MenuInventory of the William Preston Few Records and Papers, 1814 - 1971 and undated (bulk 1911-1940)
Abstract
William Preston Few (1867-1940) served as President of Trinity College from 1910-1924, and President of Duke University from 1924-1940. Few came to Trinity College in 1896 as Professor of English, was named Dean of the College in 1902, and President in 1910, succeeding John C. Kilgo. Few worked with James Buchanan Duke to establish the Duke Endowment. In 1924, Few directed Trinity College's transition to Duke University and remained as President of Duke University until his death in 1940. Few was an active layman in the Methodist Church and in the Methodist Episcopal Church, South. The William Preston Few Records and Papers contain correspondence from Few's office files as President of Trinity College and Duke University, reports, clippings, copies of speeches and manuscripts, memorandum books, bound volumes, index cards that catalog Few's office files, and other types of printed material. Major subjects include education; philanthropy; the development of Trinity College from its beginning in Randolph County, N.C., to Duke University; the development of the Duke Endowment; Trinity and Duke departmental operations; the school's relationship with the Methodist Church; and business of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South.
Descriptive Summary
- Title
- William Preston Few Records and Papers, 1814 - 1971 and undated (bulk 1911-1940)
- Creator
- Few, William Preston, 1867-1940.
- Extent
- 70.0 Linear Feet, , 69,000 Items
- Repository
- University Archives, Duke University
- Location
- For current information on the location of these materials, please consult University Archives, Duke University.
- Language
- English.
Collection Overview
The William Preston Few Records and Papers contain correspondence from Few's office files as President of Trinity College and Duke University, reports, clippings, copies of speeches and manuscripts, memorandum books, bound volumes, index cards that catalog Few's office files, and other types of printed material. The files are arranged in six series. They include: Correspondence, Subject Files, Bound Volumes, Oversize Materials, Index Cards to Few Papers, and Additions.
Major subjects include education; philanthropy; the development of Trinity College, from its beginning in Randolph County, N.C., to Duke University; the development of the Duke Endowment; Trinity and Duke departmental operations; the school's relationship with the Methodist Church; and business of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South.
The Correspondence makes up a large part of the collection. The bulk of this correspondence is from Few's office files as President of Trinity College and Duke University. The correspondence includes incoming letters to Few's office, copies of outgoing letters, reports, minutes, telegrams, newsletters, and other materials generated or received by the President's office. Among the correspondents are: William Hayes Ackland, Alice Mary Baldwin, John Spencer Bassett, Julian S. Carr, Robert D.W. Conner, Angier Buchanan Duke, Benjamin Newton Duke, James Buchanan Duke, John Carlisle Kilgo, and Edward R. Murrow. There is also some personal correspondence dating from 1885.
The Subject Files include a wide variety of materials collected by Few's office. They include correspondence, reports, clippings and other types of printed material. Major subjects include education; philanthropy; the development of Trinity College from its beginning in Randolph County, N.C., to Duke University; the development of the Duke Endowment; Trinity and Duke departmental operations; the school's relationship with the Methodist Church; and the Methodist Episcopal Church, South. Included are Few's speeches made at university functions, to community groups, and at funerals. There are a number of speeches that give Few's opinions about education and the development of Duke University while he was President.
The Bound Volumes include a manuscript arithmetic primer, dated 1814, written by Alston W. Kendrick, Few's grandfather; a trigonometry textbook used by Few; a Bible; class records, 1913-1929 and undated; an incomplete set of Few's memoranda books for the years 1922-1933; and several alumni reviews.
The Index Cards to Few's Papers were apparently created by Few's office and catalog the holdings in the office files. However, not all of the materials or names referenced on the index cards can be found in the William Preston Few Records and Papers.
The Oversize Materials include folders removed from the subject files, diplomas, and a bound volume. The Additions include some correspondence, and obituaries for Mrs. William Preston Few (Mary Reamey Thomas Few), that were incorporated into the collection after it was transferred to University Archives.
Administrative Information
Collections are on the move for the renovation of the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library. Contact Rubenstein Library staff before visiting. Read More »
Access Restrictions
Patrons must sign the Acknowledgement of Legal Responsibility and Privacy Rights form before using this collection.
No restrictions except the Clipping File, Folders 1410-1412, is not immediately accessible because it requires further processing before 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.
Contents of the Collection
Browse List of Series
Collapse All
Expand AllThe bulk of the correspondence is from Few's office files as President of Trinity College and Duke University. The correspondence includes incoming letters to Few's office, copies of outgoing letters, reports, minutes, telegrams, newsletters, and other materials generated or received by the President's office. Among the correspondents are: Alice Mary Baldwin, John Carlisle Kilgo, John Spencer Bassett, Angier Buchanan Duke, Benjamin Newton Duke, William Hayes Ackland, Julian S. Carr, Edward R. Murrow, and Robert D.W. Conner. There is also some personal correspondence dating from 1885.
Duke University Archives staff has created an index to a number of significant correspondents who have letters in the Few Records and Papers. The following people are noted to have significant autograph entries, as well as significant subject entries in this collection, on topics that concern Trinity's and Duke's administration, faculty, and trustees. There is an extensive listing of correspondents for other subject areas including the Methodist Episcopal Church, South; Education; and Philanthropy. Please contact University Archives staff for further information about correspondence related to these topics.
- Allen, George Garland
- Anderson, Albert
- Baldwin, Alice Mary
- Boyd, William Kenneth
- Branscomb, Bennett Harvie
- Brown, Frank Clyde
- Brown, Joseph Gill
- Bruton, John Fletcher
- Cannon, James, III
- Davison, WIlburt Cornell
- Edwards, Charles William
- Ellwood, Charles Abram
- Flowers, Robert Lee
- Glasson, William Henry
- Godbey, Allenn Howard
- McDougall, William
- Miller, Justin
- North, Harry M.
- Peacock, Dred
- Peele, William Walter
- Peppler, Charles William
- Reynolds, William Neal
- Rhine, Joseph Banks
- Separk, Joseph Henry
- Smith, Willis
- Soper, Edmund Davison
- Spence, Hersey Everett
- Toms, Clinton White
- White, Newman Ivey
The subject files include a wide variety of materials collected by the Few's office. They include correspondence, reports, clippings and other types of printed material. Major subjects include education; philanthropy; the development of Trinity College, from its beginning in Randolph County, NC, to Duke University; the development of the Duke Endowment; Trinity and Duke departmental operations; the school's relationship with the Methodist Church; and the Methodist Episcopal Church, South.
The subseries on Few's speeches and writings is significant. The major subjects covered in this section include the development of Duke University, the role of religion in education, student development, and the contributions of the Duke family to education. Included are speeches Few made at university functions, to community groups, and at funerals. Some of the materials are organized by date, or by topic. There are a number of undated speeches, on a wide variety of topics, that mostly give Few's opinions about education and the development of Duke University while he was president.
The subject files include a wealth of material on Trinity College, the establishment of the Duke Endowment in 1924, and the transformation of Trinity into an undergraduate college of Duke University. Of note is a printer's proof from the Durham Herald of the first headline to use the term, Duke University.Also included in the Subject Files are President's Reports; records of committees of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South; correspondence concerning the institution's relationship to the Methodist Church; and histories of Union Institute and Normal College. Certain materials received by the President's office in the course of business may have been considered important enough to warrant the attention of the Board of Trustees; thus, some records of the President's Office will be found in the Board's records.
[Folder 1116 removed to Oversize Materials, Box 130.]
Few was President of Duke University from 1924-1940. Many important changes in the structure and implementation of the university's educational goals occurred during this time. Major subjects include university development; departmental business; the development of the Forestry School, the Law School; the Medical Center; various aspects of student life; and building on campus.
Includes a printer's proof from the Durham Herald of the first headline to use the term, Duke University.
A one-act play in three scenes.
[Folder 1169 removed to Oversize Materials, Box 130.]
[Folder 1211 removed to Oversize Materials, Box 130.]
Includes newspaper clippings.
The major subjects covered in this section include the development of Duke University, the role of religion in education, student development, and the contributions of the Duke family to education. Included are speeches Few made at university functions, to community groups, and at funerals. Some of the materials are organized by date or by topic. There are a number of undated speeches on a wide variety of topics that mostly give Few's opinions about education and the development of Duke University while he was President.
Includes printed material.
Includes chapters on The Founding, The Law School, The Co-ordinate College for Women, The Medical School, Forestry, The Duke Undergraduates and their Colleges, Education and Religion, The Building, The Inaugural Address, Washington Duke, and The Launching of Duke University.
Includes chapters on The Launching of Duke University, Contributions of the Duke Family to Education, Personal Statement, Undertakings of Duke University and the Spirit that Prompted Them, and An Old College and a New University.
The controversy of 1922 and 1923 as reported by the newspapers.
Includes manuscript on the writings of Shakespeare and their relation to modern life.
Includes unusual letters received by Few while he was president.
Includes copies of correspondence received by the Lake Junaluska Methodist Assembly staff, certificates of incorporation, correspondence with Few, printed matter, and other materials pertaining to the Assembly.
[Folder 1292 removed to Oversize Materials, Box 130.]
Includes material on the development of Christian education; correspondence about the organization and daily business of the district of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South; printed matter collected by Few about religious education; and Few's activities related to his membership on the Board of Education and the Board of Lay Activities. Much of the correspondence is addressed to Prof. F.S. Aldridge, District Lay Leader, and to Few, Conference Lay Leader. Printed material includes Stewardship Manual for the Methodist Episcopal Church, South; Handbook of the Wesley Brotherhood, 1924; and small pamphlets published by the Church.
Includes printed material about theological schools, the educational council of the Methodist Episcopal Church, the aldersgate commemoration; a manuscript on the History of New Hope Church; and correspondence.
In 1937, the members of the annual conferences of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, voted on the Plan of Union for the unification of the Methodist Protestant Church, the Methodist Episcopal Church, and the Methodist Epicopal Church, South. The final vote was overwhelmingly in favor of the union, but there ensued a movement to block the union of these three Methodist groups. Included are correspondence, questionnaires, printed matter, and reports about this unification.
Includes specifications for materials and building plans for several buildings and structures on campus, including the East Campus wall; copies of Trinity College Admission Requirements, 1916-1917; correspondence; departmental records; Presidents' Reports; materials from different societies and clubs on campus; survey cards sent to alumni to determine their support for the football program; and other printed materials.
Postcards sent to alumni to survey their opinions about whether there should be football at Trinity College.
[Folder 1373 removed to Oversize Materials, Box 130.]
Includes synopis of Practical Idealism by James Cannon, III; synopsis of American Democracy by B. W. Ruark; synopsis of America and Evangelism by E.C. Durham; synopsis of Southern Industialism by J.R. Davis; and poem by Mary Heath Lee about the restoration of the Constitution House, 1919.
Includes an arithmetic primer written by Alston W. Kendrick, Few's grandfather, 1814; a trigonometry textbook used by Few; a Bible; class records, 1913-1929 and undated, an incomplete set of Few's memoranda books for the years 1922-1933; and several alumni reviews.
Hand written arithmetic primer by Alston W. Kendrick, grandfather of William Preston Few.
[Folder 1413 removed to Oversize Materials, Box 131.]
Textbook apparently used by Few during his sophomore year at Wofford College, 1886-1887.
Copy apparently received by Few upon his graduation from Wofford College, June 11, 1889.
Includes names of students and some grades.
Includes three copies of the Harvard Alumni Bulletin, (Oct. 4, 1923, Dec. 31, 1925, and Jan. 7, 1926) and one copy of the Williams Alumni Review, (March, 1926).
Leather appointment books. Many dates are blank.
Legal-sized folders separated from subject files.
[Folder 1116, removed from Box 106.]
[Folder 1169, removed from Box 110.]
[Folder 1211, removed from Box 112.]
[Folder 1292, removed from Box 119.]
[Folder 1373, removed from Box 125.]
[Folder 1413, removed from Box 128.]
Includes index cards apparently created by Few's office that catalog the holdings in the office files. Not all of the materials, or names, referenced on the index cards can be found in the William Preston Few Records and Papers.
Includes letters, addressed to Few from William Garrott Brown, incorporated into the correspondence series.
Includes newspaper articles and editorials from the Durham Morning Herald and the Durham Sun, Jan. 8-9, 1971, incorporated into the Subject Files, Folder 1207.
Historical Note
Born in Greenville, S.C. on December 29, 1867, the son of Benjamin Franklin and Rachel Kendrick Few, William Preston Few attended Wofford College, Spartanburg S.C. (A.B., 1889), and Harvard University (A.M., 1893; Ph.D., 1896). Few came to Durham in 1896 as Professor of English at Trinity College. He was named Dean of the College in 1902, and President in 1910, succeeding John C. Kilgo. Few was President of Trinity College from 1910-1924.
On August 17, 1911, Few married Mary Reamey Thomas of Martinsville, West Virginia. They had five sons: William, Lyne Starling, Kendrick Sheffield, Randolph Reamey, and Yancey Preston.
Few worked with James Buchanan Duke to establish the Duke Endowment. In 1924, Few directed Trinity College's transition to Duke University and remained as President of Duke University until his death on October 16, 1940. In his thirty years as President of Trinity and Duke, Few oversaw the transformation of Trinity College into Duke University and assisted in the fulfillment of the concept behind the Duke Endowment.
An active layman in the Methodist Church, Few was often a delegate to the Church's General Conferences. Other activities included membership on a committee of the Harvard Board of Overseers (1911), President of the North Carolina Literary and Historical Association (1913), Trustee of the Negro Rural School Fund (1918), and President of the Southern Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools (1932).
Subject Headings
- Duke, James Buchanan, 1856-1925.
- Duke Endowment.
- Duke University--Administration.
- Duke University. Board of Trustees.
- Duke University--History.
- Duke University. President.
- Duke University--Presidents.
- Educational fund raising.
- Few, William Preston, 1867-1940.
- Methodist Church--North Carolina.
- Methodist Episcopal Church, South.
- Methodist Episcopal Church, South--Education.
- North Carolina--Education.
- Trinity College (Durham, N.C.)--History.
- Trinity College (Randolph County, N.C.)--History.
- Universities and colleges--United States.
- Clippings.
Related Material
- Duke University Board of Trustees Records. (University Archives, Duke University.)
- Duke University Faculty Records. (University Archives, Duke University.)
- [Forms part of:] Duke University President Records. (University Archives, Duke University. )
- Robert L. Flowers Records. (University Archives, Duke University.)
- Marion Timothy Plyler Papers. (David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University.)
- Scrapbook of News Clippings on Dr. William P. Few. (University Archives, Duke University.)
- William Hane Wannamaker Collection. (University Archives, Duke University.)
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], William Preston Few Records and Papers, University Archives, Duke University.
Provenance
The William Preston Few Records and Papers were received by the University Archives as a transfer in 1964 (A64-60), with multiple earlier accessions, and later additions (A67-76) and (A72-68).
Processing Information
Processed by Linda Daniel
Completed December, 2003
Encoded by Linda Daniel, December 2003
This finding aid is NCEAD compliant.