This repo contains public record evidence showing the academic and educational accomplishments of Dr. Shirley Jean Wright PhD, a student of Dr. Albert Einstein at Princeton, NJ in the Summer of 1947. She would have been 17 years, 10 months, 18 days old in July 7, 1947.
(Note to anyone who thinks a 17 year old couldn't or wouldn't accompany a famous scientist to a military base: June Crain was 17 years old when she began working at Wright Patterson Air Force Base.)
Dr. Wright's chemistry 1955 MS thesis Vita contains all the basic information we need to verify that we've got the right person. Right here we can see that right after graduating high school she started at Barry College (with a scholarship according to newspaper records) in Sept. 1947:
Using this information it's easy to use official records, newspaper articles, student papers, and genealogical records to find information on Dr. Wright.
Her full legal name was "Shirley Jean Wright". The sources for her middle name are numerous: Her 1955 MS thesis Vita, her Stanfill Funeral Home obituary, this is the full name+middle name recorded on her gavestone at Flagler Memorial Park, numerous Miami Herald newspaper references mentioning her full-name and her address at the Tropicair Hotel, Barry College student newspapers, faculty references, her chemistry M.S. dissertation, Florida Academy of Sciences Vol. 36 Fall 1973 list mentioning her full name+middle name and her address at the Tropicair Hotel, etc.
She was born on August 19, 1929 in Boston, MA, and spent her childhood in Chicago, IL before moving to Miami Beach, FL and attending school at St. Patrick's Catholic School in 1942-1947. Sources: obituary, newspaper records, 1930 and 1940 United States Federal Census records, school yearbook picture with her full name.
She died on July 1, 2015 in Miami, FL. Sources: Miami Herald and Stanfill Funeral Home obituaries.
- Elementary School in Chicago (1940 US Census records: 4th grade)
- St. Patrick's Senior High School, Miami Beach, appeared in 1942 yearbook, graduated in 1947, earned scholarship to Barry College
- Barry College: Class of 1951, cum laude
- University of Miami: Master of Science in Chemistry, 1955
This tree shows her brother, her mother's full maiden name, and her father's name, along with birth/death dates from public records.
From Ancestry.com:
Ancestry.com's census record has Dr. Wright's middle name starting with the correct letter "J":
Note her mother's middle name is incorrectly listed by ancestry.com's digital record as starting with the letter "J". If you read the original cursive writing it's actually the expected letter "G".
Newspapers.com clipping:
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/100528452/tropicair-hotel-legal-notice/
"LEGAL NOTICE - Notices of intention to register in compliance with the House Bill No. 1175, Chapter No. 20953, Laws of Florida, 1941 - TROPICAIR HOTEL, 880 Everglades Concourse, M.B. Marie A. Buckel, Murray B. and Marcella G. Wright, owners."
Newspapers.com clipping:
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/100527880/dr-shirley-jean-wrights-parents-hotel/
Screenshot:
The hotel's address, "880 Everglades Concourse, Normandy Isle, Miami Beach" matches the adddress that appeared with Shirley Jean Wright's numerous newspaper and Florida Academy of Science listings. The names listed as the owners, Mr. and Mrs. Murray B. Wright (her parents), match Shirley Jean Wright's census records. The other co-owner, "A. Buckel", has the same last name as Shirley's mother (Marcella G. Buckel, 1894-1978) according to census records.
Newspapers.com clipping:
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/100528586/tropicair-hotel-near-completiondr-shir/
Screenshot:
1942: Miami Beach Senior High School Class Yearbook Photo (full name with picture), section "7A-5", sources from Ancestry.com
Zoomed in:
Zoomed out:
The newspapers.com clipping. Notice it lists her full name and address at the Tropicair Hotel.
Screenshot:
The newspaper.com clipping.
Screenshot:
The newspaper.com clipping.
Screenshot:
External link:
https://eguides.barry.edu/ld.php?content_id=19604860
Screenshot:
Majoring in biology and her minor is chemistry. Lists her full name and her address at the Tropicair Hotel:
Screenshot:
Feb. 1951: "Angelicus" Barry College Newspaper, 'Campus Leaders Nominated To Collegiate "Who's Who"'
Here's the local copy.
External link:
https://eguides.barry.edu/ld.php?content_id=19799688
Screenshots:
The newspaper.com clipping.
May, 1951: "Angelicus" Barry College Newspaper, 'Archbishop Hurley to Officiate At Graduation of 34 Seniors'
Here's the local copy.
External link:
https://eguides.barry.edu/ld.php?content_id=19799701
Screenshot:
May 1952: "Angelicus" Barry College Newspaper, 'Marriage, Teaching Careers Most Popular with Class of 1951'
Here's the local copy.
External link:
https://eguides.barry.edu/ld.php?content_id=19799742
Screenshot:
1955: Wright, Shirley Jean M.S. Thesis "The solvolysis of butyl bromide in methanol-water mixtures":
https://chemistry.as.miami.edu/graduate/graduate-dissertations/index.html
Here's her scanned July 1955 MS thesis. Sam (a library grad student at Drexel) requested it from the University of Miami library. It was sent in physical form to the library at the University of Pennsylvania and manually scanned by him using a phone instead of a scanner because the pages were very fragile.
