Florida Southern College

Roux Library

Behind the Name: Edge Hall
Elliott Erastus (E. E.) Edge

E. E. Edge

E. E. Edge (1870-1934) served for many years on the Board of Trustees of Florida Southern College. Along with trustees E. T. Roux and L. N. Pipkin, E. E. Edge was instrumental in assisting the College secure a loan of $250,000 to fund the building program at the new Lakeland campus. He was remembered in The Story of Southern College (1935) as "an energetic and honest business man, a loyal churchman, an unostentatious and liberal contributor to worthy causes and an exemplary Christian gentleman who inspired admiration, respect and confidence among all that knew him."

E. E. Edge founded the Edge Mercantile Company in Groveland, Florida in 1904, served as the town's first mayor, and was a founder of the Lake County Historical Society.

The Edge Memorial United Methodist Church in Groveland was built in 1920 and rebuilt in 1962.

E. E. Edge married Comelia Evelyn Patterson (1876-1954) in 1890. Their son Lacy Day Edge (1891-1971) also served on the Board of Trustees for many years.

Edge Hall was constructed in 1922, and was originally known as Social Hall, one of the first two new buildings constructed on the Lakeland campus. Along with the Dormitory for Women (later renamed Joseph-Reynolds Hall), this spectacular building formed the core of the academic and social life of Southern College.

The basement, which overlooked Lake Hollingsworth, contained the science department. Parlors and the dining room were on the first floor, and the second floor featured classrooms and a chapel.

Social Hall was rededicated in 1935 as Edge Hall in memory of Mr. Edge. In some instances the name has appeared as Edge Memorial Hall.