Gallatin Female Academy (Green and Pink Group)

Alexandria, Smith Co.

Elizabeth Caroline Goodner (1820-1910) was the second child of James Goodner, a farmer, and Martha Fite. The family lived near Alexandria in the portion of Smith Co. which became DeKalb Co. in 1837. Elizabeth was attending the Gallatin Female Academy in Sumner Co. when she made her sampler. Elizabeth married James W. Grissim at the age of 15 in 1835. The couple lived on a farm in Rome, Smith Co., where they raised 12 children.

The Gallatin Female Academy operated from 1824 to 1836. A note attached to Elizabeth’s sampler states that she made it in 1834 when she was 16, but she would have been 14 at that time.