UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES The University of at Chapel Hill Volume 26, numberWIN 1 • Spring/Summer 2019 DOWS

“Libraries are about truth, evidence and memory.”

—Elaine Westbrooks, University Librarian 4 News Briefs from the University Librarian 7 And the Grammys go to... Dear Friends, Retired Carolina professor Bill Ferris hits the big time with help from University Libraries archivists When protestors toppled UNC-Chapel Hill’s Confederate Monument on the eve of the fall semester, they set in motion a year of controversy that continues today. 11 Throughout this time, I have found myself thinking again and again about the role that libraries and archives play in helping our communities grapple with the Generous tradition most challenging questions we face. Vance and Shaida Horner’s gifts for Persian Photo: Jon Gardiner, University Communications studies bring an ancient culture to life As you read our cover story, I hope you will share my appreciation for Carolina’s librarians and archivists whose work sheds light on the monument’s history and context. They ensure that the historical record of the University is safe, open and accessible. They help learners and researchers find their path through this record, 13 empowering them to dig deeper, ask new questions and interrogate the evidence. In Memoriam: Joe A. Hewitt They also build documentary collections so that future researchers will under-

contents Remembering a former University librarian who stand the history we live today. believed in the transformative power of libraries Witnessing our staff There is much to be proud of at the University Libraries. In this issue, you can read about staff who restored engage with difficult artifacts in towns hit by Hurricane Florence, friends and 14 donors whose generosity helps outstanding collections “First, you go to the archives” histories reaffirms for and programs flourish, and even the Library’s role in Carolina’s archivists preserve and share documents me the crucial role of bringing a Grammy to Chapel Hill. But witnessing our Windows is published by that speak volumes about “Silent Sam” the Friends of the Library staff engage with the difficult histories that challenge our under the auspices of libraries and archives community reaffirms for me the crucial role of libraries the University Libraries, University of North Carolina and archives for our democracy and our future. at Chapel Hill. We welcome for our democracy questions and comments at P.O. Box 8890, CB #3900, 20 and our future. Debate over the Confederate Monument is sure to go Chapel Hill, NC, 27515- After the storm 8890 or (919) 962-1301. on. As this next chapter of campus history takes shape, Staffer Christian Edwards battled mold and we at the Library will continue our unique mission to preserve, to teach, to Editor debris to help the Lumbee Tribe Cultural Center Judy Panitch recover from Hurricane Florence document, to share. Thank you for your continued friendship and support in Interim Director of this most important of endeavors. Library Development Ann Horner

Art Director Sincerely, Aleah Howell ’15, ’17 22 Design Elaine Westbrooks Alison Duncan ’96 A gift for the future Vice Provost for University Libraries and University Librarian Thanks to Alumnus Howard Holsenbeck on making the Tanya Fortner University Libraries part of his estate plans

33 News Briefs

Librarians use data $250,000 grant from AV conservator Erica Titkemeyer’s passion for audiovisual Drew Robertson and Glenn Waters (2nd and 3rd analysis to study Jim Crow Watson-Brown Foundation conservation was sparked by making from left) designed and built the Periodic Table Titkemeyer is Library an undergraduate documentary installation at the Kenan Science Library. They pose with KSL staff (left to right) Tricia Maloney, laws funds research fellowships Journal Mover & Shaker film about their grandfather’s World David Romito and Therese Triumph. at Wilson Library War II experiences. Discovering the grandfather’s oral history in a library Carolina librarians are using a Erica Titkemeyer, project director recently awarded grant to explore and audiovisual conservator in and hearing his voice “was a really Approximately 30 visiting doctoral transformative experience.” the laws and legacy of Jim Crow in students and candidates will have the Southern Folklife Collection groundbreaking ways. Their project, at the Wilson Special Collections the opportunity to conduct research “While I’m motivated by the research On the Books: Jim Crow and the in Southern studies at the Wilson Library, is one of Library Journal’s Algorithms of Resistance, received 50 “Movers & value of the recordings we work Special Collections Library in the with, it’s patron discoveries similar an award of $59,267 from the next three years. A grant of Shakers” for 2019. national Collections as Data – The award recog- to my own that encourage me,” $252,500 from the Watson-Brown said Titkemeyer. Part to Whole initiative. Foundation will underwrite a nizes “top change-

graduate fellowships pilot program, makers who are Using optical character recognition Titkemeyer’s passion for providing financial and intellectual transforming what and machine learning, the team audiovisual preservation has led support for both dissertation and it means to be a will build a text corpus of North to volunteer projects as far away pre-dissertation research. librarian.” Carolina session laws from the end as Montevideo, Uruguay, and

of the Civil War through the civil Colombia, and to significant Wilson Library’s collections include Titkemeyer came to the University rights movement of the 1960s innovations at Carolina, such as some of the world’s most important Libraries in 2014 as part of a major and will then compile a listing of leading the creation of Jitterbug, historical records and documents grant to investigate audiovisual North Carolina’s Jim/Jane Crow an open-source audiovisual related to the American South. preservation and access for the laws. This effort builds upon work SFC's massive collection of more materials management system.

