In 1805, Anne’s great-grandfather, Steven W. Harris, was among the first graduates of the University of Georgia. He had come to Athens from Eatonton, Georgia, and he returned to Eatonton post-graduation, where he would practice law, serve as a Judge of the Superior Court, and marry Miss Sarah Watkins. In 1820, Mr. Harris became a member of the Board of Trustees at the University of Georgia, a position which he held until his death in 1828. Sometime after his death, Mrs. Harris and their children moved to Athens, purchasing the home of Dr. Moses Waddel, fifth President of the University of Georgia. Dr. Waddel had purchased this home from Dr. Alonzo Church in 1822, who had the house built with the intention of residing there upon moving from Eatonton in 1819, when he was called upon to fill a mathematics professorship at the University of Georgia.

Mr. and Mrs. Harris had seven children: Sampson, Mary, James, Jane, Stephen, Susan and Arabella. In 1842, Arabella Harris married Benjamin F. Hardeman, with whom she would have two children in Lexington, Georgia: a son named Sampson, and a daughter named after herself– Arabella. On June 9, 1845, when Arabella was only two months old, her mother passed away at the young age of 29 after a “lingering and painful illness,” as stated in the Southern Banner on June 12 of the same year. It was at this time when Arabella became a citizen of Athens, living at the home of her grandmother, Mrs. Sarah Harris, with her father and brother– a home in which she would later raise four children with her husband, Captain John W. Brumby: Mary, Frank, Anne and Wallis.

Mr. and Mrs. Harris had seven children: Sampson, Mary, James, Jane, Stephen, Susan and Arabella. In 1842, Arabella Harris married Benjamin F. Hardeman, with whom she would have two children in Lexington, Georgia: a son named Sampson, and a daughter named after herself– Arabella. On June 9, 1845, when Arabella was only two months old, her mother passed away at the young age of 29 after a “lingering and painful illness,” as stated in the Southern Banner on June 12 of the same year. It was at this time when Arabella became a citizen of Athens, living at the home of her grandmother, Mrs. Sarah Harris, with her father and brother– a home in which she would later raise four children with her husband, Captain John W. Brumby: Mary, Frank, Anne and Wallis.

By 1908, Anne was preparing to assume the position of co-principal at the Lucy Cobb Institute, alongside Susan Gerdine. This news was shared by the Atlanta Journal in tandem with an announcement of the Commencement and Golden Jubilee, celebrating the institution’s fiftieth birthday and the class that would graduate that same year– an event at which Anne was in attendance. It took place at the Seney-Stovall Chapel, which was elaborately decorated with palms, ferns, and hundreds of white roses and Easter lilies. Half of the ladies of the graduating class wore white gowns, while the other half wore pink, and they carried bouquets of pink roses. Outgoing co-principal Mildred Rutherford gave a celebratory address, alongside her fellow co-principal Mary Lipscomb, both of whom received gifts of a silver pitcher and a silver bowl by the school trustees in acknowledgement of their retirement, along with a silver loving cup presented by the school faculty.

Following the ceremony, a reception was held on the lawn, which was illuminated by brightly colored Japanese lanterns. According to the Atlanta Journal, outgoing principals Mildred Rutherford and Mary Lipscomb wore a gown of white satin accessorized with a corsage trimmed in pink, and an exquisite gown of white lace, respectively. During the event, they were assisted by incoming principals Anne Brumby and Susan Gerdine, who wore a gown of white Canton crepe trimmed with princess lace, and a gown of white Irish lace, respectively. Anne held the position of co-principal at the Lucy Cobb Institute through her studies at the University of Georgia. She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Social Sciences in 1920, putting her among some of the earliest female graduates in the University’s history.

In the midst of her career and her undergraduate studies, Anne was also involved with the Athens Canteen– a civic organization affiliated with the Red Cross. In 1919, Anne was among many Canteen volunteers– primarily women– who ensured that homebound soldiers and sailors traveling through Athens, in varying conditions of mind and body, received a warm welcome and generous treatment. The ladies of the Canteen set up at the Seaboard depot, where they would greet the men as they deboarded trains and offer them food, drink and conversation– and, occasionally, transportation, as was the case of one young soldier who was driven from the Seaboard depot to the Georgian Hotel by the chairperson of the canteen service, Nellie Stovall Phinizy. According to the conductors of these trains traveling across the country, the ladies of the Athens Canteen established a national reputation.

After obtaining her undergraduate degree from the University of Georgia, Anne remained among the faculty at the Lucy Cobb Institute as the head of the French department, as well as a member of the alumni association’s executive board. She returned to the University for her graduate studies, and was elected as the associate professor of education and dean of women in 1924, succeeding Mary Lyndon, who died several weeks prior.

Anne was regarded as not only a thoroughly capable educator, but a woman of wonderful resourcefulness and executive ability who would exercise a healthy and inspiring influence over the young women students. At the time of her election, Anne was working toward a Master of Arts degree, which she was awarded in June 1925. During her time as dean of women, Anne was involved with the local branch of the American Association of University Women– also referred to as the University Women's Club– at one time serving as their president.

