Celebrating Women’s History Month
Published 12:00 am Thursday, March 28, 2024
- Alice Purcell
Throughout the month, the Salisbury Post has shined a light on the Rowan County women who forged their own paths.
Today’s figure is Alice Purcell.
She was born on Sept. 5, 1920, in Salisbury, the daughter of the late Samuel M. Purcell and Marion Craig Purcell. Her father owned and ran Purcell Drug Stores.
Purcell received her education from Boyden High School as a member of the Class of 1937. She earned a master’s degree from Columbia University in New York in 1945.
Purcell taught music for over 25 years in the Kannapolis City School System and she taught private piano lessons all of her life. She also played the piano for Everyman’s Sunday School Class at First Presbyterian Church for more than 50 years.
Purcell was a publicized world traveler. Several articles contained in the Salisbury Post archives chronicled her journeys around the globe. In 1962, she embarked on a 77-day journey around the world.
In the 1980s, she completed a 23-day trip from the United Kingdom to India, sharing tales of Cardiff Castle and the Himalayas upon her return. Purcell died in August 2020.
If you have a photo to share or a story to tell illustrating Women’s History Month, please email editor Chandler Inions at chandler.inions@salisburypost.com.
