Abstract

The Alexander and Sample families are two well known and documented families in the Charlotte and Mecklenburg County area. This collection follows certain genealogical lines within these two families. Collection materials include correspondence and genealogical research dated c1958-c1961.

Abstract The American Association of University Women (AAUW) had its first meeting in 1881 in Boston, Massachusetts. Marian Talbot and Ellen Richards, along with fifteen alumnae from eight colleges, met to discuss the needs of college-educated women. Dedicated to promoting equality and education among women and girls, the AAUW has over 170,000 members and supporters, 1000 local branches, and 800 college and university partners (as of 2015). The Charlotte branch of the AAUW began in 1913...

Abstract Founded in 1896, the American Guild of Organists (AGO) is a national professional association that serves the organ and choral music fields. As an educational and service organization, AGO seeks to “foster a thriving community of musicians who share their knowledge and inspire passion for the organ.” This collection contains materials relating to the Charlotte Chapter of the American Guild of Organists from 1956-1969. Examples of documents include correspondence, newsletters, newspaper...

Abstract The American War Mothers organization was founded in September 1917, developed a constitution and by-laws in August 1918, and was granted a Congressional charter on February 24, 1925. The purpose of this organization was for mothers of young men and women at risk during World War I to engage in patriotic service to those serving their country. At the time, their membership was strictly limited to mothers whose sons and daughters served between April 6, 1917 and November 11, 1918. Among their...

Abstract Between 1584 and 1587, Sir Walter Raleigh attempted to colonize the Outer Banks of North Carolinawith the Roanoke Voyages. To commemorate the 400th anniversary of these voyages, in 1973 the NorthCarolina General Assembly created the America’s Four Hundredth Anniversary Committee, and chargedmembers with planning and carrying out celebrations and events from 1984-1987. Many North Carolinacounties, including Mecklenburg County, had local committees, who also focused on their own historiesfor...

Abstract In the aftermath of World War I, a number of volunteers from American agencies went overseas to help with the return to peacetime and assist the military with this and other projects. Annie Lee Hoffman was one of these volunteers, serving as part of the YMCA. Annie was born on August 9, 1887 in Morganton, NC to Julius and Martha Hoffman. She attended Oxford Seminary in Oxford, NC where she studied office administration. She moved to Rocky Mount, NC where she was employed as a private...

Abstract

The Athenae Book Club was a women’s book club that studied various subjects through reading, lectures, and poetry. The book club had a monthly theme that the discussion was centered around. Each meeting was hosted by a different member.

This collection contains Athenae Book Club programs dated 1905-1950, a newspaper clipping, and three sets of reading notes. Materials are in good condition.

Abstract The Au Courant Book Club was organized in October 1931 and met monthly in the homes of its members. Their meetings were advertised regularly in the Charlotte Observer. They held an annual Christmas party in which the husbands were honored guests. The club frequently had guest speakers at their meetings or had outings. This collection contains programs dated 1934-1954. Each monthly program contains discussion topics, officers, committee members with their addresses, telephone...

Abstract

The Charlotte public school system was founded in 1882, with TJ Mitchell serving as the first superintendent of the segregated school district. This collection contains Mecklenburg County budget books for the schools, listing school information by township. Each entry includes data om operational budgets. Materials are in fair condition and dated 1861-1918.

Abstract Bonnie Alice Austin was born to James A. and Wilma Duncan Austin on May 27, 1896 in Union County, North Carolina. She married George Henry Petteway on November 23, 1914, but later divorced. Bonnie and George had three daughters: Martha, Mary, and Jean. Bonnie Austin Petteway accumulated a wealth of genealogical information on a variety of families in and around Mecklenburg County, North Carolina. Some of the more heavily documented families included in her notes are: Shelby, Stevenson,...

Abstract

This collection contains two ledgers belonging to the Borden family, who kept detailed account of transactions made 1932-1970. Examples of transactions include farm equipment/machinery, gravel, labor, plumbing supplies, gasoline, food and beverage, sales tax, personal business/family matters, and other miscellaneous goods and services. Also included in this collection are deeds tracking the ownership and sale of the property. Materials are dated 1932-1975.

Abstract The Boy Scouts of America (BSA) was founded in February 1910 by William D. Boyce, and officially chartered in 1916. Charlotteans made an attempt to form a troop in 1910, but the first Boy Scout troop in Charlotte was formed in 1913 at Holy Comforter Episcopal on South Boulevard. A second troop formed at the YMCA in 1914, and by 1940, the local Boy Scouts became known as the Mecklenburg County Council Boy Scouts of America. This collection consists of two scrapbooks, plaque, and...

Abstract

The Boyce Family Papers is a collection of private materials chronicling the lives of James Boyce (1740-1803) and his descendants for over two hundred years. This collection contains land surveys and land records, bills of sale of enslaved peoples, wills, tax receipts, correspondence, newspaper clippings, vital and marriage records, family Bible, chattel mortgages, photographs, and other miscellaneous materials relating to the Boyce family. Materials are dated 1767-1976.

Abstract “The Book Shop,” opened in Charlotte in 1915, and was owned and operated by the Brockmann and Legerton Company. Herbert Victor Brockmann (1892-1949), was the manager of the store. Two years later, Herbert and his brother, Charles Raven Brockmann (1889-1970), took over interest in the store as Brockmann and Company. Together, they owned and operated the Brockmann Bookstore from 1917-1928, when the store closed. There is one scrapbook in this collection that features correspondence,...

