Blanche Simmons (1857/8-1941) was the daughter of Sir John Lintorn Arabin Simmons (1821-1903), Field Marshal and Colonel Commandant of the Royal Engineers, and his second wife, Blanche Weston. The collection consists of a single diary that records the events of two distinct trips taken by Blanche Simmons and her parents in 1879 and 1880. The first half of the diary documents a family vacation to Belgium and the Netherlands from September 19th to October 13th, 1879, with stops in Brussels, Spa, Utrecht, Amsterdam, The Hague, Rotterdam, Antwerp, and Ghent. The second half of the diary documents a trip to Berlin, Germany, from June 11th to July 9th, 1880, during which Blanche's father, Sir John Simmons, and Major Ardagh attended a conference in Berlin for "the settling of the Greek frontier" accompanied by Blanche, her mother, and their escort, Captain Wood.

The collection consists of a single diary that records the events of two distinct trips taken by Blanche Simmons and her parents in 1879 and 1880. The first half of the diary documents a family vacation to Belgium and the Netherlands from September 19th to October 13th, 1879, with stops in Brussels, Spa, Utrecht, Amsterdam, The Hague, Rotterdam, Antwerp, and Ghent. The diary describes the sights and the family's activities in these cities, in smaller towns, and on nature walks. Art museums and churches, as well as the headdresses and clothing worn by local women are described in particular detail. Many commercial albumen prints on card stock and dried plant specimens are affixed to the diary pages, and the entry for Friday the 3rd includes a humorous, rhyming poem relating events of the first half of the trip.

The second half of the diary documents a trip to Berlin, Germany, from June 11th to July 9th, 1880, during which Blanche's father, Sir John Simmons, and Major Ardagh attended a conference in Berlin for "the settling of the Greek frontier" accompanied by Blanche, her mother, and their escort, Captain Wood. As in the earlier vacation, commentary chiefly centers on sightseeing with an emphasis on museums, but also relates details of the conference, as recounted to Blanche, and describes several formal functions attended by her party, including receptions at the British Embassy and a small dinner gathering at the New Palace in Potsdam with Crown Prince Friedrick, Crown Princess Victoria of Great Britain, Prince Wilhelm, and Princesses Victoria-Augusta and Caroline of Schleswig-Holstein. Sights in Cologne, Dresden, and Aachen are also described, and the diary concludes with two humorous "Odes," one commemorating the events of the trip and the other, a twenty-three stanza piece written by Major Ardagh, on the Conference of Berlin.

North Carolina woman who taught school in Europe. Letters (76 items; dated 1951-1953) to parents chiefly sent from Paris with a few from Germany, describing social life and post-war atmosphere. Includes one photograph of New Year's Eve party, and telegram. Addition (200 items; dated 1976-1997) contains 42 ledgers and two loose-leaf file folders containing Knox's journals. There are also copies of the family's newsletter, and some of Knox's correspondence.

Letters (76 items; dated 1951-1953) to parents chiefly sent from Paris with a few from Germany, describing social life and post-war atmosphere. Includes one photograph of New Year's Eve party, and telegram.

Addition (200 items; dated 1976-1997) contains 42 ledgers and two loose-leaf file folders containing Knox's journals. There are also copies of the family's newsletter, and some of Knox's correspondence.

Collection contains personal, professional and family correspondence of three generations of the Brodnax family, centering around John G. Brodnax. Pre-Civil War letters refer to the sale of slaves; wartime correspondence reflects the fear of the advancing Union forces. Postwar papers include Brodnax's appointment as assistant surgeon general of a North Carolina hospital at Petersburg, Va., overseeing the discharge of disabled Confederate soldiers, and his oath of allegiance to the United States. Also includes letters to his wife during her summer visits with relatives. Many papers concern Mrs. Brodnax's activities in the Daughters of the American Revolution and the United Daughters of the Confederacy; others relate to attendance of family members at various North Carolina and Virginia schools and colleges. There are also letters from Germany and Europe in the 1870s and 1880s and Mexico in 1910.

This collection contains family correspondence of three generations of the Brodnax family centering chiefly around John G. Brodnax (1829-1907), a Confederate surgeon and practicing physician.

Letters from 1857 to 1867, generally from Lynchburg, Virginia, refer to the sale of slaves and, during the war years, are concerned with the question of fleeing or remaining to face the advancing Federals. Included also are Brodnax's appointment as assistant surgeon general of the North Carolina Hospital at Petersburg, Virginia, and his oath of allegiance to the United States. Other items pertaining to Dr. Brodnax are letters to his wife, beginning in 1881, while she visited her relatives in summer, a speech against railroad taxation in 1879, a group of petitions in 1877 requesting that Brodnax be made superintendent of the North Carolina State Insane Asylum, and an undated article on optical surgery. Included also is genealogical material as well as other materials connected with the activities of Brodnax's wife in the Daughters of the American Revolution and the United Daughters of the Confederacy.

A number of letters were written from schools and colleges attended by members of the family, including Salem Female Academy, Salem, North Carolina, and St. Mary's College, Raleigh, North Carolina, during 1912; N. I. Smith's School in Leaksville during 1879 and 1880; Bingham School in Orange County during 1883; Bingham School in Asheville, and Old Point Comfort College, Virginia, after 1909.

