Tue, May 16, 2023 – 4:45 p.m | By: David Tisdale
Treadwell Davis Jr. and his sister Alta Davis Moore remember their father Dr. Treadwell Davis as a man who loved God, his family, his country, and his students at the University of Southern Mississippi (USM).
Both were recently on the university’s Hattiesburg campus to help present the J. Treadwell Davis Award honoring her father to Zion Culbreath, a graduate student at the May 5 USM School of Humanities Student Awards ceremony in the Gonzales Auditorium second year from Raymond, Mississippi.
dr Davis joined the history department of USM, then known as Mississippi Southern College, in 1948 as an associate professor of history. In 1953 he was promoted to professor; When the USM History Division separated from the History and Government Division in 1962, he was appointed Division Chief, a position he held until 1969.
After retiring from USM in 1974 as the first history professor emeritus, his faculty peers established the J. Treadwell Davis Freshman History Award in his honor, which has been presented annually to an outstanding history student ever since. Culbreath was founded by USM history professor Dr. Courtney Luckhardt nominated.
“I’m incredibly grateful to receive the Treadwell Davis Award,” said Culbreath, a social work major who excelled in the history courses in her academic program. “It validates my hard work and dedication while pursuing my academic goals.
“I am also proud to represent the broader student community and demonstrate the interdisciplinary nature of the humanities as the recipient of this recognition.”
Culbreath attended USM’s Chateau study abroad program in Strasbourg, France, in Spring 2022. This experience allowed her to take courses in a unique environment, including History 101 (World Civilization) and with USM history professor Dr. Courtney Luckhardt, for which she was nominated for the Davis Award.
dr Luckhardt recalls Culbreath’s excitement at learning about the history of Europe and the world during their time together on the Chateau program.
“Zion was always involved both in the classroom and on our field trips to historic sites like Heidelberg Castle in Germany,” said Dr. luckhardt “She did an excellent final project analyzing primary sources and applying them to the historical and geographical information she learned during her stay in France. She is well deserving of the Davis award as she is an excellent student and has really blossomed as a historian during the time I have been teaching her.”
Culbreath described the Chateau program as Personally enriching, opening her eyes to new perspectives and expanding her understanding of the world around her through first-hand experiences through visits to historical sites and interactions with historical artifacts.
“I am grateful to her (Dr. Luckhardt) for her support and guidance throughout my academic career, and this award reinforces the idea that the humanities department values and recognizes the achievements of all students.”
Tennessee native Dr. Davis graduated top of his class from Ramer High School in Ramer, Tennessee, and went on to Bethel College and Memphis State University, where he earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees. During World War II he was a member of the Army Air Corp and served as a classification officer in the China-Burma-India Theatre. During his brief stay in St. Petersburg, Florida, he met and married his wife, Marjorie Alta Griffith. After the war, he taught briefly at North Georgia Military College in Dahlonega, Georgia before pursuing doctoral studies. Graduated from Vanderbilt University.
“He was a tremendous role model for both of us,” Davis said of his father. “He loved the university and his students and was always there to help and advise them. He loved his family more than anything and supported both my sister and me in all our activities and ventures.
“His philosophy of life was ‘Never lose your sense of humor,’ and that philosophy was evident in his lectures.”
“Being back on the USM campus for this awards ceremony brought back many wonderful memories of growing up here and our time as students at the university,” said Alta Moore Davis. “It was an honor and a privilege to honor our father by presenting the award to Zion.”
For information on the USM School of Humanities, which is headquartered in the College of Arts and Sciences, please visit their website.
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