Legacy

Alumnae reflections on a Lincoln education

Lydia Edes Jewell ’46

Intrepid sailor, mother, grandmother, native of Massachusetts and a happy resident of Southern California for 65 years, circumnavigated the globe from 1953 until 1955, after graduating from Wellesley College in 1950.

“I never saw any grade but an A until I got to Lincoln—and then it all went downhill!

I came as a boarder in my junior year. The standards were so much higher than in the public school system in Plymouth, MA, where I’d come from. I guess I’d been running on raw intelligence until then.

Miss Cole, the headmistress, knew I was struggling. (I’m pretty sure she knew exactly how every student was doing.) She took me aside and told me gently but firmly that every night after dinner, instead of going up to our rooms to study, I was to go to the chemistry lab by myself. I spent a couple hours there every night that first year and finally learned to settle down and concentrate.

Then, when I got to Wellesley, if I had a pile of reading I’d head right for the library stacks and study there. Miss Cole’s lesson got me through Lincoln, through college, and through my life ever since. It’s the greatest thing anyone ever did for me.

The best teachers I had were Miss Gifford, who taught science, and Betty Giangreco, former History Department Head. They were priceless people. Betty really lit a fire under me. It’s not that she taught me to love history. It’s the way she ran her classes that made me want to do more and do better.”