NOTE:  The numbers cited in parentheses, e.g. 1:5, refer the researcher to the Series#:Folder# in which that name/topic will be found.

INTRODUCTION

This collection consists primarily of correspondence, financial and legal documents, photographs, and printed materials relating to G. Will Armfield, his children, and his dry goods business. G. Will Armfield was born near Jamestown in 1848 and spent the majority of his professional life as an architect. However, this collection provides more substantive documentation of his mercantile and other business ventures. Also included are many items created or owned by his seven children, and materials that represent Armfield relatives, acquaintances, prominent Greensboro citizens, and local businesses. Researchers interested in Armfield family genealogy, the mercantile business, or Greensboro around the turn of the twentieth century will find useful materials.

Arrangement: This collection is organized into ten series by document type and/or subject. The series are: Blueprints, 1938; Business, 1878-1925; Correspondence, 1827-1951; Financial, 1793-1965; Genealogy, ca. 1880s-1900s; Legal, 1784-1938; Literary, ca. 1825-1901; Miscellaneous, ca. 1805-1940s; Photographs, ca. 1860-ca. 1940; and Printed Materials, 1817-1993.

Provenance: The bulk of this collection was donated by Beverly and Robert Moore Armfield in January 1994 and assigned the accession number 1993.122.1. Subsequent additions were assigned the accession numbers 1996.37.1, 2001.63.1 and 2017.14.1. Robert Moore Armfield (1927-2017) was the son of Hugh Gardner Armfield and grandson of G. Will Armfield. Also included in the collection is a pencil sketch by Joseph H. Armfield that was donated by Myrtle Armfield in August 1949 and assigned the accession number 1949.7.5.

Processing: This collection was organized and the finding aid was completed by intern Della Owens in September 2016.

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE

George Williamson Armfield (1848-1927), better known as G. Will Armfield, was born near Jamestown, in Guilford County, to Eleanor “Nellie” Iddings (1820-1879) and Joseph S. Armfield (1823-1887). His only sibling was a sister, Melvina Letitia Armfield (1850-1925). She eventually married Franklin G. Frazier, who was a farmer in Randolph County.

Educated at Flint Hill Academy, Jamestown, in civil engineering and architecture under Dr. Brack Craven, G. Will Armfield was an architect and builder for most of his life. However, he also spent some time as merchant, first in Friendship, NC, before going to Greensboro in 1875 to join the wholesale grocery house of Houston and Causey. On March 4, 1878, G. Will entered into a partnership with S.S. Brown in a dry goods business under the name Brown and Armfield. After this firm dissolved in 1883, Armfield constructed “G. Will Armfield, Clothing & Dry Goods” at 236-238 South Elm Street, where he was a wholesale and retail dealer. This building was sold in 1893 and became the location of the Vanstory Clothing Co. by 1910 (known by then as the Vernon building). He later joined the dry goods firm of Armfield, Ridge, and Vickory at 214 South Elm Street, which burned in 1896. Armfield then devoted the remainder of his life to architecture and made a significant contribution to the city of Greensboro, the “plan[ing] and erect[ing] of over 100 houses in Greensboro” being attributed to him between 1886 and 1910.

G. Will was also a member of the Hall of Greensboro Lodge No. 76. As a “Master Mason” of the Lodge “in good standing and clear of the books,” he was commended to the “fraternal regard of all true Ancient Free and Accepted Masons” on December 14, 1899. On December 22, 1875, he married Esther Wakefield (1857-1942), who was originally from Grey in Ontario, Canada. Together they had seven children: Joseph Henry, Minnie Myrtle, Lucian Clay, Hazel Ethel, Roy Hanes, George Williamson Jr., and Hugh Gardner. He died of heart disease at age 79 and was buried in Green Hill Cemetery.

G. Will’s eldest son, Joseph H. Armfield (1876-1949), attended Guilford College and was a member of Asheboro Street Friends Meeting. He married Vivian Pegram in 1908 and worked for the Greensboro Post Office for over 45 years, twenty-seven of them as the assistant postmaster. Several hobbies defined him, particularly bird watching and stamp collecting. He was also actively involved with the Boy Scouts, and he designed, built, and remodeled many houses during his lifetime.

Minnie Myrtle Armfield (1880-1973), called Myrtle, graduated from Greensboro College in 1901. She was a member of the West Market Street United Methodist Church, the Daughters of the American Revolution, and the United Daughters of the Confederacy. Myrtle worked as a bookkeeper at Armfield & Bros. (also known as Ideal Candy Co. and Armfield & Co.) from 1926 until around 1931. One of the founders of the Greensboro Historical Museum (later the Greensboro History Museum), she volunteered at the museum for 12 years until she became secretary, treasurer, and then finally curator until her retirement in 1966. She was a lifelong resident of Greensboro and lived at 1715 Wright Avenue from 1929 until her death.

Lucian Clay Armfield (1881-1949), who went by Clay, received his education at Miss Lina Porter’s School and Greensboro High School. He was an operator and inspector for the Greensboro Telephone Exchange for several years before briefly working as a hotel clerk and then an electrician. In 1906, he went to Mexico City to install underground telephone lines, and in 1907 he joined the Pullman Car Company in San Antonio, Texas. The main Pullman Company was located in Pullman, a community in Chicago, Illinois, where he made his home for 22 years until his death. He was married to Frances Delhaunty of Clinton, Iowa, and apparently did not have children.

G. Will’s youngest daughter, Hazel Ethel Armfield, was born on August 13, 1885. A member of the Smith Literary Society, likely associated with her school, she died on August 26, 1901, at the age of 16 due to accidental strychnine poisoning.

Roy Hanes Armfield Sr. (1890-1957) was the owner of Armfield & Co., a confectionery located at 318 Armfield Place in Greensboro. He was a member of West Market Street Methodist Church and married Bessie Lee Joyner on January 24, 1917.

Named after his father, George Williamson Armfield Jr. (1892-1944) worked for the Greensboro Daily News before enlisting in the U.S. Navy in 1908, eventually serving in World War I. He married Grace Cutchin in 1921 and around 1933 moved to Leaksville, NC, where he opened a bakery.

G. Will’s youngest child was Hugh Gardner Armfield (1898-1992). He was the owner and president of Armfield Motors at 316 Armfield Place. He married Mary Helen Moore, and the couple had two children: Robert Moore and Richard Locke.

Biographical Sources: The sources for this biographical note include the Guilford County Register of Deeds database, the Greensboro city directories and Ancestry.com. Obituaries provided further information about the following family members: G. Will Armfield (Greensboro Daily Record, March 29, 1927), Esther Armfield (The Greensboro Record, October 14, 1942), George Williamson Armfield Jr. (The Greensboro Record, May 6, 1944), Joseph H. Armfield (The Greensboro Record, February, 15, 1949), Lucian Clay Armfield (Greensboro Daily News, October 31, 1949), Roy Armfield Sr. (The Greensboro Record, October 18, 1957), Myrtle Armfield (The Greensboro Record, March 23, 1973), and Hugh Armfield (Greensboro News & Record, June 13, 1992). “Death from Strychnine” (The Greensboro Patriot, August 28, 1901) reports on the death of Hazel Armfield. Copies of all these items can be found in the folder at the beginning of the collection. Additional details about G. Will Armfield were obtained from the Album of Greensboro N.C. (Greensboro Chamber of Commerce, 1892: p. 29) and “The Gate City.” Greensboro. Commercial, Financial, Manufacturing (J.M. Reece & Co., 1910: p. 62). The article “Visiting with Mrs. ‘G’” (Methodist Life, Vol. 4, No. 28, August 4, 1967; 10:12) provided information about Myrtle Armfield’s affiliation with the Greensboro Historical Museum.

SCOPE & CONTENT NOTE

This collection focuses on G. Will Armfield, his dry goods business and his children. Types of materials include blueprints, correspondence, financial and legal documents, genealogical material, photographs, and printed materials.

G. Will Armfield’s dry goods business is documented through a ledger (2:10), a license to practice “Merchandise” (2:2), and numerous bills and receipts on store letterhead. Materials created or owned by G. Will’s children consist primarily of correspondence, photographs and printed materials relating to their personal lives. Other materials relate to Armfield friends and relatives; prominent Greensboro citizens, such as McDaniel Lewis and Robert P. Dick; and local businesses, including the Greensboro National Bank, Guilford Lumber Manufacturing Company, Hotel Guilford and Southern Real Estate Co.

Researchers interested in the mercantile business, the Armfield family in the late 19th and early 20th century, and Greensboro during this time will find materials of interest in this collection.

SERIES DESCRIPTIONS

1. Blueprints.  1 folder (3 items).  1938.

This series contains survey blueprints from three different properties owned by Joseph H. Armfield in 1938: 606 Simpson Street, 610 Simpson Street, and 124 Wilson Street.

2. Business.  15 folders (ca. 75 items).  1878-1925.

This series centers around G. Will Armfield’s business ventures, particularly his dry goods store and work as executor for several estates. He spent most of his career as an architect, but the series only represents that profession with a 1915 “Certificate to practice Architecture” (2:2).

Materials relating to G. Will Armfield’s dry goods business include his 1884 license to practice “Merchandise” (2:15), an agreement to go into co-partnership with S.S. Brown, and a draft of an agreement made by S.S. Brown to dissolve the partnership (2:14). Bills and receipts from “G. Will Armfield, Dry Goods, Notions, Boots, Shoes, …” (2:10) and one unfinished letter (2:8) are on business letterhead. Also of interest is an accounting ledger from this store (2:12).

The financial documents consist of many items relating to G. Will Armfield’s service as executor for the estates of Jesse, Charlotte and Mary Gardner (2:9). Two broadsides advertise his sale of a 100-acre farm on Reddick’s Creek as executor for the will of Charlotte Gardner (2:1), while some business correspondence relates to his own purchase of property from J.P. Scales through the Southern Real Estate Co. (2:6-7).

Also contained in this series are an agreement made by W.A. Fields to lease the second floor of the Gate City Laundry building to the Armfield Manufacturing Company (2:14). Additional financial documents include an unidentified ledger that G. Will may have owned (2:13), checks (primarily Greensboro National Bank), tax receipts, and bills and receipts from local businesses such as Guilford Lumber Manufacturing Company and Wm. Collins, Cabinet Maker and Undertaker (2:11).

3. Correspondence.  55 folders (ca. 165 items).  1827-1951.

Most of the correspondence is personal and concerns members of the Armfield family. Some of the senders represented are Myrtle Armfield (3:6), Ora Armfield (3:7), and Melvina Armfield Frazier (3:23). Many letters were sent to Melvina Armfield Frazier and Hazel Armfield from friends and family. Myrtle Armfield, her brother Hugh, and his wife received letters and some V-Mail from their nephew, Roy H. Armfield Jr., when he was in training in the U.S. and later serving in the 158th Army Postal Unit in England and France during World War II.

Also included in this series are letters from businesses and organizations, such as the Department of Justice (3:17), the N.C. Division of the United Daughters of the Confederacy (3:46), and the Richmond and Danville Railroad Co. (3:40). Of interest may be a letter containing receipts from The Square Deal Store in Greensboro (3:43) and two from the Masons (3:32) that include G. Will’s certificate and information about Masonic law. Postcards depict places in Greensboro, such as Greensboro Female College, Southern Railway Station, and White Oak Mills (3:37).

4. Financial.  5 folders (37 items).  1793-1965.

Within this series are financial documents, such as bills and receipts, relating to members of the Armfield family and others of unknown relation. Items of interest may be an insurance policy taken out with The Phoenix Insurance Company in 1867 (4:4), a gasoline purchase permit dating from 1945, medical bills from Piedmont Memorial Hospital and Wesley Long Community Hospital, and two dog licenses (4:1).

5. Genealogy.  2 folders (5 items).  1880s-1900s.

This series contains Armfield and Wakefield family history and genealogy. A typed paper titled “History of the Wakefield Family” (5:1) reviews the lives of Henry Wakefield, born February 21, 1828, and his relatives; another titled “Mrs. Hannah Armfield” (5:1), born Hannah Iddings, reviews her life and marriage to Julian Armfield. A handwritten history of the Armfield family (5:2) begins with the “Original John Armfield” and has the earliest date of 1695. Lastly, a hand drawn family tree shows the descendants of the “Original John Armfield” (5:1).

