(13 March 1911- 24 December 1961)
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Herbarium (NCU) currently curates no specimens collected by Ruby Malinda Williams, but Duke University Herbarium (DUKE), a mere 11 miles away, is the main repository for her specimens. Thus far we have found 55 bryophyte specimens and 284 vascular plant specimens collected by Ms. Williams in the DUKE herbarium. Other herbaria curating specimens collected by Ms. Williams include the Academy of Natural Sciences (PH: vascular plants, bryophytes), Indiana University (IND: vascular plants), Missouri Botanical Garden (MO: vascular plants), Pennsylvania State University (PAC: vascular plants), University of Minnesota (MIN: vascular plants), University of Washington, Seattle (WTU: bryophytes), and University of Texas, Austin (TEX: vascular plants). During the summer of 1938 Ms. Williams collected vascular plants in Haywood, Jackson and Swain Counties in North Carolina. These are curated by Brigham Young University (BRY), Florida Museum of Natural History (FLAS), and University of Nevada (RENO). She usually used “Ruby M. Williams” on her typed herbarium specimen labels.1
Ruby Malinda Williams was born to Martha Anne Walker Williams (1877-1969) and John Wesley Williams (1871-1931) on 13 March 1911 in Rockingham County, North Carolina.2,13 The family lived in Reidsville and owned a grocery store.3 Ruby attended Greensboro College and was active in the Botany Club, the Mathematics Club, the Zoology Club, and was Vice-President of her class. She earned an A. B. from Greensboro College in 1931.4,5 She taught at Durham High School in Durham County, North Carolina for 15 years.6
Ms. Williams collected vascular plants from Haywood, Jackson, and Swain Counties, North Carolina in the summer of 1938. These specimens can be found in the collections of BRY, IND, FLAS, and RENO.1 Dr. Catherine Keever may mention Ruby Williams in her autobiography, “Moving On: A Way of Life” : “The first summer term in 1940 Elsie [Quarterman], Ruby, my friend Mary from Junaluska days, and I took plant anatomy and botanical microtechnique with Ruth Adams… Mary was working on her Ph.D. and sometimes she made a better grade than I and sometimes I made the better grade. Later I told her she was my greatest inspiration for going on to get a Ph.D. — if she could do it, so could I.”7 Lake Junaluska, located in Haywood County, North Carolina, was founded in 1913 as a retreat and conference center by the Methodist Church.8 As Dr. Keever’s father was a Methodist minister, it is likely that she was familiar with Lake Junaluska.7 Ruby William’s entry in the 1931 yearbook for Greensboro College mentions, “Ruby is one of the most devout Christian girls we’ve ever had the privilege of knowing,” though whether she, too, spent time at Lake Junaluska is not known.4
Ms.Williams earned a M.A. in Botany under the direction of Dr. Henry J. Oosting at Duke University. She did field work at her study site, Pilot Mountain in Surry County, North Carolina, during 1941 and 1942. The title of her 1942 Masters thesis was, “A phytosociological survey of the vegetation on Pilot Mountain, North Carolina“.9 Pilot Mountain was a popular destination for both locals and tourists. It was owned privately when Ms. Williams was doing her research and collecting.10 Pilot Mountain became a North Carolina State Park in 1968.11
Ruby Malinda Williams, age 50, died on 24 December 1961 of brain cancer. Ruby’s death was reported by her sister, Annie John Williams (1913-1994), with whom she lived in Durham.12,2 Ruby Williams is buried in Greenview Cemetery in her hometown of Reidsville in Rockingham County, North Carolina.2
PUBLICATIONS:
Williams, Ruby Malinda. 1942. A phytosociological survey of the vegetation on Pilot Mountain, North Carolina. A.M. Thesis, Duke University, Durham, NC.
Williams, Ruby M. and H. J. Oosting. 1944. The vegetation of Pilot Mountain, North Carolina: A community analysis. Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club 71 (1): 23-45. https://doi.org/10.2307/2481485 . https://www.jstor.org/stable/2481485 .
SOURCES:
1. SERNEC Data Portal. 2025. http//:sernecportal.org/index.php. Accessed on January 06.
2. Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/35012225/ruby_malinda-williams Maintained by David Clay (contributor 46973418). Accessed 6 September 2024.
3. Year: 1920; Census Place: Reidsville, Rockingham, North Carolina; Roll: T625_1317; Page: 11A; Enumeration District: 218. Ancestry.com. 1920 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. Images reproduced by FamilySearch.
4. Echo Yearbook, page 105, https://lib.digitalnc.org/record/28397?ln=en&v=uv#?xywh=-1648%2C-152%2C5236%2C3037 . Courtesy of Anna White, Director of Library Service, J.A. Jones Library, Greensboro College. Accessed 16 September 2024.
5. Senior Class Vice-President: U.S. School Yearbooks, 1880-2012. Ancestry.com. Ancestry.com Operations, Inc. 2010. Provo, UT, USA.
6. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/35012225/ruby-malinda-williams#view-photo=187363778 . Accessed on 6 September 2024.
7. Keever, Catherine. 1985. Moving On: A Way of Life: An Autobiography. Self-published: Statesville, NC: Brady Print Co.
8. Lake Junaluska: Our Story. https://lakejunaluska.com/about-us/our-story/ . Accessed on 6 January 2025
9. Williams, Ruby Malinda. 1942. A phytosociological survey of the vegetation on Pilot Mountain, North Carolina. Thesis (A.M.), Duke University.
10. Barden, Jane. 2020. Middle Mountains: Pilot Mountain. Our State. https://www.ourstate.com/middle-mountains-pilot-mountain/ Accessed on 6 January 2025.
11. Wikipedia contributors. (2024, August 3). List of North Carolina state parks. In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 18:29, January 6, 2025, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_North_Carolina_state_parks&oldid=1238381756
12. North Carolina State Board of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics. North Carolina Death Certificates. Microfilm S.123. Rolls 19-242, 280, 313-682, 1040-1297. North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, North Carolina. Ancestry.com. North Carolina, U.S., Death Certificates, 1909-1976 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007.
13. North Carolina State Archives; Raleigh, North Carolina; Register of Deeds; Roll: NCVR_B_C084_68001 Source Information Ancestry.com. North Carolina, U.S., Birth Indexes, 1800-2000 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005.
CITE THIS PAGE:
McCormick, Carol Ann and Priscila Arellanes Ramos. 2024. Ruby Malinda Williams, 1911-1961. The Collectors, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Herbarium. https://ncbg.unc.edu/2025/01/06/ruby-malinda-williams/