Rencher Nicholas Harris papers, 1851-1980 and undated, bulk 1926-1965
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Summary
- Creator:
- Harris, Rencher Nicholas, 1900-1965
- Abstract:
- African American civic leader during the period following the Brown decision of 1954 and the Civil Rights Movement. Harris was the first African American city councilman in Durham, N.C., and the first black man to sit on the Durham County Board of Education. The Rencher Nicholas Harris Papers span the years from 1851 to 1980, with the bulk dating from 1926 to 1965. The collection consists mainly of clippings, correspondence, legal papers, photographs, printed materials, journals and diaries, scrapbooks, oversize maps, and reports relating to Harris' work in political and educational affairs in Durham, North Carolina in the 1950s and early 1960s as a member of the City Council and the School Board, with emphasis on school desegregation, civil rights, and race relations in Durham. Also represented is Harris' business career in banking, insurance, and real estate, his role as an official of the Bankers' Fire Insurance Company, and his civic activities, including leadership roles in the NAACP, Lincoln Hospital, and North Carolina Mutual Insurance, and Mechanics and Farmers Bank, all serving African Americans in Durham. Some biographical materials, family papers, and correspondence also relate to his wife, Plassie Williams Harris. Part of the John Hope Franklin Research Center for African and African American History and Culture at Duke University.
- Extent:
- 16.5 Linear Feet
2,112 Items - Language:
- Material in English
- Collection ID:
- RL.00515
Background
- Scope and content:
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The Rencher Nicholas Harris Papers span the years from 1851 to 1980, with the bulk dating from 1926 to 1965. The collection consists mainly of clippings, correspondence, legal papers, photographs, printed materials, journals and diaries, scrapbooks, and reports relating to Harris' work in political and educational affairs in Durham, North Carolina in the 1950s and early 1960s as a member of the City Council and the School Board, with emphasis on school desegregation, civil rights, and race relations in Durham. Also represented is Harris' business career in banking, insurance, and real estate, his role as an official of the Bankers' Fire Insurance Company, and his civic activities, including leadership roles in the NAACP, Lincoln Hospital, and North Carolina Mutual Insurance, all in Durham. Some biographical materials and correspondence also relate to his wife, Plassie Williams Harris. In detailing the business and government official activities of Durham's first African American city councilman, the first black man to sit on the Durham County Board of Education, and an active, if rather moderate, African American civic leader during the period following the Brown decision of 1954 and the Civil Rights Movement, this collection is especially significant for the documentation it offers on the problems of city government and race relations in the mid-twentieth-century South. Includes a large group of oversize maps of Durham, N.C. Part of the John Hope Franklin Research Center for African and African American History and Culture at Duke University.
- Biographical / historical:
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Chronology List Date Event 1900 October 7 Born in Abingdon, Virginia1917 Graduated from Corey Memorial Institute in Portsmouth, Virginia1917-1918 Attended Virginia Union University of Richmond1919-1920 Attended Northwestern University School of Commerce1921 First employed by Banker's Fire Insurance Company1922 Married Plassie Williams of Durham, North Carolina1935 Appointed as Vice-Secretary of Banker's Fire Insurance Company1949 Ran for Durham City Council and was defeated1953 Elected to Durham City Council1957 Declined to run for a second term to City Council1958 Accepted appointment to fill an unexpired term on the Durham School Board1959 Reappointment for four-year term on School Board1962 Resigned from School Board due to ill health1965 January 4 Died in Durham, N.C. - Acquisition information:
- The Rencher Nicholas Harris Papers were received by the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book Manuscript Library as a gift in 1966.
- Processing information:
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Processed by Aaron Thornburg, May 2009
Encoded by Aaron Thornburg, Paula Jeannet, May 2009
Accession 66-50 is described in this finding aid.
Updated by Jessica Carew and Paula Jeannet in preparation for digitization, October 2011
- Arrangement:
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The collection is arranged in twelve series, of which Volumes and Scrapbooks and Durham City Council are the largest. The much smaller groupings are: Clippings; Correspondence; Genealogy and Biography; Insurance and Banking; Legal Papers; Miscellany; North Carolina College; Photographs; Printed Materials; and Speeches. There is also a group of oversize materials that were separated from the main collection and rehoused.
- Physical location:
- For current information on the location of these materials, please consult the Library's online catalog.
- Rules or conventions:
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Subjects
Click on terms below to find related finding aids on this site. For other related materials in the Duke University Libraries, search for these terms in the Catalog.
- Subjects:
- Municipal governance -- North Carolina -- Records and correspondence
Insurance companies -- North Carolina -- Durham
Public Schools -- North Carolina -- Durham -- History
Race relations -- Political aspects
African Americans -- North Carolina -- Durham -- Social conditions
Banks and banking -- North Carolina -- Durham
Civil rights movements -- Southern States
Education -- North Carolina -- Durham
African American businesspeople -- North Carolina -- Durham
African American politicians -- North Carolina -- Durham
African Americans -- Economic conditions -- North Carolina
African Americans -- North Carolina -- Durham -- History
School integration -- United States
School integration -- North Carolina -- Durham
Real estate business -- North Carolina -- Durham - Format:
- Journals
Maps
Scrapbooks
Diaries - Names:
- National Association for the Advancement of Colored People -- Durham Branch (Durham, N.C.)
Lincoln Hospital (Durham, N.C.)
North Carolina Mutual Life Insurance Company
Mechanics and Farmers Bank (Durham, N.C.)
Bankers' Fire Insurance Company -- Employees
Harris, Rencher Nicholas, 1900-1965
Harris, Plassie Williams - Places:
- Durham (N.C.) -- Commerce
Durham (N.C.) -- Race relations
Durham (N.C.) -- Politics and government
Durham (N.C.) -- History
Contents
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Collection is open for research.
- Terms of access:
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The copyright interests in this collection have not been transferred to Duke University. Digitized documents are made available by Duke University Libraries for the purpose of research, teaching, and private study. For all other uses, such as commercial uses, researchers must contact the Rubenstein Library to request permission.
Digitized materials from this collection are made available for use in research, teaching and private study. The digital reproductions have been made available through an evaluation of public domain status, permissions from the rights' holders, and authorization under the law including fair use as codified in 17 U.S.C. ยง 107. Although these materials are publicly accessible for these limited purposes, they may not all be in the public domain. Users are responsible for determining if permission for re-use is necessary and for obtaining such permission. Individuals who have concerns about online access to specific content should contact the Rubenstein Library.
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- Preferred citation:
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[Identification of item], Rencher Nicholas Harris Papers, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library