6. Legal.  3 folders (6 items).  1784-1938.

Legal documents of interest may be the Last Will and Testament of Melvina Armfield Frazier, dated 1924 (6:3); the property title for 1715 Wright Avenue, signed by Esther and Myrtle Armfield and dated 1928 (6:1); and a deed to land in Guilford County dated 1784 and signed by Jonathan Howel (6:2).

7. Literary.  2 folders (3 items).  ca. 1825; 1900-1901.

The literary series contains unpublished, handwritten materials, such as Hazel Armfield’s diary (7:1). Of historical note is a booklet that describes a conflict prior to 1825 between the “overbearing gentry” and the Sanhedrin of Guilford County (7:2).

8. Miscellaneous.  9 folders (ca. 35 items).  ca. 1805-1940s.

Of particular interest in this series is a pencil sketch of a house with a bridge that was made by Joseph H. Armfield while attending Miss Lina Porter’s school around 1889 (8:2). Also included are an art print of a young girl titled “Carolina” and published by Currier and Ives (8:2), a ledger of unknown use (8:6), the minutes of the Smith Literary Society (8:7), and some of Myrtle Armfield’s schoolwork (8:8).

9. Photographs.  17 folders (ca. 215 items).  ca. 1860-ca. 1940.

The majority of the photographs are individual or group portraits. Included are multiple images taken by the following Greensboro photographers or studios: Sidney L. Alderman, L.W. Andrews, L. Francis Hanes, J.A. Leonard and Wharton’s Art Gallery. The series also contains images by studios in Baltimore, Charlotte, Danville and Reidsville.

The portraits of Armfield family members and their relatives are arranged by family name and include the Armfield (9:1-5, 9:7), Frazier (9:7), Iddings (9:9) and Wakefield (9:17) families. Notable photos show G. Will and Esther Armfield (9:2), Joseph and Vivian Armfield (9:3), Myrtle Armfield (9:5) and “Grandpa and Grandma Wakefield” (9:17).

Other identified people include Rutherford B. Hayes, Mary Townsend, Carlyle Holmes Weatherly, and children from the Knight family (9:12). Two photos show the children in the first and second grades at Lindsay Street School (9:11). A group photo of post office employees includes Ed Tate, M.C. Stewart, Tom Tate, Judge Michael S. Schenck, Ben Hilton, Sam Wiley, J.D. Burch and J.W. Forbis (9:12).

The landscape photos include one of the Liberty Oak, but the locations of most others are not identified (9:10). Some photos of houses are labeled with addresses, such as 350 S. Ashe Street and 1715 Wright Avenue, both of which were built and owned by members of the Armfield family. Other houses include 220 Fisher Avenue and 606, 610 and 620 Simpson Street in Greensboro (9:8).

10. Printed Materials.  19 folders (ca. 115 items).  1817-1993.

The printed materials include advertisements, almanacs, books, booklets, maps, newspaper clippings and programs. Some items that represent local schools and colleges are a copy of Clay Armfield’s report card from Miss Lina Porter’s School (ca. 1880; 10:18); the Greensboro High School magazine entitled The Sage (1913-1919; 10:8); and an Alumnae Association booklet that lists alumnae, college songs and the creed of Greensboro College (1944-1945; 10:7).

Of interest to Armfield family researchers would be an article about a neglected cemetery in Greensboro that is the resting place of Ithamer Armfield, an uncle of G. Will Armfield. The article provides a brief account of Armfield history and a picture of G. Will’s father, J.S. Armfield (10:16). A West Market Street Methodist Church newsletter contains an article about Myrtle Armfield (10:12). Funeral materials relate to G. Will Armfield, Hazel Armfield, Joseph S. Armfield and Mary E. Gardiner, and also include a handout for the third annual Community Memorial Service, held in 1929 (10:6).

The almanacs (10:2) found in this series are Henderson’s Almanack (1817), Gales’ North Carolina Almanac (1818), Jayne’s Medical Almanac and Guide to Health (1852; 1854; 1859; 1860), The People’s Almanac (1857) and The Home Almanac (1858). The books entitled Aircraft Mechanics Handbook (1918) and Brookes Automobile Hand Book (1911) were owned by Hugh Armfield, who was a motor dealer. Navigation Laws of the United States (1895) was likely owned by George Williamson Jr., since he spent several years in the U.S. Navy. Lastly, Lucian Clay Armfield owned National Council of Women of the U.S. 1891 and Doctor Ellen (10:4).

Three newspaper articles describe the trip that the McNairy house took to reach its destination in the park behind the Greensboro Historical Museum, and one on the Isley house, also located on Museum property, describes the raising of the house’s chimney as a memorial to Dolley Madison (10:16).

Other materials of interest may be a 1911-1912 Boy Scout handbook (10:5) and a 1917 City of Greensboro driver’s license (10:15), both of which belonged to Hugh Armfield. Also of note are advertisements for the Hotel Clegg and Gate City Roofing Co. (10:1), and a program for memorial services for Warren G. Harding at the National Theatre in 1923 (10:17).

FOLDER LISTING

NOTE:  The numbers cited in parentheses, e.g. 1:5, refer the researcher to the Series#:Folder# in which that name/topic will be found.

INTRODUCTION

The American Red Cross (Greensboro) Collection consists primarily of materials produced by the national headquarters and apparently sent to the Greensboro chapter to assist in promoting its 1946-1947 fundraising campaign. The local chapter was established shortly after the United States entered World War I in April 1917, and it quickly became an active community organization. Of particular note are the items relating to this chapter, especially a chronology of its activities during its first 50 years. Also of interest may be two pastel drawings by Anna M. Upjohn and multiple promotional posters.

Arrangement: This collection is organized into three series and arranged within series by document type. The series are: American Junior Red Cross, 1947; American Red Cross, 1945-1987; and American Red Cross, Greensboro Chapter, ca. 1946-1971.

Provenance: This bulk of this collection was donated by the Greensboro chapter of the American Red Cross in August 1989 and assigned the accession number 1989.115.1. The annual report (3:4) was among materials transferred from the N.C. Vertical File at UNCG Libraries in 2016 and incorporated in the collection in 2022.

Processing: This collection was organized by Archivist Elise Allison. The finding aid was drafted by intern Alina Ramirez in June 2022 and completed by Archivist Elise Allison in November 2022.

HISTORICAL NOTE

The American Red Cross (ARC) was founded in Washington, DC on May 21, 1881, and it soon became a vital organization, providing aid during wars, epidemics, and natural disasters. After the United States entered World War I in April 1917, representatives of the Guilford Battle Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, the United Daughters of the Confederacy, the Greensboro Woman’s Club, and the YWCA applied to establish a chapter to serve Greensboro and Guilford County. Chartered on April 20, 1917, the chapter aided the war effort by raising funds, donating materials, and caring for injured soldiers and those sickened during the Spanish influenza pandemic. In addition to providing services to the military, the chapter sponsored educational classes on first aid, hygiene, and care of the sick. Even in peacetime, it remained active in local civic affairs and provided assistance in the aftermath of natural disasters at the state, national, and international level.

Historical Sources: The main sources for this historical note are a pamphlet entitled “Greensboro Chapter American Red Cross: The First Fifty Years” (3:4) and History of Greensboro N.C. Chapter American Red Cross, Greensboro, North Carolina, a copy of which can be found in the folder at the front of the collection.

SCOPE & CONTENT NOTE

The types of materials in this collection include correspondence, drawings, posters, and a variety of printed materials, including pamphlets, awards, and one textbook. The bulk of the collection consists of publicity documents seemingly sent from the national headquarters of the American Red Cross to the Greensboro chapter for use in its fundraising efforts. Documents relating directly to the local chapter include an annual report, two pamphlets with chronologies of its activities, a fundraising letter, and publicity plans. Also of note are two pastel drawings by Anna M. Upjohn, as well as multiple posters promoting ARC service programs to potential donors, volunteers, and service recipients.

SERIES DESCRIPTIONS

1. American Junior Red Cross.  1 folder (1 item).  1947.

The only item in this series is an American Junior Red Cross bulletin published in February 1947 (Vol. V, No. 5). In addition to highlighting current events and news relating to the organization, it includes thank you notes to service members, ideas for program services or activities in which service members can participate, and brief reports on past/present service members.

2. American Red Cross.  15 folders (67 items).  1945-1987.

This series contains materials from the national American Red Cross. Correspondence from the national chairman to various chapter chairmen relates to organizational meetings and updates (2:1), while a booklet addresses GI complaints of 1947 (2:4) and a textbook for junior members covers first aid (2:7). The majority of the series consists of publicity documents from the national headquarters (2:10-15). These materials range from posters, endorsements, radio interview scripts, and speaking scripts to documents relating to public displays, motion pictures, and fund supplies. Several posters encourage volunteers to sign-up and showcase the various roles available to them, while others highlight the impact of monetary donations and promote ARC services to military personnel and their families (2:3). The series also includes campaign newsletters and newspaper prints, one from the national headquarters newspaper service (2:9), as well as reports on ARC expenditures, shipment information for various care items sent to soldiers, and updates on ARC developments in other countries during 1946 (2:16). Of particular interest are two large pastel drawings by Anna Milo Upjohn, who became the staff artist for the American Junior Red Cross in 1921 (2:2). One of the drawings depicts a young girl, seemingly a service member, caring for a sick child, while the other features two young boys, one of whom seems to be helping the other read or write.

3. American Red Cross, Greensboro Chapter.  5 folders (27 items).  ca. 1946-1971.

Documents pertaining to the Greensboro chapter of the American Red Cross include its 1952-1953 annual report and two pamphlets detailing activities during its first 50 years (3:4). Also of note are an award of excellence that the chapter received in 1971, as well as a blank certificate of appreciation for blood donors (3:1). A letter from 1947 fund campaign chairman Ben Cone encourages the public to donate to the American Red Cross and highlights some of the services their donations support (3:2), while publicity plans for the campaign depict possible window displays for local stores such as Belk’s, Meyer’s, Montaldo’s, Younts-DeBoe, and Vanstory Clothing (3:5). Some advertising notes and production item ideas for display are also included with the publicity plans. Four pages containing minutes, or meeting notes, describe situations in which service members and/or their families requested assistance from the American Red Cross, with each one outlining circumstances of financial or medical hardship and how the ARC was able to address the case (3:3).

FOLDER LISTING

NOTE: The numbers cited in parentheses, e.g. 1:5, refer the researcher to the Series#:Folder# in which that name/topic will be found.

INTRODUCTION

The Allen-McFarland Family Papers chiefly document an African American family in the South in the mid-twentieth century, providing considerable insight into the values and norms of African Americans during this period, as well as the opportunities and frustrations of a struggling minority. In addition, the Allen-McFarland family also could be characterized as a military family, since at least two members of the family chose military careers after fighting in World War II and Korea, and a possible ancestor fought with the famous 54th Massachusetts during the Civil War.

Arrangement: Because of the complex nature of this collection — representing several family and extended family members — it was arranged into twelve groups identified by Roman numerals, I-XII. Also, instead of numbering the series separately within groups, the 49 series are numbered consecutively beginning with Group I. The groups are: (I) Laura M. Allen (Series 1-7), (II) Leon B. McFarland (8-13), (III) Dorothy Allen McFarland (14-22), (IV) Andra Wesley Allen (23-26), (V) Joseph Watts (27-32), (VI) McRae Family (33-37), (VII) Cora Ricks (38-40), (VIII) Legal (41), (IX) Miscellaneous (42-46), (X) Photos (47), (XI) Printed (48) and (XII) School Documents (49).

Provenance: This collection was donated by Leon McFarland’s sister, Dorothy McFarland Phea, of Lubbock, Texas, in September 1994. It was assigned the accession number 1994.165.1.

Processing: This collection was organized and the finding aid was prepared by J. Timothy Cole in March-May 1996.

