Gussie Nell Davis was born in Farmersville, Texas, on November 4, 1906. She was a talented musician who graduated from what is now known as Texas Women's University,majoring in Physical Education. She then earned a Masters degree in Science at University of Southern California. She was then asked to come to Greenville, Texas, to become a P.E. teacher and a sponsor for the pep squad in 1928. She founded the Flaming Flashes, which was named the first "twirl and dance group," "dancing pep squad," or the first "dance and twirl organization that performed drills and did dance steps." Some people consider them the first drill team, but most people believe that the Kilgore Rangerettes were.
In 1958, Miss Davis teamed up with Dr. Irving Dreibrodt to start a school (American Dance/Drill team) to teach drill teams not only routines for the field, but the importance of being ladies. It is now one of the largest dance companies of the country. Gussie was inducted into the Texas Woman's Hall Of Fame in 1990. She was named Honorary Citizen of Fort Worth in 1965. Miss Davis received the International Civitan Citizenship Award in 1969, the Cotton Bowl Association 25th Anniversary Participation Award in 1974 and a State of Texas House of Representatives Certificate of Citation. She was honored as a Distinguished Alumni of Texas Woman's University in 1978 and had a woman's dormitory at Kilgore College named for her. In January of 1996 she was named posthumously to the TDDTEA Texas Drill Team Hall of Fame. Miss Davis was most definitely the "First Lady of Drill Team."
Gussie Nell Davis eventually retired as the director of the Rangerettes in 1970. On December 20, 1993, she died in her sleep at age 87 in Kilgore, Texas. She wanted nothing less than perfection and that is what she got! She touched the lives of and was a hero to many. Gussie Nell will never be forgotten.