Pitt County Historical Society Papers
1946-2016
Manuscript Collection #294- Creator(s)
- Pitt County Historical Society
- Physical description
- 12 Cubic Feet, 0.6829 Gigabytes, 24 boxes and an oversize folder, consisting of correspondence, programs, minutes, clippings, financial records, speeches, photographs, brochures, newsletters, advertising fans, and 8mm film reels
- Preferred Citation
- Pitt County Historical Society Papers (#294), East Carolina Manuscript Collection, J. Y. Joyner Library, East Carolina University, Greenville, North Carolina, USA.
- Repository
- ECU Manuscript Collection
- Access
- This collection is open for research. Original audiovisual media and digital files are unavailable for use. Please contact Special Collections for access copies.
Records (1955, 1960-2016) of the Pitt County Historical Society (of North Carolina), including minutes, bylaws, correspondence, and clippings, photographs, financial records, programs and photographs. Also included are the records (1949-1950) of the Greenville Music Club, the Red Banks Home Demonstration Club (1946-1950), old Greenville advertising fans, and a scrapbook for the Town and Country Senior Citizens Club (1978-1999).
Biographical/historical information
The Pitt County Historical Society, formerly known as Pitt County Historical Association, was organized in 1927 for the purpose of preserving the history of Pitt County, North Carolina. The Great Depression and World War II interfered with its development, but David Whichard, Jr., rejuvenated it in 1950 and became its president. The society meets on a quarterly basis, has historical programs, and participates in various projects.
Scope and arrangement
The collection contains general correspondence from 1950-2002, minutes of the society's meetings, and by-laws for the group. It also contains various publications, agendas, and financial records. A folder regarding the 18th century Brickell Cannon is also housed in this collection. Legal documents, invitations, newspaper clippings and photographs also make-up the collection. Miscellaneous items include proposals/resolutions, radio programs, and membership lists.
Correspondence in the Pitt County Historical Society Papers is of general nature and is primarily concerned with sources of funding, formation of society projects, and with the obtaining of guest speakers for the society's dinner meetings. However, of interest is a letter (March 6, 1973) denying the society's request for a marker commemorating George Washington's visit to Greenville in 1791. Another letter (January 19, 1976), written to Greenville Mayor Percy Cox, contains the first notion of moving the Brickell Cannon to the Town Common. Other letters (March 29, 1985) cite Walter B. Jones, Jr., attempts to obtain funding for the Pitt County Historical Society and the hiring of Scott Power to undergo a yearlong architectural survey project of Pitt County in conjunction with the society (June, 24, 1987).
The collection also contains information relating to the dedication of the Brickell Cannon on the Town Common in Greenville, N.C. on October 29, 1976.Of interest are newspaper clippings, ceremony programs, photos, and a ceremony invitation list.
Newspaper clippings contained in this collection are divided into various topics. One group of clippings concerns Confederate flag issues in Greenville while another relates to the overall efforts of the Pitt County Historical Society. Other topics of interest include United States' Bicentennial and local history clippings. Of particular interest is a copy of a newspaper clipping concerning the society's initial formation in Greenville (September 19, 1927). Another clipping of interest is an article discussing Pitt County Historical Society's efforts to publish The Chronicles of Pitt County, a collection of county and community histories (December 6, 1981). This article depicts Ms. Elizabeth Copeland, the coordinator for the project, and discusses the proposed layout of the book.
Miscellaneous material includes minutes (1950-1991), financial records (1981-1991), membership lists, tour itineraries, leaflets of historical sites, and programs. The collection contains a pamphlet describing the Sketches of Pitt County, an illustration and map collection, by Henry T. King. Another item of interest is the program used for the dedication of the portrait of First Earl of Chatham, Sir William Pitt (December 12, 1976). Other items of interest include a history of early Pitt County; a list of persons first owning the 161 lots in the original town of Martinborough, present day Greenville; a documentary of Pitt County on the eve of the American War for Independence; and a reprint from The State Magazine of October 5, 1957, describing how the Pitt County towns have grown. The collection also contains a speech given by Dr. Ralph Hardee Rives, past president of the Pitt County Historical Society, at the raising of the historic flags on the Greenville Town Common, October 1974.
