Alla May Holland

Image Source: News and Observer, May 25, 1941, p. 7.

In mid-December 1948, in his final days in office, Governor Robert Gregg Cherry (1891–1957) appointed Mrs. Julian Carr Holland, née Alla May Jordan, to the ECTC board to fill the unexpired term of Mrs. Charles M. Johnson (1893–1972). Mrs. Johnson’s husband, Charles M. Johnson (1891–1964), state treasurer, had run for governor in 1948 but lost the Democratic primary runoff to future governor, W. Kerr Scott (1896–1958). Johnson would soon move to the private sector and a successful career in investment banking. Mrs. Johnson had served on the ECTC board since the mid-1930s when appointed by Governor Ehringhaus (1882-1949) as the first East Carolina alumna, Class of 1913, to serve as a trustee. Mrs. Johnson’s term expired June 30, 1949, making Mrs. Holland’s tenure on the board just over six months.

While Mrs. Johnson’s decision to step down from the board was voluntary, it allowed Governor Cherry to name one more trustee rather than reappoint any of the pro-Meadows faction, such as Mrs. Johnson, who had earlier voted, in 1944, to exonerate Meadows even as he faced resignation and indictment. In naming Mrs. Holland, also an ECTC alum, Class of 1919, and a successful and respected businesswoman, Governor Cherry affirmed the importance of integrity in bookkeeping on the ECTC board.

At the time of her appointment, Mrs. Holland’s husband, Julian Carr “J. C.” Holland (1899–1970) operated a service station in Raleigh. However, Mrs. Holland, a native of rural Wake County, had risen from early service as a bookkeeper for the W. E. Cooper Furniture Company to secretary-treasurer of that company.

Earlier, Mrs. Holland had taught in Wake public schools and at the State School of the Blind. She was a charter member of the Raleigh ECTC Alumni Association, established in 1920, and served a two-year term as state president of the ECTC alumnae association. In 1948, she served as the president of the N. C. Association of Credit Women’s Breakfast Clubs. She was a member of the Raleigh Woman’s Club, the Needham Broughton P.T.A., and the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

Sources

• “Dr. Messick Speaks to ECTC Alumni.” News and Observer. November 11, 1948. P. 12.
• “Eastern Star Chapter Has Installation.” News and Observer. March 22, 1958. P. 7.
• “E.C.T.C. Alumni Elect Officials: Mrs. Holland of Raleigh is President; Miss Whitehurst is Vice President.” News and Observer. May 25, 1941. P. 7.
• “ECTC Alumni Meet at Blind School.” News and Observer. February 10, 1949. P. 8.
• “Mrs. Johnson Quits Board.” News and Observer. December 11, 1948. P. 14.
• “Mrs. L. L. Carpenter Speaks to Alumnae: Local ECTC Chapter Meets at Home of Mrs. J. C. Holland.” News and Observer. October 16, 1947. P. 8.
• Price, Woodrow. “State Treasurer Charles M. Johnson Waging Biggest Campaign of Long Career in Office.” News and Observer. April 11, 1948. Sect. IV, pp. 1, 2.
• Records of the Chancellor: Records of John Decatur Messick, 1947-1959. University Archives # UA02-05. Box 6: Holland, J.C., Member of the Board of Trustees, 1948-1949. J. Y. Joyner Library. East Carolina University. Greenville, N. C.
• “Scott Announces 17 More Appointments.” News and Observer. June 15, 1949. P. 18.
• “Tea Installation is Held by Raleigh Credit Women.” News and Observer. October 31, 1955. P. 11.

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