This collection (1884, 1908-2005) includes the papers of Helen Keel Peel (who died in 2005 at the age of 88) and her husband James Woolard Peel (who died in 1986), of Everetts in Martin County, North Carolina. Included in the collection are a diary (1934-1937); photographs; typescripts related to Helen Peel's historical research about Everetts and Martin County; correspondence, scrapbook, and autograph books related to her public school years and her 1933-1934 time at Louisburg College; scrapbooks covering the time span of ca. 1956-1994; and Bible (1836) records, especially births, for the years 1808-1851 for members of the Peel, Woolard, Ward, Martin and Barnhill families of Martin County. Also included are report cards, transcripts, and correspondence related to James Peel's public schooling and time (1931-1935) at N.C. State University; U.S. Army service-related materials for his time in the Reserves (1936) and World War II (1942-1945); memorabilia related to his membership in the Order of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite; Martin County deeds and plats (1884-1972); account books (1908-1944); and remodeling plans (2000-2005) by Dr. Jesse R. Peel for his parents' house. deeds for various tracts of land in Everetts and elsewhere in Martin County, N.C., and papers (plat maps, correspondence, financial papers) that document involvement with Timberlands Unlimited, Inc., of Windsor, N.C.
This collection contains material documenting the history of Everetts Baptist Church in Everetts, Martin County, North Carolina. Included are deeds (1953, 1963, 1980, 1981) for the parsonage land and land for later buildings; an album containing identified photographs, clippings, correspondence and a program related to the church's 1977 celebration of its Centennial; a photograph album (1950s-1980s) concerning the church containing mostly unidentified photographs, clippings and programs; and a History of Everetts Baptist Church 1877-1974 by Helen K. Peel, the donor's mother. The collection also includes Mrs. Peel's research notes, and a scrapbook (1971-1978, 1990) containing letters, church bulletins, and clippings she kept while writing, publishing, and selling her publication, information related to the 1977 Centennial Celebration, and general questions asked of her as the church historian.