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE

Laura McRae Allen (1891?-1971), known as Laura V. Allen, Laura Allen Simmons and Laura V. Simmons, was probably born in Alamance County (her date of birth is given variously as 1885, 1891, and 1899), the daughter of Fred (?-1927?) and Etta McRae (1858-1945). She apparently lived in Greensboro after about 1913, continuing to live there most of her adult life. Around 1913 or 1914, Ms. Allen appears to have married Samuel L. Allen (? -1916?), who was caretaker of the First Presbyterian Church graveyard in Greensboro circa 1912. Samuel Allen seems to have died about 1916, following which Ms. Allen inherited his property at 800 Julian St. She gave birth to a daughter, Ximinia Marie (1914 – ?), and a second daughter, Dorothy (1916-1990), on December 6, 1916. Ms. Allen apparently also raised Andra Wesley (1921- ?), son of Thelma Allen; a will dated 1927 refers to him as a grandson. According to the Greensboro city directories of this period, Ms. Allen was variously employed as a maid, nurse, and householder, and, around 1923 or 1924, she appears to have married or domiciled with Haywood W. Simmons, a tailor. In 1931 the home on Julian St. burned and, while it was evidently repaired or rebuilt, Ms. Allen was evicted from the property in 1932 through an action made by the Gate City Building and Loan, possibly due to her inability to pay off a note, though the legality of the bank’s takeover is unclear. Ms. Allen and her family subsequently resided at various Greensboro locations: 1203 Douglas St., 915 Benbow Rd., 403 High St., and 910 Omaha St. She eventually settled into a career in nursing and was certified as a licensed practical nurse in North Carolina in 1947, possibly the first African American from Guilford County to achieve this distinction. At one time (ca. 1950), she served as registrar for the Licensed Practical Nurses Division of Greensboro. Ms. Allen battled chronic ill health during her later years and died in Greensboro on April 2, 1971.

Leon Bedford McFarland (1919-1995) was born in Bonham, Texas, the son of Atchison McFarland (1896?-1927?) and Virgie Bedford McFarland (? -ca. 1970). After graduating from Sumner High School in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1940, McFarland attended North Carolina State College (later N.C. Central University) in Durham, NC (1940-42), where he was captain of the football team (ca. 1942). As a young man he worked for a movie theatre in St. Louis (1939-40) and the New York Central Railroad (1941-43). He was inducted into the Air Force in 1943, and assigned to Basic Training Center No. 10 [later the Overseas Replacement Depot (O.R.D.)] in Greensboro, ca. 1944, where he was leader of the 303rd Wing Band Orchestra. It was perhaps at this time that he met Dorothy Allen, whom he would eventually marry. McFarland was discharged in 1946, but was recalled in 1950, and remained in the Air Force until his retirement in 1968. He attained the rank of Staff Sergeant, and his assignments included: Sandia A.F.B., Albuquerque, New Mexico; Kirtland A.F.B., New Mexico; Beale A.F.B., California; O’Hare A.F.B., Chicago; Lackland A.F.B., Texas; Elmendorf A.F.B., Alaska; and Bushy Park A.F.B., England. Following retirement, he worked as a security guard and eventually settled in Greensboro. He apparently battled alcohol abuse in the 1960s and 1970s, as records indicate he completed at least two alcohol rehabilitation programs.

Dorothy Allen McFarland (1916-1990), daughter of Laura Allen, was in the last high school class to graduate from Bennett College (1932?), earned a B.A. in elementary education from Bennett (1940), and took additional classes at N.C. A&T. Sometimes following her husband Leon to his Air Force assignments, sometimes not, she continued to live with her mother Laura Allen throughout much of her adult life. Ms. McFarland eventually taught in Washington, D.C., Albuquerque, N.M., and England, as well as several schools in North Carolina, including Price School, Terracotta, and Dudley High in Greensboro, and Osgood School in Sanford. She often worked as a substitute teacher. Development of her career seems to have been handicapped by long bouts with syphilis and tuberculosis; during the late 1950s and early 1960s, Ms. McFarland was hospitalized/treated at the State Tuberculosis Sanatorium in McCain, N.C., Womack Army Hospital, Fort Bragg, N.C., and Fitzsimons General Hospital, Denver, Colorado. The syphilis, which she apparently contracted about 1937, possibly helps explain why she had no children.

Andra Wesley Allen (1921- ?) was the son of Thelma Allen and Emsley Hubbard, but apparently spent at least part of his childhood in the household of Laura Allen. He graduated from Hillside Park High School in Durham, NC, in 1939. It is unclear if Allen attended a college or university before entering the military, but by 1943 he had attained the rank of 2nd Lieutenant in the Army. Allen saw action in Italy and was promoted to full Lieutenant during World War II. He chose a military career and was stationed in Germany and Italy during the 1940s and 1950s, eventually attaining the rank of Captain. He may have been demoted at some point, as in his last letters as a military man he holds the title Master Sergeant. Allen retired from the military in 1963 and settled in Willingboro, N.J.

Joseph Watts (ca. 1930- ?) apparently either lived with or was otherwise very close to the Allen family in the 1940s and 1950s, but the precise relationship between the Watts and Allen families is ambiguous. Watts graduated from Greensboro’s Dudley High School in 1948 and soon thereafter enlisted in the U.S. Army. He saw action in the Korean War.

Cora Allen Ricks (? -1977) was a sister or cousin (?) of Laura Allen. She married her second husband, Arthur Ricks (1888-1963), in 1944, and seems to have lived in Durham, NC, for many years.

Biographical Sources: The chief sources used to identify members of this family include Greensboro city directories, courthouse and cemetery records, and materials in the collection.

SCOPE & CONTENT NOTE

Types of materials in this collection include correspondence, scrapbooks, diaries, pamphlets, flyers, brochures, circulars, bulletins, certificates, photographs, military records, and school, legal and financial documents. Except for the McRae Family group, the eviction series, and other scattered materials, the collection dates from ca. 1940-1975. Perhaps the key figure in the collection is Laura McRae Allen, though she remains a somewhat shadowy figure because the materials focus upon her later years. Researchers interested in the history of health care in the Greensboro area will find a small amount of material relating to Ms. Allen’s nursing career (1:30,44,64; 5:2; 7:45). The eviction of Ms. Allen and family from her home in 1932 sheds light upon the economic insecurity and legal disempowerment of African Americans during this period in Greensboro (2:1-12). In general, the collection suggests that Ms. Allen’s role was one of family matriarch.

The large accumulation of official military documents in the collection records Sergeant Leon McFarland’s Air Force career (11:1-5). The military documents are augmented by the presence of McFarland’s letters to his wife and mother-in-law, which tell us much about base life at some of the facilities where he was assigned during the Cold War years: Sandia A.F.B., Albuquerque, New Mexico; O’Hare A.F.B., Chicago; Rabat French, Morocco; Elmendorf A.F.B., Alaska; and Bushy Park A.F.B., England (1:59;15:25). A small amount of material in the collection relates to McFarland’s presence at the ORD in Greensboro during World War II (13:5). Documents indicating alcohol abuse (13:3; 15:20) and marital difficulties (15:20) suggest the toll that military life may have taken upon Sergeant McFarland.

Captain Andra Wesley Allen’s military career is documented chiefly through his letters to Ms. Allen and Ms. McFarland (23:1-7), as well as a collection of photographs associated with his assignment to Italy (25:1-7). In Allen we see a confident African American rising through the ranks of the military and pursuing relationships with white women in Europe, a practice which would have been unacceptable in the American South of his youth. The papers documenting the apparently brief military career of Corporal Joseph Watts imply that he was engaged in the front lines during the Korean War (27:1,4).

A few items in the collection address the struggle of African Americans for civil rights, though such materials are surprisingly few in number given the time period of most of the collection (1940-75) and the prominence of correspondence. Notable is the presence of an early (ca. 1940) petition for slum clearance in Greensboro (41:1). Passages in several letters also address the power of the vote (15:33), and school desegregation (23:2,5). A few printed materials relating to political power for African Americans, organized labor, and the Communist Party are also present (48:27,39-40,45). The medical records of Dorothy McFarland (19:1) are illustrative of the susceptibility of African Americans to communicable diseases during this period. Though afflicted by both tuberculosis and syphilis, Ms. McFarland still struggled to finish college and establish her career as a schoolteacher. Her diary and scrapbook also provide insights into the personal life of a young African American woman circa 1940 (18:1; 22:1). The McFarland scrapbook (22:1) contains information about Bennett College, as does the School Documents series (49:1,4-6).

The McRae Family group is informative of the ownership of property and finances of an African American family in North Carolina in the late 19th century (34:3; 35:1). The series is notable also for the presence of a pension application for a widow (Elizabeth Jeffreys) of an African American soldier who fought with Company H in the 54th Massachusetts of Civil War fame (35:4).

SERIES DESCRIPTIONS

I. Laura Allen

1. Correspondence. 91 folders (ca. 175 items). 1935-1971.

Spanning the period from 1939-1968 is a large body of correspondence from Laura Allen’s daughter Ximinia Marie Allen Banks (1:5-8). The letters consist largely of expressions of affection, plans for visits, thank yous, etc. Similar commonplace content can be found in the letters of Ruth Green (1:36), a niece of Laura Allen.

Letters from Dorothy Allen McFarland are found in 1:58. In one interesting letter (1961), Ms. McFarland bemoans the pressures of teaching in Washington, D.C., and requests that Ms. Allen send her medicine from Greensboro to protect her from colds.

The Leon McFarland correspondence (1:59) contains interesting views on life at the various Air Force bases at which he was stationed, and his writing is also of interest for its approximation of black dialect. He wrote of Sandia A.F.B. in Albuquerque, N.M. in 1955: “There isn’t any news that I can tell you about becaues (sic) this base isn’t just a base, it is a constration (sic) camp, becaus (sic) every body is watching every one, as you know this is the main part for the Atomic Energy, and every body is watched by the OSIs[,] that mean Office Special investigation, and the CIC, so you can see there isn’t much new about the base, but I can tell you what we had for Turkey Day, and that mean Thanksgiving. . . .”

Other letters of note include one (1948) from the North Carolina Licensed Practical Nurses Association (1:64) which enumerates expectations for LPNs in NC. The correspondence of Alfred I. Winston (apparently a husband or boyfriend of Ximinia Marie Allen) can be found in 1:90. One particularly long Winston letter, written in 1939, sheds considerable light upon ill feelings between sisters Ximinia Marie and Dorothy.

2. Eviction. 13 folders (ca. 60 items). 1910-1945.

This fascinating series documents the eviction of Ms. Allen and her family from their home in Greensboro at 800 Julian St. in 1932. Folders 2:1-3 consist of letters or copies of letters written by Ms. Allen on the incident. As she put it: “On April the 28th 1932 my things were set in the streets” (2:1). Folders 2:4-7 contain correspondence with various lawyers. A brief letter from Walter White, Secretary of the NAACP, can be found in 2:8. Contained in 2:9 is a group of receipts from the Schiffman family (a family of prominent Jewish Greensboro jewelers), apparently pertaining to payments on a note made by Laura Allen. Folders 2:10-11 contain tax receipts for the Julian St. property, and 2:12 includes the original deed.

3. Financial. 9 folders (ca. 20 items). 1944-1971.

This series includes routine bank statements and checks (3:1), check stubs (3:2), deposit books (3:3), and receipts from businesses in Greensboro (3:5-9).

4. Legal. 8 folders (ca. 10 items). 1916-1971.

Included is: a 1935 court order (4:1) requiring Laura Allen, as guardian of Ruth McRae, to file her annual account of the latter’s estate; a copy of Laura Allen’s death certificate (4:2); a deed to Colored Union Cemetery, Greensboro (1916), where Samuel L. Allen, first husband (?) of Laura Allen, was likely buried (4:3); some insurance policies (4:4-6); and an early (1927) will of Laura Allen (4:8).

5. Literary. 2 folders (4 items). n.d.

This series includes some recipes (5:1) and a few notes relating to nursing (5:2).

6. Photos. 2 folders (ca. 20 items). n.d.

Included in this series are a number of photographs of Laura Allen, ca.1940-60 (6:1-2), with one (6:2) especially fine color portrait of Ms. Allen.

7. Printed. 68 folders (ca. 90 items). 1924-1960.

This large series includes numerous broadsides, flyers, pamphlets, etc., relating to healthcare (7:1-9,11-21,23-26,28-41,45-46,48-66).

II. Leon Bedford McFarland

8. Correspondence. 18 folders (ca. 75 items). 1943-1985.

Folder 8:3 includes a 1970 letter to McFarland family members from LaVanBennette, perhaps a half-brother (?) of Leon McFarland, presumably addressing the financial problems of Virgie Bedford McFarland, the mother of Leon McFarland. World War II era greeting cards (8:5-6) include patriotic motifs and may suggest other themes/card types which were attractive and available to African Americans at this time (ca. 1943-44). A long letter (1985) in 8:8 is from Almedia Hawkins of Garland, Texas, to the McFarlands and details the everyday life of this African American woman. In 8:9, Leon McFarland is dismissed as a Pinkerton guard from Bluefield State College, Bluefield, West Virginia (1969).

