UNCW & Wilmington College -- Black History On Campus

University Archives serves as the repository for official records of all divisions of the University of North Carolina Wilmington as well as other items related to the history of the University. We collect, preserve, arrange, describe, and make available these materials in accordance with the Records Retention and Dispositions Schedule for Institutions of the University of North Carolina System.

This collection consists of administrative files from the Presidents and Chancellors of the institution, including correspondence, reports, installation and inauguration programs, biographical information, and photographs.

The Academic Affairs Collection consists of administrative records pertaining to curricula, institutional research, and supporting academic services at the University of North Carolina Wilmington and its predecessor Wilmington College. A significant part of the collection is from institutional research, consisting of self-studies for accreditation and other reports prepared for planning or assessment.

This collection brings together color and black-and-white prints, slides and negatives, many of which were used in campus publications such as the yearbook, student newspaper, course catalogs, and alumni publications. Topics include athletics, the campus, student life, academics, presidents, and chancellors, from the 1940s through the early 2000s.

This extensive collection includes the original materials and photocopies of the legal actions instituted by Dr. Eaton and his fellow plaintiffs to compel the integration of the fundamental institutions of New Hanover County--the public schools and the hospital--in the 1960s and 1970s. Moreover, the collection also reflects the broad spectrum of Dr. Eaton's interests and activities which included medical and public health issues, education, civil rights and athletics.

This collection contains materials relating to the education, career, and civic activities of Dr. Leroy Upperman, including diplomas, certificates, photographs, audiovisual materials, and memorabilia. Also included are diplomas and certificates related to the education and careers of Callie Smith Upperman and Leroy Upperman, Jr. Materials date from 1934 to 1996.

This collection contains materials created by the 1898 Foundation, Inc., formerly the 1898 Centennial Foundation, a nonprofit organization focused on commemorating Wilmington’s 1898 coup d’état and massacre, as well as promoting community unity and fostering economic inclusion. Materials pertain to Foundation’s establishment, the programming and activities that reached a crescendo during the 1998 centennial, and the Foundation’s events following the centennial, which culminated in the dedication of 1898 Memorial Park in 2008. Types of materials include correspondence, financial documents, publicity materials, grant applications, photographs, minutes, reports, awards and certificates, digital files, audio and video cassette tapes, publications, and newspaper clippings. Materials date from 1898 to 2009, the bulk of materials dating from 1995 to 2009.

The materials in this collection are from Dr. McLaurin's personal files, and consist of correspondence, research notes, newspaper clippings, photographs and tapes regarding the 1898 Centennial, Separate Pasts, Celia: A Slave, The Marines of Montford Point documentary, and the North Carolina State Fair. This collection contains both original and photocopied material. Collection not processed. See Special Collections staff for access.

This collection contains the papers of Bertha Boykin Todd, a long-time New Hanover County educator and community leader. Content focuses on her work with the 1898 Centennial Foundation, biographical information and research for her memoir, "My Restless Journey," speeches and notes for events at which she spoke, recordings of her media appearances, and articles and correspondence related to her community engagement and work with the New Hanover County School system, highlighting her time as the librarian at Williston High School and as an administrator at Hoggard High School. Additional material speaks specifically to local school desegregation, the succeeding school riots, the Wilmington 10 incident, and Bertha's involvement in dampening racial tensions at the time. Also of note are items related to her many awards and accolades at the local and state level, as well as broad newspaper coverage of her work in the community and schools.