Photos: Aleah Howell done by civil rights pioneer Pauli “This program will provide an than 50,000 audio recordings, Murray in the 1950s. “Erica is a remarkable colleague intellectually intense and archivally 6,500 video recordings and 8 and a quiet but sure leader, whose creative experience that will million feet of motion picture film. Additional products will be a deft and sensitive guidance allows connect fellows not just to our website for educators and everyone to achieve historic collections but also to the “Erica works with researchers, a white paper our absolute best,” faculty and other rich resources departments across describing methodologies, a code said Weiss. available at Carolina for the study the University repository, and presentations, Elementary! of the American South,” said María Libraries like a con- including a workshop for the Titkemeyer is the R. Estorino, associate University ductor of a symphony 2019 is the International Year of the Triangle Digital Humanities University Libraries’ librarian for special collections orchestra, bringing Periodic Table of the Elements and Institute. together the full range sixth Mover & the system’s 150th anniversary. In and director of the Wilson Special Shaker. A profile of Collections Library. of stakeholders and January, the Kenan Science Library The 16-month project began in divergent skill sets Titkemeyer appeared celebrated completion of a mural- January. The participants are in the March 4, 2019, The grant adds to a growing program to create a complex sized periodic table public art project. librarians Nathan Kelber (principal integrated work flow,” issue of Library Dozens of campus artists represented investigator and project lead), of fellowships and grants for research Journal and on the and creativity at the Wilson Special Steve Weiss, the every element on wooden tiles, with Lorin Bruckner, Sarah Carrier, SFC’s curator, told magazine’s website, designs both literal and fanciful. The María R. Estorino, Amanda Henley Collections Library. It will also libraryjournal.com. support Wilson Library in organizing Library Journal. completed table, measuring five feet (co-principal investigator) and by eight feet, brings art and science Matt Jansen, along with historian a capstone symposium on emerging together at the Kenan Science Library. William Sturkey. trends in Southern studies.

4 5 On Exhibit in Wilson Library News And the Briefs Grammys go to…

University Libraries publishes biography of UNC presidents Edward Kidder Graham and Harry Woodburn Chase

Between 1913 and 1930, the presidencies of Edward Kidder Graham and Harry Woodburn Chase transformed the University of North Carolina from a small Keeping cool with ice cream in Alamance County, North Carolina, in 1951. institution in the liberal arts From the Edward J. McCauley Photographic Materials at Wilson Library. tradition to a modern research university serving the state. Beating the Heat: Surviving Summers in North In “Fire and Stone: The Making of Carolina Before Air Conditioning the University of North Carolina under Presidents Edward Kidder June 20 – September 29, 2019 Steve Weiss (left), curator Graham and Harry Woodburn of the Southern Folklife Chase,” author The Uses of Books: Early Modern Readers Revealed Collection, and Bill Ferris, in the audio studio at Howard E. May 23 – September 8, 2019 Wilson Library Covington Jr. Readers between 1450 and 1750 found innovative ways to make tells the story of books their own. this remarkable growth and the Cheryl Thurber Photographs: Documenting Gravel two men whose vision and force Springs, Mississippi, in the 1970s of will propelled Through March 13, 2020 Retired Carolina professor Bill Ferris hits the big the University Thirty black-and-white images reflect African American life and into the future. culture in a small town. time with help from University Libraries archivists

“Fire and Stone” A box set of music, stories, film and photographs described as the distillation of the longtime folklore professor Bill is supported by the Albert and Ferris’ life work won two Grammy awards in February, one for Best Historical Album and another for Best Album Notes. Gladys Coates Endowment Fund for Coming this Fall University Libraries archivists can also take a bow for their part in the creation of “Voices of Mississippi: Artists and the North Carolina Collection at the On the Move: Stories of African American Mobility Musicians Documented by William Ferris” released by Atlanta-based record label Dust-to-Digital in August 2018. The Wilson Special Collections Library. collection was chosen from a massive archive created by Ferris that is part of the Southern Folklife Collection at the It is available for purchase from the Opens September 2019 Wilson Special Collections Library. UNC Press, and is also available “This box set winning a Grammy says it all,” said Ferris, who was in for the Feb. 10 ceremony. “These at no charge as an open access African American Contributions to North Carolina’s e-book. To purchase or download, Literature voices are now assured that they will never be forgotten and they will never be invisible. They will always be part of our visit go.unc.edu/FireAndStone. Opens October 2019 collective memory as Southerners and as Americans and as human beings because the interest in this box set is global.”