9. Financial. 3 folders (5 items). 1957-1977.

This series includes contracts for automobiles purchased by Leon McFarland (9:1-2) and a few receipts (9:3).

10. Legal. 2 folders (5 items). 1952-1978.

A vehicle registration (10:1) and some tax return forms (10:2) can be found in this series.

11. Military Documents. 5 folders (ca. 250 items). 1943-1968.

The military documents series includes identification cards (11:1) and a large group of materials documenting McFarland’s service record in the Air Force between 1951 and 1968 (11:2-5). An interesting letter (perhaps never mailed) on Bovingdon (England) Service Club stationary can be found in 11:3. McFarland writes: “I have a white Club Director in the office with me, and I know just what some of your boys are saying, if you were in Mississippi you wouldn’t be doing that, but I am so glad the Queen have (sic) her arms around me. . . .” Folder 11:4 includes a 1967 letter which describes why McFarland was not selected for retention by the Air Force.

12. Photos. 24 folders (ca. 125 items). ca. 1940-1944.

The photos series includes a large collection of McFarland family photos from an album apparently assembled by McFarland himself (12:1-20). Included are photographs (ca. 1920) of McFarland’s father, Atchison McFarland (12:2-3,6,14), and his aunt, Cleo McFarland (12:4-5,14,16). There are numerous other photos of McFarland (12:7,21), his relatives and his home (?), in this series. In addition, folder 12:22 includes a photograph of the N.C. State College football team (ca. 1942). Folder 12:23 contains a photograph of the 303rd Wing Orchestra (ca. 1944), which was made up of African American soldiers stationed at the O.R.D. Finally, folder 12:24 includes a group of shots of social activities at Bovingdon, England, in 1952.

13. Printed. 11 folders (ca. 25 items). 1940-1980.

Folder 13:3 contains a number of certificates earned by McFarland, among these being: McFarland’s High School diploma (1940); his certificate of appointment to the rank of staff sergeant (1951); honorable discharge certificates (1951, 1957, and 1964); certificates for completing an NCO leadership school (1966); and certificates for completing alcohol rehabilitation programs in 1974 and 1979. In 13:5 may be found various newspaper clippings related to McFarland’s biography (1944-79). Other materials include a baseball umpire examination, ca. 1960 (13:6), and a 1961 recreation manual (13:9).

III. Dorothy Allen McFarland

14. Biographical. 1 folder (2 items). n.d.

This one folder series (14:1) includes two biographical news clippings pertaining to Dorothy McFarland.

15. Correspondence. 39 folders (ca. 100 items). 1947-1982.

Highlights of this series include folder 15:5, which contains a long correspondence from Dorothy Allen McFarland’s sister, Ximinia Marie Allen Banks. Two 1947 letters therein discuss the cost of Dorothy’s penicillin treatments, probably for recurring bouts with syphilis. The large correspondence of the early to mid-1970s suggests the sisters grew closer following the death of their mother in 1971. Folder 15:15 includes the correspondence of Josephine Holley; in one letter (1955), Ms. Holley bemoans her involvement with a homosexual named Edward who moved out (leaving her to pay the rent and other expenses) when she “caught him.”

A 1963 letter (15:20) from Dorothy Lucas to Dorothy McFarland details an affair between Ms. Lucas and Leon McFarland, as well as McFarland’s drinking problems. In folder 15:25 can be found a long correspondence (1953-82) from Leon McFarland, providing considerable insight into life at the various A.F.B.’s at which he was stationed. In 15:26 a group of letters can be found from Molly, a friend of Ms. McFarland’s from England.

Another group, 15:29, contains letters (1953-60) from Eddie “Prince” Petty, a professional musician with whom Ms. McFarland evidently once had a relationship. Petty wrote in one letter (1955): “I’m getting some of my material ready for King Cole’s agent, all I can say [is] I hope he likes one of the songs just well enough to let Nat record one.”

Still another interesting group (15:35) is from “Unc.” (possibly Willie Griffin, husband of Leon McFarland’s Aunt Cleo McFarland). In one letter of 1962 he writes from New York: “If and when the Black Man gets his voting rights and can be taught to pool his vote — eventually he can bring about some changes. They will have to learn to take advantage of leadership. Here in Harlem our group more or less follows the guidance of Adam [Clayton] Powell. . . . The southern man (white) wants to keep the Black Man down so that he will have someone to kick around. He realizes that given the same opportunity, the Black Man will in time prove himself. He also tries to hide behind the sexual aspect. Albeit, the darker races of the world are fast coming into prominence and officialdom.”

16. Financial. 3 folders (8 items). 1967-1978.

The financial series includes lists of expenditures for gas, fuel, hardware, etc., for the period 1968-78 (16:1), and receipts for legal expenses and automobile repairs during 1967-78 (16:3).

17. Legal. 2 folders (4 items). 1940-1978.

Included in this series is Ms. McFarland’s vehicle registration for 1978 (17:1) and a receipt book which was used to record the payment of insurance premiums (17:2).

18. Literary. 2 folders (2 items). 1940-1963.

Folder 18:1 includes a diary which Ms. McFarland kept in 1940. The diary describes mainly social activities and dates. One frequent presence is H.A.R. (Harvey Laymon?), with whom Ms. McFarland evidently had an important relationship. A list of what may be substitute teaching assignments (in Washington, D.C.?) can be found in 18:2.

19. Medical Records. 1 folder (ca. 20 items). 1957-1962.

This one folder series (19:1) contains Ms. McFarland’s medical records for the period 1957-62. The records detail her treatments for both syphilis and tuberculosis during this time.

20. Photos. 2 folders (11 items). n.d.

Folder 20:1 of the photos series contains a number of photos of Ms. McFarland (1940-77). A portrait with her husband, Leon McFarland, may be found in 20:2.

21. Printed. 5 folders (10 items). 1950-1979.

This series contains passports (21:5), and Ms. McFarland’s birth certificate (21:2) — which, apparently, was altered.

22. Scrapbook. 1 folder (1 item). 1932-ca. 1950.

This scrapbook was evidently presented to Ms. McFarland by J.P. Allen in June 1940, possibly as a gift upon Ms. McFarland’s graduation from Bennett College. It includes a clipping of a class portrait of Ms. McFarland as part of the last high school graduating class at Bennett (1932?). There are numerous photos of classmates, relatives, and friends from this period. The scrapbook also includes a clipping about Belle Tobias Curtis, a prominent Bennett College instructor who died suddenly on her honeymoon, senior class and baccalaureate programs (1940), a program for a presentation of “As You Like It” at Bennett (1940), and photos of Ms. McFarland’s entire graduating class. A loose materials folder includes a copy of the Bennett Banner, clippings, drawings, an invitation to Andra W. Allen’s high school graduation and numerous photos (including Bennett’s last high school graduates and Laura Allen as a young woman).

IV. Andra Wesley Allen

23. Correspondence. 9 folders (ca. 30 items). 1944-1971.

Most of this series (23:1-7) consists of letters written by Captain Allen to Laura and Dorothy Allen between 1944 and 1971 — many of which were written from Allen’s assignments in Europe. For example, folder 23:1 includes three letters to Laura written either during or just after the end of World War II (1944-45). For the most part, the letters refer to family and Army life, but 23:2 (1954) contains a discussion of school desegregation. Allen writes from overseas: “I have been reading of the friction in some of the schools as a result of the desegregation of the public schools in those areas. There is no point in fighting it because the ruling has been made by the highest court in the land. Whether the public like (sic) it or not they have got to accept it. I am of the opinion that the friction that exist (sic) at present will soon be overcome by education.” Another letter (23:5) also notes the 1954 Supreme Court decision on desegregation and observes that “foreign English language newspapers gave Greensboro credit for being the first southern city to take any type of action to comply with the ruling. . . .” The correspondence from 1962-71 (23:6-7) coincides with Allen’s return to civilian life and settlement in Willingboro, N.J. Folder 23:8 consists of a detailed letter describing a miscarriage to Laura Allen from Gadula (Captain Allen’s wife). In 23:9 is a 1944 letter in Italian from Anna Lombardo, with whom Allen evidently had a relationship while stationed in Italy.

24. Legal. 2 folders (2 items). 1942-1945.

This series includes a driver’s license (24:1) and Allen’s selective service registration card (24:2).

25. Photos. 7 folders (ca. 35 items). 1945-1950.

Folder 25:1 consists of an excellent portrait photograph of Captain Allen. His wife Gadula may be portrayed with him in 25:3. Numerous photographs of Italian girlfriends, named Edith and Anna Lombardo can be found in 25:4-5. The woman in 25:7 may be Allen’s first wife from whom he probably obtained a divorce in the early 1950s.

26. Printed. 1 folder (1 item). 1943.

The printed series consists of one folder (26:1) containing then 2nd Lieutenant Allen’s membership card for the officer’s mess at Camp Hood, Texas.

V. Joseph Watts

27. Correspondence. 13 folders (ca. 20 items). 1948-1952.

In a 1951 letter (27:1) from Laura Allen to Watts, apparently then in action in Korea, Ms. Allen refers to how “very hard [it must be] to see so many dead people,” and councils Watts to pray. She also refers to the recent (probably July 1951) death of her brother (James B. McRae, 1888?-1951), who “got kill (sic) [when] a truck ran over him. . . .” A 1952 letter (27:2) from an Army buddy stationed at Fort Lee, Va., discusses R&R in Richmond: “I goes (sic) to Richmond practically every night. . . . One girl are (sic) trying to get me to marry her . . .”

Letters (1950-52) from Dorothy Allen McFarland include one referring to Watts’ transfer to another division and uses the expression, “the bullets are flying.” Another (1952) from an Army buddy named Scotty, this time writing from Fort Meade, Maryland, can be found in 27:5. One 1951 letter (27:8) from Watts’ father, complains of the “‘restricted war'” strategy employed in Korea. There are also several letters (1948-51) concerning family matters and the military from Watts’ brother, Rob (27:10).

28. Dog Tags. 1 folder (1 item). n.d.

This one folder (28:1) series contains Watts’ dog tags.

29. Financial. 2 folders (6 items). 1950-1951.

This series includes deposit tickets (29:1) and tax statements (29:2).

30. Literary. 2 folders (3 items). ca. 1950.

Folder 30:1 includes a limerick with a sexual theme; 30:2 includes poems mounted with real four-leaf clovers — likely a soldier’s good luck charm.

31. Photos. 4 folders (14 items). ca. 1950.

Included is a fine color image of Joseph Watts in uniform (31:3) as well as photographs of other African American soldiers (31:2), probably in basic training, and Watts’ brothers, Robert and Syl (31:4).

32. Printed. 11 folders (13 items). 1948-1952.

The printed series includes: a pamphlet on syphilis (32:2); Watts’ (1948) Dudley High School diploma (32:3); a clipping which reprints a GIs letter describing Korea (32:4); enlistment and debarkation instructions (32:6-7); propaganda leaflets from Korea (32:8); a soldier’s pass (32:10); and the newsletter of the 32nd Infantry (32:11).

VI. McRae (McCray?) Family

33. Correspondence. 2 folders (2 items). 1930-1949.

The brief correspondence series contains a 1930 letter (33:1) from Moses Latta of Massachusetts to Etta (probably Etta McRae), the mother of Laura Allen; there is also a letter dated 1949 (33:2) denying Social Security benefits to James B. McRae.

34. Financial. 3 folders (ca. 20 items). 1874-1955.

The financial series includes some 1920s account books for the Greensboro National Bank (34:1) and Greensboro Loan & Trust (34:2), as well as a large collection of receipts (34:3) covering a long period (1874-1955). Many of the receipts are for the accounts of Malinda (or Lindy) McCray (apparently a variant spelling of McRae), and date from the late nineteenth century. There are also some receipts for Fred McCray (probably Laura Allen’s father). Many of the McRae receipts are from Graham or Burlington, indicating that Laura Allen may have been born there.

35. Legal. 4 folders (11 items). 1876-1927.

There are three deeds for properties owned by Malinda McCray (35:1), dated 1876, 1882, and 1892; a deed for a burial plot in Maplewood Cemetery, Greensboro, granted to Etta McRae in 1927 (35:2, research herein indicates that Etta and James McRae and Laura and Dorothy Allen are buried there); and a number of insurance policies for Business Men’s Mutual Insurance of Greensboro (1917-25) will be found in 35:3.

