Inventory of the Matthew Smart Davis Papers, 1851-1914

Collection Number 4125

unc seal
Manuscripts Department, Library of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Collection Information
block Descriptive Summary
block Administrative Information
block Online Catalog Headings
block Biographical Note
block Collection Overview
block Organization of Collection
plus Detailed Description of the Collection
block Items Separated
block Related Collections
Contact Information:
Manuscripts Department
CB#3926, Wilson Library
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC 27514-8890
Phone: 919/962-1345
Fax: 919/962-3594
Email: mss@email.unc.edu
URL: http://www.lib.unc.edu/mss/
Processed by
Roslyn Holdzkom
Date Processed
January 1995
Encoded by
Linda Sellars
Date Encoded
August 2003
Revisions
Updated in October 2003 by Matthew Turi.
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Descriptive Summary

Repository
Southern Historical Collection
Creator
Davis, Matthew Smart, 1830-1906
Title
Matthew Smart Davis Papers, 1851-1914
Call Number
4125
Extent
About 600 items (1.5 linear feet)
Abstract
Matthew Smart Davis was born in Warren County, N.C., in 1830. He was graduated from the University of North Carolina in 1855 and married Sarah Louisa Hill in 1856. He was principal of the Louisburg Male Academy, 1856-1881, and, for a number of years prior to 1880, he was also Franklin County superintendent of schools. From 1880 to 1896, he was chiefly involved in farming and serving as Franklin County treasurer. In 1896, he reorganized the Louisburg Female Academy (later Louisburg College) and served as its president until his death in 1906. The collections includes school, financial, legal, and other materials relating to Davis and his school and farming career. School materials include items relating to Louisburg College (the former Louisburg Female Academy and College) and to the Louisburg Male Academy. Louisburg College materials include fire insurance policies, 1897-1906; an art teacher's application for employment with recommendations attached, 1913; and a financial statement, 1914. Louisburg Male Academy materials include bills and receipts from bookstores, printers, and other merchants; a copy of the boarding house rules; a copy of the "Rules of Government of the Pupils"; closing exercises from the 1870s; and various grade books and assignment sheets. Financial materials relate chiefly to Davis's farming and family activities. Legal materials relate to the 1879 Orange County libel suit between H. A. Foote and Blair Burwell, for which Davis appears to have served as mediator, and to various estates that Davis administered, particularly that of W. H. Spencer. The Spencer materials are deeds and other financial items generated by W. H. Spencer during his lifetime and materials relating to the settlement of his estate, as well as materials relating to Spencer's duties as Franklin County superior court clerk, including many bills for court charges and other services. Also included are letters, report cards, and other items relating to Davis's days at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill and to his family in Warrenton, N.C., 1852-1856; Davis's appointment as principal, 1855, and exemption from military service, 1863; and his certificate of appointment as Franklin County justice of the peace, 1887.
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Administrative Information

Restrictions to Access
No restrictions.
Provenance
Received from Sarah Davis of Louisburg, N.C., in April 1977, November 1994 (Acc. 94167), June 1995 (Acc. 95076), July and August 2001 (Acc. 99013, 99042, 99065), and October 2001 (Acc. 99097).
Processing Information
The additions of July and August 2001 are arranged in the same way as, but have not been incorporated into, the original deposit of materials.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], in the Matthew Smart Davis Papers #4125, Southern Historical Collection, Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Copyright Notice
Copyright is retained by the authors of items in these papers, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.
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Online Catalog Headings

These and related materials may be found under the following headings in online catalogs.