Photos: Jon Gardiner/University Communications

6 7 The multimedia collection includes three discs—blues, gospel and storytelling— and a DVD containing seven of Ferris’ films from the 1970s. It also features a 120-page book with photos taken by Ferris of his friends—musicians, artists and storytellers— plus lyrics, transcriptions of field recordings, essays and artist profiles. Produced over the course of 10 years, the set would not exist without the expertise of University archivists, who began work on Ferris’ collection in 2003. Ferris, considered the founder of the Southern folklore discipline, joined Carolina’s faculty in 2002 and retired in spring 2018 as the Joel R. Williamson Eminent Professor of History and senior associate director of the Center for the Study of the American South. He is adjunct professor emeritus in the folklore curriculum. Author of 10 books and co-editor of the “Encyclopedia of Southern Culture,” Ferris has written fiction, poetry and articles on folklore and literature, as well as book, record “It’s the and film reviews. Ferris has also recorded blues albums, produced 15 documentary films on Southern folklore and hosted a public radio show on the blues. He has received first time numerous awards, including the Charles Frankel Prize in the Humanities, bestowed by former President Bill Clinton. I’ve looked

Five tons of materials at the body Steve Weiss, curator of the Southern Folklife Collection, directs work on the Ferris Collection, including bringing five tons of photographs, slides, papers, audio recordings, of my work Grammy winner and retired professor Bill Ferris (front row, 2nd from right) videotapes and films to Carolina. He supervised the archival processing (with former calls the staff of the Wilson Special Collections Library who helped preserve library colleague Roslyn Holdzkom) and wrote and managed grants that funded the as a whole and digitize his recordings "the finest librarians in the world." work to preserve the materials digitally and provide online access. rather than “It’s a beautiful distillation of Bill’s work that can be enjoyed by a larger piecemeal, audience because the collection is such an enormous and overwhelming body of work that I imagine you could easily do another box set or two without too much trouble,” Weiss said. The set is a must-have for most libraries, Weiss and it’s been said, because of its scholarly importance and influence. Weiss obtained a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities moving and to digitize the audio, making it accessible online for researchers and easier to find materials in the immense collection. Other grants enabled the team of eight archivists exciting to and graduate students to digitize the rest of the collection, work that was underway when Dust-to-Digital approached Weiss about creating the box set. see that.” “They were able to access the collection and use our digitization work really quickly,” Weiss said. —Bill Ferris The team supporting the collection includes Aaron Smithers, Southern Folklife Collection assistant; photo archivist Patrick Cullom, who developed descriptions of photographs, negatives and slides; Laura Hart, technical services archivist; John Loy, preservation audio engineer; audio engineer Brian Paulson, who digitized many of the audio recordings; Erica Titkemeyer, Mellon Project director and AV conservator; Anne Wells, audiovisual archivist; and graduate students. The archivists used their in-depth knowledge of preservation of photography, recorded sound, video and documentary film; knowledge of archival arrangement and description; and subject knowledge to preserve Ferris’ collection and ensure it is available to scholars and the general public for generations to come. “They are the finest librarians in the world,” Ferris said, adding that he continues to donate materials for the archive, including personal files, manuscripts, photographs and recordings from classes and events.

