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Collection Number: 03160

Collection Title: William Wallis McDowell Papers, 1772-1893.

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 Duplication Policy section for more information.


This collection was processed with support from the sponsorship of a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities, Office of Preservation, Washington, D.C., 1990-1993.

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Size 0.5 feet of linear shelf space (approximately 180 items)
Abstract William Wallis McDowell was a landowner, merchant, and banker of Asheville, N.C. The collection contains business and some personal and military papers of McDowell. Among the papers are account books of the Bank of Cape Fear, Asheville branch, 1845-1866; accounts with laborers, 1858-1873; estate accounts; occasional correspondence; deeds and promissory notes related to the early acquisition of lands in western North Carolina by McDowell's father-in- law, James McConnell Smith (1794-1846); military records of McDowell as captain of the Buncombe Rifles, 1st North Carolina Regiment, and later 60th North Carolina Regiment, Confederate States of America; a ledger pertaining to Revolutionary War pensions in ten western North Carolina counties, 1851-1852; and McDowell's diary while traveling and visiting in east Texas, 1884-1885.
Creator McDowell, William Wallis, 1824-1893.
Curatorial Unit University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Historical Collection.
Language English
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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Information For Users

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 William Wallis McDowell Papers, #3160, Southern Historical Collection, The Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Acquisitions Information
Gift 1955
Additional Descriptive Resources
A copy of the original finding aid for this collection is filed in folder 1a.
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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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Processing Information

Processed by: SHC Staff

Encoded by: Noah Huffman, December 2007

Updated by: Kathryn Michaelis, April 2011

This collection was processed with support from the sponsorship of a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities, Office of Preservation, Washington, D.C., 1990-1993.

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subject Headings

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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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Biographical Information

William Wallis McDowell was a landowner, merchant, and banker of Asheville, N.C.

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Scope and Content

The collection contains business and some personal and military papers of McDowell. Among the papers are account books of the Bank of Cape Fear, Asheville branch, 1845-1866; accounts with laborers, 1858-1873; estate accounts; occasional correspondence; deeds and promissory notes related to the early acquisition of lands in western North Carolina by McDowell's father-in- law, James McConnell Smith (1794-1846); military records of McDowell as captain of the Buncombe Rifles, 1st North Carolina Regiment, and later 60th North Carolina Regiment, Confederate States of America; a ledger pertaining to Revolutionary War pensions in ten western North Carolina counties, 1851-1852; and McDowell's diary while traveling and visiting in east Texas, 1884-1885.

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Contents list

expand/collapse Expand/collapse William Wallis McDowell Papers, 1772-1893.

About 180 items.
Folder 1a

Original finding aid

Folder 1

1792-1799

Folder 2

1800-1807

Folder 3

1812-1816

Folder 4

1817-1819

Folder 5

1820-1821

Folder 6

1822-1827

Folder 7

1828-1829

Folder 8

1830-1839

Folder 9

1840-1849

Folder 10

1851-1856

Folder 11

1857-1858

Folder 12

1860-1868

Folder 13

1871-1893 and undated

Folder 14

Volume 1: James M. Smith bank book, 1845-1855

Folder 15

Volume 2: N. W. Woodfin bank book, 1846-1859

Folder 16

Volume 3: Smith   McDowell bank book

Folder 17

Volume 4: Nameless account book, 1854-1864

Oversize Volume SV-3160/5

Volume 5: Ledger of W. W. McDowell, 1858-1873

Folder 19

Volume 6: Bank Statement, 1859-1866

Folder 20

Volume 7: Travel diary of W. W. McDowell, 10 December 1884-20 February 1885

Describes a trip to Texas with his wife Sarah.

Folder 21

Volume 8: Ledger, 1852-1853

Reel M-3160/1-2

M-3160/1

M-3160/2

Papers, 1805-1886

Includes correspondence, legal papers, epitaphs, and miscellaneous other materials.

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Items Separated

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