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[Identification of item], Clinton White Toms Memorial Scrapbook, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University.
The Clinton White Toms Memorial Scrapbook were received by the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library as a gift in 2010.
Processed by Meghan Lyon, July 2010
Encoded by Meghan Lyon, July 2010
This collection is minimally processed: materials may not have been ordered and described beyond their original condition.
Descriptive sources and standards used to create this inventory:
This finding aid is NCEAD compliant.
Accessions in this finding aid: 2010-0084
Clinton White Toms was born in 1868 in Hertford, North Carolina. He graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill at age 21, and became a principal at a Durham high school. In 1894, he became Superintendant of Schools in Durham. He was soon wooed by the Duke family, and left the education system to become a manager at American Tobacco's Durham plant. Following the breakup of the company, Toms joined the newly formed Liggett & Myers as a vice president and as a board member in 1911. In 1928, he was elected president of the company. He remained president until his death in 1936.
Toms was also a generous philanthropist and benefactor to many North Carolina charities and organizations. He served as a trustee of Duke University from 1901-1932. He and his wife, Mary Newby Toms, had seven children, six of whom lived to adulthood. Toms is buried in Maplewood Cemetary in Durham, North Carolina.
The collection consists of a 13x15 inch scrapbook, unbound, containing 19 double-sided pages. The book includes materials from Toms' memorial service and death, including letters of condolence (all within their original envelopes), calling cards, newspaper clippings, church bulletins, and obituaries. It appears to have been accumulated and assembled by Mrs. Mary Toms Erwin, one of Toms' daughters, as she is the main recipient of the condolence notes.
Also pasted in the scrapbook are letters and newspaper articles regarding the deaths of Clinton Toms' wife, Mary Newby Toms, in 1925, and his son, George, in 1926. Toms is usually acknowledging or thanking doctors or other friends for their kindness during those tragedies. The newspaper articles tend to discuss scholarships or other donations Toms has made in honor of his lost family members.
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