Of special interest is folder 35:4. It contains the pension application (1903) for Elizabeth Jeffreys of Guilford College, the widow of Civil War veteran Walter A. Jeffries. Jeffries (Jeffreys?) was a Sergeant in Company H of the 54th Massachusetts, the famous African American infantry regiment which stormed the walls of Charleston’s Fort Wagner in 1863 under the leadership of Col. Robert Gould Shaw. Jeffries was captured in an action on James Island, S.C., which immediately preceded the Fort Wagner assault. According to Luis Emily’s History of the Fifty-fourth Regiment (1894), Sergeant Jeffries was tried as part of a test case for captured African American soldiers, whom according to the acts of the Confederate Congress were to be treated as outlaws and put to death. President Lincoln countered this action by ordering that a Rebel soldier would be executed in kind for every soldier of the United States who was executed. Governor Bonham of South Carolina demanded that the African American soldiers be tried according to the laws of the Confederate government, thus leading to the test case which involved Jeffries. However, the Confederate authorities took no action beyond the trial, and Jeffries was finally freed in March 1865 at Goldsboro, N.C. The precise relationship between the Jeffries and McRae families is unclear; however, the pension application was found in an envelope (postmarked 1917) addressed to Etta McRae, when she was a resident of East Bragg St. in Greensboro.

36. Photos. 5 folders (ca. 35 items). 1905-1910, n.d.

Folder 36:1 contains a fine photograph, evidently of Etta McRae and family, dated about 1900; 36:2 contains a real photo postcard, probably from Will McRae, written to Etta McRae, who was evidently a student at Latta University in Raleigh circa 1910; there are also a large number of unidentified photos associated with the McRae family (36:3-4).

37. Printed. 2 folders (ca. 15 items). ca. 1930, n.d.

The printed series includes cards associated with flower arrangements (37:1), probably for a funeral, and payment forms (ca. 1930) for Business Men’s Mutual Insurance (37:2).

VII. Cora Ricks

38. Correspondence. 14 folders (ca. 20 items). 1958-1970.

The largest groups of letters in this series (most of which date after 1960) are those from Ximinia Marie Allen Banks (38:2), Ada Davis (38:4), and Violet Goodman (38:6). Generally written from parts outside the borders of North Carolina, such as New York, Chicago, California and Virginia, they chiefly describe mundane family matters such as illnesses and visits.

39. Financial. 1 folder (1 item). 1951.

This series (39:1) contains of a receipt for repairs to Arthur Ricks’ house in Durham in 1951.

40. Printed. 5 folders (5 items). 1927-1963.

The printed series includes a 1963 memorial circular as well as a memorial card for Arthur Ricks (40:2,5) and two marriage certificates (40:3-4), dated 1927 and 1944.

VIII. Legal

41. Legal. 1 folder (1 item). ca. 1940.

This series contains a lengthy petition (ca. 1940), circulated in Greensboro, the purpose of which was to force the City to improve housing for low-income families through slum clearance and repairs. It includes typed names and addresses of all those who signed the petition.

IX. Miscellaneous

42. Correspondence. 3 folders (3 items). 1925-1963.

Included in this series is a 1925 letter to Thelma Allen from Meta (42:2). She inquires about Thelma’s recent illness and her son, Andra Wesley.

43. Financial. 1 folder (2 items). 1952?- 1978.

Included is a receipt from Ready Mix Concrete of Greensboro (1952?) and Payne’s Gas Station in Graham, N.C. (1978).

44. Literary. 2 folders (2 items). 1943, n.d.

Folder 44:1 includes birth and death entries for the Revies (?), King and Greene families (n.d.), while 44:2 is a typed manuscript of an obituary for Doris M. Ward (1943).

45. Postcards. 1 folder (2 items). ca. 1945.

This series consists of some real photo postcards of Paris, ca. 1945.

46. Stewart, Dr. C.C. 1 folder (3 items). 1947-1952.

Dr. C.C. Stewart (ca. 1880-1952) was an African American physician and surgeon who practiced in the Greensboro area for approximately forty years. This series (46:1) includes a memorial circular issued with his death 1952, an obituary clipping, and a prescription (ANS).

X. Photos

47. Photos. 31 folders (ca. 90 items). ca. 1900-ca. 1955.

The photos series includes images of: Ximinia Marie Allen Banks, ca. 1940 (47:2); Bennett College, ca. 1920 (47:3); Virgie Bedford Bennett (47:4); Atchison McFarland (47:14-15); Cleo McFarland (47:15-16) and her husband Frank Neal (47:26); and musician Eddie “Prince” Petty (47:27).

XI. Printed

48. Printed. 54 folders (ca. 85 items). ca. 1920-1980.

This fairly large series includes: a bag for Meyer’s Department Store (48:2); a 1958 Civil Defense brochure for Greensboro that includes maps of evacuation routes (48:4); a circa 1958 Civil Defense card that has basic information on what to do in the event of a nuclear blast (48:6); a card which invites the bearer to a tea at the home of Mrs. Saphronia Graves (48:9); a news clipping pertaining to the Greensboro sit-ins (48:11); a flyer related to services at Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal Church, Greensboro (48:16); issues of the African American magazines Color, Ebony, Our World and Tan, 1952-71 (48:21-24); communist, anti-war, and labor-related literature (48:27,39-40,45); a program for a football game between J.C. Smith and N.C. A&T in 1948 (48:49); a register for the funeral of James B. McRae (48:50); 1956 and 1960 Greensboro telephone directories (48:52-53); and some Southern Railway materials (48:54).

XII. School Documents

49. School documents. 8 folders (ca. 35 items). 1932-1969.

The school documents series includes transcripts and grade reports (1932-40) for Dorothy Allen McFarland’s work at Bennett College (49:1); Ms. McFarland’s transcripts for N.C. A.&T. (49:2); a collection of notes written to excuse absences (49:3); notes related to classes taken by Ximinia Marie Allen Banks (49:4-6); report cards for Marion McRae, a student at African American public schools in the Greensboro area, ca. 1920s-1934 (49:7); and teaching certificates for Dorothy Allen McFarland (49:8).

FOLDER LISTING

Index to the Allen-McFarland Family Papers (ca. 1875-1985)

Note: The numbers following the name/subject entry — e.g.1:1 — indicate in which Series#:Folder# (or, if no “:”, Series only) that name/topic can be found. Dates of the items are given in parentheses for an individual Series/Folder or, if at the end, for the entire subject/name entry. The abbreviation GSO indicates a Greensboro association.

Abernethy, F.P.: 1:1 (1948)
Account books: Greensboro National Bank, 34:1 (1920-25)
Acker, Sadie: 1:2 (1968-70)
African Americans: Bennett College, 22:1, 47:3, 49:1,4-6 (ca. 1920-40); cemeteries, 4:3, 35:2 (1916-27); civil rights, 11:3, 15:33, 23:2,5, 41:1 (1940-54); Civil War, 35:4 (1903); greeting cards, 1:72,88 (1970); Latta University, 36:2 (1910); military careers, 1:59, 11:1-5, 15:25, 23:1-7, 25:1-7, 27:1-13, 28:1, 31:1-4, 32:1-4,6-11 (1943-68); NAACP, 2:8 (1936); NC A&T, 12:22, 48:49, 49:2 (1942-54); photos, 6:1-2, 12:1-24, 20:1-2, 25:1-7, 36:1-5, 47:1-31 (ca. 1900-1977)
Air Force Base Credit Union: 13:1 (ca. 1960)
Airlines: tickets, 48:54 (1958)
Album: photos (McFarland Family), 12:1-21
Alcoholism: McFarland, Leon, 13:3 (1974-79); 15:20
Allen, Andra W.: high school graduation, 22:1 (1939); corresp., 23:1-7 (1944-71); military career, 23:1-7; 25:1-7 (1944-63); photos, 25:1-3 (ca. 1945-1956)
Allen, Clarence: 38:1 (1963)
Allen, Gadula: 23:8, 25:3 (?) (1956-57)
Allen, Laura M.: 1:3, 2:1-3, 6:1-2, 27:1 (1934-62); house eviction, 2:1-13; nursing career, 1:30,44,64, 5:2, 7:45; photos, 6:1-2 (ca. 1940s-60s)
Allen, M.J. (?): photos, 47:1
Allen, Samuel L.: 2:12, 4:3 (1916)
Allen, Thelma: 42:2 (1925)
American Healthaids Co.: 1:4 (1954?)
ANAF Junior Hostess Club: 8:1 (n.d.)
Automobiles: registration (NC), 10:1, 17:1 (1978)

Baily, Lizzie: 15:4 (1974)
Banks, Ximinia Marie Allen: 1:5-8, 13:5, 38:2, 47:2 (1939-73); photos (?), 47:2
Barber, William: 27:2 (1952)
Baseball: umpire’s examination, 13:6 (ca. 1960)
Beckett, M____: 8:2 (1956)
Bennett College: baccalaureate programs, 22:1 (1940); Bennett Banner, 22:1; photos, 47:3 (ca. 1920); school documents, 49:1,4-6 (ca. 1920-37); senior class programs, 22:1 (1940)
Bennett, Virgie Bedford: 47:4
Bennette, LaVan T.: 8:3 (1970)
Best Television (GSO): 3:5 (1962)
Bethea, J.A.: 1:11, 8:4 (1970-76)
Bigby, Jammie (?): 1:12 (1953)
Blackwell, Loria: 15:6 (1974)
Bluefield State College (W.Va.): 8:9 (1969)
Bolling A.F.B. (Washington, D.C.): 13:8 (n.d.)
Boswell, James: 1:13 (1950)
Bovingdon, England: 12:24 (ca. 1952)
Broadsides: 7:1-7, 48:3 (1936-ca. 1940)
Brochures: 7:8-11, 32:2, 48:4 (1936-58); civil defense, 48:4 (1958)
Brooks, Jesse W.: 1:14 (1950-70)
Brooks, Mrs. Willard: 1:15 (1967)
Brooks, Willard: 15:7 (n.d.)
Bruce, Bertha: 38:3 (1966)
Burlington, NC: 34:3
Burns, Nettie: 15:8 (1973)
Business Men’s Mutual Insurance (GSO): 35:3; 37:2 (1917-ca. 1930)

Camp Hood, Texas: 26:1 (1943)
Canadas, The Ernest: 1:17 (1970)
Carolina Motor Club: membership card, 21:4 (1978)
Carter, Consuella (?): 1:18 (1970)
Cathedral of Compassion (Dallas, Texas): 1:19 (n.d.)
Catholic Church: corresp. of clergy, 1:31 (n.d.)
Chicago School of Nursing: 1:20, 7:17 (1945-46)
Childbirth: corresp., 23:8 (1957); printed, 7:8-9,16,19,21 (1936-ca. 1940)
Children: care and hygiene (printed) 7:4,11,14-15,19,21,24,28-29,35-36,38-41,46, 54,57,64 (1935-ca. 1940)
Civil defense: brochures, 48:4 (1958); cards, 48:6 (ca. 1958)
Civil rights: 11:3; 15:33; 23:2,5; 41:1 (1940-54)
Civil War: widow’s pension application, 35:4 (1903)
Clark, Franklin S.: 2:4 (1940)
Coffey, Jessie: 27:3 (1950)
Color (magazine): 48:21 (1952)
Colored Union Cemetery (GSO): deeds, 4:3 (1916)
Coltranes, The: 1:21 (1970)
Communist Party: printed, 48:40 (1940)
Credit Bureau of Greensboro: leaflets, 48:19 (n.d.)
Curtis, Belle Tobias: obituary, 22:1

Darby, Bessie: 1:22 (1970)
Dargan, Bertha: 1:23 (1970)
Davis, Ada: 38:4 (1964-69)
Dean, Alice: 1:24 (1945)
Death certificates: Laura Allen, 4:2 (1971)
Deeds: 2:12, 4:3, 35:1-2 (1876-1921)
Dental Snuff: 48:1 (1947)
Diaries: 18:1 (1940)
Diet: printed, 7:1,10,27,30-31,35,39,41,51-52 (1939-40, ca. 1940)
Dillard, Earline: 1:25 (1950)
Diphtheria: 7:2 (ca. 1940)
Diseases: printed, 7:2-7,13,25,32-34,40,50,51,63-65 (1935-ca. 1940)
District of Columbia: public schools, 15:31 (1948)
Donovan, Father D.E.: 1:26 (1970)
Dorsey, Oberlin: 1:27, 15:10 (1970-74)
Driver’s licenses (NC): Allen, Andra W., 24:1 (ca. 1945)
Dudley High School (GSO): diploma, 32:5 (1948); faculty, 1:28 (1945)
Duncan, Jeff: 15:11 (1977)
Dunlap, Jesse: 1:29 (1952-70)
Dy-dee Diaper Service: postcards, 48:46 (n.d.)

