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Patrons must sign the Acknowledgement of Legal Responsibility and Privacy Rights form before using this collection.
Records, such as search committee files or others pertaining to employment where individuals are identified, are closed for 70 years.
Records of the University's Board of Trustees which have been existence for at least fifty years are available for scholarly research with the permission of the University Archivist. Access to records which have been in existence for less than fifty years shall be granted only by special permission, in writing, from the Board of Trustees.
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.
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.
[Identification of item], Board of Trustees Records, University Archives, Duke University.
The Board of Trustees Records were received by the University Archives as transfers from 1974-2012.
Processed by Valerie Gillispie
Completed March 25, 2005
Encoded by Valerie Gillispie, March 25, 2005
Updated by Jill Katte, March 2006
Updated by Sherrie Bowser, March 2008
Updated by Kimberly Sims, November 2012
This finding aid is NCEAD compliant.
The Board of Trustees of Duke University was originally formed when the Union Institute Society's 1839 constitution established a body with responsibility for the oversight of the affairs of Union Institute Academy of Randolph County, North Carolina. The Board was legally recognized in 1841 by an act of the North Carolina General Assembly incorporating Union Institute Academy as a private school for boys. In 1851, the Union Institute Academy changed to become Normal College, an institution dedicated to the training of teachers. The Board members remained largely the same, but new members were also added. In 1856, the Board approved resolutions to allow Normal College to become the official college of the North Carolina Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South. With the change came more Board members representing the Methodist Church, and a new charter was approved by the Board. In 1859, Normal College changed its name to "Trinity College." A set of bylaws was also drawn up, and these by-laws form the basis of Duke University's present-day bylaws.
In 1892, Trinity College moved to Durham County to take advantage of a more urban setting and to seek more financial support. In 1924, the University received a major endowment from James B. Duke, who along with his father, Washington Duke, and brother, Benjamin Duke, had made a fortune in tobacco and power companies. In his honor, the Board of Trustees changed the name of Trinity College to Duke University (although the undergraduate institution still retains the name Trinity College).
Although the bylaws of the Board have been modified over the years, the Duke University Board of Trustees is still the body that makes the university's major administrative and strategic decisions. The Board consists of 36 members, including the current president of Duke University. As of 2005, the Bylaws of Duke University stated, "The thirty-six elected Trustees shall be elected as follows: twelve by the North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church; twelve by the Western North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church; and twelve by the graduates of Duke University." The Board is administered by the Office of the University Secretary. To read the current bylaws of Duke University and to see a list of current Board members, visit the University Secretary's webpage at: http://www.duke.edu/web/ous/
The Board of Trustees records contain minutes, agendas, correspondence, reports, subject files, trustee handbooks, and other records of the Board and Executive, standing, and ad hoc committees. The minutes include reports, correspondence, resolutions, recommendations for the conferring of degrees, for employment and renewal of employment, and other material. Reports include those made by University officers, Board committees, and outside consultants. The Board's records also include statements of funds and scholarships, investment reports, correspondence, audits, bylaws, petitions from students, and other material. The minute book covering June 1901-June 1910 was destroyed by fire in 1911, but some handwritten minutes for the period were preserved and have been typed out. There are gaps in the minutes for the period 1925-1930.
The collection is divided into three main sections: Trinity College, Duke University, and Duke University Unprocessed Materials. The Trinity College series begins in 1860 and ends in 1924, the year Trinity College became Duke University. There are minute books, topical files, and yearly files. Because a fire destroyed the minute book covering June 1901-June 1910, some handwritten minutes have been transcribed; these can be found in the yearly files.
The second series, Duke University, covers 1924 to the present. It includes minutes of the Board and the Executive Committee, general records of the Board and the Executive Committee, reports, financial records, committees, and unprocessed materials. All materials less than 50 years old are closed except by special permission, in writing, from the Board of Trustees.
The third series, Duke University Unprocessed Materials, consists primarily of materials less than fifty years old, and so are restricted except by permission from the Board of Trustees.
These and related materials may be accessed under the following subject headings in the Duke University Libraries online catalog.
Trinity College was the forerunner of Duke University, and existed from 1859 to 1924. The Trinity College series includes minutes, topical files, yearly files, and Building Committee files.