8 9 Bill Ferris in the audio studio of the Southern Folklife Collection at Wilson Library, where staff digitized the recordings that earned him a Grammy Generous tradition

Story by Courtney Mitchell So do libraries, says Shaida Horner. And, where better to discover an unfamil- Vance and Shaida A shared passion for the rich history iar culture than the library? and spirit of Persian culture has driven “The library is a place of community Horner’s gifts for Vance L. Horner II ’92 and Shaida and for all ideas,” she says. “We wanted Jarrahi Horner ’93, MAC ’94 to support to find ways through the library to invite Persian studies and advocate for the growth of Persian the public to come to campus and learn bring an ancient studies at their alma mater from the time more about this part of civilization.” they were young alumni. “Just as Persian culture supersedes culture to life That they have made the University any one nation-state, the library tran- Libraries a key part of their philanthropy scends boundaries,” says Vance Horner, reflects the way Persian culture itself who is completing his first term on the shapes their desire to give. Because, Friends of the Library Board of Directors. ‘My right arm’ beyond legacies of ancient poetry or Vance and Shaida first met as As the box set came together, Aaron Smithers, the collection assistant whom beloved cuisine, Persian culture promotes Carolina students in 1991. When they Ferris calls “my right arm,” knew exactly where to find materials that Dust- a tradition of inclusion and belonging. married in 1995, Shaida’s community to-Digital requested. “Nothing could have happened without Aaron’s deep knowledge of my archive,” Ferris said. Smithers said that the team’s work makes items easier to find and use. “It’s a He said that the first time Dust-to-Digital’s team visited Carolina, they gave him a hard drive on which he placed 400 gigabytes of audio. beautiful “And that’s not all of it,” Smithers said. “Just to sort through some of those recordings and pull the content—to do that open-reel or from the distillation source material—would have been insane.” Despite the level of remove that his works brings, Smithers delights in of Bill’s work finding new material, such as a slide of Cleveland “Broom Man” Jones, Joe Cooper and James “Son Ford’ Thomas, decked out in 1970s ties and colorful that can be slacks, musical instrument cases by their side, as they pose near the reflecting pool on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. enjoyed by “It’s always enjoyable to see what other people see in the work, especially when it’s done in consultation with the creator,” said Smithers. “Bill can do a larger that. Enjoy it but be critical as well and encourage students to think about his work and theirs critically.” audience.” With such a vast collection documenting his career, Ferris said that the work by staff at Carolina’s libraries not only made the materials accessible and —Steve Weiss easily found, but also led him to see his work anew. “In a way, it’s the first time I’ve looked at the body of my work as a whole rather than piecemeal, and it’s been moving and exciting to see that. When I read

Scott Barretta’s opening essay that does the same thing, I thought about all the Photo: Aleah Howell different pieces of my life somehow put together in a single thread,” Ferris said.

This story was excerpted from a longer version by Scott Jared, University Communications. Read the original at go.unc.edu/FerrisGrammy

