Advocate of the Civil Rights Movement

Conner, Cecelia V. Simolton

Cecelia Conner was an employee, laundress, and house-cook for Davidson College from the 1950s to 1998 and member of Reeves Temple A.M.E. Zion Church.

Cecelia Viola Simolton Conner, daughter of Calvin Simolton and Annie M. Johnson, was born on September 26, 1916, in Davidson, North Carolina. She grew up alongside her sister, Margaret Simolton and attended school in the area. She married Talmadge Conner, a long-time employee of Davidson College. Together they had several children.

Cecelia was employed at Davidson College for over forty years. She worked in various roles around the campus, with President Walter Lingle’s family, as a laundress in the campus laundry, and as a house-mother for the eating house Et. Cetera (commonly known as the ETC) throughout the late 1970s until its closure in 1983. She then returned to the laundry service until her retirement in 1998.

Cecelia was a member of Reeves Temple AME Zion Church and helped the church secure nearby property to expand worship. Cecelia reached out to the family of former College president Walter Lingle, and received a donation of $6000 (which would grow to $15,000 three years later) from Walter Lingle Jr. In return, Lingle Jr. asked that the cabin be named after his mother, Louise Lingle, who had previously taught Sunday school at the church for years. Cecelia’s advocacy allowed for the congregation of Reeves Temple to enjoy a new meeting and gathering space. Cecelia served Reeves Temple in other volunteer capacities, but is known notably for her work with what became the Lingle Hut.

On February 26, 2017, Cecelia passed away at the age of 100. She was laid to rest at the Christian Aid Society Cemetery on Davidson College’s campus.

26 September 1916

26 February 2017

1890-1945: Era of the Lost Cause, Jim Crow legal segregation and discrimination, and organized anti-Black racism

1945-1976: Era of Civil Rights Movement and resistance to Civil Rights Movement

1976-2000: The Conservative Ascendancy and Retrenchment from Civil Rights Movement

2000-Present: Confederate Memorialization in the Era of Universities Studying Slavery and the Black Lives Matter Movement

Davidson College; Davidson, North Carolina

Memorial for Cecelia Viola Simolton Conner

Davidson College; Davidson, North Carolina

Boyd, Brenna. “Cecelia Conner.” Life Stories at Davidson College. Fall 2005.

“Cecelia Conner Obituary.” The Charlotte Observer, March 2, 2017.

Davidson College, Quips and Cranks (Davidson, North Carolina: 1976), 216-217. Davidson
College Archives.

Davidson College, Quips and Cranks (Davidson, North Carolina: 1987), 132. Davidson College
Archives.

“One Down, Ten to go.” The Davidsonian, March 25, 1983. Davidson College Archives.

“On the Road With DHS... Lingle Hut.” Davidson Historical Society, Winter 2009.

1920 United States Census.

1950 United States Census.