Also included in the collectoon are letters from Mrs. Barr, an aunt of Mrs. Brodnax, and her children from 1877 to 1884 while traveling in Europe and studying music in Germany. There are letters from Mary (Brodnax) Glenn and her family while in Mexico, where her husband worked for a railroad company, a mining firm, and as secretary to the American consul general; letters of this period are filled with references to conditions in Mexico, especially concerning political upheavals around 1910. Included also are papers relative to the settlement of the estate of John Brodnax, Jr., after 1909, and a group of sermons delivered by James Kerr Burch, a Presbyterian minister and father-in-law of Dr. John G. Brodnax.

The Morris and Dorothy Margolin film collection dates from 1947 to 1982 and includes twenty-five 16mm and seven Super 8 motion picture films created by Morris Margolin, chiefly documenting Morris and Dorothy's international travels. The films include footage from Pakistan, Bulgaria, Ethiopia, and Kenya -- rare destinations for Western travelers in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. Highlights include an abundance of images of the Soviet Union and Israel, and images of Capetown documenting the apartheid years. All of the films are color, and a few include sound elements such as narration, music, or even sound effects. The collection also includes a handful of home movies that document family trips and events such as graduations and birthdays, and one film that appears to be a professionally produced documentary about the Soviet Union. The films are complemented by over 4,000 color slides of still images taken during their travels. The collection, arranged chronologically, also includes Digital Betacam preservation tapes, DVD masters and DVD use copies.

The Morris and Dorothy Margolin Film Collection includes 32 home movies that capture the Margolins' travels between 1947 and 1976. Destinations represented in the collection include Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Denmark, England, Ethiopia, France, Germany, Greece, Hawaii, Hong Kong, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Japan, Jamaica, Kenya, Majorca, Monaco, Morocco, Norway, Pakistan, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Romania, Scotland, South Africa, the Soviet Union, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Tanzania, Thailand, Turkey, and Yugoslavia. All of the films are in color, and a few include sound.

Also included is a handful of home movies that document family trips and events such as graduations and birthdays, and one film that appears to be a professionally produced documentary about the Soviet Union acquired by the Margolins during their travels.

Particularly notable is the adventurous nature of many of the countries visited, such as the Soviet Union, Pakistan, Bulgaria, Ethiopia, and Kenya -- rare destinations for Western travelers in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. The films are also noteworthy because Morris often trained his camera on his surroundings, recording everyday life as well as architectural and geographical features of the countries he visited. His wife Dorothy also makes frequent appearances in the films.

The films are complemented by over 4,000 color slides taken in most of these same countries from 1959 to 1982. Of particular interest are images from the former Soviet Union and Israel, both from the mid-1960s, images of South Africa during apartheid, as well as early images of France, Italy, and Thailand.

Acquired as part of the Archive of Documentary Arts at Duke University.

Collection contains postcards acquired at various times by the Rubenstein Library at Duke. Collection is organized into three main categories--International, United States, and Miscellaneous. The International postcards are arranged by country and include cards from France, Italy, Canada, England, Germany, Japan, Spain, and Russia. The collection includes a set of early 20th century postcards from Thessaloniki (also known as Salonica and Selanik), Greece. The United States postcards cover many states, with large numbers from North Carolina and Virginia. The Miscellaneous category contains postcards with different subjects, including modes of transportation, food, tourism, agriculture, wars and battles, heads of state, flowers and plants, advertising, love and friendship, Confederate memorials, poetry, and animals. There are cards intended to be humorous, as well as cards depicting racist stereotypes and caricatures of African American and Native American people. Also included is a series of postcards with images relating to European artists.

William Henry Glasson (1874-1946) was Professor of Political Economy and Social Science at Trinity College and Duke University and dean of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. This collection primarily documents his professional life through his correspondence, writings, and research. It forms parts of the Economists' Papers Archive.

This collection includes personal and professional correspondence, manuscripts, research notes, scrapbooks, diaries, diplomas, a baptismal certificate, account books, postcards, and photographs pertaining to Glasson's family, career, and interests. The major subjects are the growth of the Department of Economics and the Graduate School at Duke University, Trinity College's efforts to obtain a Phi Beta Kappa chapter, and Duke University's contract with the Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association (TIAA) of America.

Correspondence includes a letter to William P. Few (February 22, 1934) signed by 24 faculty members praising Duke's record on academic freedom, reports directed to University administrators, and copies of family genealogical material. A significant correspondent is H. Clay Evans, the US Commissioner of Pensions.

In 1934, Glasson and Dean Wannamaker were among a group of academics who travelled to Germany on a Carl Schurz Tour to see the effects of Hitler's rise to power. The scrapbooks include maps, clippings, postcards, notes, and an itinerary from this trip.

Glasson's manuscripts include recollections of Trinity and Duke, a variety of writings and lectures on money and banking, pension systems, and Durham's charter of incorporation. Also in the collection are ten diaries (1898-1944); three family account books (1900-1937), including one that details Glasson's daughters' expenses while students at Duke; scrapbooks of clippings; photographs of Glasson as a young man; poems; and photographs of Cornell University.