10 11 In Memoriam

Joe A. Hewitt “The library is a place of University Librarian Emeritus We are sad to report the passing community and for all ideas. of Joe A. Hewitt, University Librarian Emeritus, on December 19, 2018, in Durham, North Carolina, at the age of 80. We wanted to find ways Hewitt’s association with Carolina welcomed her husband with open arms. began in 1956, when he enrolled at the It quickly became his community, too. through the library to invite University as a Morehead Scholar. He “They put hospitality first,” says interrupted his studies after two years to Vance. “And, that’s what we think about enlist in the U.S. Army Security Agency, North Carolina, a place where there’s the public to come to campus graduating from the Russian program at a dinner party every weekend and we the Army Language School in Monterey, welcome everyone to the table—not California (now the Defense Language and learn more about this Photo: Fred Stipe just for a meal, but for conversation and Institute) and then working as a Russian voice intercept operator in West Germany. laughter. If you want to know one thing Upon resuming his studies at Chapel about Persian culture—that’s what it’s part of civilization.” —Shaida Horner Hill, Hewitt took a student job in Wilson like. We want to share that with Library. He completed his B.A. in history Carolina.” and his M.L.S. from Carolina, then spent on the Library’s unparalleled collections. Triangle Research Libraries Network, the The Horners made their first nine years at the University of Colorado, He founded the Carolina Academic Association of Research Libraries and contributions to the Jarrahi Family earning his doctorate in education. Library Associates program in partnership the International Federation of Library Library Fund for Persian Studies. Shaida’s Hewitt returned to Carolina as associate with UNC-Chapel Hill’s School of Associations and Institutions. father, Dr. Ali Jarrahi, established the to Persian culture and to the Library’s lack real knowledge about her parents’ University librarian for technical services Information and Library Science to attract Hewitt was a wise, kind and trusted endowment to help the University Persian collections. It also gives members country. Ernst’s extensive scholarship in 1975 and was named associate and train the next generation of college mentor to a generation of librarians. They Libraries acquire materials and media of the local Persian community an on something so important to her is provost for University Libraries, or and university librarians. Today, the took inspiration from his gentle guidance relating to Persian language and culture. opportunity to come to Carolina and motivating. University librarian, in 1993. program’s nearly 200 alumni work at and scholarly outlook and from his libraries across the state and the country. abiding belief in the promise of libraries Dr. Jarrahi emphasized the impor- celebrate their culture. “For an American faculty member Hewitt believed deeply that the Library belonged to the people of North Under Hewitt’s leadership, the Library and the academy. tance of private giving, encouraging his “It is truly extraordinary that at Carolina to have that much passion Carolina and that its collections and staff attracted notable gifts and collections, For his achievements, Hewitt in 1999 daughter and son-in-law to find room in this family, along with the Persian for and knowledge of this culture has should serve the state. This sense of including the papers of journalist and received the University’s Distinguished community, has taken such an active role inspired us to help in any way we can,” their budget for philanthropy, even in the commitment and responsibility guided his alumnus Charles Kuralt; the André Savine Alumni Award. Upon his retirement in midst of what Shaida calls “the survival in making sure that resources on Persian she says. tenure. Under his leadership, the Library collection, which documents the Russian 2004, Governor Mike Easley bestowed years” of cultivating careers and raising studies can be available to everyone,” Vice Provost for University achieved a series of notable firsts that diaspora; materials related to luminaries upon him The Order of the Long Leaf Pine small children. says Carl Ernst, Kenan Distinguished Libraries and University Librarian Elaine extended the reach of its outstanding such as Thomas Wolfe, William Butler for extraordinary service to the state. Professor of Islamic studies and director Westbrooks says she is grateful that the Yeats and Gail Godwin; and the 60,000 “He would always include us in collections and expertise well beyond discussions about his plans for giving. of the Carolina Center for the Study Horners have recognized the Library as Chapel Hill. These projects included musical recordings that established the Hewitt’s wife, Susan Nutter, passed away Then he’d say, ‘Now, what are you going of the Middle East and Muslim a partner in sharing this knowledge with Documenting the American South. What Southern Folklife Collection. January 25, 2019. He leaves his son, to do?’” says Shaida. “‘Who is going to Civilizations. It was in Ernst’s honor the campus and the local community. began as a project to digitize frequently Hewitt’s tenure saw a full-scale reno- Stephen Hewitt, sisters Nancy Stallings and do it if you don’t?’” that Dr. Jarrahi created the endowment “Persian culture has a rich history used slave narratives rapidly expanded vation of the R.B. House Undergraduate Mary Goodwin (Andy), ex-wife Anne Hewitt, Library, which reopened in 2002 as a cen- sister-in-law and brother-in-law Deborah The Horners responded by for Persian studies materials. that people often don’t know well into a pioneering online program that continues to attract readers from around ter for student life. When the aftermath of Winslow Nutter and Alan Huntington Rutan, establishing the Horner Jarrahi Family “Persian culture has a tremendous enough,” she says. “When you come to and nieces and nephews. He was the world. Hurricane Floyd diverted promised state Persian Studies Speaker Series legacy that we can all connect with no Carolina, you come here to learn about predeceased by his daughter Kirsten Hewitt sought to use the Library as a funding, he and the Friends of the Library matter our background. This is a history people from different cultures and back- Elizabeth Hewitt. Endowment, which invites top scholars springboard for outreach and for cultural raised $2 million in private funds to com- The family suggests that memorials in in Persian studies to deliver public that goes back well over 2,000 years and grounds. Thanks to Vance and Shaida, programming that would benefit North plete the project. Hewitt’s memory be made to the lectures at the University Libraries. it has been the center of a tremendous plus their entire family, students now With a deep passion for the mission Carolinians. He helped to establish a Joe A. Hewitt Librarian’s Opportunity amount of literature, science, philosophy have access to outstanding scholars and The series, which began in 2018 with a North Carolina Literary Festival and he and potential of libraries, Hewitt loaned Fund at the University Libraries. Visit lecture on classical Persian poetry, will and art,” Ernst says. researchers on Iranian and Persian culture initiated a partnership with the UNC Press his energy and intellect to organizations go.unc.edu/HewittFund or use the introduce a wide University audience Shaida recognizes that many people and history, and they are better off for it.” to publish and distribute books that drew that advance their work, including the enclosed envelope.