Ebony (magazine): 48:22 (1962)
Elmore, Irene C.: 38:5 (1966)

Fort Lee, Virginia: 27:2 (1952)
Fort Meade, Maryland: 27:5 (1952)
Foushee, H. Clifton: 1:33 (1967-70)
Friendly Matron’s Charity Club (Washington, D.C.): 1:34 (1970)
Frontier Motor Co.: 9:1 (1957)
Funerals: L.E. Weatherby service, 48:15 (1959)

Gilmer Hotel (Columbus, Miss.): letterheads, 48:20 (n.d.)
GM Acceptance Corp.: 9:2 (1969)
Goodman, Violet: 38:6 (1966-68)
Graham, NC: 34:3
Graves, Saphronia: 48:9 (n.d.)
Greene Family (NC?): 44:1 (n.d.)
Greene, Ruth: 1:36, 15:13 (1950-74)
Greensboro, NC: civil rights (sit-ins), 48:11; school integration (corresp.), 23:2,5 (1954); slum clearance, 41:1 (ca. 1940)
Greensboro Colored Schools: 49:7 (1920s), report card
Greensboro Daily News: 48:25-26 (1948-61)
Greensboro Loan & Trust: 34:2 (1921-28)
Greensboro Motor Co.: 3:6 (1951)
Greensboro National Bank: personal account books, 34:1 (1920-25)
Greeting cards: 1:9-11,14,16-17,19,21-23,26-27,29,31,33-34,37,40,42,46,48-50,52, 54,56-57,60-61,65,67-76,78,80,82-83,85,87-88,91; 8:5-7 (1943-85)
Gregory, Mary W.: 38:7 (1967)
Grigsby, Jewell: photos, 31:1 (ca. 1950)

Hairston, Willard: 1:37 (1946-70)
Hargett, Nathaniel E.: 1:39 (1951-58)
Hargett Funeral Home (GSO): 1:38 (1951)
Hawkins, Alma: 15:14 (1973)
Hawkins, Almedia: 8:8 (1985)
Head, Halley (?): photos, 47:5
Header (?), William: 1:40 (1945)
Hewitt, Beulah Rutherford: 1:41 (1940)
Hicks Family, The: 1:42 (1970)
Holley, Josephine: 15:15 (1954-55)
Holloway, Ann: 38:8 (1969)
Homosexuality: 15:15 (1955)
Hospital Care Association: 1:43 (1942)
Hotel Robert E. Lee (Winston-Salem): 1:41 (1940)
Hughes, Velvet: 15:16 (1977)
Hunt, Geneva C.: 1:44 (1945)
Hygiene: printed: 7:1-68 (1935-52)

Indiana Botanic Gardens: 1:45 (1967)
Insurance: policies, 4:4-6, 35:3 (1917-52); premiums, 17:2 (1940-53)
Italy: African Americans in, 25:4-5 (ca. 1945); Lombardo, Anna, 23:9 (1944?), 25:5 (ca. 1950)

James, Shirley R.: photos, 47:6
Jeffreys, Elizabeth: 35:4 (1903)
Jeffries, Walter A.: 35:4 (1903)
Jenkins, George: 8:9 (1969)
Johnson C. Smith University: football, 48:49 (1948)
Jones, Doris: photos, 47:7
Jones, John J.: photos, 47:8
Jones, R.H.: 8:10 (1968)
Jones, W. Avery: 2:5 (1932)
Jordan, Frances M.: 15:17 (1958)

Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity: 42:1 (1950)
King Family (NC?): 44:1 (n.d.)
Klosson, K.A.: 15:18 (1952)
Korean War: 27:8; 32:1,4,6-8,11 (1949-52)

L. Richardson Memorial Hospital (GSO): 1:47 (1945-67)
Labor unions (pamphlet): 48:39 (1940)
Latta, Morgan M.: 1:48 (1970)
Latta, Moses: 33:1 (1930)
Latta University (Raleigh): 36:2 (1910)
Laughlin, Minerva: 38:9 (1965)
Laymon, Harvey: 18:1 (1940)
Lewin, Lucille N.: 1:49 (1958-68)
Lewis, Emma: photos, 47:11
Lewis, John L.: printed, 48:39 (1940)
Limericks: 30:1 (ca. 1950)
Lombardo, Anna: 23:9 (1944?); photos, 25:5 (ca. 1950)
Lucas, Dorothy: 15:20 (1963)
Lungs (diseases): tuberculosis, 19:1 (1957-62)

MacClamroch, James G.W.: 15:21 (1948)
Maddox, Mamie & Fred: 1:52 (1970)
Malaria: 7:5 (ca. 1940)
Malone, Mr. (?): 1:53 (1939)
Maplewood Cemetery (GSO): deeds, 35:2 (1927)
Marriage: certificates, 40:3-4 (1927-44)
Massachusetts: Civil War regiment (54th), 35:4 (1903)
May, C.G.: 1:56 (1951)
McConnell, Rosalie: 1:57 (1971)
McCray, Fred: 34:3 (ca. 1895)
McCray, Lindy (Malinda?): 34:3 (1874-ca. 1895), 35:1 (1876-95)
McFarland, Atchison: photos, 12:2-3,6,14, 47:14-15 (ca. 1920-25)
McFarland, Cleo: photos, 12:4-5,14,16, 47:15-16 (ca. 1920-25)
McFarland, Dorothy Allen: biographical, 14:1 (ca. 1960); birth certificate, 21:2 (1950); corresp., 1:58, 8:11, 15:23-24, 27:4 (1946-63); medical records, 19:1 (1957-62); photos, 20:1-2 (ca. 1940-77); teaching certificates, 49:8
McFarland, Leon: biographical, 13:5 (1944-79); 1:59, 15:25 (1953-56); high school diploma, 13:3 (1940); honorable discharge certificates, 13:3 (1951, 1957, 1964); military career, 1:59, 11:1-5, 15:25 (1943-68); ORD (GSO), 13:5 (ca.1944); photos, 12:7,21 (ca. 1940-80); 20:2 (ca. 1950); security guard, 8:9 (1969)
McFarland, Virgie Bedford: 8:3 (1970)
McFarlands, The: 1:60, 8:12 (1970, ca. 1985)
McRae: see also, McCray.
McRae, Etta: cemetery deed, 35:2 (1927)
McRae, James B.: 27:1 (1951); 33:2; funeral: 48:50 (1951)
McRae, Marion: report cards, 49:7 (ca. 1920s-1934)
McRae, Will (?): photo/postcard, 36:2 (1910)
McRae Family: photos, 36:1 (ca. 1905)
Medicine: prescriptions, 7:66, 46:1, 48:48 (n.d.)
Mercury Indemnity Co. (St. Paul, Minn.): 4:4 (1950)
Metro Life Insurance: 4:5 (1934)
Meyer’s Dept. Store (GSO): shopping bags, 48:2 (n.d.)
Military service: registration cards, 24:2 (1942)
Morrow, Lattie: 1:62 (1941)
Moseley, James: 15:27 (1973)
Motor Finance Company (GSO): 1:63 (1950)
Musicians: Petty, Eddie “Prince”, 15:29 (1953-60); photos, 47:27 (1955)

NAACP: corresp. (Walter White), 2:8 (1936)
NC A&T: football team, 12:22, 48:49 (ca. 1940-1948); football program, 48:49 (1948); transcripts, 49:2 (1950-54)
NC Board of Nursing Examiners: 7:18 (1947)
NC Licensed Practical Nurses Assoc.: 1:64 (1948-58)
Neal, Cleo McFarland: 8:13, 47:15-16, 48:7 (1966-80)
Neal, Frank: photos, 47:26
Novis (?), Zadie: 1:65 (1945)
Nursing: 5:2 (n.d.); Board of Nursing Examiners, 7:18 (1947); licensed practical nurses, 1:64 (1948-58); printed, 7:17-18,45 (n.d., 1945-47)

Occult sciences: printed, 48:29 (1942)
Olar, Leo V.: 38:11 (1960-69)
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal: 1:66; 48:16 (1966-67)
Our World (magazine): 48:23 (1952-54)
Overseas Replacement Depot (ORD, GSO): 303rd Wing Band Orchestra, 12:23 (ca.1944)

Page, Kate Taylor: 38:12 (1959)
Pamphlets: 7:49-65, 13:11, 32:9, 48:27-45 (ca. 1910-1963)
Paris, France: postcards, 45:1 (ca. 1945)
Parks (?), Pearl: 1:67 (1970)
Passports: 21:5 (1952-53)
Payne’s Gas Station (Graham, NC): 43:1 (1978)
Peeler, Abraham H.: 15:28 (1961)
Petty, Eddie “Prince”: 15:29; photos, 47:27 (1953-60)
Phillips, Mrs. V.E.: 1:69 (1970)
Photographs: 6:1-2, 12:1-24, 20:1-2, 25:1-7, 36:1-5, 47:1-31 (ca 1900-1977)
Pierce, Clementine: 1:70 (1967-70)
Pilot Life Insurance Co. (GSO): 3:7 (1965)
Piramal & Sami: photos, 47:28 (ca. 1900)
Poetry: 30:2 (ca. 1950)
Posey, Teresa: 15:30 (1961)
Postcards: 48:46-47 (n.d., ca. 1940-45); Paris, France, 45:1 (ca. 1945)
Powell, Adam Clayton: mentioned, 15:35 (1962)
Powell, Allie: 1:71 (1970)
Public health: licensed practical nurses, 1:64 (1948-58); printed, 7:1-21,23-41,45-46,48-66 (1924-60)

Raby, James H.: 2:6 (1945)
Railroads: tickets, 48:54 (1958)
Ready Mix Concrete (GSO): 43:1 (1952?)
Recipes: 5:1; 7:10 (n.d.)
Recreation: baseball umpire’s examination, 13:6 (ca. 1960); manual, 13:9 (1961)
Religion: 48:8, 48:47 (ca. 1920-40)
Revies (?) Family: 44:1 (n.d.)
Richmond, Va.: social life, 27:2 (1952)
Ricks, Arthur: 40:2,5 (1963)
Ricks, Cora: 38:13 (1969)
Roberts, Oral: 15:32 (1974)
Robeson, Molly (?): 15:33 (1974)
Rouzer, Elmer: 2:7 (1940)
Russells, The: 1:72 (1970)

Sampson, Celeste: 1:73 (1970)
Sanders, Mary: 1:74 (n.d.)
Sapp, John Wharton: 1:75 (n.d., 1970)
Saunders, Mary: 1:76 (1970)
Scarlett Family, The: 1:77 (n.d.)
School integration: corresp., 23:2,5 (1954)
Scott, Ruth: 1:78 (1967)
Scrapbooks: Dorothy A. McFarland, 22:1 (1932-ca. 1950)
Scripto: ink blotters, 48:17 (ca. 1940)
Sewing: broadsides, 48:3 (1936); patterns, 48:51 (ca. 1940)
Sheridan, Eugene: 1:79 (1970)
Schiffman Family (GSO): receipts, 2:9 (ca. 1920s)
Smith, Clyde: 1:82 (1970)
Social Security Administration: 33:2 (1949)
Southern Railway: printed, 48:54
Southwestern Investment Co. (Amarillo, Texas): 8:14 (n.d.)
Smoot’s Funeral Home (GSO): 48:14 (ca. 1960)
Sparrow, Dr. Harry W.: 3:8 (1953)
St. John’s Lodge (GSO): 8:15 (1970)
Stewart, Dr. C.C.: 46:1 (1947-52)
Stone, Maud: photos, 47:29
Supreme Court, U.S.: 23:5 (1954)

