Edwin Graves Wilson

Edwin Graves Wilson, a loving husband, father, grandfather, gifted professor, administrator, and dear friend to many, passed away on March 13, 2024, at his home in the Wake Forest neighborhood in Winston-Salem, N.C., surrounded by his family. He was 101 years old.

Wilson was born in Leaksville (now Eden), N.C., in Rockingham County, to William B. Wilson and Annie Saunders Wilson. He had four wonderful older siblings – Lawrence, Elizabeth, Thomas, and Warren.

Following graduation from Leaksville High School, Wilson entered Wake Forest College (then located in Wake Forest, N.C.) in 1939. He majored in English and history and distinguished himself as a scholar and all-night bridge player. After his graduation in 1943, he followed two of his brothers into the military as he joined the Navy; he was commissioned as an ensign and assigned to a destroyer escort in the Pacific theater of World War II. His ship saw action in the battles of Iwo Jima and Okinawa and in the Philippines. At the end of the war, Wilson was a lieutenant (j.g), serving as executive officer aboard the USS Raymond.

Wilson attended graduate school at Harvard University on the G.I. Bill, earning a master’s degree in 1948 and a doctorate in English in 1952. His Cambridge adventures included poetry readings by T.S. Eliot, Robert Frost, and Dylan Thomas, as well as a road trip with a friend to Mexico.

In 1951, Wilson returned to Wake Forest College, where he remained for the rest of his life. A professor of English literature, he specialized in British Romantic Poetry and his courses were much loved. He was appointed dean in 1960, and from 1967-1990, he served as the university’s first provost. In 1992, Wake Forest named the Wilson Wing of the Z. Smith Reynolds Library in his honor. In 2010, he completed the fifth volume of The History of Wake Forest University. Former students and colleagues wrote, visited, and called him regularly until his last days – evidence of the genuine lifelong connection he had with generations of Demon Deacons.

At his core, Wilson was a teacher who loved spending time with students. He was genuinely interested in people, valued them, and never turned down an opportunity to get to know someone. He was liberal with his kindness and friendship. Through his smile and warm spirit, he offered encouragement and showed joy.

He treasured literature and the arts. He served on numerous arts boards, including the Piedmont Opera Theatre, the Winston-Salem Arts Council, the North Carolina Arts Council, and Reynolda House Museum of American Art. He was a supporter of athletics and served as president of the Atlantic Coast Conference for several years. He was a long-time member of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, and later in his life a member of St. Anne’s Episcopal Church. In 2002, he received North Carolina’s highest civilian honor, the North Carolina Award for Public Service.

In 1964, Wilson married Emily Louise Herring, a teacher and writer with whom he shared an incomparable life. They had three children: Edwin “Ed” Graves (Laurie) Wilson, Jr., of Hillsborough; Sarah “Sally” Elizabeth Wilson (Carolyn Stevenson) of Durham; and Julie Cathleen Wilson (John Steele) of Swannanoa. Spending time with them and his four grandchildren – Edwin “Buddy” Graves Wilson, III; Harry Clyde Wilson; Maria Elizabeth Wilson; and Eleanor Louise Wilson – provided wonderful memories. Together, the family loved to watch plays and movies (especially Wilson’s favorite “Casablanca”); enjoy Charades, Pit, and other games; read and exchange books; and travel widely – down a river in Ukraine, through Italy and France, around England, and even to search for books in Archer City, Texas.

Surviving, in addition to his wife of 59 years, children and grandchildren, numerous nieces, nephews, and cousins, are generations of former students, colleagues, and friends who knew and loved him. He was preceded in death by his parents and his four siblings.

The family would like to thank his amazing caregivers, including those from Trellis Supportive Care.

The family will have a private burial service. A memorial service will be held on Friday, May 3 at 11 am at Wait Chapel on the Wake Forest Campus.

In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to a literary or arts organization, or a charity of your choice.

Online condolences may be left for the family at www.fairfuneralhome.com.