Donaldson, Enoch
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Donaldson, Enoch
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Enoch Donaldson was a Davidson College janitor from the 1880s until the early 1960s.
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Enoch Donaldson was born to Tobe and Jane Donaldson in Lincoln County, North Carolina, around December 24 in the 1860s. He married Mary Wilson in 1903, and upon her death in 1918, remarried to Sudie Torrence Byers in 1921. Donaldson had several children including Jennie Donaldson Sloan, James Henry Donaldson, Beatrice Donaldson Twitty, and Daisy Donaldson. He was a long-term member of Reeve's Temple A.M.E. Zion Church in Davidson, North Carolina.
He worked at Davidson College in various roles from the 1880s until the end of his life. He cleaned students' dorm rooms, worked in the old physics building, and was once known as the "Vice President" of the College because he delivered personal messages from President John B. Shearer to students, faculty, and staff. Despite lacking a formal education, Donaldson exhibited shrewdness and high social intelligence. One Davidson alum wrote in the Davidson Alumni journal that he would spend time teaching Donaldson how to write his name on the classroom's chalkboard after his physics lab. Donaldson also reportedly had prophetic powers when it came to Davidson football games. Along with his pet lizard, he predicted the outcome of the game accurately. In the 1950s, Donaldson was relieved of his strenuous duties, but kept on the payroll. He swept the steps of the Chambers building. He also greeted alumni and students on homecoming and graduation. On February 25, 1962, Donaldson passed away in his sleep due to heart failure.
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24 December 1867
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25 February 1962
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Greg Govan, "Oldest College Servant Dies, Ends Early Era." The Davidsonian, March 2, 1962. D-file Enoch Donaldson, E.H. Little Library, Davidson College, Davidson, NC.
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Bill Pridgen, "Looking Over 50 Years of Sports." The Davidsonian, April 5, 1962.
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Frank L. Jackson, "Enoch: a Davidson Legend." Davidson Update, December 1975, Clipping, D-file Enoch Donaldson, E.H. Little Library, Davidson College, Davidson, NC.
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Wilson Jr., Elbert L. '"I Taught Enoch to Write His Name.'" February 1976, Clipping, D-file, Enoch Donaldson, E.H. Little Library, Davidson College, Davidson, NC.
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Marjean Torrence, "Two Generations Serving Davidson College: Born 'befo' de Freedom."' April 22, 1987, Clipping, D-file Enoch Donaldson, E.H. Little Library, Davidson College, Davidson, NC.
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