Tan (magazine): 48:24 (1960)
Tax documents: receipts, 2:10-11 (1910-30); returns, 10:2 (1952-56); statements, 29:2 (1950)
Tillman, G.D.: 1:83 (1970)
Tuberculosis: 7:6 (ca. 1940); 19:1 (1957-62)
Turner, Susan: 15:34 (1973)
Turrentine, Josephine: 1:84; photos, 47:30 (n.d., 1945)
Typhoid fever: 7:7 (ca. 1940)

United Order of Tents (Norfolk, Va.): 38:14; 40:1 (1969)
U.S. Air Force: base life, 1:59; 15:25 (1953-82); 303rd Wing Band Orchestra, 12:23 (ca. 1944)
U.S. Treasury Dept.: 27:6 (1952)

Venereal diseases: syphilis, 19:1 (1957-62)
Veteran’s Administration: 8:17 (1949-55)

Walker, Mrs. Frank (?): photos, 47:31
Wallace Family: 42:3 (1963)
Ward, Doris M.: obituary, 44:2 (1943)
Watson, Rosanna: 1:85 (1970)
Watts, Carl A.: 27:7 (1949)
Watts, Joseph H.: 27:8 (1950-51)
Watts, Joseph R.: dog tags, 28:1 (ca. 1950); 1:86, 15:38; military career, 27:1-13, 28:1, 31:1-4, 32:1-4,6-11 (1948-52)
Watts, Robert: 27:10; photos, 31:3 (1948-51)
Watts, Rosanna: 27:11 (1950-52)
Watts, Syl: 27:12; photos, 31:4 (1950-51)
Waynick & Son: business cards, 48:5 (n.d.)
Wells, Juanita: 1:87 (1970)
White, Walter: 2:8 (1936)
Whitted, Marvin: 1:88 (1970)
Wier, James A.: 15:39 (1959)
Wilkins, George and Susan: photos, 36:5 (ca. 1920)
Williamson, Leslie (?): 27:13 (1949-50)
Willingboro, N.J.: 23:6-7 (1962-71)
Wills: Laura Allen: 4:8 (1927)
Wimbish Insurance Agency (GSO): 1:89, 3:9 (1950-55)
Winston, Alfred I.: 1:90 (1939)
Winston Mutual Life Insurance Company: 48:12 (ca. 1930)
Wolff Motors Co. (Brooklyn, NY): 8:18 (1954)
Woods, Gladys: 1:91 (1970)
World War II: anti-war literature, 48:27,45 (ca. 1940); corresp., 23:1 (1944-45); Overseas Replacement Depot (GSO), 12:23 (ca. 1944); patriotic greeting cards, 8:5-6 (1943-44); 303rd Wing Band Orchestra, 12:23 (ca. 1944)

NOTE: The numbers cited in parentheses throughout the inventory, e.g. 1:5, refer the researcher to the Series#:Folder# in which that name/topic will be found.

INTRODUCTION

The Alford/Eckel Family Papers focus on different members of the Alford and Eckel families; there are also some items relating to the Ballance family (see biographical note). The collection offers a glimpse into the daily lives of several prominent Greensboro citizens from business transactions to family vacations. Included are documents such as receipts, correspondence, family histories, and an autograph book. Materials relating to Marianna Charlotte Pau (Mrs. Alexander E.B. Alford), who was born in France, are of particular interest, as they show a foreign woman interacting with American culture. Also included are family photos and printed materials, such as pamphlets and broadsides.

Arrangement: The Alford/Eckel Family Papers are arranged by document type and then alphabetically by subject. The series are: Documents, Artwork, Photos, and Printed.

Provenance: The collection was donated in several sections, their accession numbers representing when each section came in. The bulk of the collection was accessioned under 1971.97.1a, and some under 1942.2.3, 1962.112, and 1982.1000.9a & 10.

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE

Alexander Perry Eckel (1821-1906) was born in Tennessee, moved to Georgetown, near Washington D.C., and then to Greensboro. In 1847 he married Mary E. Hill of Greensboro, daughter of Matilda Boyd and Wilson S. Hill. Alexander served as Greensboro’s mayor for several terms: 1859-1861, 1863, 1866-1868, 1881. The Eckels had two children: Charles Eugene and Matilda Hill. It was Matilda who married into the Alford family. At a wedding ceremony in January 1872 at the “Rose Villa” (the Eckels’ impressive house), Matilda and Dr. Henry M. Alford (1844-1893) were wed (see invitation in 1:18). From their union were born Alexander E.B. (1874- ) and Bessie Alford. Bessie eventually married Herbert E. Ballance, and it is through her that much of the material in this collection descended.

Biographical Sources: For an extensive biographical sketch of A.P. Eckel see Founders and Builders  (pp. 183-186). Brief sketches of Dr. Henry M. Alford and his son, A.E.B. Alford, are found in Robert L. Phillips, Medical Shoulders During the 19th Centuries …, p. 4. There are some genealogical materials in the collection (1:7, 1:21).

SCOPE & CONTENT NOTE

This collection focuses on Alexander Perry Eckel and his descendants. His daughter Matilda married into the Alford family in 1872, thus the Alford/Eckel related material. Matilda’s daughter, Bessie, married Herbert E. Ballance, which accounts for the Ballance related documents.

The series Documents (1:1-26) contains miscellaneous letters, financial and legal documents, including the wills of Charles Eugene and Peter Eckel, (1:15, 1:19) and land deeds (1:13). Among the more interesting items are a history of the Eckel family, the literary writings of Marianna Charlotte Pau (Mrs. Alex E.B. Alford) (1:2), and a humorous Southern Railway Co. invitation/letter written in “Southern” dialect (1:26).

The Photographs are mostly family-related, loose photos dating from 1907 to 1930s. Of local interest are nine photos of Greensboro scenes, including Irving Park. Researchers will also find several cabinet cards of well-known members of the Confederacy: Jefferson Davis and General G.C. Breckinridge (3:12). There is also one small family album (see folder listing).

The Printed Materials are sparse and contain two pamphlets, one for Trinity College and the other for Greensboro College, as well as several broadsides signed by Mayor A.P. Eckel in 1861 and 1881. There are also two postcards, which were moved to the postcard collection.

The Scrapbook series contains four scrapbooks, three of which were taken out several years ago, numbered (#7-9) and placed with the scrapbook collection. The fourth scrapbook remains in the manuscript collection. Scrapbooks #7-9 contain information pertaining to the Alford family and about the history of Greensboro. The fourth scrapbook contains poetry written by Charlotte Pau.

SERIES  DESCRIPTIONS

1.  Documents.  26 folders.  ca. 1844-1922.

This series includes all types of paper items, e.g. letters, an autograph book, bills & receipts, cards, clippings, etc. Of particular note is Bessie Alford’s (daughter of Matilda and Henry M. Alford) autograph book (1:5), signed by numerous 1880s Greensboro youth (names listed on contents page). There is significant material on Mrs. Alexander E.B. Alford (born Marianna Charlotte Pau, from France), including some of her literary writings, especially poetry; there are several letters written in French.

The A.P. Eckel documents include an 1865 agreement with William C. Porter for a “Porter & Eckel” drugstore (1:11); and bills and receipts relating to the construction of “Rose Villa” in the 1850s. Little is known about Samuel Eckel, but included is his card (1:20) as U.S. Consul at Talcahuana, Chile. The 1872 wedding invitation of Matilda Eckel to Dr. Henry Alford (1:18), held at “Rose Villa,” is particularly interesting.

In general there is more information in the documents relating to the Eckels and Alfords families than about other citizens and events in Greensboro.

2.  Artwork. 1 folder (2 items). ca. 1930.

This series contains a small watercolor painting and a program from the Greensboro Art Center. The watercolor is a landscape scene, possibly of the Blue Ridge Mountains at dawn or dusk, and may have been painted by Mrs. Herbert Ballance. It shows rolling hills, a log cabin, pine trees, and the mountains as a backdrop, and the colors are earthy and muted. The program is from an exhibit of WPA artists at the Greensboro Art Center. Mrs. Herbert Ballance had one of her works displayed, possibly the watercolor in the same folder.

3.  Photographs.  10 folders (ca. 130 images).  ca. 1870-1930s.

Many of these photographs were part of an album at one time but have been removed, except for a page or two. There are some photographs identified as Greensboro during the 1930s (3:4), including scenes in Irving Park. Many of the photos show views of Georgia and Florida: Bainbridge, Georgia, being the location of the hospital established by A.E.B. Alford, and Florida vacation scenes. There are images of fishing at Morehead City, N.C., and views identified as the Alford Farm & Lake, and Lake Douglas (in Tennessee?). Included are many family members, both identified and unidentified. Individuals of note include: James W. Ballance Sr. and family (3:2), and Winder Hughes Jr. and Sr. (3:5). Folder 11 contains several photos of family members, such as Bertie Baxter as a student at Greensboro High School (1907), Mrs. James Madison Leach, and a “Cousin Florence” (3:11). Folder 12 contains 4 copy cabinet cards of prominent members of the Confederacy: Jefferson Davis and his wife, General G.C. Breckinridge, and General Polk (3:12).

NOTE: See Also: Family Photo Album (O’size, flat Box #101). Accn. No.  1981.63.172.

4.  Printed Material.  5 folders (5 items).  1861-1937.

Printed material includes broadsides signed by Mayor A.P. Eckel in 1861 and 1881 (on the reverse is a Pomona Hill Nurseries” ad), as well as an interesting program (4:5) for “The Brownies in Fairyland,” performed by local amateurs at Bogart’s Opera House on December 13, 1894, for a Y.M.C.A. benefit.

There are also two postcards, one of Hill House, and a split card showing cotton pickers and the Blue Ridge Mountains. They have been moved to the postcard collection, accession numbers 1971.97.1h (other) and 1971.97.1e (Greensboro).

5.  Scrapbooks.  1 folder (4 items).  ca. 1880-1941.

The scrapbooks contain an interesting group of clippings, photographs, cards, poems, and miscellaneous materials compiled by members of the Alford/Eckel family.

Scrapbook #7 has an interesting story discounted by modern historians about gold stolen from the Confederacy and possibly buried on the property of Rose Villa. Clippings include information about the Sloan, Tate, and Lindsay families as well as historical sketches.

Scrapbook #8 contains miscellaneous clippings about the Alfords and several articles on General Pau, possibly Charlotte Pau’s father. Two items of particular interest are an article on an African American composer from Greensboro and a receipt acknowledging the donation to the American Museum of Natural History. There is also a card titled “Non Silba Sed Anthar,” affirming one as a “native born, American citizen,” possibly from the Ku Klux Klan.

Scrapbook #9 contains various clippings on Methodism and religion, poems, hymns, and articles. Of particular interest is a program from a 1941 meeting of the Guilford Chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy, complete with a roster of members. There are also an engraving of Napoleon and stamps with the state birds.

Scrapbook #10 belonged to Charlotte Pau. It is a ledger book containing handwritten poems by Pau and a song called “Because” written for her by Charles Horwitz.

FOLDER LISTING

Index to the Alford/Eckel Family Papers (ca. 1844-1937)

Note: The numbers refer the researcher to a Series, and/or Series:Folder number where the item or subject will be found.

