Nathalia Wright

Nathalia Wright, age 91, died on Monday, November 22, 2004, at Blount Transitional Care Center. She had been in declining health for several years. She was a member of St. Andrew's Episcopal Church. She was the daughter of Elizabeth and Hilliard Wright. Her father was a Maryville merchant and operated Wright's 5 & 10 at the intersection Broadway and Cusick in Maryville. After graduating from Maryville College in 1933, she worked at the college as an instructor and librarian. She earned her master's and doctoral degrees from Yale University in 1938 and 1949 respectively. In 1949 she joined the faculty of the University of Tennessee as a professor in the English Department, where she taught for 33 years until her retirement in 1982. In 1972 she became the university's first woman Mace Bearer, and in 1975 she was named an Alumni Distinguished Service Professor. In 2000 she became the sixth recipient of the Commission for Women's Notable UTK Woman Award. Dr. Wright was recognized as a leading scholar in early American literature and was considered one of the country's foremost scholars on the works of Herman Melville. Her doctoral thesis, Melville's Use of the Bible, was published in 1949 and republished in 1969. She wrote or edited more than a dozen books during her career. A private interment will be held in Grandview Cemetery. A memorial service will be held at 3:00 p.m. on Thursday, December 2, at McCammon-Ammons-Click Funeral Home with Rev. Gene Haws officiating. McCammon-Ammons-Click Funeral Home, Inc., Maryville 982-6812 www.mccammonammonsclick.com