At her high school graduation in 1933, Ella heard words that would stay with her for life. The speaker was a young Scottish minister who had recently arrived in America—a man named Peter Marshall, who would one day become Chaplain of the United States Senate.
Ella remembers her graduation and Peter Marshall's words
— Peter Marshall, 1933
The Transcript
[09:10] I graduated in May. I went to Sunday school the following Sunday.
Back up, I want to tell you who preached at our—who taught at our graduation: Peter Marshall. He had just come from Scotland and he was preaching in Decatur. And he'd go to Covington on Sunday afternoons.
And I don't know why, who got him, but he was there. And the only thing I remember him saying was: "Don't give up your dreams. Don't ever give up your dreams. Hitch your wagon to a star."
That's all I remember. So that was one of my first quotes.
[10:00] Anyhow, I went to Sunday school the first Sunday, and a girl was going to GSCW to school. They had let me teach when the teacher was not going to be there in the third grade when I was a senior. And I was the salutatorian.
Anyway, this girl was going to school, and all of a sudden I had to go to school to GSCW with her. There wasn't any money in our house—there just wasn't any. You know, we had plenty to eat, but there wasn't any money. We had plenty to wear because my mother could take this and make something.
But anyhow, Lucille Langley was going to school the next Monday, a week. And I went home—I had to go. There was no way I could—I wanted to go.
And my daddy says, "You know we don't have any money." And I knew we didn't, but I cried anyway.
So he came in to where I was and he said, "Hush crying. I'll take you to see Uncle Yulis tomorrow—no, I'll take you to see Mr. Rainey." He was the school superintendent. "And he'll give you a job. I will see if Uncle Yulis will let you have some money."
Well, we went the next day to Decatur. And Mr. Rainey gave me a job in a two-teacher school to teach first, second, and third grade.
✅ Historical Verification: Peter Marshall
Research has verified that Peter Marshall was indeed in Georgia in 1933. He arrived from Scotland in 1927, graduated from Columbia Theological Seminary in Decatur in 1931, and served as pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Covington from 1931-1933—exactly as Ella remembered.
In 1933, he transitioned to Westminster Presbyterian Church in Atlanta, where he would meet his future wife Catherine at nearby Agnes Scott College. He went on to become:
- Pastor of New York Avenue Presbyterian Church, Washington DC (1937-1949)
- Chaplain of the United States Senate (1947-1949)
- Subject of the bestselling biography "A Man Called Peter" (1951)
- Subject of the Oscar-nominated film "A Man Called Peter" (1955)
Ella's memory was accurate. She sat at the graduation of a man who would become one of America's most famous preachers.
People Mentioned
Peter Marshall Lucille Langley Mr. Rainey Uncle Yulis
Places Mentioned
Decatur, GA Covington, GA GSCW (Georgia State College for Women)