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RG/RG02. Presidents

 Record Group
Identifier: RG/RG02
This Record Group contains materials pertaining to the office of President, the chief administrative officer at the College, and those who report to this position. Materials include presidential correspondence and reports as well as commencement and convocation records including awards given at those occasions. In addition, the records of the Board of Visitors and Davidson offices such as Vice President and General Counsel, Vice President for Strategic Partnerships, Institutional Research and SACS are also described in this record group. These records are currently restricted for 50 years from the date of creation; records created before and including 1969 are open for review.

Found in 21 Collections and/or Records:

Planning and Institutional Research

 Sub-Group
Identifier: RG02-29
Dates: Other: 2019-02-05
Found in: College Archives

President. Annual Reports, 1880-1993, 2004-2008

 Sub-Group
Identifier: RG02-27
Scope and Contents The annual report files contain copies of reports made by Davidson Presidents to the Board of Trustees, the Executive Committee of the Trustees, and to the public. For the period 1923 to 1969 reports were made semi-annually. The first report intended for a public audience was issued in 1962, however no further public reports were made until 1977. The public reports (1977-1993) are issued through the Office of College Relations. After 1977 the reports to the Board of Trustees are...
Dates: 1880
Found in: College Archives

President. Committees, Task Forces and Commissions

 Sub-Group
Identifier: RG02-28
Dates: Other: 1980 - 2023
Found in: College Archives

President. David Grier Martin Records, 1950-1968

 Sub-Group
Identifier: RG02-14
Scope and Contents General Description: Given the number of important changes in the college during Martin's tenure, his records cover a wide range of important topics.Information on integration can be found under the following folder titles: Faculty Committee on Congolese Students, International Students (Congolese), Housing - Negro, Integration - Correspondence (A-L), Integration - Correspondence (Mc-Z), Integration - Policy/Brochures/Bulletins/Clippings, and YMCA - Negro Student Loan Fund. Information on...
Dates: Majority of material found within 1950 - 1968
Found in: College Archives

President. Dr. Carol Quillen. Records

 Sub-Group
Identifier: RG02-20
Scope and Contents

Please note that Presidential records are closed fifty years prior to the current year. The collection contains correspondence, agreements and posters related to the work of the presidents office. The Red and Black song was composed by history professor John Wertheimer for the Senior Celebration hosted by the president's office.

Dates: Majority of material found within 2012 - 2022
Found in: College Archives

President. Dr. John Rood Cunningham. Records, 1940-1958

 Sub-Group
Identifier: RG02-13
Scope and Contents

The vast majority of the files include correspondence with various persons or organizations. Fund-raising was a major aspect of Dr. Cunningham's presidency and letters to various donors are found throughout the files under the donor's last name. Information on each of the new buildings constructed under Dr. Cunningham's adminstration are found under the file heading of the building's name. Coorespondence with Charles F. Gillette is located under the file Landscape Architecture.

Dates: 1940 - 1958
Found in: College Archives

President. Dr. John Wells Kuykendall

 Sub-Group
Identifier: RG02-16
Scope and Contents Please note that Presidential records are closed fifty years prior to the current year. The records in this collection overlap with the files of President's Spencer and Vagt as some files were kept across administrations before being transferred to the archives. The files follow the subject listings of the office and because of the storage and transfer patterns, the subject lists are repeated several times. For example, all files after the Admissions, 1995-1997 may...
Dates: Majority of material found within 1966-1997
Found in: College Archives

President. Dr. Samuel Reid Spencer. Records

 Sub-Group
Identifier: RG02-15
Scope and Contents Please note that Presidential records are closed fifty years prior to the current year.The files from President Spencer's office consist primarily of correspondence and reports. These files cover all aspects of his administration including information on coeducation, minority students, self-selection for fraternities, the college's relationship with the Presbyterian Church, integration, student unrest and the Vietnam War, the changing role of athletics, College Bowl competitions,...
Dates: Majority of material found within 1968-1983, 2010
Found in: College Archives

President. Dr. William Joseph Martin, Jr. Records, 1913-1929

 folder
Identifier: RG02-11
Scope and Contents The collection consists primarily of correspondence including both incoming and copies of outgoing letters. As president, Martin corresponded with parents of students, students, and alumni. The correspondence with parents and students generally concerns academic preparation, discipline, and student activities. These letters also discuss conditions at the college during World War I and the Student's Army Training Corps. Correspondence with alumni frequently concerns references for jobs...
Dates: 1913 - 1929
Found in: College Archives

President. Executive Assistant. Records

 Sub-Group
Identifier: RG02-30
Scope and Contents This collection deals primarily with the activities of the Facilities Planning Committee. Projects planned and reviewed by the committee include the Computer Services Center (renamed Information Technology Services), a new college union, the Visual Arts Center, a new Life Sciences building (Baker-Watts complex/ Watson Building), renovation of classroom space, and proposals for Music and Theatre. There are also files on fundraising campaigns and grant proposals. The Union Planning,...
Dates: 1976 - 1991
Found in: College Archives

President. John Rennie Blake Records, 1870-1884

 Sub-Group
Identifier: RG02-06
Scope and Contents

The correspondence consists primarily of Blake's letters to the Board of Trustees concerning relations between the college and the Presbyteries. It also includes Blake's letter of resignation in 1884. The notebooks contains descriptions of Davidson College during the Civil War and research notes on energy, the Holtz machine, and astronomy.