The Pitt County Historical Society Papers also include the Jarvis Memorial United Methodist Church and Greenville Music Club Collections. The Jarvis Memorial Collection contains church minutes, histories, newspaper clippings, and general correspondence from 1937-1951. The Greenville Music Club Collection is comprised of general correspondence, programs/pamphlets, radio broadcasts, directories, and newspaper clippings.Of particular interest in the Jarvis Memorial United Methodist Church Collection are the minutes of the church's historical committee regarding the format of their church history book (May, 1978). Another item of interest is a letter from Montgomery Ward to Mr. C.A. White describing the pricing and details of their buggies and carts.
The Greenville Music Club Collection contains an Official Bulletin of the North Carolina Federation of Music Clubs (October, 1949). Other items of interest include Greenville Music Club's By-Law/Committee Handbooks for 1948-1952, an official directory of the National Federation of Music Clubs, and Greenville Music Club's membership list from 1949-1950.
Additonally, physical and digital materials related to the history and rennovation of the Historic Red Banks Primitive Baptist Church are included in the collection.
Administrative information
Custodial History
February 22, 2019, (unprocessed addition 18), 6.5 cubic feet; This addition includes Historical Society minutes and financial information (2005-2014), photographs (original and copies) gathered for possible use in Vol. II of the Pitt County Chronicles, and documents related to the historic Red Banks Primitive Baptist Church after it was deeded to the Historical Society in 2000. The remaining material (previously stored in the Red Banks Church) includes published Primitive Baptist Association Minutes for North Carolina and other states, the Red Banks Home Demonstration Club minutes and correspondence (1946-1950), large oval photographs of George W. Stokes and his wife Mary Ann Hardee, scan prints of Cherry family members, old Greenville advertising fans, a scrapbook for the Town & Country Senior Citizens Club (1978-1999), and 35 8mm reels of home movies (1947-1967) made by the Keel family of Greenville, N.C. North Carolina Primitive Baptist Assoc. minutes were transferred to the North Carolina Collection in Joyner Library. Gift of Mr. Mickey Harris.
December 10, 2024, (unprocessed addition 19), 0.5 cubic feet; Material (1992-2016) includes correspondence, newsletters, "Turpentine Drippings," brochures, news releases, proclamations, 2004 Gertrude S. Carraway Award of Merit from Preservation NC, and photographs related to the Pitt County Historical Society. Also included is a proposal (2004) by Dr. Earl Trevathan for a Pitt County Heritage Center which didn't come to fruition, and material related to the Historic Red Banks Primitive Baptist Church which is owned by the Historical Society, and digital images showing damage to the Church on August 31, 2011. Transferred from Joyner Library, ECU.
Source of acquisition
Gift of Pitt County Historical Society
Gift of Dr. Ralph Hardee Rives
Gift of Dr. Joseph Congleton
Gift of Dr. W. Keats Sparrow
Gift of Mrs. LaRue Evans
Gift of Greenville Banks, Jr., President, Pitt Co. Historical Society
Gift of Anne B. Snead, President, Pitt Co. Historical Society
Gift of Nancy Spainhour, Recording Secretary, Pitt Co. Historical Society
Gift of Jack Thornton, President, Pitt Co. Historical Society
Gift of Mrs. Elizabeth H. Sparrow
Gift of Mickey Harris
Transferred from Joyner Library, East Carolina University
Processing information
Encoded by Apex Data Services
Finding aids completed July 8, 2002, by J. David Walton
Container List revised to include additions 2019 by Faith Harris.
Digital material processed December 2024 by John Dunning.
Copyright notice
Literary rights to specific documents are retained by the authors or their descendants in accordance with U.S. copyright law.
Metadata Rights Declaration
Key terms
Corporate Names
Pitt County Historical SocietyPlaces
Pitt County (N.C.)--HistoryContainer list
These include digital files. Original audiovisual media and digital files are unavailable for use. Please contact Special Collections for access copies.