UPSON COUNTY, GA - Bios  Mitchum, Mary Vining

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Published in  UHS Newsletter 
 Nov 1998


MAKERS AND MOLDERS OF UPSON COUNTY


IN MEMORY OF MARY VINING MITCHUM
BORN: JANUARY 31,1904 DIED: OCTOBER 29,1998

Thomaston and Upson County recently lostone of
its links with the past, a truely unsung
heroine of our community. An educator from 1924
until her retirement in 1969, Mary Vining
Mitchum taught three generations of many
families. Her firm but fine discipline, her
insistence that students study, and that
parents cooperate helped to shape many lives
and send young woman and young men out into the
world to make a difference.

Mary Vining grew up in a family which valued
education. Her grandfather, Francis. J. Vining
served as Upson's County School Commissioner
from 1888-1896. She started and finished her
grammar and high school education at R. E. Lee.
She was among the first students to begin
school in the new brick building in 1910 and
was in class when that building caught fire in
1921.

The faded photograph at the left shows Mary in
her commencement dress when she finished at Lee
in 1922 with a class of 18 graduates. Following
high school she attended the State Normal
School at Athens, a school for training
teachers. She came back home to teach the
second grade ofR. E. Lee in 1924. During the
mid 1930's, Mr. Mark Smith transferred her to
R. E. Lee Annex as its principal. Soon this
school had a name change to East Thomaston
School. For thirty-three years, she guided the
destiny of this school as it went through two
building programs. While serving in this
capacity, she completed all of her required
college work by attending Mercer University,
primarily in summer sessions. . She signed more
than 2,000 diplomas for graduates of East
Thomaston.

In recent years she has been of great
assistance in the R. E. Lee history project,
remembering so many essential details and
identifying photographs.