Researching Southeast North Carolina History

Selected resources related to UNCW history available at the Center for Southeast North Carolina Archives and History. To find additional publications related to UNCW, click here to search the Randall Library catalog.

The Center's 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. Within the 24 record groups housed in University Archives, you will find meeting minutes, correspondence, planning documents, ephemera, newspapers and magazines, university publications, maps and architectural plans, oral histories, photographs, scrapbooks, records of student organizations, and much more. 

The Center is currently in the middle of a massive reorganization project to make University Archives materials more accessible to users. Until this project is completed, many university records may be difficult to locate or unavailable for research use. If you are looking for information that involves university records, please contact the Center so that we can assist you.

Some University Archives record groups have been fully processed and described online. You can view the finding aids for these record groups below, or click here to search across all University Archives finding aids.

• RG 01 University of North Carolina System Collection: This record group includes biographical information for UNC System presidents, photocopies of Board of Governors meeting minutes, correspondence, committee records, legal records, news clippings, newsletters, publications, and photographs from the 1960s to the present. Records pertain to North Carolina's public universities, the University of North Carolina Board of Governors, and/or UNC Wilmington as a constituent institution of the system. This record group does not provide a comprehensive administrative history of the University of North Carolina System. Rather, it consolidates materials from and about the multicampus University of North Carolina that had been collected by various UNCW administrators and offices.
• RG 02 University of North Carolina Wilmington Board of Trustees Records: This record group includes information by and about the Board of Trustees at the University of North Carolina Wilmington from 1958 to the present. Files include official, signed meeting minutes, committee meeting minutes, subject files, correspondence, clippings, membership rosters, and photographs.
• RG 03 University of North Carolina Wilmington Presidents and Chancellors Records: This collection consists of administrative files from the Presidents and Chancellors of the institution, including correspondence, accreditation reports, installation and inauguration programs, biographical information, and photographs. Files from the first two presidents, Thomas T. Hamilton and John T. Hoggard, contain information on the establishment and administration of the two-year Wilmington College. Topics from William Madison Randall's service as the last president of Wilmington College include the North Carolina Speaker Ban and the college's change from junior college to four-year school status. William H. Wagoner's files include material about Wilmington College's joining the University of North Carolina System in 1969. Administrative records from James R. Leutze's chancellorship include documents about the growth of international programs. Of special interest are suggestion box files from James R. Leutze. Rosemary DePaolo's files include information about the "Paint the Town Teal" initiative.
• RG 04 University of North Carolina Wilmington Academic Affairs Records: 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. The collection has correspondence, admissions brochures, enrollment statistics, course catalogues, and reports from Wilmington College and UNC Wilmington. In addition, the larger UNC Wilmington part of the collection includes meeting minutes, annual reports, marketing materials, and administrative files from offices that support undergraduate studies, graduate studies, honors courses, applied learning, international programs, sponsored programs, college teaching, military affairs, general university studies, and advising.
• RG 05 University of North Carolina Wilmington Academic Department Records: The University of North Carolina Wilmington Academic Department Records consist of administrative materials from academic departments of Wilmington College and the University of North Carolina Wilmington. Records include planning reports, annual reports, correspondence, departmental self-study reports, and departmental meeting minutes. Unique pieces in the record group are posters and programs for the Straw Hat Theatre; scrapbooks created by Claude Howell, founder of the Department of Art; and materials on Aquarius, the undersea laboratory operated by the Center for Marine Science for the National Undersea Research Program.
• RG 06 University of North Carolina Wilmington Public Service and Continuing Studies Records: These records pertain to the administrative history of public service, extended education, and continuing studies at UNC Wilmington beginning in 1970. The record group includes annual reports, marketing materials, press releases, clippings, course catalogs, and other administrative materials that document the university's community engagement. The largest series, Community Services and Programs, documents professional education, adult education, youth programs, and special events. This UNCW division held life-long learning programs in travel, the arts, entrepreneurship, and leadership. The public service division also led economic development projects for rural and urban areas. The division founded and operated the public access television station, UNCW-TV. It also initiated World Wide Web-based instruction as part of the North Carolina Information Highway, contributing to rural development. The division coordinated university extension at Coastal Carolina Community College and Camp Lejeune in Onslow County and offered distance education opportunities for K-12 students in New Hanover County, Brunswick County, and throughout the region. 
• RG 07 University of North Carolina Wilmington Library Records: The Library Collection has records pertaining to the administrative history of the academic library of the University of North Carolina Wilmington. The library began in New Hanover High School. It moved twice before the university's first stand-alone library building opened in 1969, eventually becoming a research library for a major university. Wilmington College Library records include accession books, annual reports, committee records, circulation statistical reports, gift records, newsletters,, self-study reports, and photographs from 1947-1969. 
