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Collection Number: 01922-z

Collection Title: Thomas Benjamin Davidson Papers, 1855-1872

This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held in the Wilson Library at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in our reading room, and not digitally available through the World Wide Web. See the FAQ section for more information.

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Size 50 items
Abstract Thomas Benjamin Davidson (1840-1864) of Louisiana was a student at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill and then a private in the 19th Louisiana Infantry Regiment, C.S.A. The collection consists of letters written by the Davidson family concerning family life, religion, and politics; seven Civil War letters from Thomas Benjamin Davidson to his sister describing military life in the 19th Louisiana Infantry Regiment and one giving Davidson's opinion on girls' education; a resolution, 1861, by University of North Carolina students from Louisiana to fight for the state of Louisiana; and photocopies of other papers of Thomas Benjamin Davidson, including muster rolls and Confederate Army payroll receipts, typed transcripts of letters by members of the Davidson family, and a typed genealogy of the Davidson family. Also included are photographic copies of framed 19th-century tintypes of Davidson family members.
Creator Davidson, Thomas Benjamin, 1840-1864.
Language English
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Restrictions to Access
No restrictions. Open for research.
Copyright Notice
Copyright is retained by the authors of items in these papers, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], in the Thomas Benjamin Davidson Papers #1922-z, Southern Historical Collection, Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Acquisitions Information
Received from George Freeman of Shreveport, La., in 1951. Photocopied material received from Benjamin H. Bailey of Williamsburg, Va., in August 1996 (Acc. 96119). Letters received from Benjamin H. Bailey Jr. of Williamsburg, Va., R. Rives Bailey of Yorktown, Va., and Dean Adcock Bailey of Yorktown, Va., in June 2006 (Acc. 100442)
Sensitive Materials Statement
Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations, the North Carolina Public Records Act (N.C.G.S. § 132 1 et seq.), and Article 7 of the North Carolina State Personnel Act (Privacy of State Employee Personnel Records, N.C.G.S. § 126-22 et seq.). Researchers are advised that the disclosure of certain information pertaining to identifiable living individuals represented in this collection without the consent of those individuals may have legal ramifications (e.g., a cause of action under common law for invasion of privacy may arise if facts concerning an individual's private life are published that would be deemed highly offensive to a reasonable person) for which the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill assumes no responsibility.
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The following terms from Library of Congress Subject Headings suggest topics, persons, geography, etc. interspersed through the entire collection; the terms do not usually represent discrete and easily identifiable portions of the collection--such as folders or items.

Clicking on a subject heading below will take you into the University Library's online catalog.

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Thomas Benjamin Davidson (1840-1864) of Louisiana was a student at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill and then a private in the 19th Louisiana Infantry Regiment, C.S.A.

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The Thomas Benjamin Davidson collection consists of letters written by the Davidson family concerning family life, religion, and politics; seven Civil War letters from Thomas Benjamin Davidson to his sister describing military life in the 19th Louisiana Infantry Regiment and one giving Davidson's opinion on girls' education; a resolution, 1861, by University of North Carolina students from Louisiana to fight for the state of Louisiana; and photocopies of other papers of Thomas Benjamin Davidson, including muster rolls and Confederate Army payroll receipts, typed transcripts of letters by members of the Davidson family, and a typed genealogy of the Davidson family. Also included are photographic copies of framed 19th-century tintypes of Davidson family members.

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Contents list

expand/collapse Expand/collapse Thomas Benjamin Davidson Papers.

About 50 items.
Folder 1

#01922-z, Series: "Thomas Benjamin Davidson Papers." Folder 1

Materials include letters between Thomas Benjamin Davidson and his sister, Eliza Frances Davidson Rives at Mansfield, Louisiana, 1858-1860, concerning family life, religion, and politics. Civil War letters from Thomas B. Davidson to his sister describe his situation, his eagerness for action, his dissatisfaction with his status as a private soldier in the 19th Louisiana Infantry Regiment. Letters were written at Camp Moore, Va., Camp Magruder, Va., Camp Benjamin, La., Tupelo, Miss., and Pollard, Ala. One letter (6 November 1862) contains his opinions on girls' education in connection with his sister's graduation. Two 1866 letters from Victoria Davidson in Atlanta to her sister, Frances, tell of trying to find out about Davidson's death, looking for his grave, finding the grave, and ordering a marker for it. Also included is a resolution, 1861, of Louisiana students at the University of North Carolina, tendering their services to the state of Louisiana, to take arms against the federal government.

Digital version: Resolution, [January 1861]

Documenting the American South

Folder 2

#01922-z, Series: "Thomas Benjamin Davidson Papers." Folder 2

Materials include photocopies of muster rolls and payroll receipts for Thomas Benjamin Davidson; a typed genealogy of the Davidson family; typed transcriptions of letters by members of the Davidson family; and a typed-transcript of a letter, 1872, from "John" to "Mother" reports on farm life.

Image Folder P-1922/1

Pictures #01922-z, Series: "Thomas Benjamin Davidson Papers." P-1922/1

Reproductions of portraits of members of the Davidson Family. Images identified as Maria Martin Davidson, Eliza Frances Davidson Rives, Thomas Benjamin Davidson, John Patton Davidson, and Victoria Jane Davidson Freeman.

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Items separated include photographs (P-1922).

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Processing Information

Processed by: Linda Sellars, March 1998 and Devon Lee, September 2006

Encoded by: Peter Hymas, October 2004 and Devon Lee, September 2006

Funding from the State Library of North Carolina supported the encoding of this finding aid.

The 21 original hand-written letters received in June 2006 (Acc. 100442) were placed with materials received in 1951 (Acc. 1922). These letters previously existed in this collection only as typed-transcripts in the August 1996 addition (Acc. 96119).

Finding aid updated in September 2006 by Devon Lee because of addition.

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