Born in Southwest Arkansas, Gammage supported himself through grade school after his mother's untimely death.
He became a top debater in high school, and while a student attendee at court trials, Gammage caught the attention of a clerk who promoted him as a deputy.
In 1918, Gammage shifted his studies from law to school administration and, in 1922, he completed a master's degree.
[2] During the summer, he earned extra money teaching sessions at Northern Arizona State Teachers College in Flagstaff.
As economic conditions worsened during The Great Depression, Gammage made it possible for students suffering "hard times" to pay their expenses through barter; dairy cows and potatoes underwrote room and board.