Celebrating a Lincoln Legacy: Mr. Edward Harrison Sr. Turns 101

Lincoln University celebrates the 101st birthday of Mr. Edward Harrison Sr. ’50, a devoted educator and community leader.

Lincoln University is proud to celebrate the 101st birthday of Mr. Edward Harrison Sr., Class of 1950 — a lifelong educator, community leader and proud Lincoln alumnus. Born in 1924, Mr. Harrison turned 101 on October 17, 2025, surrounded by family, faith and memories of a life dedicated to learning, service and love.

Mr. Harrison first arrived at Lincoln University of Missouri in 1946 after serving in the U.S. Army during World War II. “I came there in 1946 as a freshman,” he recalled. “I had just come out of the Army a few months before.” Like many veterans of his generation, he used his GI Bill benefits to pursue higher education. He remembers campus life vividly — the camaraderie of the dorms, the barbershop at the foot of the hill and the professors who shaped his future. “Dr. Savage was a history professor. Dr. Miller was a government professor. My major was history,” he said. “Freshman year wasn’t so great, but the other years I did quite well.”

Edward and Frances Harrison, May 2025. 

A Love Story Rooted in History

Mr. Harrison’s Lincoln journey is inseparable from his 73-year love story with his wife, Frances. The two met as young people in Joplin, Missouri, when a local teacher hosted a party for students. “That’s when I met Frances,” he said. “At the time, I wasn’t trying to have her as a girlfriend. It took a year or two before that developed.”

Frances joined him at Lincoln a few years later, following in the footsteps of her older sister. After graduation, Mr. Harrison began teaching history in Poplar Bluff, Missouri. In May 1952, he and Frances were married. “We had to agree on a lot of things — and we had to disagree on a lot of things,” he reflected with a laugh.

A Distinguished Career in Education

Mr. Harrison taught history, social studies and economics in Missouri before transitioning into library science in the 1950s. “The superintendent came over to the Black high school and wanted somebody to start a library,” he remembered. He volunteered and spent summers taking library science courses in Kansas to build his expertise.

After the landmark Brown v. Board of Education decision, Mr. Harrison relocated to Illinois, where he became a librarian and later Head Librarian at Eisenhower High School in Blue Island. He helped shape generations of students, leading innovative term-paper projects that incorporated early audio-visual storytelling. “I taught them how to make a movie of the subject they wanted to write about,” he said. “That movie became their term paper.”

Honoring Legacy: Service, Faith and Community

Beyond the classroom, Mr. Harrison served as a summer ranger and historian at George Washington Carver National Monument for many years, greeting visitors, sharing stories and preserving history. “I would sit near the entrance, greet people as they arrived, and invite them to learn about George Washington Carver,” he said. His children grew up playing on those historic grounds.

His commitment to community extended into leadership roles in the Masonic Lodge, where he became an honorary Grand Master in the state of Indiana, and into his lifelong involvement in the church. “Church work has always been my long life,” he said. “I still teach Sunday school at 101 years old.”

Words of Wisdom

When asked what wisdom he would pass on, Mr. Harrison offered simple, profound advice: “Be kind. Sometimes you don’t have to respond to everything. Don’t let your feelings take over. Remember thy God and do the things that you find in the Bible He’s instructed us to do.”

Mr. Harrison’s life is a testament to the power of education, faith, service and love. Lincoln University proudly celebrates this remarkable alumnus — a man who has not only witnessed history but helped shape it.

“I’ve had a good life,” he said simply. “I’ve enjoyed teaching, learning and serving.”