Mamie Morrow

Mary Ellen "Mamie" Morrow (born fall 1871) was the first girl born in the city of Birmingham.

Mamie was born to Judge John Calhoun Morrow and Mary Antoinette Walker Morrow at their home near Alice Furnace in the fall of 1871. According to a later news report, James Powell "claimed the right to name the child. The parents allowed him to do so, and she was baptized Mary Ellen, for Col. Powell's only daughter."

The Birmingham Chronicle went on to describe the then 13-year-old Mamie as "one of those healthy, spirited, gentle girls who win their way into every heart. She does all that she does as well as it could be done. She sings well, plays well, dances well, and stands foremost in her studies," and to proclaim that "the city is her god-mother and will watch over her. As fair as a flower and pure as a lily, the city is proud of her and she is an honor to it."

Her brother, Hugh, served as a United States senator.

References

• Birmingham Chronicle (September 19, 1885)