Pine Mountain Settlement School
Series 19: STUDENTS
Student, September 1936 – September 1937
Correspondence, July 1936 – September 1937
Robert (“Bobbie”) Phillips (1925-1994)

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TAGS: Robert Phillips, Bobbie Phillips. Lida Christian, Lida Phillips, Christian family, Ruth Christian, Lela Christian, Lucille Christian, student application to PMSS, Little School, E.K. Wilson, Esther Weller, student counselors

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ROBERT PHILLIPS Student

When Robert (“Bobbie”) Phillips was ready to enter fourth grade in 1936, his mother, Mrs. Lida (Martin) Phillips, earnestly attempted to send him to Pine Mountain Settlement School, sending letters to Director Glyn Morris and completing the School’s Student Application Blank. Two of his five sisters, Ruth and Lucille were already PMSS students, an understandable reason to wish that Phillips could study there as well.

At first Robert’s application was rejected because, at 11 years old, he was too young, according to Morris’s letter to Mrs. Phillips, dated August 14, 1936. Morris suggested that she try Hindman Settlement School, Hindman, Kentucky, or Red Bird Settlement School at Beverly, Kentucky. 

Soon after, Mrs. Phillips was informed that a vacancy had opened at “Little School” and that Robert was invited to become a PMSS student after all. 

Little School was in operation off and on for various purposes throughout the School’s 100+ years of existence. By the 1990s, Little School became a program for pre-school age children of low-income families. In a letter to Esther Weller, a prospective Little School employee, dated June 5, 1936, Morris describes the purpose of Little School at that time. 

The Little School is primarily for a few of the local children who live too far away from the county school to make it convenient for them to attend…..Then too, the Little School takes care of a few of the children from our boarding school who cannot carry the work in the upper departments. 

Once Robert’s application was accepted, he received instructions from Everett K. Wilson, PMSS counselor. In a letter to Robert, he writes that Robert should bring $10 for the entrance fee, $1.00 for the breakage fee, and his first month’s tuition of $5.00, if possible. Wilson would also send a Pine Mountain catalogue to be read carefully by Bobbie and his parents. Before arriving at the School, Wilson suggests that Robert visit a dentist, have his eyes examined, and tonsils removed, if necessary.

“…[W]e understand that you intend to come [and also] withstand the pangs of homesickness…and that you will put forth every effort in your work here. We also expect the support and cooperation of your parents in this.”

According to teachers’ reports on Robert’s progress at School, he did have a bout of homesickness but soon recovered, entering into School life with enthusiasm. Wilson summarized these reports in a December 23, 1936, letter to Mrs. Phillip: “Bobbie is quite sincere in his efforts to learn…. He likes to read and does so with fair comprehension….” Wilson concludes that “Bobbie is making a satisfactory adjustment to life at Pine Mountain. His first case of homesickness has been well overcome…. Both teachers and students are very fond of Bobbie….” One teacher’s evaluation stated that Robert ““Plans very definitely on being an aviator or a school teacher.”

In August 1937, Robert and his sisters, Ruth and Lucille. were welcomed back to Pine Mountain in a letter from counselor Esther Weller. She mentioned that Robert’s sisters “had worked some time toward your tuition….”

However, by the end of Robert’s first school year at Pine Mountain, his mother continued to be concerned about paying their Pine Mountain debt. In July, she asked Weller if “Bobby” could work off his debt during the weeks before school begins. The debt concerns, and the fact that she had undergone a costly operation, may have been the reasons that Robert did not return for his second school year, or any time afterward.

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Robert (“Bobbie”) Phillips was born on October 1, 1925, in Wallins (Harlan County), Kentucky. His father, George Washington Phillips (1882-1963), was a coal miner. His mother, Lida Della (Martin) Phillips (1892-1969), later signed her letters “(Mrs.) Lida Christian” when she married James Cornelius (Neal) Christian. They had three sons and five daughters. At least three of the daughters attended Pine Mountain Settlement School: Lida Lucille Christian, Ruth Lena Christian, and Lela May Christian.

Cpl Robert Phillips died on April 20, 1994, in Lindside, West Virginia.

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See Also:
ROBERT PHILLIPS Correspondence and Student Records

LELA CHRISTIAN Student
LUCILLE CHRISTIAN Student
RUTH CHRISTIAN Student

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Title	ROBERT PHILLIPS
Alt. Title	Bobbie Phillips ; Bob Phillips ; Bobby Phillips ;
Identifier	https://pinemountainsettlement.net/?page_id=119402
Creator	Pine Mountain Settlement School, Pine Mountain, KY.
Alt. Creator	Ann Angel Eberhardt ; Helen Hayes Wykle ;
Subject Keyword	Robert Phillips, PMSS students, Bobbie Phillips, Lida Phillips, Lida Christian, Christian family, Ruth Christian, Lela Christian, Lucille Christian, student application to PMSS, Little School, E.K. Wilson, Esther Weller, student counselors, forest fire, teacher evaluations, work appraisals, achievement tests
Subject LCSH	Phillips, Robert,  — 1925 – 1994. Pine Mountain Settlement School (Pine Mountain, Ky.) — History. Harlan County (Ky.) — History. Education — Kentucky — Harlan County. Rural schools — Kentucky — History. Schools — Appalachian Region, Southern.
Date	2024-MAY-14
Publisher	Pine Mountain Settlement School, Pine Mountain, KY.
Contributor	n/a
Type	Collections ; text ; image ;
Format	Original and copies of documents and correspondence in file folders in filing cabinet.
Source	Series 19: STUDENTS
Language	English
Relation	Is related to: Pine Mountain Settlement School Collections, Series 19; STUDENTS.
Coverage Temporal	October 1, 1925 – September 30, 1937
Coverage Spatial	Pine Mountain, KY ; Harlan County, KY ;
Rights	Any display, publication, or public use must credit the Pine Mountain Settlement School. Copyright retained by the creators of certain items in the collection, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.
Donor	n/a
Description	Core documents, correspondence, writings, and administrative papers of Robert Phillips ; clippings, photographs, books by or about Robert Phillips ;
Acquisition	n/d
Citation	“[Identification of Item],” [Collection Name] [Series Number, if applicable]. Pine Mountain Settlement School Institutional Papers. Pine Mountain Settlement School, Pine Mountain, KY.
Processed By	Helen Hayes Wykle ; Ann Angel Eberhardt ;
Last Updated
Sources	“Passages: Lucille Christian McKinney ‘43 – Aug. 14, 2017.” Berea College Magazine, Winter 2018. https://magazine.berea.edu/winter-2018/passages-14/ “Cpl Robert Phillips.” FamilySearch. FamilySearch.org/en/tree/person/details/2WFG-GM4. Internet resource. “United States, Census, 1940”, FamilySearch. (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K7TW-WVM : accessed May 24, 2025. Entry for Lydia Christian and Ruby Christian, 1940. Internet resource. “United States, Census, 1930”, FamilySearch. (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XM6R-BWL : accessed May 24, 2025. Entry for G W Phillips and Lida Phillips, 1930. Internet resource.

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