The minutes of Trinity College have been bound into volumes. The volume that covered the dates after February 1900 and before June 1911 for the Board of Trustees was destroyed by fire. Some information about the meetings held during these years can be found in the yearly files. The minutes are arranged chronologically, and Board of Trustees minutes are followed by Executive Committee minutes. The volumns within Box 1 were removed and boxed individually. The folders were added to Box 2. As such, Box 1 no longer exists (as of December 2012).
These minutes represent the beginning of the Duke family's involvement.
Volume also includes minutes and reports of faculty meetings.
The Topics files are arranged alphabetically. Note that some of the contents of the file "Trustee Lists" overlap with the establishment of Duke University.
These were monetary pledges to the Board of Trustees made by Durham citizens in an effort to get Trinity College to move to Durham instead of Raleigh.
Includes chronologically arranged lists followed by summary lists.
These yearly files include correspondence, handwritten and transcribed minutes, financial information, President's Reports, Treasurer's Reports, Headmaster's Reports, and other materials. Sometimes financial statements or other groups of materials were separated within a year; these materials are still organized chronologically, but placed after the general yearly file.
The Building Committee helped plan Trinity College's move from Randolph County to Durham County.
This book also contains student grades dating 1893 to 1906.
The Duke University series contains materials generated after Trinity College officially became Duke University in December 1924. The series is organized into several subseries: Meeting Minutes, Executive Committee Meeting Minutes, Board of Trustees General Records, Executive Committee General Records, Committees, Reports, Financial Records, and Unprocessed Materials. All materials less than 50 years old are closed except by special permission, in writing, from the Board of Trustees.
The minutes of the Board of Trustees have been bound into volumes for ease of use. These volumes contain the officially recorded minutes of the Board. For supplementary materials, see the Board of Trustees General Records subseries.
These minutes were received from the Duke Endowment (A91-57) and duplicate the contents of some of the volumes above.
The minutes of the Executive Committee have been bound into volumes for ease of use. These volumes contain the officially recorded minutes of the Executive Committee. For supplementary materials, see the Executive Committee General Records subseries.
These minutes were received from the Duke Endowment (A91-57) and duplicate the contents of some of the volumes above.
The Board of Trustees General Records subseries contains both topical and yearly files on matters related to the Board and its meetings.
The Topics subseries contains a variety of materials on issues of relevance to the Board of Trustees. The Topics have been placed in alphabetical order. Please note that the Topics subseries in the Trinity College series contains a folder called "Trustee lists" that has information about trustees up through 1948.
Yearly Files include agendas, correspondence, reports, and other materials used before, during, and after meetings of the Board of Trustees. Materials are arranged chronologically. Materials that were used in preparation for, during, or following a meeting have been retained together in folders labeled with the meeting date.
Executive Committee General Records include agendas, correspondence, reports, and other materials used before, during, and after meetings of the Executive Committee. Materials are arranged chronologically. Materials that were used in preparation for, during, or following a meeting have been retained together in folders labeled with the meeting date.
Reports include both those produced by the Board of Trustees and those presented to the Board by outside parties. Materials are arranged chronologically.
The Budget subseries contains yearly budget information, financial reports, endowment and investment reports, studies, audits, and other information related to the financial administration of Duke University. Materials are arranged chronologically.
Committees are comprised of Board of Trustees members. Although a number of committees exist, the only committee represented in this subseries is the Committee on Honorary Degrees.
Unprocessed Materials are primarily those less than 50 years old. A box-level guide is provided for these materials, but patrons wishing to use them must receive special permission, in writing, from the Board of Trustees. These materials are arranged into three subseries: Meeting Files, Committee Files, and Other Materials.
The Meeting Files subseries is comprised of supplementary materials related to meetings of the entire Board of Trustees as well as meetings of the Executive Committee. The description of each box specifies whether it contains only Board of Trustees materials, only Executive Committee materials, or both. Boxes are arranged in chronological order.
Also includes stenographer's notebooks.
Also includes "old trustee mailing lists" dating from 1964 to 1975.
Box also includes Nixon Library CANDL file, naming of rooms file, and Bylaws of Highland Hospital Medical Staff file.
Box also includes a few reports.
The Committee Files subseries has materials related to various committees composed of Board of Trustees members. Materials are arranged in alphabetical order.
The Other Materials subseries contains reports, subject files, trustee biographical information, retreat materials, and other papers related to the Board of Trustees. These boxes are arranged in alphabetical order.