Witherspoon, Loy H., 1930-2017

Wilson, Michael L.

Charlotte, North Carolina

J. Murrey Atkins Library Special Collections and University Archives

1991

1 audio file (47:10) : digital, MP3

sound recording-nonmusical

spoken word

eng

Loy Witherspoon was a 61-year-old man at the time of interview. He was born in Catawba, North Carolina in 1930. He graduated from Duke University with a BA and a BD degree, and from Boston University with a PhD in the New Testament. He was employed with UNC Charlotte from 1964 to 1994, where he led the Department of Philosophy and Religion, then established and chaired the Department of Religious Studies when it split off from philosophy beginning in 1972.

In this 1991 interview, student Michael Wilson interviewed Dr. Loy Witherspoon about his life experiences in the North Carolina Piedmont. Dr. Witherspoon describes his unusual childhood, the latter part of which was spent at The Children's Home, a Methodist orphanage on the edge of Winston-Salem. He relates in detail the daily activities he engaged in at the home, which included chores on the orphanage farm, food preservation and preparation, and sports and recreation, in addition to attending school at the Children's Home and at R.J. Reynolds High School in Winston-Salem. In particular Dr. Witherspoon stresses the influence of his high school Latin teacher, Margaret McDermott, who continued to be an inspiration for his own teaching in later life. Realizing at an early age that his vocation was to be a Methodist minister and a teacher, Dr. Witherspoon describes his education at Duke University where he earned a BA and a BD, and Boston University where he earned a PhD. In response to questions about civil rights, Dr. Witherspoon recalls student activism on the UNC Charlotte campus, and in particular the activities of student Ben Chavis. Dr. Witherspoon concludes by urging students to interact with the city of Charlotte, to take advantage of the cultural activities offered, and also to give back to the city, recalling the Athenian oath instructing citizens to leave the city more beautiful and enriched than they had found it.

MP3 access copy created on ingest from WAV preservation master. Interview originally recorded on analog audio cassette and digitized using a Digidesign 003 rack.

College teachers
College administrators
Clergy

Witherspoon, Loy H., 1930-2017

The Children's Home (Winston-Salem, N.C.)
R.J. Reynolds High School (Winston-Salem, N.C.)
Duke University
University of North Carolina at Charlotte
Boston University

World War (1939-1945)

Orphanages
Civil rights movements
Depressions
Teacher-student relationships
Student movements
Methodist Church--Clergy

North Carolina--Winston-Salem
North Carolina--Charlotte
North Carolina--Durham

Interviews
Oral histories

1930-2000

Interviews with Loy H. Witherspoon
David Goldfield student project on change in the Charlotte region

Loy H. Witherspoon papers, J. Murrey Atkins Library Special Collections and University Archives, University of North Carolina at Charlotte (https://findingaids.uncc.edu/repositories/4/resources/233)

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audio/mpeg

GF-WI0034