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University Archives
The University Archives houses materials dating back to the school’s founding by the North Carolina Legislature in 1891 as a training school for “colored teachers”. Historically valuable institutional records, photographs, ephemera, and artifacts relating to the University’s distinguished leaders, academic departments, and the student body are preserved and made available in the Archives, as well as Special Collections.
Mission and Purpose
The Elizabeth City State University (ECSU) Archives was established in 1971 in order to collect, preserve, describe, display, and encourage use of:
- The organized body of permanent institutional records created or received in connection with the transaction of ECSU affairs.
- Non-institutional records which reflect the diverse history and activities of the University’s student body, faculty members, administrators, friends, alumni, and its physical plant.
The ECSU Archives promotes the educational, scholarly, fiscal, and service missions of ECSU in the following ways:
- Identifying and preserving and making available essential institutional records.
- Supporting teaching and enhancing the curriculum as appropriate via the use of collection materials.
- Facilitating the research of the faculty, students, and other scholars through presentation and use of archival materials in classroom or other instructional settings.
- Facilitating preparation for graduate studies by increasing undergraduate student exposure to primary sources and historical research methods.
- Enhancing levels of ECSU funding through public and private sources.
Collections
Elizabeth City State University has begun to digitize some of its archival and special collections holdings. Newspapers, Yearbooks, Catalogs, and Photographs are available at DigitalNC.
The main collections housed in the ECSU University Archives:
- Institutional Documents
- Departmental Histories
- President's/Chancellor's Papers
- Manuscripts & Personal Papers
- Events & Celebrations
- ECSU & Other Publications (Yearbooks, Catalogs, Newspapers, Photos, etc.) [See Also DigitalNC]
- WRVS Radio Legacy Equipment, LPs, & Recordings (currently being processed)
- ROTC Collection (currently being processed)
- Special Collections (Books)
Special Collections include:
- Rosenwald School Books
- P.W. Moore African American Education/History Books
- State Normal School Books
- Elizabeth City State Teachers College Books
- Vintage Children’s Books (pre-WWII)
Additional Links
Hours
Contact the University Archivist
- A. Paige Hendrickson, CA
- G.R. Little Library, Room 223
- Campus Box 819
- Elizabeth City, NC 27909