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UNIVERSITY President Jerry Bawcom congratulates Genevieve Gregg.
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UMHB graduate honors contribution
of her historic great-grandfather
___BELTON--Genevieve Gregg's great-grandfather could not have graduated from a Texas university, so the degree she earned Dec. 15 at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor was achieved to honor him, she said.
___Gregg is the great-granddaughter of Jeff Hamilton, a former personal servant to Sam Houston and a caretaker at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor in the late 1880s. A state historical marker honoring his life is located on the Belton campus.
___Gregg wanted to honor her great-grandfather's memory as she graduated, so she wrote a letter to university administrators explaining, "My great-grandfather could not graduate from college, so I am doing it for him."
___"I felt it was important to finish, because he stressed education and tried his best to educate himself," Gregg said. "He was an avid reader and loved to read books that the college professors would give him."
___Hamilton was the first African-American in Texas to receive a historical marker. It describes how Hamilton was born into slavery but as a child was rescued from a cruel master by Houston. "Jeff Hamilton was the personal servant to Houston during his term as governor from 1859 to 1861. He was at Houston's bedside when he died in 1863."
___Hamilton later became the custodian for Baylor Female College when it was located in Independence, Texas. He moved to Belton with the university in 1886 and worked there until 1889.
___Gregg recieved a bachelor of science degree from UMHB. "I always wanted to graduate from UMHB," she said. "I wanted to keep the close ties my family has with the university."
___As the first descendant of Hamilton's to graduate from the school, she said, "I feel graduating from the university is a way to honor his memory and remain part of his legacy."
___During the commencement ceremony, President Jerry Bawcom presented Gregg with the university's Gold Service Medallion to recognize the honor she was paying to her great-grandfather.
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