"Dr. Ethel M. Abernethy, nationally noted psychologist and educator, died May 20, 1981. She was born in the village of Rutherford College, into a family of distinguished pioneers in education in Western North Carolina. She was a granddaughter of Dr. Robert Laban Abernethy, owner and President of Rutherford College through nearly all the second half of the nineteenth century. Her Parents were the late Dr. Logan Berge Abernethy and Mattie Walker Abernethy. Her father was an educator, clergyman, and builder. Prominent among the buildings in which he had a leading role are the administration of the college (now university) at Cullowhee, The Elkin Hospital, and the Methodist Home in Charlotte. He also worked effectively through many years in the improvement of parsonages and the salaries of ministers in the Western North Carolina Conference of the Methodist Church. Because of her background, Dr. Ethel Abernethy set herself high goals in scholarship, teaching, and public service. In 1913 she graduated SUMMA CUM LAUDE from Trinity College (later Duke University). Her graduate study was in Johns Hopkins University and the University of Chicago. In 1933 she received with distinction the Ph.D degree from the University of Chicago. When Duke University was granted a Chapter of Phi Beta Kappa, Dr. Abernethy was elected an alumna member of the chapter. This honor was based both on her scholastic record and upon her contribution to the standardization of Queens College, in which she was a faculty member for nearly forty years. Queens College, in recognition of Dr. Abernethy's scholarship and contribution to the development of the institution in 1957, closed its centennial convocation with conferring upon her the honorary degree of Doctor of Science. Dr. Abernethy's publication of many articles in journals of psychology and her contribution of an outstanding monograph in a series on child development led in 1941 to her election by the American Psychological Association to the status of fellow, 'in recognition of outstanding and unusual contributions to the science and profession of psychology.' There followed her listing of her name among AMERICAN MEN of SCIENCE. While she had intense interest in her research and publications, Dr. Abernathy's deeper happiness was in her teaching of the young students of Queens College. Her enthusiasm was related to the subject matter and to the students. And she enjoyed returns. An Alumna said of her: 'She was surely one of the most beloved teachers Queens ever had, and she was a great teacher. Her lectures and class discussions were enjoyable and stimulated to research beyond the text. She was truly a friend of youth.' With all the hours spent in college work, she, as the only psychologist in Charlotte through years, gave time without fee to the problems of youth in the schools and courts. With a local psychiatrist, she gave the services which led to the development of the Mental Health Clinic. She was the member of the board of three social agencies. After her retirement from Queens College, she devoted much time to calls from the Mecklenburg County Department of Social Services. She accepted a fee which paid expenses. Her principle interest was in the psychological measurement of infants for adoptive placement. Her home on Clement Avenue included three members of her family - her parents and a sister, Miss Irene, statistician of the Duke Power Company. When these three passed, she was left alone in a large house. She made a suite of rooms for young men involved in the war in Vietnam. For a few who were veterans she was able to find employment. Dr. Abernethy is survived by three sisters, Miss Martha B. Abernethy of Atlanta, Mrs. J.P. Bellamy and Mrs. C.B. Howard of Memphis; one niece and six nephews. It was Dr. Abernethy's earnest desire that all memorials be sent to Queens College to be used as an aid to students with financial difficulties. Funeral services will be Friday, May 22, at 11 AM at First United Methodist Church, conducted by Dr. Richard Crowder and Dr. C.C. Herbert. Interment will be in Elmwood Cemetery. The family will receive friends at the Harry & Bryant Chapel Thursday evening between the hours of 7 and 9."

Obituary from The Charlotte Observer Thursday, May 21, 1981

Earliest records list name as Ethel Mae Abernethy.