12 13 Story by Courtney Mitchell monumental task: helping people make sense of the statue’s controversial past and the role that it Few episodes in Carolina’s recent history continues to play on campus, even in its absence. have been as fraught as the debate over “Silent “Libraries are about truth, evidence and Sam,” the Confederate monument that formerly memory,” says Vice Provost for University stood at the entrance to campus. Libraries and University Librarian Elaine “First, Protestors toppled the monument on August Westbrooks. “Everything we know about the 20, 2018, and officials swiftly removed it. Five monument and its history is known thanks to months later, Chancellor punctuated the documents preserved in Wilson Library and you go to the her resignation announcement with an order to the efforts of librarians and archivists to make dismantle and remove the statue’s remaining them visible and available for use.” pedestal and plaques. The power of these documents to motivate The protracted conflict—with its protests, real-world action became clear when student counter-protests, petitions, news cameras and activists looked to the archives at Wilson Library rallies—has played out dramatically and very much for context. There, they encountered a troubling archives” in the public eye. 1913 address by University Trustee and Meanwhile, just a quad away, librarians Confederate Army veteran Julian Carr, sharing and archivists at the Wilson Special Collections it widely on social media as they called for the Carolina’s archivists preserve Library have taken on a different kind of monument’s removal. At the dedication of the monument, Carr and share documents that speak had told the crowd, “One hundred yards from volumes about “Silent Sam” where we stand, less than 90 days perhaps after my return from Appomattox, I horse-whipped a negro wench until her skirts hung in shreds, because upon the streets of this quiet village she had publicly insulted and maligned a Southern lady.” “No one has to wonder what this monu- ment means,” says María R. Estorino, associate University librarian for special collections and director of the Wilson Special Collections Library. “The speaker reminisces fondly about violence and the subjugation of enslaved people. It’s important to have specialists who can put this into context of both the past and present.” That creation of context takes many forms, says Estorino. “As a special collection, every part of Wilson Library contributes to our understanding of this monument and this history,” says Estorino. “This is an issue that touches our collecting, preserving, describing, digitizing, contextualizing and teaching. Through all of these activities, we offer pathways for Carolina’s campus and community to connect with this history, even when it is painful.”

Photos: Aleah Howell

14 15 “We help people understand this issue by connecting them with sources where they can find real evidence—in the voices, experiences and documents we’ve collected ... for over a century.” —Sarah Carrier

Information and University Archivist Nicholas Graham. “We offer empowerment “The collections here in Wilson are vast, so, while available to the public, pathways Although calls to remove the this kind of research can take a lot of Confederate Monument date to the time,” says Graham. “We want to for Carolina’s 1960s, the conversation—and the quest make it as easy as possible for people, for information—intensified over the last especially students, to consult these campus and decade. original materials so they can dig in, community to Wilson Library archivists and read the original sources and draw librarians recognized that they had a conclusions about the monument on connect with unique contribution to make and began their own using the evidence we have.” digitizing documents from the collections These efforts have brought the this history, to make them more accessible. As stew- original documents and records of this ards of this information, the library history under the scrolling fingertips even when it empowers people to reach their own and scanning gaze of a digital audience. is painful.” understandings about the monument Wilson Library staff also created and gives people a foothold, says research guides and a timeline of the —María R. Estorino

16 17 “It’s been an incredible experience for me to go to Wilson and sit down with a student and a box of material to try to put together this puzzle.” —James Leloudis

