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Inventory of the Edgar Tristram Thompson papers, 1915 - 1985

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Descriptive Summary

Title
Edgar Tristram Thompson papers, 1915 - 1985.
Creator
Thompson, Edgar Tristram, 1900-
Extent
4.5 Linear Feet,
3,000 Items
Repository
University Archives, Duke University
Abstract
Edgar Tristram Thompson taught Sociology at Duke University from 1937 until his retirement in 1970. The papers include correspondence with Herbert Blumer, Charles Ellwood, Eric Hoffer, Everett Hughes, and Howard Jensen; teaching materials from undergraduate and graduate courses in race relations, religion, and social anthropology; lecture notes from Thompson's mentor and sociology instructor Robert E. Park; research on plantations in Hawaii and in Africa as the Hugh le May Fellow at Rhodes University; development and operations of a Black Studies program and Center for Southern Studies at Duke University; short papers discussing race relations at Duke University and racial identity; autobiographical histories of Thompson's students; manuscripts for many books on race relations; records of participation in Alpha Kappa Delta and American Sociological Association conferences; a campus-wide graffiti survey; and addresses to the Mayor's Committee on Interracial Affairs of Durham.
Language
English.
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Administrative Information

Access Restrictions
Patrons must sign the Acknowledgement of Legal Responsibility and Privacy Rights form before using this collection.
In accordance with the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 as amended, Duke University permits students to inspect their education records and limits the disclosure of personally identifiable information from education records.
In off-site storage; 24 hours advance notice is required for use.
Use Restrictions
Copyright for Official University records is held by Duke University; all other copyright is retained by the authors of items in these papers, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Edgar Tristram Thompson papers, University Archives, Duke University.
Provenance
The Edgar Tristram Thompson papers were received by the University Archives as a transfer in 1963-1990.
Processing Information
Processed by Matt Harkins and Emily J. Glenn
Completed October 2002
Encoded by Jill Katte, May 2003
This finding aid is NCEAD compliant.
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Biographical Note

Edgar Tristram Thompson received his instruction in sociology and education from the University of South Carolina and the University of Chicago. Thompson was a Professor of Sociology at Duke University from 1935 to 1970 and founder and chair of the Center for Southern Studies. He conducted plantation research in South Africa from 1965-1968 as a Hugh Le May Fellow at Rhodes University. Thompson served as President of the Southern Sociological Society in 1961 and was a participant in many conferences on race relations. He was an expert on the the anthropology of race and plantation society in the South; he also did extensive research on community structures. His main works were Race Relations and the Race Problem; a Definition and an Analysis (1939), Race and Region (1949), Race: Individual and Collective Behavior (1958) and The Plantation: An International Bibliography (1983).

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Collection Overview

The material in this collection addresses American race relations and scholarly treatment of race from about 1940 to 1970. The bulk of the records date from 1920 to 1970. Included are manuscripts of papers by Thompson, his thesis, a bound volume of selected writings, personal and professional correspondence, printed matter, research notes, proofs, departmental budgets and other materials relating to the study and teaching of sociology. Primary sources include handwritten autobiographical histories written by African American students and surveys from a nationwide graffiti project. Major subjects in the manuscripts include race relations in the United States and in other countries, the South, religion in the South, international plantation systems, and sociological anthropology. There is also a small amount of material on the sociology of language. Also included are histories of the Department of Sociology, articles presented in symposia and conferences by Thompson, correspondence concerning the development, establishment, and operations of the Duke Center for Southern Studies (1965 to 1969) and the formation of a Black Studies program (1969). There are also papers from the Mayor's Committee on Interracial Affairs of Durham from 1945. Other materials include newspaper articles which address problems and violence in race relations and publicity of race relations events at Duke.
In addition to scholarly topics in sociology, this collection introduces perspectives on race relations at Duke University during the politically active 1960s and 1970s. There are a number of articles about Duke-sponsored race relations learning activities. Thompson was a strong advocate of learning about personal racial heritage and understanding social structures and events though that frame. He tried for many years, without success, to gain the Ford Foundation's sponsorship of race relations conferences and seminars; this topic received much attention from scholars in sociology. Correspondents include contemporary sociologists Herbert Blumer, Charles Ellwood, Eric Hoffer, Everett Hughes, and Howard Jensen. Thompson's greatest influence was Robert E. Park, a former instructor who was also an expert on race relations theory and plantation systems.
The Edgar T. Thompson papers were originally unorganized. Folders contained many types of documents covering a variety of topics and were loosely grouped by date according to year of accession of the material. The folders have since been further grouped into several series, and further by date within each series, where applicable. Many items in this collection are undated. A list of Thompson's writing can be found at the front of the bound volume The Papers of Dr. Edgar T. Thompson.
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Subject Headings

These and related materials may be accessed under the following subject headings in the Duke University Libraries online catalog.
List of Series in Collection
Correspondence, 1934-1981.
Lectures, 1951-1952, undated
Student Papers, 1951-1952, undated
Programs of Study, 1930-1970.
Research, 1940-1981.
Conferences, 1966-1969.
Writings, 1932-1985.
Robert E. Park materials, 1920-1976.
Personal Materials, 1930-1977.
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Detailed Description of the Collection

Correspondence, 1934-1981.

Includes personal and professional correspondence from Herbert Blumer, Charles Ellwood, Eric Hoffer, Everett Hughes, and Howard Jensen about curriculum ideas, race relations, activities among colleagues, politics, and comments on papers and presentations.
Arranged by date.

