Pauline Oberdorfer Minor

• Name — Pauline Oberdorfer Minor • Born — c. 1885 • Birthplace — Charlottesville, Virginia, U.S. • Died — January 23, 1963 (aged about 77 or 78) • Place of death — Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. • Resting Place — Eden Cemetery, Collingdale, Pennsylvania, U.S. • Known for — Co-founder of Delta Sigma Theta • Occupation — Mezzo-soprano, composer • Alma Mater — Howard University

Pauline Oberdorfer was born around 1885 in Charlottesville, Virginia. Her mother worked as a washerwoman. Oberdorfer was sent to further her education in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and was raised by an aunt and uncle. She did not know her parents nor her exact date of birth. In 1910, she graduated from the Philadelphia High School for Girls. She was a member of the Union Baptist Church in Philadelphia, sang in the choir and through the influence of Lewis B. Moore, the dean of the Howard Teacher's College, obtained a church scholarship to attend Howard University. • Illustration — Oberdorfer Minor (middle row, left) along with 18 other Founders of Delta Sigma Theta in 1913 At Howard, Oberdorfer along with 22 fellow students, co-founded the Delta Sigma Theta sorority on January 13, 1913. She served as the first treasurer of the Alpha Chapter. She served as president of the Teacher's Club at Howard for one year and her achievements were noted in the NAACP's Crisis magazine edited by W.E.B. DuBois. After graduating as valedictorian of the class of 1914, she pursued a teaching career in Pennsylvania, Alabama and South Carolina. Oberdorfer also embarked on a career as a mezzo-soprano recitalist and composer of spirituals. Her book, Soul Echoes featured forty of her compositions including "Get Off the Judgment Seat" and "My Lord Is a Refuge". She married a Mr. Minor, but they divorced. Oberdorfer Minor died on January 23, 1963. She was working as a housekeeper when she died and was interred in a pauper's grave alongside three other people in Eden Cemetery in Collingdale, Pennsylvania.