The naming of a woman to the post was not initially considered by trustees Governor Thomas Walter Bickett, Secretary of State J. Bryan Grimes, and Superintendent of Public Instruction J. Y. Joyner.

[1] Walter Clark, Chief Justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court, wrote a letter to the trustees stating, "It is true, as someone has said, she is guilty of 'the atrocious crime of being a woman,' but she is a taxpayer, a good citizen, experienced and thoroughly competent.

"[1] On May 31, 1918, Broughton was appointed in interim due to the North Carolina General Assembly being out of session.

[1] Starting in 1944, her genealogical reports collection also included marriages and death notices from 1799 to 1825 as published in the Raleigh Register.

[1] She also included marriages and deaths from the 19th century as published by the North Carolina State Gazette.