Shaping tomorrow forward, Estorino served on the Faculty healing and the restorative justice that can monument (see sidebar on opposite Advisory Committee on the Confederate come from learning about and processing page), all backed by the newly digitized The staff at Wilson Library is Statue, bringing her perspective to the our past,” she says. “It will be such a sources. “A Guide to Resources About focused not only on preserving and ongoing dialogue. missed opportunity to see this as just UNC’s Confederate Monument” begins opening up the past. They have also Though the monument’s home for about a monument. To be a great public with the 1908 United Daughters of thought deeply about what future more than a century is now another patch university leading difficult discussions, the Confederacy’s request to build the students and researchers will need to of grass along McCorkle Place, the conver- we have to know where we’ve been. First, monument, continues through the vocal understand today’s conflicts and sation is far from over, says Westbrooks. you go to the archives. Then you can go opposition of the 1960s and ends—for problems. “This campus is actually at the on with deeper understanding, start to now—with the monument’s fall. For example, archivists are beginning of working through this and, move forward, and heal.” Even with so many documents now proactively collecting and preserving as the Library, we can be part of that online, more guidance is sometimes materials from current student and needed. That’s where Wilson Library’s campus experiences. As they archive unique expertise and teaching mission websites and social media posts (with Learn more at these online resources come in. permission) that extend the story of Sarah Carrier, North Carolina the monument into the 21st century, The work of Carolina’s librarians and archivists makes it possible research and instruction librarian, helps they also look for ways to connect for anyone to view historical documents about the Confederate faculty and students use the collections with students to let them know their Monument and to trace the recent history of controversy and protest in their classwork and curricula. The materials matter to Carolina’s legacy. on campus. Here are sites to get started. monument and student activism are big considered,” says Carrier. of Carolina’s buildings were built with “To collect the information that A Guide to Resources About UNC’s Confederate Monument issues for them, she says. Professor James Leloudis from slave labor. It’s a tough topic for students people will want in 100 years, we need go.unc.edu/CMResources “We help people understand this Carolina’s department of history has been to unpack, says Leloudis. to be present, where conversations are issue by connecting them with sources relying on Wilson Library to study the “It’s been an incredible experience happening and get to know the people A Guide to Researching Campus Monuments and Buildings: “Silent Sam” Confederate Monument where they can find real evidence—in South since his undergraduate days. The for me to go to Wilson and sit down with and the issues,” says Estorino. “It goes go.unc.edu/CMResearchGuide the voices, experiences and documents Library, he says, has been a critical tool a student and a box of material to try to beyond collecting to building trust— we’ve collected on this issue for over a for both his scholarship and teaching. put together this puzzle. It’s one thing to we must be respectful and mindful of Commemorative Landscapes: Confederate Monument, UNC century. And, we can talk to them about Graham, Carrier and other library staff read what someone writes in the news, their experiences.” (in partnership with W. Fitzhugh Brundage, William Umstead Distinguished Professor of history) that history,” says Carrier. across campus are “remarkable citizens of but there’s something about discovering Westbrooks says that future is what go.unc.edu/CMLandscapes It’s more than information and the University,” he says, for recognizing it for yourself,” he says. “You’re the takes the University Libraries’ role from education, it’s empowerment, she says. and embracing the opportunity to detective—you can collect clues and simply the steward of the monument’s University Libraries Web Archives: Confederate Monument Protests respond so quickly. put the pieces together. We have this go.unc.edu/CMWebArchives “The news and social media history to a community partner in help- surrounding the monument are really The monument often leads to deeper opportunity to learn about the past from ing campus heal and reconcile its past. Collecting a snapshot of Silent Sam protests overwhelming. I encourage students to discoveries about Carolina’s relationship some of the best collections in the world, Chancellor Folt stepped down amid a go.unc.edu/CMTwitter bring their questions to the original to slavery—how early students brought and that is how we can start to imagine University divided on the future of the documents and evidence they haven’t enslaved persons to campus or how many the future we want.” felled statue. As Carolina sought a way

18 19 HEELS After LEND A

HAND

the storm University Libraries staff members helped in many ways following Hurricane Florence.

Staffer Christian Edwards for the center. It took all four of us to Employees Tom Arnel, battled mold and debris flip the painting over so we could sweep All photos on this page of Christian courtesy Edwards Joanneke Elliott and dust from the back and lightly clean it Julie Green traveled to help the Lumbee Tribe with an alcohol solution. to Goldsboro with the Cultural Center recover One team member organized University’s Employee from Hurricane Florence. scattered photos according to any clues Forum in December. she could find. The images came from There, they assembled multiple albums and many were stuck cleaning, health and Story by Christian Edwards together. I’m glad to say that out of the school kits.

