Lewis Holmes Swindell, Jr.

Image Source: From Ancestry.com "Dr. Lewis Holmes Swindell, Jr."

Lewis Holmes Swindell, M.D., served on East Carolina’s board from 1947–1955 as the school enjoyed strong continued growth during the post-WWII years with increasing numbers of men enrolling, effectively transforming campus culture along the way. Recognizing its achievements in curricular growth and academic standing, the state legislature, in April 1951, authorized a new name, East Carolina College, reflecting the school’s larger mission as a four-year liberal arts college with strengths in teacher training. While the latter role remained dominant on campus, no longer was the school simply one devoted to teacher education and certification.

The postwar years also brought successive challenges to East Carolina’s Jim Crow status quo even as the board and the school’s administration consistently rebuffed them via appeal to the school’s charter. The 1954 Supreme Court decision, Brown v. Board of Education, declaring segregation unconstitutional, meant the end of such resistance to change and yet East Carolina remained a de facto Jim Crow campus for nearly a decade thereafter. Dr. Swindell stepped down from the East Carolina board the following year, in 1955, after being appointed to the board of his alma mater, University of North Carolina, first for a six-year term, and then in 1961 for an eight-year term. The year of his departure from East Carolina’s board, Dr. Swindell presented ECC president, John D. Messick, with a gift of $5,000.00 to fund student scholarships.

A native of Swan Quarter, Hyde County, Dr. Swindell received his B.S. degree from the University of North Carolina and M.D. from the University of Pennsylvania. He began practicing medicine in his hometown, Swan Quarter, but after serving in WWI as an Army medical officer he moved to Washington, N. C., to open his practice there. For virtually his entire professional career, Swindell was based at a private hospital, Fowle Memorial, where he was senior physician and chief of staff. Following the opening of Beaufort County Hospital in 1958, Dr. Swindell cared for his patients at both Fowle Memorial and Beaufort County Hospital.

Swindell also served as mayor of Washington for three terms and was a member of the Beaufort County Health Board for 41 years and served as its chair for 30 years. He also served on the Washington City School board for 13 years, six of which as its chair.

Sources

• “At Least 11 UNC Trustees Fail to Win Their Seats.” Daily Tar Heel. April 15, 1955. P. 1.
• “Assembly Approves Trustees.” Daily Tar Heel. May 5, 1961. P. 2.
• “Dr. Swindell, Ex-Mayor, Dies in Washington.” News and Observer. March 26, 1971. P. 8.
• “East Carolina Gets $5,000 Gift.” Charlotte Observer. June 18, 1955. P. 12C.
• “ECTC Has its Name Changed.” News and Observer. April 7, 1951. P. 1.
• “Four Trustees Named at ECC by Governor.” News and Observer. August 6, 1953. P. 24.
• “Fowle Memorial Hospital, Washington, N.C.” East Carolina Manuscript Collection # 0318-s6-b2-fc-i308. J. Y. Joyner Library. East Carolina University. Greenville, N. C. https://digital.lib.ecu.edu/291
• “Legislature’s 30 Trustees Named.” Daily Tar Heel. April 22, 1955. P. 1.
• “Prominent Physician Dies in Washington at the Age of 79.” Coastland Times. April 1, 1971. P. 8.
• Records of the Chancellor: Records of John Decatur Messick, 1947-1959. University Archives # UA02-05. “Box 6: Swindell, Dr. Lewis H., Member of the Board of Trustees, 1948-1955.”
• “UNC Trustees OK’d at Assembly Session.” Asheville Citizen-Times. April 20, 1955. P. 15.
• “Washington, N. C. Mayor Acclaims Work of Social Action Institute. North Carolina Catholic. February 23, 1951. P. 4.

Citation Information