Occupation Historian Name Guion Johnson | Role Historian Children Benton Johnson | |
Full Name Frances Guion Griffis Books A social history of the sea islands People also search for Guy Benton Johnson, Benton Johnson, Miriam M. Johnson | ||
'Guion Griffis Johnson' (April 12, 1900–June 12, 1989) was an American pioneering female historian.
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Life
Born Frances Guion Griffis in Wolfe City, Texas on 11 April 11, 1900, she was raised in Greenville, Texas. She married Guy Benton Johnson, a noted sociologist, and together they had 2 sons Guy Benton, Jr. and Edward. She died at the age of 89 on June 12, 1989.
Academic career
She attended Baylor College for Women and began studying journalism. After marriage, she and her husband moved from Texas to take up positions at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. There she was offered an associate professorship and earned her PhD in History.
Because so few women were active historians at the time, Johnson's first mention in the American Historical Review referred to her as "he". She published several studies of the ante-bellum South, delving into race relations, religion, freed slaves, women's life, and other aspects which had previously been only lightly treated. Her award-winning book Ante-Bellum North Carolina: A Social History is still considered an important resource.
She became heavily involved in women's organizations and issues after the end of the Second World War, when opportunities for women again became limited. She and her husband also collaborated on several research projects.