Dan Magill, a columnist for the Athens Banner-Herald, published a column on May 8, 1928, offering his opinion “from the soap box” on the lack of small and conveniently located public parks in Athens. In this column, he highlighted the efforts of the local branch of the American Association of University Women to establish Athens’ first public library– a small but mighty endeavor that served as an example of successful advocacy for public resources:

“For instance, we waited around for years in need of a public library. Every now and then, somebody would start a movement for a library. A meeting would be held and speeches made in which the low price of cotton was attributed to lack of a library. When the time came to discuss funds for building a library everybody wanted to float a big bond issue. That would bring on a little reflecting as to the probable reaction to the tax rate and then everybody would quietly dismiss the idea of a library.

Then, along came the Athens branch of the American Association of University Women. They suggested to a few friends the plan to establish a library here, beginning in a small way and growing up– with the town, so to speak. Well, they succeeded in interesting some people. The money, only a few dollars, was provided. The library was started. It isn’t more than a year old today, but it is well underway, and will be the nucleus of Athens’ big public library some day, if Athens ever has a public library.”

Another article in the Athens Banner-Herald stated that the library committee aimed to buy as many books as possible with available funds, and to be able to grow the library collection over time by renting out those books for a small daily fee. Other organizations and individuals were approached, with people being encouraged to become charter members of the library with a modest contribution of one dollar. The library committee stated in a notice to the public, “As soon as the library assumes sufficient proportions, the association will present it to the city of Athens.”

The University Women’s Club was committed to the betterment of the community, and the proposal of this public library was a point of discussion during one of the Club’s last meetings under Anne’s presidency. Hosted at her home on Hancock Avenue, this meeting also included the discussion of objectives such as educating high school girls on the advantages of a college education; starting a scholarship loan fund for girls to pursue a college education; establishing study groups along the lines of training for parenthood, courses in psychology dealing with the adolescent girl, and studies of music and literature; and sponsoring the establishment of public playgrounds.

Anne’s investment in the people of Athens at large was equal to that which she poured into her role as the dean of women at the University of Georgia. Her progressive, growth oriented thinking and her dedication to the success of the student body earned her immense respect. She taught summer school courses, oversaw the formation of new language courses that would allow students who failed in their first term a second chance, and took a special interest in the young women enrolled at the college. In December 1927, as the ten year anniversary of co-education at the University of Georgia approached, Anne took to the college radio station to speak about the high scholastic averages of the female students. She felt that the number of women enrolled at that time– 362 undergrads, and 23 graduates– showed that women want to take full advantage of co-education. Additionally, she made a point to state that the three highest averages in the 1926 senior class were made by women.

In 1929, Ellen Rhodes became the University of Georgia’s third dean of women. Anne remained at the college as a member of the faculty in the Department of Romance Languages, where she once again taught French. In March of the following year, she and her sister, Mary, and their friend Mary Strahan, made plans to sail to Paris and spend their summer abroad– a journey on which they would embark on June 7, 1930. About a month prior to departing for Paris, Anne was the honored guest of a dinner hosted at the University of Georgia’s Sophomore house– the residents of which had proposed the house be named for Anne a few years earlier. Not long after her return to Georgia, Anne once again took to the college radio station, this time to speak on “Tours and the Loire Valley in France.”

Anne had a vibrant social life, and could often be found on the guest list for dances and dinner parties– on many occasions, as a guest of honor. Her hospitable nature made her no stranger to the receiving lines at various events hosted by the University of Georgia and the civic organizations, honors societies, alumni societies and social clubs with which she was involved, one of these being the Ladies Garden Club. In 1937, for the Club’s first Georgia Garden Pilgrimage, Anne welcomed guests into her home on Hancock Avenue. The home was advertised as one of “Athens’ most interesting homes,” and the article emphasized what an unusual privilege it would be to see the participating homes in their original settings. As a gardener, Anne grew award-winning tricolor camellias.

Along with her frequent civic and social activities, Anne remained dedicated to her position in the Department of Romance Languages at the University of Georgia through the years. On October 15, 1948, an article published in the college newspaper, The Red & Black, detailed a set of scholarship awards that were to be named for her and her successor as dean of women, Ellen Rhodes (McWhorter). From there forward, these scholarship awards were to be presented each spring quarter to the two women’s dormitories with the highest scholastic averages– one on the college’s main campus, and one on the coordinate campus. The first dormitory to receive the Anne Brumby Scholarship Award was Mary Lyndon Hall, whose house president accepted the award following a midnight procession through campus on May 11, 1949.

By 1961, Anne’s health began to decline. At this time, she and her sister, Mary, were still residing together at their family home on Hancock Avenue. Three years later, a personals column in the Athens Banner-Herald, published on February 17, 1964, stated that friends of Anne and Mary would be “interested to know that they are patients of Monroe Nursing Home in Monroe, Georgia.” Anne died only four days later, having cemented for herself a dynamic legacy that would inspire women for generations to come, and a graveside service was held at noon on February 22, at Oconee Hill Cemetery. Four years following her death, Anne was memorialized with the naming of a new University of Georgia dormitory in her honor.