When Hurricane couple dozen that needed to be separated, Goldsboro Florence hit North Photo: Aleah Howell only about five were unsalvageable. Carolina in mid- Pembroke The item that needed the most September 2018, it attention was a leather vest that staff said brought water and was one of the most culturally valuable structural damage to the pieces at the center. Two weeks of sitting Lumbee Tribe Cultural Center in Our goals were to clean the objects, in a wet building left the vest covered And Carolina’s Health Pembroke. With power out for more photograph the frozen textiles in with green and black mold. Staff Sciences Library, as part than 12 days, staff returned to find art preparation for conservation treatment, assumed it was too far gone for salvage. of the statewide AHEC and artifacts that were waterlogged, soak a stack of stuck-together photos Because of its significance, CREST Digital Library network, kept crucial medical molded and, they thought, lost forever. to release them and begin drying and decided to attempt to save the vest. information circulating As part of the state’s volunteer cleaning various artifacts. During a prior visit, volunteers had despite the storm. When Cultural Resources Emergency Support Because the center was still so frozen it to halt mold growth. As soon as the SEAHEC Library at Team, I visited the center on October damaged, we moved the items to a our team arrived, we removed it to thaw New Hanover Regional 12 to see what could be salvaged and nearby gym, working on large tables and vacuumed it thoroughly. At the Medical Center in returned to exhibit. The North Carolina where we could spread everything out. end of the day, the vest went to a textile Wilmington flooded Department of Natural and Cultural During the hurricane, the center’s conservator in Raleigh for evaluation. and became unusable, Resources organizes CREST to help ceiling had collapsed. Plaster and building In all, it was a long, gross day that librarians at Carolina institutions prepare for and recover materials fell on everything, including a was extremely satisfying for all of us. helped to answer from disasters. mounted buffalo head. The wet plaster The center still has a long way to go questions and provide Although our team had only dust had caked in the thick hair all to get things back up and running but articles for the region’s four people, we each brought different around the sides and underneath. We when they do, they will have many of health care providers talents. So, we divided the work and vacuumed extensively and still could the original artifacts they feared the over several weeks. set out to conquer a long list of tasks. not remove all the particles. storm had taken from them forever. When we arrived, many of the A huge mural on canvas was most damaged items were in a freezer fragile due to chipping paint and its to prevent additional deterioration and overwhelming size. Painted for the 300th Christian Edwards is the assistant keeper Wilmington mold. These were some of the more anniversary of Roanoke Island, this mural of the North Carolina Collection Gallery challenging and fragile items to salvage. of Lumbee history held great meaning at the Wilson Special Collections Library.

20 21 ENDnote

A lot of this work is about asking people to take risks. Having difficult conversations and being uncomfortable A gift to the future in those conversations. It’s in those moments that we can push ourselves to think “Remember how important differently, to be innovative, to work collaboratively, to the time you spent here think critically about the was to you and give back.” work we do for the Library and how inclusion and —Howard Holsenbeck ’63 equity fit into that.

Howard Holsenbeck ’63 knows including the Library, when it comes that kind of continuing legacy. A great that libraries are made to be used. As time to settle his estate. library is a depository of information an undergraduate and Civil War buff, “Too few people think about the that everybody on campus uses.” he thrilled to find old editions of the future of their estate,” says Holsenbeck. If he has one piece of advice for Librarian Monica Figueroa is Charleston Mercury in the stacks of He wants people to know that without Tar Heels, it is to “think about giving working on a special administrative Wilson Library. He would sit in the a plan, they risk bypassing important back to Carolina. Remember how absolute silence, poring intently over the financial benefits during their own important the time you spent here assignment at the University news of the day from a century before. lifetimes and for their heirs. Even more was to you and give back.” Libraries to study and address Through a successful career as a important, he says, they lose out on the Many donors have chosen to include issues of diversity, equity, inclusion real estate investor, Holsenbeck always opportunity to be part of something the University Libraries in their estate and accessibility. Figueroa, a music found it a joy and a responsibility “to larger than themselves. plans. Planned gifts, such as bequests, cataloger, co-chairs the University share my good fortune with Carolina,” “Everything I give to is bigger than charitable gift annuities, charitable Libraries’ Diversity Committee and and especially with the University me. Charitable planning for the future remainder trusts, real estate, personal has participated in inclusion and Libraries. is important to me, and it should be for property and other assets, are an easy equity leadership opportunities To ensure that Carolina’s libraries everybody,” he advises. What better way way to make a meaningful gift, while at the national level. She will be will always be here for the use of to ensure your wishes are fulfilled and also possibly benefitting from certain a presenter at the IDEAL ’19: curious students and serious exploration, your favorite charities are positioned to tax advantages. (Consult a financial Advancing Inclusion, Diversity, Holsenbeck has now included the plan for your future gifts? professional or broker for advice.) Equity and Accessibility in Libraries Library in his estate plans. Not only Holsenbeck takes pride and satisfac- & Archives conference. Photo: Aleah Howell has he set up an automatic annual tion in being part of the University and To explore the impact your gift could transfer from his retirement fund to the its academic program, especially when he have on Carolina’s libraries, contact University, but he has also arranged for looks at all that Carolina’s alumni and Ryan Clark, assistant director of Library the entire balance of his retirement and faculty have accomplished. It is deeply development, at [email protected] or stock accounts to come to Carolina, meaningful, he says, “to be involved in (919) 962-3694, or visit unclegacy.org.

22 23 NONPROFIT U.S. POSTAGE The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill PAID Campus Box 3920, Davis Library UNC–CHAPEL HILL Chapel Hill, NC 27514-8890