Literary historian; professor of English. Born February 15, 1904, Centreville. Parents–John Tullis and Eva Lucille (Cooper) Ellison.  Education: Randolph-Macon Women’s College, B.A., 1925; Columbia University, M.A., 1929; University of North Carolina, Ph.D., 1945. Taught at Huntingdon College, Montgomery, 1930-1972. Served as Chairman of the  English Department at Huntingdon, 1959-1972. Member of the South Atlantic Modern Language Association, National Council of Teachers of English, Modern Language Association, Alabama Historical Association, and Phi Beta Kappa. Received the Sulzby Award from the Alabama Historical Association in 1984 and the Award for the Best Non-fiction book by an Alabama Author from the Alabama Library Association, 1985, both for Bibb County.   The annual Ellison Writers Festival at Huntingdon College is named in her honor.  Died September 12, 2005.

Source:

Directory of American Scholars, 7th edition, and Alabama Public Library Service files.

Publication(s):

Bibb County, Alabama; the First Hundred Years, 1818-1919. University, Ala.; University of Alabama Press, 1984.

A Checklist of Alabama Imprints, 1807-1870. University, Ala.; University of Alabama Press, 1946.

Early Alabama Publications; a Study in Literary Interests. University, Ala.; University of Alabama, 1947.

History and Bibliography of Alabama Newspapers in the Nineteenth Century. University, Ala.; University of Alabama Press, 1954.

History of Huntingdon College, 1854-1954. University, Ala.; University of Alabama Press, 1954; rpt. Montgomery:  New South Books, 2004.

Story of Centreville United Methodist Church, 1889-1989. N.P., 1990.