The book itself:
The book had physical pictures inside it:
The scans:
- Vita
- Cover and Table of Contents
- Chapter 1
- Chapter 2-3 Part 1
- Chapter 3 Part 2
- Chapter 4 - Conclusions and Summary
- Literature and Appendix
Screenshot:
University of Miami Library:
https://miami-primo.hosted.exlibrisgroup.com/primo-explore/fulldisplay?docid=01UOML_ALMA21241867640002976&context=L&vid=uml_new&lang=en_US&search_scope=Everything&adaptor=Local%20Search%20Engine&tab=everything&query=any,contains,shirley%20jean%20wright
Screenshot:
Miami Herald 6/5/1955 newspaper clipping announcing her MS thesis at the University of Miami:
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/100527364/dr-shirley-wrights-ms-thesis/
Newspaper screenshot:
Miss Shirley Jean Wright is acknowledged in the article on page 370 of 478:
External link:
https://archive.org/details/sim_circulation_1957-03_15_3/page/370/mode/2up?q=%22Shirley+Jean+Wright%22
Screenshot:
Feb. 27, 1962: Hialeah High School's "Hialeah High Record", "Science Club Members Speak at Convention", Feb. 1962:
The club's sponsor was "Miss Shirley Jean Wright". Here's the Full PDF (see page 4).
Screenshot:
Publisher: Gainesville, Florida Academy of Sciences
See page 186 of 770:
https://archive.org/details/quarterlyjo2526196263flor/page/n185/mode/2up?q=%22Shirley+Jean+Wright%22
Screenshot:
From ancestroy.com's archives:
Sept. 12 1973: "Membership List: Florida Academy of Sciences", Florida Scientist Vol. 36, No. 2/4 (Spring, Summer, Fall 1973), pp. 236-248 (13 pages)
This reference lists her full name ("Shirley Jean Wright") and her address at "Tropicair Hotel, P.O. Box 4552, Miami Beach FL 33141"
Link (see page 248):
https://www.jstor.org/stable/24319475?read-now=1&seq=13
Screenshot:
1985: Miami-Dade College - "Under Construction - Twenty-Five Years of Miami-Dade Community College - 1960-1985" - Employee listing with her full name on page 201 (last page):
https://www.mdc.edu/archives/assets/college_documents_page/9.underconstruction.pdf
Screenshot:
July 1, 2015: Obituary from the Stanfill Funeral Home, 10545 South Dixie Hwy, Miami, FL 33156:
"Welcome to the memorial page for Shirley Jean Wright August 19, 1929 ~ July 1, 2015 (age 85)"
"WRIGHT, Shirley, devoted daughter, 85, passed away July 1, 2015. She was born in Boston, MA and spent her childhood in Chicago, IL. As a teenager she moved to Miami Beach, where her parents built the Tropicaire Hotel, which she later operated for many years. She was a dedicated teacher and scientist, earning PhDs in Physical Chemistry and Physical Science. She was a chemistry professor at MDCC for over 50 years. She was a student of Dr. Albert Einstein at Princeton. Shirley taught at the University of Miami and Barry College and was also an instructor at JMH School of Nursing and Hialeah High School. She was the first female president of the MDCC Faculty Senate. She was a member of the Dominican Sisters Third Order. For over 50 years, Shirley donated scholarships to students for excellence in the sciences. A generous person, she supported many charities and helped friends in need. Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 1pm on Friday, July 10 at St. Martha Catholic Church, 9221 Biscayne Blvd., Miami Shores, FL 33138. Interment will follow at Flagler Memorial Park. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that contributions be made to St. Jude Children's Hospital in Shirley's memory."
"SERVICE - Friday - July 10, 2015 - 1:00 PM to TBD - St. Martha Catholic Church - 9221 Biscayne Boulevard - Miami Shores, FL 31338"
Screenshots of obituary from Stanfill Funeral Home, showing her full legal name and birth/death dates (click for full-resolution):
July 5, 2015: Obituary from the Miami Herald:
"WRIGHT, SHIRLEY, Shirley, devoted daughter, 85, passed away July 1, 2015. She was born in Boston, MA and spent her childhood in Chicago, IL. As a teenager she moved to Miami Beach, where her parents built the Tropicaire Hotel, which she later operated for many years. She was a dedicated teacher and scientist, earning PhDs in Physical Chemistry and Physical Science. She was a chemistry professor at MDCC for over 50 years. She was a student of Dr. Albert Einstein at Princeton. Shirley taught at the University of Miami and Barry College and was also an instructor at JMH School of Nursing and Hialeah High School. She was the first female president of the MDCC Faculty Senate. She was a member of the Dominican Sisters Third Order. For over 50 years, Shirley donated scholarships to students for excellence in the sciences. A generous person, she supported many charities and helped friends in need. Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 1pm on Friday, July 10 at St. Martha Catholic Church, 9221 Biscayne Blvd., Miami Shores, FL 33138. Interment will follow at Flagler Memorial Park. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that contributions be made to St. Jude Children's Hospital in Shirley's memory."
Screenshots of obituary from legacy.com, showing her name, birth/death dates, and condolences mentioning her name and that she was a chemistry instructor at the MDCC/MDC (Miami Dade College) (click for full-resolution):
External link.
Screenshot:
This gravestone is also physically located next to her parents' gravestones, which show the correct middle names and birth/death dates:
change.org link:
https://www.change.org/p/estate-of-save-the-tropicair-stop-demolition-of-880-71st-street
Screenshot:
One of the sponsors was "Shirley Jean Wright Estate":
August 26, 2016: Video of the demolition of the Tropicair Hotel Miami Beach, by Miami Herald Journalist Joey Flechas:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZurCREHyZU
Screenshot of video:
