Collection Timeline

1863 to 2019

1860
Daniel W. Revis and his wife Sarepta were farmers in Henderson County. They wrote letters to each other during the Civil War while Daniel served in Co. B, 64th Regt., Infantry, North Carolina Troops. Sarepta did not know how to read or write but had family members help her compose letters to send to her husband while he was away. Her letters give a glimpse into her life as she lets him know how their family and farm are faring. In this letter, Sarepta gives Daniel a detailed account of a failed attempt by the Henderson County militia to round up Confederate deserters who were trying to return home. She lists who was killed and injured. There are more deserters than militia in Henderson County. She wishes she could see Daniel again, and tells him she has moved in with her father.
Martha writes to her husband Francis who is away at war, giving us a glimpse into her life while he is gone. She tells him that some of the children are sick. The corn, sweet potato, and Irish potato crops look good and Thomas is helping her plow. She wishes Francis was home so that they would have more to eat and she wouldn't have to work when she was unable to do so. Their new daughter is four weeks old and still needs a name; she includes cutout of the baby girl's hand on a separate piece of paper. She tells about some local people including wounded soldiers and a man who deserted and was sent back. His mother has visited her recently. She tells Francis not to vote for Vance but instead to vote for Holden. She worries about Francis, and tells him she cannot keep working as hard as she has to without him at home. She complains about the price of thread and cotton.

1890
A collection of short biographies of impactful African American women.

1900
1905-1906 Yearbook
This photograph depicts five Palmer Memorial Institute (PMI) teachers. PMI was established in 1902 by Dr. Charlotte Hawkins Brown at Sedalia, North Carolina near Greensboro. The African American school evolved from an agricultural and manual training facility to a fully accredited, nationally recognized preparatory school. More than 1,000 students graduated during Brown's 50-year presidency. The school closed its doors in the 1970s, but the campus reopened in 1987 as North Carolina's first African American state historic site and a memorial to Dr. Brown.
1909-1910 Yearbook
United: A National Hymn is a song copyrighted by Mary Speed Jones Mercer in 1909. She wrote the words and melody, although the orchestration was written by John Philip Sousa. The orchestration includes violins, viola, trombone, clarinet, flute, drums, and bass. She hoped the song would be adopted as the national anthem, but The Star-Spangled Banner was adopted instead in 1931.

1910
Photographer Bayard Wootten is seen here knee deep in Great Lake located within Croatan National Forest. Wootten was a pioneer in photography and an outspoken suffragette. She was one of the first female aerial photographers when, in 1914, she took photographs from a Wright Brothers Model B airplane. Wootten was adventurous and unflinching in all aspects of her life, especially business. She owned several photography studios and was known to set out on solo trips across the state in her 1920s Ford to photograph North Carolina's people and landscapes. She continued to photograph well into her 70s and operated her photo studio in Chapel Hill until 1954. This photo is part of a collection taken and overseen by Herbert Hutchinson Brimley (1861-1946) for the Department of Agriculture, the North Carolina Geological Survey and the State Museum.
1913-1914 Yearbook
A picture of the first landing Tiny Broadwick made from an airplane at Griffith Park, June 21, 1913. Note written on the back reads, "This picture was taken in action and was a stand up landing."
Chief Justice Walter Clark's statement on Women's Suffrage
A brief history of the life of Flora Macdonald. Includes mention of Flora Macdonald College.
Volume 1, number 1 (October 1916)
Volume 1, number 2 (December 1916)
1916-1917 Yearbook. Compiled and edited by Miss Clara I. Cox.
"The Suffragists' Calendar," A Year Book for Every Thinking Woman. A timely and interesting compilation from the writings and speeches of prominent suffragists and their advocates of political enfranchisement of woman. Boxed, silk cord and tassel tied. Price 50 cents net." This calendar is not year specific but contains an excerpt from writings and speeches for each day starting with January 1st thru December 31st.
Volume 1, number 3 (January 1917)
Volume 1, number 4 (February 1917)
Volume 1, number 5 (March 1917)
Volume 1, number 6 (April 1917)
Volume 1, number 7 (May 1917)
Volume 1, number 9 (June-July 1917)
Volume 1, number 10 (August 1917)
Volume 1, number 11 (September-October 1917)
Volume 1, number 12 (November 1917)
WWI poster featuring YWCA switchboard operator at work; masses of soldiers appear in background. Text: "Back our girls over there. United War Work Campaign"
Female laborer holds up miniature plane in one hand and small artillery shell in the other. Text: "For Every Fighter a Woman Worker. Care for Her through The YWCA : United War Work Campaign"
Elizabeth Earl Jones and May Frances Jones were sisters from Asheville (Buncombe County), North Carolina, who volunteered in Europe during World War I. Elizabeth had been in England since 1916, before the United States joined the war, and stayed on throughout the conflict. She volunteered with the "American Ladies' Red Cross Aid Committee" visiting wounded soldiers in hospitals and worked at the Y.M.C.A. "Eagle Hut" in London. May traveled to France in November 1918 and was a canteen worker and hut secretary for the Y.M.C.A. group embedded with the 318th Machine Gun Battalion, 81st Division, U.S. Army.
Ration cards for Elizabeth E. Jones of 25 Pembridge Villas, No. 11 and The Close [?], Park Row, Knightsbridge.; Originally from Asheville, N.C., Elizabeth Earl Jones worked as an American Red Cross Nurse in London during the war. Her sister May P. Jones was a Y.M.C.A worker with the 318th Machine Gun Battalion in France.
Papers of Ann Preston Bridgers relating to her service as YWCA hostess with the American Expeditiionary Forces in France, 1919. Items include correspondence, notes, maps, postcards, and travel documents including Bridgers' passport.

1920
A brief brochure about the College for Women at Greensboro
Political Cartoons promoting Women's right to vote.
The president of the University of North Carolina's statement's regarding the admission of woment to the University.
Photographs of activities of New Homemakers of America. Future Homemakers of America collection, 1929-1984, includes correspondence, reports, news clippings, lists of officers, audits, programs, budgets, photographs, and other records on the history of Future Homemakers of America, New Homemakers of America, and Home Economics Related Occupations. New Homemakers of America, a club for African Americans, merged with Future Homemakers of America when school segregation ended.
Photographs of people, executive council, and state officers. Future Homemakers of America collection, 1929-1984, includes correspondence, reports, news clippings, lists of officers, audits, programs, budgets, photographs, and other records on the history of Future Homemakers of America, New Homemakers of America, and Home Economics Related Occupations. New Homemakers of America, a club for African Americans, merged with Future Homemakers of America when school segregation ended.
Photographs of displays for programs and conventions. Future Homemakers of America collection, 1929-1984, includes correspondence, reports, news clippings, lists of officers, audits, programs, budgets, photographs, and other records on the history of Future Homemakers of America, New Homemakers of America, and Home Economics Related Occupations. New Homemakers of America, a club for African Americans, merged with Future Homemakers of America when school segregation ended.

1930
A 1931 publication featuring short biographical sketches of about 50 notable North Carolina women, including the wife of governor Max Gardner, civic leaders, politicians, clergy, artists, etc. Author's autograph on fly-leaf.
A brief brochure about the College for Women at Greensboro
Tributes to Dr. Elizabeth Delia Dixon Carroll from students, alumnus, and faculty.
This bulletin includes an essay by Anni Albers that discusses the role of crafts and art in modern society and, in particular, the value of working directly with materials.

1940
Volume 11, number 31 (January 1, 1944)
Newsletters and bulletins from 1945, 1951, and 1978. Future Homemakers of America collection, 1929-1984, includes correspondence, reports, news clippings, lists of officers, audits, programs, budgets, photographs, and other records on the history of Future Homemakers of America, New Homemakers of America, and Home Economics Related Occupations. New Homemakers of America, a club for African Americans, merged with Future Homemakers of America when school segregation ended.
V-Mail correspondence by Margaret I. Saunders to her husband Lee Saunders, March, 1945. V-Mail for March 13, 1945, does not have Part 8. Lee Saunders served in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in the segregated, all African-American unit of Company C, 1332nd Engineer General Service Regiment. He would serve in the Pacific Theater of World War II in New Guinea, the East Indies, and Papua New Guinea. Margaret Saunders describes her and her family's experiences at home near the end of WWII.
Newsletter "Chatter Box" for New Homemakers of America from 1945 to 1965. Future Homemakers of America collection, 1929-1984, includes correspondence, reports, news clippings, lists of officers, audits, programs, budgets, photographs, and other records on the history of Future Homemakers of America, New Homemakers of America, and Home Economics Related Occupations. New Homemakers of America, a club for African Americans, merged with Future Homemakers of America when school segregation ended.
Ruth Asawa, Black Mountain College student from 1946-1949, perhaps in an art class. Photographer: Clemens Kalischer.
Mary Parks (Mrs. Washington), Black Mountain College Summer Art Institute, 1946. Photographer: Nancy Newhall.
Girl at Information Booth, Cherokee Information Center, Cherokee Reservation, Swain Co., June 1947. This photo is part of a collection of photos promoting traveling and tourism in North Carolina, taken by photographers who worked for the Department of Conservation and Development, Division of Travel Information.
Cherokee Indian Craft, Cherokee Reservation, Sept 1947. Taken by Hemmer. This photo is part of a collection of photos promoting traveling and tourism in North Carolina, taken by photographers who worked for the Department of Conservation and Development, Division of Travel Information.
Baby Contest, Cherokee Reservation. Dr. Mary B. Michal examines Lucinda Jane Bradley, 12 Mo old, Nancy Ann Chiltoskie (4 mo old). Weighed by Mrs. Fred Hicks, Public Health Nurse Anderson, Watty, 7 Mos old, Wm. Davis Junaliski, 9 mo old. This photo is part of a collection of photos promoting traveling and tourism in North Carolina, taken by photographers who worked for the Department of Conservation and Development, Division of Travel Information.
Elaine de Kooning working on the Venetian Blind Strip Dome (also known as the Supine Dome) which was created as part of Buckminster Fuller's Architecture Class, 1948 Summer Session in the Arts. Photographer: Trude Guermonprez.
Dr. Charlotte Hawkins Brown with Nat King, Maria, and Cookie Cole celebrating a birthday. Maria Cole was the niece of Dr. Brown.

1950
Newsletters and bulletins from 1945, 1951, and 1978. Future Homemakers of America collection, 1929-1984, includes correspondence, reports, news clippings, lists of officers, audits, programs, budgets, photographs, and other records on the history of Future Homemakers of America, New Homemakers of America, and Home Economics Related Occupations. New Homemakers of America, a club for African Americans, merged with Future Homemakers of America when school segregation ended.
These materials were created by the Division of Negro Education within the NC Department of Public Instruction. These papers include correspondence, minutes, newsletters, programs, and rosters related to the Jeanes Foundation. The Negro Rural School Fund of the Anna T. Jeanes Foundation was an endowment created by Anna T. Jeanes, a Quaker from Philadelphia in 1907. The Jeanes Fund was responsible for training African American teachers, who provided an education for African American children in the rural South. African American women, who were often deeply entwined within their local communities, taught industrial, academic, and domestic skills to their students. The education of these skills imparted the knowledge needed to help improve the lives of African Americans as a whole during legal segregation. Subjects include conference attendance, conference scheduling, regional supervisors meetings, and Jeanes membership. Some of the conference themes included “Education Makes the Way for Tomorrow’s Citizens,” “Fifty Years of Jeanes Service,” and “Providing for Effective Learning.” The State Supervisor of Elementary Education in the Division of Negro Education travelled the state monitoring the quality of African American elementary schools, conducting meetings with school staff, organizing funding, and teaching demonstration classes.
Formatted contents -- Private property and its constitutionalisation -- Private property protection in China's constitutions : a historical review -- Symbolised public interest -- Unjust compensation -- Ineffective procedural and institutional mechanisms -- Concluding remarks and suggested reform measures

1960
African American women picketers holding signs calling for justice.
African American women protesters crowded into a jail cell.
Copies of the executive order from Governor Terry Sanford establishing the Commission of the Status of Women. In addition, there are statements from Governor Sanford expressing the reason for the establishment and recommendations expected from the group.
Newspaper clippings on the activities of the Commission on the Status of Women and the accomplishments of its members. The questionnaire used to gather statistics for the official report is in the "Women Workers in North Carolina" article published in the Tar Heel Woman.
The printed Governor's Commission on the Status of Women report titled as "The Many Lives of North Carolina Women."
Photograph of the Commission on the Status of Women assembled for a meeting and an enclosed caption noting the members.; Caption: "Attending the 31st October meeting of the Governor's Commission on the Status of Women were left to right: Mrs. William T. Crisp, Mrs. Gladys A. Tillett, Dr. Ellen Winston, Mrs. Sarah Herbin, Dr. Rachel Davis, Mr. James E. Lambeth, Dr. Anne F. Scott (CHAIRMAN), Dr. William H. Cartwright, Mrs. C. Odell Matthews, Dr. Guion Johnson, Mrs. Ruth Easterling, Mrs. Anne Kennedy. Members of the Commission not present were: Mrs. C.W. Beasley, Miss Bonnie E. Cone, E. McArthur Currie, Oscar R. Ewing, Dr. Juanita Kreps, Dr. Arthur Larson."

1970
1st ed.; Bibliography: p. 201-205.
This handbook details different aspects of the law relating to women's rights
Newsletters and bulletins from 1945, 1951, and 1978. Future Homemakers of America collection, 1929-1984, includes correspondence, reports, news clippings, lists of officers, audits, programs, budgets, photographs, and other records on the history of Future Homemakers of America, New Homemakers of America, and Home Economics Related Occupations. New Homemakers of America, a club for African Americans, merged with Future Homemakers of America when school segregation ended.

1990
Cover title: North Carolina women's history month, March 1991- 1992.;Includes bibliographical references (p. 32-37) and filmography (p. 38-43).
Volume 33, number 2 (spring 1994)
Eleanor Thompson Wortz was born on June 5, 1921 in Salisbury, North Carolina. Wortz's father was employed as a train conductor. She graduated from Spencer High School in Salisbury and then attended Catawba College. While attending Catawba, she became Chief Cheerleader and was a member of the Writer's Club and Editor of the College Annual. At Catawba, Wortz entered the Civilian Pilot Training Program. Wortz served as a Women's Airforce Service Pilot during World War II. Wortz has written chronicling her experiences called ""Flying Gals of World War II."" This oral history interview was digitized through the support by grant funds from the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the federal Library Services and Technology Act as administered by the State Library of North Carolina, a division of the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources (IMLS grant number LS-00-17-0034-17).

2000
This program gives short biographies for distinguished women who have served as legislators for North Carolina. The program lists winners of the Dinstiguished Women's Award from 1984 to 1999.
Juanita H. Webster Interview, 2001-08-25 [MilColl OH 914]
Volume 71, number 4 (September 2003)
Volume 74 number 10 (March 2007)

2010
Bennis M. Blue Interview, 2017-11-16 [MilColl OH 1131]
June 2018.; Includes bibliographical references (pages 42-43).
2019; The second in a series of four publications on women's status in North Carolina commissioned by the North Carolina Council for Women and Youth Involvement.