Edwin Graves Wilson (February 1, 1923 – March 13, 2024) was an American academic who was a professor of English literature at

Wake Forest University Wake Forest University (WFU) is a private research university in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1834, the university received its name from its original location in Wake Forest, north of Raleigh, North Carolina. The R ...

. His professional academic and administrative tenure at Wake Forest spanned from 1951 until his retirement in 1993. Wilson is referred to affectionately by members of the Wake Forest community as "Mr. Wake Forest." He was a 1943 graduate of Wake Forest with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English. Wilson was born in Leaksville, North Carolina, on February 1, 1923. He graduated from Wake Forest and later served as a

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest displacement, at 4.5 million tons in 2021. It has the world's largest aircraft ...

officer in

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. After his service, he earned a master's degree and a doctorate, both in English, from

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

. In 1951, he began teaching English at Wake Forest, where he spent his entire career. His specialty was the

Romantic poets Romantic poetry is the poetry of the Romantic era, an artistic, literary, musical and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century. It involved a reaction against prevailing Neoclassical ideas of the 18th c ...

William Wordsworth William Wordsworth (7 April 177023 April 1850) was an English Romantic poetry, Romantic poet who, with Samuel Taylor Coleridge, helped to launch the Romanticism, Romantic Age in English literature with their joint publication ''Lyrical Balla ...

Lord Byron George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824) was an English poet. He is one of the major figures of the Romantic movement, and is regarded as being among the greatest poets of the United Kingdom. Among his best-kno ...

, and others, often performing poetic recitations. In addition to his academic work, Wilson acted in succession as Assistant Dean of the undergraduate College, acting Dean of the College, Dean of the College, Provost (the University's first), Vice President for special projects, and Senior Vice President. His longest-held administrative position was Provost, his role on campus from 1967 until 1990. Wilson also has been active in intercollegiate athletics and is professed lover of ACC men's basketball. He served as Wake Forest's representative to the

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

and to the

Atlantic Coast Conference The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, the ACC's eighteen member universities compete in the National Collegiate Athlet ...

(ACC), as well as president of the ACC. In 1992, prior to his retirement, the university named the new wing of the Z. Smith Reynolds Library in his honor. Outside the university, Wilson has served on a number of arts-related organizations' boards, including the Piedmont Opera Theatre, the Winston-Salem Arts Council, the North Carolina Arts Council, and

Reynolda House Museum of American Art The Reynolda House Museum of American Art is an art museum located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Built in 1917 by Katharine Smith Reynolds and her husband R. J. Reynolds, founder of the R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, it displays a collecti ...

. He has also served on the board of trustees at

Winston-Salem State University Winston-Salem State University (WSSU) is a historically black public university in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina system. History Winston-Salem State University was founded as "Slater Industrial A ...

and is a 2002 recipient of the North Carolina Award for Public Service.

Personal life and death

Wilson was married to Emily Louise Herring, a professor and poet. They had three children. Wilson

turned 100 A centenarian is a person who has reached the age of 100. Because life expectancies at birth worldwide are well below 100, the term is invariably associated with longevity. The United Nations estimated that there were 316,600 living centenarian ...

on February 1, 2023, and died on March 13, 2024, at the age of 101.

References

Sources

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, Edwin 1923 births 2024 deaths American academics of English literature Wake Forest University faculty Wake Forest University alumni Wake Forest University administrators Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences alumni People from Eden, North Carolina United States Navy personnel of World War II United States Navy officers American men centenarians 20th-century American academics