Maxine Thompson TURNER

1935 - 2016

TURNER, Maxine Thompson, Ph.D. Maxine Thompson Turner was born March 27, 1935, in Taylor County, Georgia, daughter of Jessie B. Jones Turner and Mack Thompson Turner, both school teachers. In 1946, her family moved to Columbus, Ga., where she graduated with honors from Columbus High School in 1953. She entered Huntingdon College in Montgomery and continued her education, participating in student government and beginning her long outstanding career in Civil War historical research. There she wrote early drafts of what later became Navy Gray: a Story of the Confederate Navy on the Chattahoochee and Apalachicola Rivers , published by the University of Alabama Press, for which she was named 1988 Ga. author of the year. After Huntingdon, she entered Auburn University where she received an MA in History, an MA in English and a PhD in English. She also continued her studies at the University of Maryland, Edinburgh University, University of Michigan, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Georgia Institute of Technology, University of Wisconsin, Education for Ministry at the University of the South at Sewanee and Breadloaf Writers' Conference in Vermont. During this time, she taught English and History at several colleges and universities, including Auburn University, University of Georgia, Columbus State University, Montgomery College, Ala., Upper Iowa University, Georgia Southwestern State University, American University at Ft. Benning, Ga., and Georgia Institute of Technology. When she came to Georgia Tech in the late 1960s, she was one of Tech's first women faculty members. While there she became nationally recognized in both Technical Communication and in the Development of Technology. She was a Fellow of the National Society of Technical Communication and a frequent speaker at national conferences. She also served on the Academic Senate, as faculty advisor to Executive Round Table and worked with the Society of Women Engineers. Dr. Turner published numerous articles, essays and book reviews on such wide ranging topics as The Bay Psalm Book and 18th century hymns, naval operations during the Civil War, technical writing, the Book of Common Prayer and other books on Civil War history which were published in professional journals. She was in demand as a speaker at conferences and seminars for a number of professional organizations and private corporations. Some of the companies she consulted with included Delta Airlines, West Point Pepperell, Coca Cola, Days Inns of America, Standard Oil of California, Singapore Airlines, New Zealand Air and the Atlanta Chamber of Commerce. She was an early supporter and advocate for the James. W. Woodruff, Jr., Confederate Naval Museum in Columbus and received a certificate of recognition from the Friends of the Museum. She also received the Historic Preservation award from Historic Columbus in 1988. A member of the Daughters of the American Revolution, she served as regent for a term in the Atlanta Chapter. Not only did she publish a widely used textbook Technical Writing: a Practical Approach , she was a leading figure in the development of the modern technical communications program at Georgia Tech. She also published a number of poems in the Southern Humanities Review, the Creative Review , The Phoenix, The Living Church , Womanthology and Aspect. Dr. Turner was a pioneer in seeking equity for women and minority students at Georgia Tech. Active in the Episcopal Church, she became a lay reader and a leader in the women's movement within the church, as well as making numerous speeches around the country on religious topics. At Georgia Tech she taught Old Testament and New Testament as literature. She was also a founding member of St. Thomas Episcopal Church in Columbus, where she sang in the choir. Funeral services will be held on Sunday, February 14, 2016 at 2:00 pm at McLeighton Funeral Service, Butler, GA. Visitation will be held from 1 until 2:00 pm. Burial will follow in Bethel Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery. McLeighton Funeral Service of Butler is in charge of arrangements.