Alford, Alexander Eckel B.: 1:1, 1:5
Alford, Mrs. Alexander E. B.: 1:2-4
Alford, Bessie: 1:5
Alford, Henry M.: 1:6
Alford Family: farm & lake (photos), 3:1
Alston, Mrs. Zilpah E.: obituary (1864), 1:22

Baint, S.A.: 1:5
Ballance, Mrs. Herbert E.: 1:9, 2:1
Ballance, James W., Sr.: 3:2
Ballance, Lizzie: 1:5
Blosser, Clarence: 1:5
Blue Ridge Mountains: 2:1
Bogarts Opera House: 4:5 (1894)
Breckinridge, General G.C.: 3:12
Broadsides: Greensboro Mayor (1887), 4:2; Pomona Hill Nurseries (1881), 4:2; Taxes (1861), 4:1

Confederate States of America: photos of govt. members, 3:12

Davis, Jefferson: 3:12
Dick, Mary E.: 1:10

Eckel, Alexander Perry: 1:11-13; 1861 broadside, 4:1; 1881 broadside, 4:2
Eckel, Charles Eugene: 1:14; trade card, 1:14; will, 1:15
Eckel, Mary Ann: 1:16
Eckel, Matilda: 1:16
Eckel, Peter: will (1844), 1:19
Eckel, Samuel: business card, U.S. Consul, Chile, 1:20
Eckel Family: history, 1:21

Fishblate, Lizzie: 1:5
Fishing: 3:1, 3:3, 3:8
Florida: photos (1920s-30s), 3:3

Georgia: Bainbridge Hospital (photos), 3:3; photos, 1920s-30s, 3:3
Greensboro, N.C.: photos (1930s), 3:4
Greensboro Art Center: (1920) 2:1
Greensboro College: 1937 Bulletin, 4:4

Hill House: 3:4
Hill, Wilson S., Sr.: obituary, 1:22
Hill, Mrs. Wilson S.: 1:23
Horwitz, Charles: 5:1
Houses: Rose Villa, 1:12, 1:18
Hughes, Winder, Jr. & Sr.: (photos), 3:5

Lake Douglas (Tennessee?): (photos) 3:6
Leach, L.L.: 1:9
Louisiana: 1926 floods, (photo), 1:7

Mebane, Claude: 1:5
Mebane, Harry: 1:5
Morehead City, N.C.: 1906 fishing photos, 3:8

Pau, Marianna Charlotte: 1:25, 5:1
Peyton, L.A.: 1:5
Polk, General: 3:12
Pomona Hill Nurseries: 1881 broadside, 4:2
Porter, William C.: 1865 drug store agreement with A.P. Eckel, 1:11
Programs & Playbills: Bogart’s Opera House (1894): 4:5

Rose Villa (Eckel House): building materials, 1:12; wedding invitation to (1872), 1:18

Schenck, J.S.: 1:5
Schenck, Michael: 1:5
Small, Alice: 1:5
Small, Lillie: 1:5
Southern Railway Co.: 1:26

Tate, H.H.: 1:5
Tate, Robert: 1:5
Theatricals: “The Brownies in Fairyland” (1894), 4:5
Trinity College (Randolph County): Alumni Association: constitution & bylaws, 4:3

Weatherly, Elsie: 1:5

Y.M.C.A.: 1894 benefit, 4:5

BRIEF INVENTORY

Title: E.B. Adamson Papers

Dates: 1930 – 1981

Quantity: 1 box (ca. 500 items)

Types of Material: correspondence, legal documents, photographs, newspaper clippings, printed material

Accession Number: 1991.23.1

Brief Description: E.B. Adamson owned and managed a Cadillac-Oldsmobile dealership in Greensboro for over three decades. He sold the franchise to William H. Black II in 1955 and leased the associated properties to Black until 1966, when Black built his dealership. Adamson and his wife continued to be active in the renamed Adamson Company until its dissolution in 1980. This collection contains both personal papers and items relating to Adamson’s business interests.

Materials involving to the Cadillac-Oldsmobile dealership include: inventories, blueprints and maps of Adamson Cadillac-Olds Company, newspaper clippings about Black taking over the dealership, ledger and sales agreement to sell inventory and parts to Black upon lease, and minutes of the Adamson Corporation (1930-1980). Related legal materials include: correspondence, signed lease contracts, deeds of sale for the land off of Market Street and sale of the company, and other legal documents related to the Adamson Cadillac Company (certificate of incorporation, charter, etc.).

Items in Adamson’s personal papers include: correspondence regarding legislative issues with U.S. Congressional and NC Assembly representatives, wills and related correspondence, passports, newspaper clippings, and other printed materials such as travel brochures and membership club cards. Photographs include childhood pictures, portraits of E.B. Adamson and his wife, images of the couple with friends and family, a girls’ class photograph (unidentified, possibly early 20th century, maybe Mrs. Adamson), a portrait of a naval officer (unidentified), and a photo of a billboard for Black Cadillac-Olds.

Major Names/Subjects: Adamson, Eugene Boyd (d. 1980)
Adamson, Inez Billings (d. 1987)
Adamson Cadillac Company
Automobiles—1930-1980
Automobile dealers—North Carolina—Greensboro
Black II, William Harman (d. 2003)
Black Cadillac-Olds Company

Date Surveyed: 2/15/2012

NOTE: The numbers cited in parentheses, e.g. 1:5, refer the researcher to the Series #: Folder# in which that name or topic will be found.

INTRODUCTION

The bulk of the Charles R. Abbott Papers focus on Abbott’s tour of duty during the Spanish-American War; he was Acting Hospital Steward for the 3rd Calvary in the U.S. Army. Dating from 1898-1904, the collection contains correspondence, military records, photos, and personal accounts not only of his military involvement, but also local Greensboro events. Though small in size, the collection gives researchers a glimpse of popular culture around the turn of the 20th century. Of particular interest is Abbott’s diary (3:1), which illustrates American perceptions of foreign cultures as well as his duties as hospital steward. During his stay in Japan, he writes, “I thought at Kobe the Japanese was an ugly person, but no, they are now in my estimation a bewitching and charming class of people” (pp. 19-20). His military records include a one-page portion of Schedule 1, Census of Military and Naval Population from 1900 and a list of requirements for enlisting recruits into the hospital corps (4:1). The correspondence consists primarily of letters from local singer and childhood sweetheart, Grace Clary (2:1-2:7), and female friends, who wrote to him while in the service. The letters tell of daily life in Greensboro and show support for Abbott. Another letter serves as a reference to “testify to his attentiveness to business” (2:9). The photographs are mostly portraits of Abbott in uniform as well as several unidentified women (1948.359.1-10).

Arrangement: The Charles R. Abbott Papers are organized into five series by document type. Within each series, items are organized alphabetically and chronologically. The series are: Advertisements, Correspondence, Diary & Fragments, Military Papers, and Photographs. The photos are part of the general photograph collection.

Provenance: This collection was presented to the Museum in 1948 by Miss Rosa Abbott. Also included in the Museum’s collections is Abbott’s uniform (1948.358).

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE

Little detail is known about Abbott or the Abbott family. Charles was born in 1877. His father, Jesse T. Abbott — a machinist at Sergeant Manuf. Co. (d. 1909) — was from Virginia and his mother from Alabama. The Abbott’s lived at 319 E. Lindsay St., just down the street from First Presbyterian Church, where Jesse served as a deacon. Charles worked at the Southern Railway Co. in 1898 (2:9) before going into the Army, and is listed as a “clerk” in 1903 and as a   “drug clerk” in the 1905 city directory. There were numerous Abbott children, including his sister Rosa, who became a prominent educator in turn of the century Greensboro.

Abbott enlisted in the Army in early 1898 and became an Assistant or Acting Hospital Steward for the 3rd Calvary, and was first stationed in Cuba; he eventually went to the Philippine Islands in July 1899, after the outbreak of the Spanish-American War (April 1898). The love-letters written to him by Grace Clary — apparently his child-hood sweetheart and noted local singer, who grew up next door at 323 E. Lindsay — suggest that Abbott (who, as seen above, worked as a drug clerk) had an alcohol problem. Upon returning from Cuba, Clary gave him a choice: drinking or her. He answered by re-joining the military in 1899. During his second stint, his drinking became worse and he did not adjust well to civilian life when he was discharged from the Army. He died in his home on October 21, 1905, from an overdose of laudanum or opium he took for lingering pain after a dental visit. Clary eventually married a local manufacturer and lived on Cypress St before moving to Irving Park. She died at home in 1956.

Biographical Sources: Schlosser, Jim. “War Letters: Soldier’s Story is of Love and Loss.” Greensboro News & Record. July 4, 1998. See also: Muster roll, Hosp. Corps. (4:1); History of First Presbyterian Church, p. 324; city directories, as mentioned.

SCOPE & CONTENT NOTE

This collection documents a part of the Spanish-American War military experience of Charles R. Abbott of Greensboro. The 1901 diary (Series 3), and diary fragments, offer the most detail on his service as a hospital steward for the 3rd Calvary in the Philippine Islands, including a visit to Japan.

There are three letters (2:1) written home by Abbott, telling of his early training, but the majority of letters are those written from women friends, with comments on their sense of patriotism for Abbott’s service in the war. The letters from Grace Clary (2:3-7) of Greensboro are of particular note: although primarily love letters, there is information concerning Greensboro and her music training (she became a noted local singer), and insight into Abbott’s life and alcohol problem (see 1902 letter from Clary). The 1900 letter from Lucy Coffin (2:8) is a particularly newsy one concerning happenings in Greensboro, and mentions Grace Clary and Rosa Abbott’s (sister of Charles, and later a local educational leader) educational attainments.

SERIES  DESCRIPTIONS

1.   Advertisements.  1 folder (1 item).  1904.

The back page of this 1904 Foley’s Family Almanac includes an ad for Foley’s Honey and Tar, sold at J.D. Helms’ Drug Store at 310 S. Elm St. in Greensboro.

2.   Correspondence.  11 folders (ca. 35 items).  1898-1902.

Three letters from Charles R. Abbott to his family in Greensboro (April-June 1898) document his military training in Chickamauga, Georgia, and aboard the transport ship Berkshire in Tampa Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, as they prepared to sail for South America.

Except for two letters of reference from his former supervisor at Southern Railway (W.E. Coffin), the remaining letters are from girl or women friends of Abbott. A young girl from Evansville, Minnesota, Minnie E. Anderson, writes a patriotic letter to Abbott, apparently at his request after he passed through her town on a troop train headed to the west coast, in August 1899.

The letters from Lucy Coffin and Nellye Fowler of Greensboro are in response to letters from Abbott, and they offer news of friends and happenings back home. The Coffin letter is particularly interesting, with mentions of work on the city hall for the new Grand Opera House, a new jail, and comments on Grace Clary and other happenings in town. The letters from Grace Clary are the most extensive and, although primarily love letters, they offer some information and insights into family life and life in Greensboro, courtship and male-female relationships, and Abbott’s apparent alcohol problem.

3.   Diary.  1 vol. (1901, 22pp.) & Fragments (1899, ca. 14pp.)

The 1901 diary is a bound volume (spine is loose) — “Char R. Abbott/Hosp. Corps. U.S.A.,” during his time aboard the “Hancock” in 1901, May 3 to June 9. It is basically an on-board record of events, with on-shore comments when he left the ship, with observations of the Philippine Islands, and from Manila to Nagasaki, Japan. The diary fragments include several pages of “Notes of my experience & trials since leaving U.S. for Manila, P.I.,” from July to Aug., 1899. There are also several pages detailing some of his duties as Steward.

4.   Military Papers.  1 folder (5 items).  1898-1900.

This miscellaneous group includes orders, reports, a letter from his mother inquiring of Abbott’s health/whereabouts, a map of the Alaska/Yukon area where their ship fueled in route to the Philippines, and a Hospital Corps muster roll from Luzon, which lists Abbott and related statistics.

5.   Photographs.  1 folder (10 items).  ca. 1900.  Filed with photo collection:  1948.359.1-10

A miscellaneous group of family photographs, including 2-3 images of Abbott in uniform, and unidentified portraits (probably Abbott’s sisters (including Rosa?), and possibly images taken on Lindsay Street, one (48.359.10) is identified as “Sallie and Grace.”

FOLDER  LISTING

Index to the Charles R. Abbott Papers (ca. 1898-1904)

Note: The numbers following the name/subject entry — e.g. 1:1 —  indicate in which Series:Folder (or, if no “:”, Series only) that name/topic can be found.

Abbott, Rosa: 2:8
Abbott, Mrs. Jesse T.: 4:1
Alaska: map, 4
Alcoholism: 2:7
Andersen, Minnie E.: 2:2

Business: J.D. Helms’ Drug Store advertisement (1904), 1

Chickamauga, Georgia: military camp (1898), 2
Clary, Grace: 2:3-7, 2:8, 5
Coffin, Lucy: 2:8
Coffin, William E.: 2:9

Dating & courtship: 1898-1902, 2:3-7

Foley’s Family Almanac  (1904): 1
Fowler, Nellye: 2:10

Greensboro:  Fall fair (1900), 2:8;
Grand Opera House (1900), 2:8;
New city jail (1900), 2:8;
Observations on (c. 1900), 2:3-7, 2:8, 2:10

J.D. Helms’ Drug Store (311 S. Elm): 1
Japan: diary observations (1901), 3

Philippine Islands: diary observations (1899; 1901), 3

Southern Railway Co. (Greensboro): 2:9
Spanish-American War: training, 2:1; transportation, 2:1, 3; Manila, 3; Philippine Islands, 3

USS Berkshire (1898): 2
USS Hancock (1901): 3