• RG 08 University of North Carolina Wilmington Committee and Administration Records: The University of North Carolina Wilmington Committee and Administration records include material from offices, departments, campus-wide committees, Staff Senate, and Faculty Senate. Policies, curriculum planning information, Honorary Degree information, meeting minutes, Equal Employment Opportunity/Affirmative Action plans, and records about the establishment of the Upperman African American Student Center are some of the material in this record group. The collection demonstrates the broad range of service and administrative activity conducted by faculty and staff of UNC Wilmington along with administrators. Material from Human Resources and the Office of Institutional Diversity are included in this record group. Originally a locally supported two-year college, Wilmington College joined the University of North Carolina System of public higher education in 1969.
• RG 09 University of North Carolina Wilmington Business Affairs Records: The University of North Carolina Wilmington Business Affairs Records consist of administrative records that document the growth, maintenance, operations, and financial administration of the university. The record group also contains information from Computer and Information Services, a department that originated as Academic Computing Services under Academic Affairs. Collection highlights are building dedication programs, financial reports, annual reports, newsletters, campus dining brochures, parking maps, public safety information, and long-range plans. The record group also has correspondence from Vice-Chancellors of Business Affairs and other administrators.
• RG 10 University of North Carolina Wilmington Advancement and University Relations Records: The University of North Carolina Wilmington Advancement and University Relations Records contain information about efforts to build relationships to promote the institution and advance excellence in higher education. Wilmington College records, which pre-date the university's joining the University of North Carolina System of public higher education in 1969, include information about the Friends of Wilmington College and the Wilmington College Foundation. These fundraising organizations were significant to the college's early development. University Advancement records include Alumni Association material, Vice Chancellors' correspondence, and planning materials for homecoming and other special events. As the public relations department of the university, the University Relations series includes press releases, news clippings, university publications, and material documenting promotional activities such as anniversary celebrations. Scrapbooks are unique pieces in the collection, containing newspaper clippings about Wilmington College and the University of North Carolina Wilmington, as well as photographs, invitations, and other mementos.
• RG 11 University of North Carolina Wilmington Student Affairs Records: This collection includes student affairs records from the University of North Carolina Wilmington and its predecessor institution, Wilmington College. Records include information about fraternities, sororities, the student government association, student media, student honorary societies, and other student organizations. The Division of Student Affairs oversees intramural and club sports, including football, as well as Transitions Programs, the office responsible for new student orientation and commencement. The Division manages many aspects of the college experience such as student housing, residential life, tutoring and learning services, health services, and disability services. Departmental records also pertain to special events such as concerts and other student-directed activities. Unique pieces include a report about the Pub, also known as the Good Wood Tavern, which was once located in James Hall before the student union was built, and a poster for a James Brown concert held in Trask Coliseum. Materials includes administrators' correspondence, student government meeting minutes, commencement programs, newspapers, yearbooks, periodicals such as literary and creative magazines, departmental newsletters, administrative reports, student handbooks, Codes of Student Life, and marketing materials.
• RG 12 University of North Carolina Wilmington Athletics Records: The University of North Carolina Wilmington Athletics Records contains departmental information as well as information from men's and women's team sports offices. Although Wilmington College also had student athletes involved in intercollegiate sports, most of the information in this collection dates from after the Wilmington College period (1970s-present). Departmental records include certification and self-study reports for the National Collegiate Athletic Association, newsletters, press releases, athletic directors' correspondence, and legal information about Title IX. Team records include programs, media guides, and schedules. Teams represented in this record group are baseball, basketball, cheerleading, cross country/track and field, golf, soccer, softball, swimming and diving, tennis, volleyball, and wrestling.
• RG 13 University of North Carolina Wilmington Biographical Collection: The University of North Carolina Wilmington Biographical Collection consists of biographical data sheets, photographs, announcements, brochures, and other material collected by the university's Office of University Relations and other administrative offices for public relations. The files in the Biographical Collection pertain to university employees including faculty, staff, and administrators, as well as members of the Board of Trustees and others connected to the university. Included are unique research articles and other scholarly and creative works that are widely available in other libraries. These items were originally collected by University Archives staff.
• RG 24 Images of UNCW Collection: This collection brings together prints, slides and negatives, many of which were used in campus publications such as the yearbook, student newspaper, course catalogs, and alumni publications. There are color as well as black and white photographs. The different photographic formats are interfiled. The collection includes photographs of athletics, student life, and academics, as well as special events and university advancement activities from the college's founding until the early 2000s.