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ELA
HOCKADAY:
MORE THAN A SCHOOL OMARMby
Archie P. McDonald | |
Ela
Hockaday, a native of Ladonia and a citizen of the world, was more than a school
Omarm to several generations of girls who were privileged to enroll in her exclusive
finishing school in Dallas.
Hockaday was a farmer's daughter, but Thomas
Hart Benton Hockaday was something more than that. Educated and fluent in Latin,
Hebrew, and Greek, he made sure his daughter also became versed in the classics.
She lived with an older sister in Bonham after their father's death and attended
the local schools, then North Texas State Normal (University of North Texas) School.
Hockaday taught for a time in Sherman, and became principal of Jefferson
School. After studying at the University of Chicago and Columbia, she returned
to the southwest and taught biology at Durant State Normal School and the Oklahoma
College for Women.
When M.B. Terrill began a preparatory school for young
men in Dallas, he recommended that Hockaday commence a similar institution for
young ladies. With the assistance of her friend and partner in education, Sarah
Trent, she founded the Miss Hockaday School for Girls in Dallas in 1913 with ten
students and five faculty members.
Miss Hockaday's school began as a
preparatory school, or "finishing school." Soon elementary and even junior college
courses were added to the top and bottom of the curriculum, though the post-secondary
section was later discontinued.
The school offered instruction in the
basic courses of a liberal arts education, as well as music and other skills calculated
to the achievement of excellence in academics, athletics, and "fine character."
The school encouraged its charges to visit foreign countries and to learn about
different cultures.
Ela Hockaday donated the school to the city of Dallas
in 1942 and continued as its president in 1946. Even then, she continued to reside
on the campus and interact with her young ladies until her death a decade later.
She was more than a school Omarm to several generations of girls and women, many
of whom became business, civic, and political leaders of Texas.
© Archie P. McDonald
All
Things Historical >
August
8-14, 2004 column
A syndicated column in over 40 East Texas newspapers
Distributed by the East Texas Historical Association. Dr. Archie McDonald is the
Association¹s executive director and author of more than 30 books on Texas history. |
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