Agriculture--North Carolina--History--19th century.
Davis family.
Davis, Matthew Smart, 1830-1906.
Estates (Law)--North Carolina--History--19th century.
Franklin County (N.C.)--Officials and employees--History--19th century.
Franklin County(N.C.)--Social life and customs.
Libel and slander--North Carolina--History--19th century.
Louisburg College.
School principals--North Carolina--History--19th century.
Schools--North Carolina--History.
Slavery--North Carolina.
Slaves--Employment--North Carolina.
Spencer, W. H.
University of North Carolina (1793-1962)--Students--Social life and customs.
Warrenton (N.C.)--Social life and customs.
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Biographical Note

Matthew Smart Davis, son of Edward and Rebecca Pitchford Davis, was born near Inez in Warren County, N.C., on 3 October 1830. In June 1856, he married Sarah Louisa Hill, with whom he had nine children, six of whom survived to adulthood: Edward Hill, lawyer and Methodist minister; Florence Madree, who married Eugene Allen; Mary Madeline, who married Ivey Allen and was president of Louisburg College, 1906-1918; Lula Pauline, who married Zollicoffer Egerton; Charles Weldon, who died at the age of 21; Mabel Irwin, Louisburg College teacher and librarian at the Warren County Public Library; and Marion Stuart, architect, of Louisburg.

Matthew Smart Davis received his A.B. degree from the University of North Carolina in 1855 and his A.M. in the early 1860s. In 1856, he began teaching at the Louisburg Male Academy, where he soon became principal. Davis held this position for 25 years. For several years prior to 1880, he served as Franklin County superintendent of schools. In 1880, he left teaching for farming at the Egerton plantation called Little Egypt and at Green Hill, Sarah Louisa Hill's family's plantation, southwest of Louisburg. During this time, he also served three terms as Franklin County treasurer. In 1896, he became president of Louisburg College, which his daughters had attended when it was Louisburg Female Academy. Davis died in office in 1906.

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Collection Overview

The collections includes school, financial, legal, and other materials relating to Matthew Smart Davis and his school and farming career. School materials include items relating to Louisburg College (the former Louisburg Female Academy and College) and to the Louisburg Male Academy. Louisburg College materials include fire insurance policies, 1897-1906; an art teacher's application for employment with recommendations attached, 1913; and a financial statement, 1914. Louisburg Male Academy materials include bills and receipts from bookstores, printers, and other merchants; a copy of the boarding house rules; a copy of the "Rules of Government of the Pupils"; closing exercises from the 1870s; and various grade books and assignment sheets. Financial materials relate chiefly to Davis's farming and family activities. Legal materials relate to the 1879 Orange County libel suit between H. A. Foote and Blair Burwell, for which Davis appears to have served as mediator, and to various estates that Davis administered, particularly that of W. H. Spencer. The Spencer materials are deeds and other financial items generated by W. H. Spencer during his lifetime and materials relating to the settlement of his estate, as well as materials relating to Spencer's duties as Franklin County, N.C., superior court clerk, including many bills for court charges and other services. Also included are letters, report cards, and other items relating to Davis's days at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill and to his family in Warrenton, N.C., 1852-1856; Davis's appointment as principal, 1855, and exemption from military service, 1863; and his certificate of appointment as Franklin County justice of the peace, 1887.

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Organization of Collection

Series 1. School Materials
Series 2. Financial Materials
Series 3. Legal Materials
Series 4. Other Materials
Additions
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Detailed Description of the Collection

1. School Materials, 1860s-1914.

About 25 items.
Arrangement: by institution.
Chiefly materials relating to Louisburg College (the former Louisburg Female Academy and College) and to Louisburg Male Academy. Louisburg College materials include fire insurance policies, 1897-1906; an art teacher's application for employment with recommendations attached, 1913; and a financial statement, 1914. Louisburg Male Academy materials include bills and receipts from bookstores, printers, and other merchants; a copy of the boarding house rules; a copy of the "Rules of Government of the Pupils"; closing exercises from the 1870s; and various grade sheets and term records.
   Folder 1
Louisburg College
   Folder 2
Louisburg Male Academy

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2. Financial Materials, 1850s-1890s.

About 200 items.
Arrangement: by type.
Processing note: See also Additions of July and August 2001.
Accounting sheets, bills, receipts, account books, and other items relating chiefly to Matthew Smart Davis's farming activities. Also included are a few tuition bills for his daughters at the Louisburg Female Academy and records of other family expenditures.
   Folder 3
Blacksmiths' accounts, 1861-1890 (about 10 items)
   Folder 4
Cotton sale records, 1860-1870s (about 30 items)
   Folder 5
Farm account book, 1883-1884
   Folder 6
Insurance policies, 1870-1909 (6 items)
   Folder 7
Slave hirings, 1861-1862 (3 items)
   Folder 8
Store account book, 1880
   Folder 9
Tuition bills, Louisburg Female Academy, 1860s-1870s (about 10 items)
   Folder 10-12
Miscellaneous financial materials, including accounts with various merchants, tax receipts, etc., 1850s-1890s (about 150 items)
   Folder 13-15
Miscellaneous account books, including one from the 1880s relating to tenant farmers, 1870s-1894 (3 items)

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3. Legal Materials, 1850s-1892.