Box 1
   Folder 1
1934-1963
   Folder 2
1964-1965
   Folder 3
1966-1968
   Folder 4
1969-1981

Lectures, 1951-1952, undated

Includes course outlines and reading lists from undergraduate and graduate courses taught by Thompson as Professor of Sociology at Duke University and Northwestern University. The course subjects cover race relations, physical anthropology, racial identity in the United States, and culture. The Readings in Introductory Sociology folders contain short summaries and commentaries of assigned readings for an entire course section.
Arranged by course subject.

   Folder 5
Northwestern University, 1951-1952
   Folder 6-7
Duke University, Readings in Introductory Sociology
   Folder 8
Duke University, Lectures in Race and Culture
   Folder 9
Duke University, Course syllabi and reading lists

Student Papers, 1951-1952, undated

Includes papers written by undergraduate and graduate students of Thompson. Of particular interest are the Negro Life Histories, where Thompson asked students to write autobiographically about their personal experiences with race.
Arranged by date.

   Folder 10
1962-1969
   Folder 11
1976
   Folder 12-13
Negro Life Histories

Programs of Study, 1930-1970.

Includes extensive documentation of years of effort by Thompson and his colleagues to bring a race relations conference to Duke University.
Arranged by program.

   Folder 14
Center for Southern Studies, 1930-1966
   Folder 15
Center for Southern Studies, 1967-1970
   Folder 16
Center for Southern Studies, Budget, 1930-1966
   Folder 17
Center for Southern Studies, Publicity, 1965-1966
   Folder 18
Afro-American Program, 1968-1969

Research, 1940-1981.

Includes field notes, research assignments and assorted correspondence relating to scholarly study of race relations. Thompson followed the work of Robert E. Park while studying intermarriage, plantations, and race relations in Hawaii. Thompson was the Hugh Le May Fellow at Rhodes University in Rhodesia, Africa where he studied plantations and race relations. He later returned to study apartheid and social class in Africa during the summer of 1966. Thompson also conducted local research for a national survey of graffiti at universities around the United States and followed local developments and trends in racial composition of Durham, NC.
Arranged by research topic.

   Folder 19
Africa
   Folder 20-21
Graffiti
   Folder 22-23
Hawaii
   Folder 24
Intermarriage
Box 2
   Folder 25
Literature
   Folder 26
Negro Population of Durham
   Folder 27
Plantations
   Folder 28
Notes

Conferences, 1966-1969.

Included are conference notes, programs, and collected conference papers of events where Thompson was a speaker or organizer. Thompson participated in conferences and symposia of Alpha Kappa Delta and the American Sociological Association on religion, race relations, and race in the South. The Proposals folder includes extensive documentation of years of effort by Thompson and his colleagues to bring a race relations conference to Duke University.
Arranged by topic of conference.

   Folder 29-30
The Changing South, 1966
   Folder 31
American Sociological Association, 1967
   Folder 32
The Bible Belt in Continuity and Change, 1969
   Folder 33
LQC Lamar Society, 1969
   Folder 34
Religion in the Solid South, 1969
   Folder 35
Proposals, 1963-1969
   Folder 36
Miscellaneous [conferences]

Writings, 1932-1985.

Includes drafts of Race Relations and the Race Problem; a Definition and an Analysis (1939), Race and Region (1949), Race: Individual and Collective Behavior (1958) and The Plantation: An International Bibliography (1983) and related correspondence. Also includes short published and unpublished papers, a bound volume of collected papers, and Thompson's dissertation, The Plantation (1932).
Arranged alphabetically by paper title or subject.

   Folder 37
Bibliography on Race Relations
   Folder 38
Book Reviews
   Folder 39
Collecting
   Folder 40
The Concept of Race
   Folder 41
Decency and the Good Old Boy Syndrome
   Folder 42
Dictionary of American History
   Folder 43
Ecology of Race Relations
   Folder 44
Language and Race Relations
   Folder 45
The Negro
   Folder 46
Peoples
   Folder 47
Plantations as a Social System
   Folder 48
The Plantation and its Legacy
   Folder 49
The Plantation in the Pacific Area
   Folder 50
Race Classification
   Folder 51
Race Region
   Folder 52
Race Relations Reader
   Folder 53
Race Relations Reader, Correspondence
   Folder 54
Regional Varieties of Race Relations
   Folder 55
Short Works
   Folder 56
Sociology at Duke University
   Folder 57
US News and World Report
Box 3
   Folder 58
The Papers of Dr. Edgar T. Thompson
   Folder 59
The Plantation

Robert E. Park materials, 1920-1976.

Includes correspondence, lecture notes, reading lists, and general short writings by Robert E. Park, a professor of Sociology at the University of Chicago during the 1930s. Also includes correspondence and drafts related to Park's biography, written by Winifred Raushenbush and edited by Thompson and Everett Hughes.
Arranged by date.

   Folder 60
Biography, 1967-1976
   Folder 61
Lectures, 1920-1934, undated
   Folder 62
Miscellaneous [Park materials], 1917, undated

Personal Materials, 1930-1977.

Includes speeches made by Thompson, notes from Mayor's Committee (Durham, North Carolina) meetings, Kiwanis membership honors, a biographical sketch, and a family genealogy.
   Folder 63
Speeches, 1930-1958, undated
   Folder 64
Mayor's Committee on Interracial Affairs of Durham
   Folder 65
Kiwanis
   Folder 66
Thompson family genealogy