Ava Carroll Waller (August 8, 1927 – October 28, 2014) was an American

preservationist Preservationist is generally understood to mean ''historic preservationist'': one who advocates to preserve architecturally or historically significant buildings, structures, objects, or sites from demolition or degradation. Historic preservation us ...

, writer and former

First Lady First lady is an unofficial title usually used for the wife, and occasionally used for the daughter or other female relative, of a non-monarchical A monarchy is a form of government in which a person, the monarch, is head of state fo ...

of the U.S. state of Mississippi. Waller served as the First Lady of Mississippi from 1972 to 1976 during the administration of her husband, the late Governor

Bill Waller William Lowe Waller Sr. (October 21, 1926 – November 30, 2011) was an American politician and attorney. A Democrat, Waller served as the Governor of Mississippi from 1972 to 1976. Born near Oxford, Mississippi to a farming family, Waller ...

. Carroll Waller spearheaded the restoration of the

Mississippi Governor's Mansion The Mississippi Governor's Mansion is the official residence of the governor of Mississippi which is currently Tate Reeves. It is located in downtown Jackson, Mississippi, south of the Mississippi State Capitol, at the south end of Smith Park. ...

in Jackson, Mississippi. She also led the move to have the Governor's Mansion designated as a National Historic Landmark in 1975, which was only the second time that a governor's residence had been listed as a NHL in the U.S. Additionally, Waller helped to purchase and restore the Manship House in Jackson. In 1980, the Mississippi Historical Society awarded Carroll Waller its Award of Merit for her work in historic preservation in the state. Carroll Waller was the mother of William L. Waller Jr., who has served as the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Mississippi since 2009. Waller was born Ava Carroll Overton in McComb, Mississippi, on August 8, 1927, to Dr. Clayton Justice Overton and Edith Watkins Overton. She graduated from Central High School in Jackson, Mississippi, and received a degree from Mississippi College in

Clinton Clinton is an English toponymic surname, indicating one's ancestors came from English places called Glympton or Glinton.Hanks, P. & Hodges, F. ''A Dictionary of Surnames''. Oxford University Press, 1988 Clinton has frequently been used as a given ...

. She worked as an instructor at

Belhaven College Belhaven University (Belhaven or BU) is a private evangelical Christian university in Jackson, Mississippi. Founded in 1883, the university offers traditional majors, programs of general studies, and pre-professional programs in Christian Ministr ...

(now Belhaven University) and a salesperson at the House of Overton in Jackson early in her career.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Waller, Carroll 1927 births 2014 deaths First Ladies and Gentlemen of Mississippi Historical preservationists American non-fiction writers Mississippi College alumni Writers from Jackson, Mississippi Belhaven University