Grigsby, Emily Bourne (née Bourne), 2004 February 17

This is Living History interview with Emily Bourne Grigsby, class of 1975, conducted by Marilyn Somers on February 17, 2004 at her home in Atlanta, Georgia. The subject is Ms. Grigsby’s life and experiences at Georgia Tech.

Ms. Grigsby was born in Lexington, Kentucky in 1922. Her family soon moved to her father’s hometown of Owenton, Kentucky. Ms. Grigsby has one sister and a brother. Her mother and brother both battled tuberculosis, and her father had a devastating stroke. Her mother died when Ms. Grigsby was only thirteen years old. Ms. Grigsby attended school in Owenton until her senior year of high school, and then was sent to Indiana to live with her aunt and uncle. Upon graduating high school, she attended Sullins College for one year. She was not fond of the school, so she transferred to Vanderbilt, where she met her future husband Paul. After two years, she and Paul were married. While Paul was a Naval officer in the Pacific theatre of World War II, Ms. Grigsby finished her psychology degree at Mills College and sang for the San Francisco Opera. When Paul returned from the war, they moved to Atlanta. He formed the South-eastern Radio Parts Company with his nephew there, and Ms. Grigsby filled her time as the president of the Atlanta Music Club and modeling. In 1972, she enrolled in Georgia Tech’s City Planning master’s program. She completed the degree in 1975, but did not put it to use because she was told that she was too liberal. She did use her law degree that she earned from Georgia State University in 1983 to do arbitration and mediation work. Along with that work, she is also an avid painter and has presented her pieces in several shows. In addition to all this, she has committed herself to community service and has been a board member for both the Florence Crittenten Board and the Partnerships Against Domestic Violence Board. Ms. Grigsby and Paul have been married for over sixty years.