Dates: 1870-1884
Found in: College Archives

President. Rev. Andrew Dousa Hepburn. Records, 1875-1884

 Sub-Group
Identifier: RG02-07
Scope and Contents

The collection consists primarily of correspondence concerning faculty positions at the college and Hepburn's resignation. Materials relating to his resignation include his original letter to the Board and responses from the Board. There is also a receipt for college expenses in 1880.

Dates: 1875 - 1884
Found in: College Archives

President. Rev. Drury Lacy. Records

 Sub-Group
Identifier: RG02-03
Scope and Contents

The collection consists of one receipt signed by Lacy (1856), at letter concerning the delivery of mail to Davidson College (1857), and a letter to Lacy from James B. White recommending a faculty appointment (1860).

Dates: 1856 - 1860
Found in: College Archives

President. Rev. John Bunyan Shearer. Records, 1892-1896

 Sub-Group
Identifier: RG02-09
Scope and Contents

The collection consists of a letter concerning the publication of the Semi-Centennial Catalog, a letter discussing symbolism of candlesticks and christmas trees, a petition by nonfraternity students requesting the abolition of fraternities, and Shearer's letter of resignation.

Dates: 1892 - 1896
Found in: College Archives

President. Rev Luther McKinnon. Records, 1887

 Sub-Group
Identifier: RG02-08
Scope and Contents

The collection consists of McKinnon's 1887 resignation letter.

Dates: 1887-06-06
Found in: College Archives

President. Rev. Robert Hall Morrison. Records

 Sub-Group
Identifier: RG02-01
Scope and Contents

The collection consists of an orginial receipt and copies of letters written by Morrison. The letters discuss the hiring of faculty and the election of Morrison as president of Davidson. The receipt is for James Franklin Stimpson's tuition payment.

Dates: 1836 - 1839
Found in: College Archives

President. Rev. Sam Williamson. Records

 Sub-Group
Identifier: RG02-02
Scope and Contents

The correspondence consists of letters to Williamson concerning the college and a correspondence relating to Samuel B. Wilson's decision not to accept the presidency of Davidson College in 1841. The financial material consists of receipts for faculty salaries. The sermons inclue a printed pamphlet of Williamson's "Sermon on Baptism" printed in Charlotte, NC in 1838, a handwritten version of his 1851 Baccalaurate Address at Davidson College and an undated sermon based on Galatians 3:29.

Dates: Majority of material found within 1795 - 1882
Found in: College Archives

President. Rev. Walter Lee Lingle. Records

 folder
Identifier: RG02-12
Scope and Contents The collection consists primarily of correspondence, both incoming and outgoing, dealing with the administration of Davidson College and its relationship the Presbyterian Church of the US. The collection also includes copies of reports from committees and departments. Specific topics relating to the college in the files include the athletic program, the Alumni Association, the Duke Endowment, changes in curriculum, chapel programs, student health services, architects and buildings, the...
Dates: 1930 - 1941
Found in: College Archives

President. Robert F. Vagt. General File

 Sub-Group
Identifier: RG02-17
Scope and Contents

Please note that Presidential records are closed fifty years prior to the current year.

Only a poster thus far. Waiting on records from the office.

Dates: Majority of material found within 1975 - 2017
Found in: College Archives

President. Smith, Henry Louis. Records, 1901-1912, 1943

 Sub-Group
Identifier: RG02-10
Scope and Contents The collection consists primarily of correspondence from the years 1911 and 1912, with only a few items from the 1907 to 1910 period. Some of the correspondence from the president's office is signed by Miss Cornelia Shaw, who acted as the president's assistant. Topics covered in these records include advertising for the college, athletics, fraternities, the code of honor system, hazing, apple orchards, the Davidson Cemetery, honorary degrees, faculty housing, the College's 75 anniversary...
Dates: Majority of material found within 1901 - 1943
Found in: College Archives

Publications/Inaugural Addresses, 1838- 1941

 Sub-Group
Identifier: RG02-26
Scope and Contents Folder one contains a bound volume of four published inaugural addresses. The addresses are from first college president Robert Hall Morrison, and faculty members Patrick J. Sparrow, Elijah F. Rockwell and Daniel Harvey Hill. D. H. Hill's 1855 address on "College Discipline" was nationally recognized during a time when colleges faced student discipline issues. The Inaugural booklets for Presidents Lingle and Cunningham contain their speeches and the prayers, introductions and other...
Dates: 1838 - 1941
Found in: College Archives

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