About 220 items.
Arrangement: by subject.
Materials relating to the 1879 Orange County, N.C., libel suit between H. A. Foote and Blair Burwell for which Davis appears to have served as mediator, and to various estates that Davis administered, including those of Daniel Shine Hill and Susan Irwin Toole Hill, his wife's father and mother; J. B. Mann; and W. H. Spencer. The Spencer materials include deeds and other financial items generated by Spencer during his lifetime and materials relating to the settlement of his estate. Folders 24 and 25 contain materials relating to Spencer's duties as Franklin County, N.C., superior court clerk, including many bills for court charges and other services. Miscellaneous legal materials include an 1872 deed belonging to Davis.
   Folder 16
Foote-Burwell libel suit, 1879 (about 50 items)
   Folder 17
Hill family estate papers, 1850s-1870s (about 20 items)
   Folder 18
J. B. Mann estate, 1865-1869 (1 item)
   Folder 19-25
W. H. Spencer papers, 1860s-1892 (about 150 items)
   Folder 26
Miscellaneous legal papers

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4. Other Materials, 1863-1896.

About 60 items.
Processing note: See also Additions of July and August 2001.
   Folder 27
Letters, report cards, and other items relating to Davis's days at the University of North Carolina, to his family in Warrenton, N.C., and his appointment as principal, 1852-1897
   Folder 28
Student papers submitted in coursework at the University of North Carolina during the 1850s and in 1861. Two papers are by other students, R. T. Arrington and James Gill, who wrote on the same subjects as Davis. Instructor's corrections appear on some of the papers. Subjects include student activities (the Blacking Club, senior speaking, harassing local farmers), slavery, the Nebraska Bill, etc.
   Folder 29
Davis's school teacher exemption from military service, 1863; his certificate of DeSoto Life Insurance Company board of trustees membership, 1870; shares in the Old North State Insurance Company, 1872; certificate of appointment as Franklin County justice of the peace, 1887; prospectus and constitutions (1890 and 1892) of the Farmers' Alliance of North Carolina, of which Davis was a member; insurance license, 1896

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Additions.

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Additions of July and August 2001 (Acc. 99013, 99042, and 99065), 1851-1902.
About 140 items.
Processing note: The additions of July and August 2001 are arranged in the same way as, but have not been incorporated into, the original deposit of materials.
Arrangement: by type.
Chiefly business and personal letters, receipts, bills, statements of account, and speeches of Matthew Smart Davis.
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2. Financial materials, 1857-1897.
About 60 items.
Arrangement: chronological.
Miscellaneous financial materials, including accounts and receipts from various merchants.
   Folder 30
Accounts and receipts, 1857-1897
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4. Other materials, 1851-1902.
About 80 items.
Arrangement: by type.
Primarily letters received by Matthew Smart Davis and speeches that he wrote. The speeches address various topics, including the Crimean war and the state of American politics in the 1850s. These works appear to have been written while Davis was a student at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill and the donor suggests that they may have been delivered before the Dialectic and Philanthropic societies. The personal letters date from Davis's student days in the 1850s and are primarily concerned with university life. The family letters address matters of family history as well as financial arrangements. The business letters relate to Davis's long-term association with the Louisburg Male Academy and address topics such as student admissions, potential commencement speakers, and teaching methods.
   Folder 31
Student speeches, 1850s
   Folder 32
Letters, 1851-1902 and undated

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Items Separated

Oversized papers in Folder OP-4125/1.

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Related Collections

Hill and Davis Family Papers (#4393);
Marion Stuart Davis Papers (#5073);
Daniel Shine Hill Papers (#4834).