889. He earned a reputation as one of Emory’s most notable teachers. No mathematical or engineering problem proved out of his reach and he was continually sought out by faculty from other colleges and by businesses all over the South.
In 1851, Stone purchased what is now known as the Thomas/Stone House on Wesley Street from Edward Lloyd Thomas, the surveyor of Emory College and the town of Oxford. Stone’s descendants have lived in the house almost continuously to this day.
In 1860, Stone joined with James E. Palmer, William J. Parks, Dr. Henry Gaither, and Luther M. Smith as trustees of the Oxford Female Academy when it was re-chartered by the state. On that site, they built a brick schoolhouse, open to both male and female students, and named it the Palmer Institute. It would later be re-named the Palmer-Stone School.
During the Civil War years, Emory College served as a military hospital and so was closed to academic study. When the college re-opened after the war, Stone was one of three Emory professors who were willing to return. During those lean years, Professor Stone used his own money to support the other professors at the college, enabling the college to survive. He is remembered as a soft-spoken man who often served as a counselor to others and a peacemaker when there were disputes.
G. W. W. Stone Sr. was also a successful farmer. He owned the “Texas Field” and the “Gin House” in Oxford as well as land in Walton County near Hightower Trail.