Abstract Carla DuPuy chaired the Mecklenburg Board of County Commissioners from 1984 to 1990, and spent six years lobbying for Carolinas Healthcare System, eight years on the North Carolina Environmental Management Commission, and chaired the Charlotte Chamber’s Environmental Concerns Committee. The focus of much of her community work was on children, education, healthcare, and the environment. Materials in this collection heavily focus on AIDS/Metrolina AIDS Project in the city of...

Abstract

The Carolina Book Club was founded in May 1939 in Charlotte, North Carolina. Collection materials include essays, meeting minutes, financial records, and other miscellaneous materials relating to the club. Materials are dated 1939-1986 and in good condition, with some documents in poor condition due to fragility.

Abstract

The Carolina Concert Series Collection contains programs from the Community Concert Association (1983-1989), Theater Charlotte (1998-1999), Charlotte Community Concert Association (1989-1994), and Carolinas Concert Association (1994-2004).

Abstract Central High School opened c1908 as Charlotte High School and was located at Elizabeth Avenue and Cecil Street (now Kings Drive). It the first public high school in Charlotte. In 1923, the school was renamed Central High School, which became part of Central Piedmont Community College's campus c1963. This collection contains materials relating to the Central High School Class of 1947, to include newspaper clippings, photographs, and documents. Materials are dated 1947 and in good...

Abstract Charles Crutchfield (1912-1998) started his career as an announcer and radio programmer for a variety of radio stations in the Carolinas. In the 1933 he joined the WBT staff, where he became famous for putting together the “Briarhoppers.” Crutchfield stayed at the station and its parent company until retiring in 1977 as president of the Jefferson-Pilot Broadcasting Company. He was also active in a number of professional and civic organizations, to include: a U.S. State Department appointment...

Abstract

This collection contains correspondence, land records (deeds, deeds of trust, property surveys), tax receipts, and documentation on the re-surveying of the US Post Office, Assay Site, and Courthouse in Charlotte. Land records largely reference properties including Brevard, Myers-Cedar Groves Farm, Chatham Estates, present-day Plaza Midwood, and other areas in Mecklenburg County. Materials are dated 1873-1957.

Abstract

This collection spans items related to the John C. and Ruth Kilgo family, as well as Charles Paty. The Kilgos were residents of Mecklenburg County and active members of the community. Charles Paty is a World War II veteran and was a friend of the Kilgo family. Both the Kilgos and Paty lived in the Plaza Midwood area of Charlotte, North Carolina.

Materials include: Clippings, Correspondence, Ephemera, Postcards, Printed Materials, Rosters, Negatives, and Photographs.

Abstract Charles W. Allison was a Charlotte, North Carolina, resident who collected materials, spoke on, and assisted in erecting a plaque on the mausoleum of Peter Ney. Peter Stuart Ney lived in Rowan County, North Carolina, and was a teacher, first in Cheraw, South Carolina, and later a professor at Davidson College, in Davidson, North Carolina. On his deathbed in 1846, he proclaimed that he was actually Marshal Michel Ney, a French soldier and military commander during the French Revolutionary and...

Abstract

This collection contains School Commissioners Oaths (1921-1959); City Annual Reports from various offices (1942-1957); City Officials Oaths of Office (1909-1959); Fire, Police, Cemetery, and Street Departments salaries/receipts (1872-1877). Materials are in good condition and are dated 1872-1959.

Abstract Edward Dilworth Latta founded the Charlotte Consolidated Construction Company, also known as the Four Cs, in 1890. Latta and five other influential Charlotteans, including Mayor F.B. McDowell, developed the Dilworth area, had their own trolley system, and had control of gas and electric power in Charlotte. Incorporating other companies into his own, such as the Charlotte Gas Light Company and the Charlotte Electric Railway, Latta and his group maintained an effective monopoly in Charlotte....

Abstract Carrie Chapman Catt founded the League of Women Voters in 1920 during the National American Woman Suffrage Association’s annual convention. It was designed to be a nonpartisan, grassroots organization that would assist the 20 million new female voters in understanding and executing their new civic duties. The League was, and continues to be, a strong advocate of politically educated citizens and government and social reform legislation. Formed in 1922, the Charlotte League of...

Abstract The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Charter Commission was created in 1969 after the North Carolina General Assembly approved its legislation. There were 18 members who reviewed studies, public hearings, and reports on a variety of subjects submitted by the community. In 1971, the Commission proposed a consolidation of governments for the City of Charlotte and the five towns in Mecklenburg County. Ultimately, the voters rejected the proposal, which later led to two separate documents being created:...

Abstract

This collection contains poems written by Charlotte Mecklenburg Library’s staff and poets-in-residence during National Poetry Month in April 2019. Poems cover a variety of topics and were written for anyone who visited the writing desk with a prompt. All materials were created in April 2019.

Abstract

This collection consists of spiral bound annexation reports on eleven neighborhoods in Charlotte. Materials are dated 1984.

Abstract

The Charlotte Mecklenburg School system (CMS) was founded in 1882 with a mission to “maximize academic achievement by every student in every school”. This collection contains school directories and teacher handbooks from CMS, which document school and county leadership, Board of Education, professional and school organizations, educational philosophies, rules and regulations, and teacher and school contact information. Materials are dated 1934-1990 and in good condition.

Content Description This collection contains Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools report cards, which measures the nature and extent of student progress in each of the system's schools. Each report card contains three main sets of data: school description (describes the school-based staff), student participation (describes participation in and referral to attendance, enrollment, and other student-related goals), and student outcome (describes the readiness of student preparedness for the next grade level, as well as...