John Benjamin Harris papers, 1955-1991 and undated

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Summary

Creator:
Harris, John Benjamin, 1927-
Abstract:
John Benjamin Harris is Professor Emeritus of Management and Marketing at Virginia State University. He pioneered governmental and commercial awareness of African American advertising markets and, in the 1970s, became the Director of the Virginia State Office of Minority Business Enterprise and Special Assistant to the Governor for Minority Enterprise. The John Benjamin Harris Papers span the years 1955-1991 and include scholarly articles, corporate reports and proposals, product labels, 16mm film reels, and audio tapes. Materials represent Harris' academic and professional work at New York University and Virginia State University as well as his work for the Virginia State Office of Minority Business Enterprise. Topics touched on in the collection include minority business enterprises; minority markets and minorities (especially African Americans) as consumers; and African American mass media. In addition, the collection reflects Harris' work for the advertising industry with employers including Cunningham & Walsh, Inc., the Leo Burnett Company, Inc., and the Ted Bates Company. Brands represented include Alka-Seltzer (Miles Laboratories), Campbell Soup, Coca-Cola, Cleveland Electric, Eastman Kodak, Pillsbury, and Schlitz.
Extent:
2.1 Linear Feet
790 Items
Language:
Material in English
Collection ID:
RL.00513

Background

Scope and content:

The John Benjamin Harris Papers span the years 1955-1991 and include scholarly articles, corporate reports and proposals, product labels, 16mm film reels, and audio tapes. Materials represent Harris' academic and professional work at New York University and Virginia State University as well as his work for the Virginia State Office of Minority Business Enterprise. Topics touched on in the collection include minority business enterprises; minority markets and minorities (especially African Americans) as consumers; and African American mass media. In addition, the collection reflects Harris' work for the advertising industry with employers including Cunningham & Walsh, Inc., the Leo Burnett Company, Inc., and the Ted Bates Company. Brands represented include Alka-Seltzer (Miles Laboratories), Campbell Soup, Coca-cola, Cleveland Electric, Eastman Kodak, Pillsbury, and Schlitz.

The collection is organized into three series: Writings, Package Labels, and Audiovisual Materials. The Writings Series includes scholarly articles, reports, and proposals from Harris' academic and professional career in marketing research. The Package Labels series includes images of Campbell Soup Company branded product labels. The Audiovisual Materials series includes reels of television and radio advertisements for various company brands and advertising agencies.

Biographical / historical:
Biographical timeline
Date Event
1927 Jan. 15
Born, Chesterfield County, VA
1933-1940
Kingsland Elementary School, Chesterfield County, VA
1943
Certificate of Barber Practice and Science from Virginia State College Trade School
1944
American Campaign Medal
Graduated, D. Webster Davis High School (Virginia State College Laboratory School)
1944-1945
U.S. Army Air Force
Virginia State College, Petersburg, VA
1947-1949
Virginia State College, Department of Military Science
1949
Commissioned U.S. Quartermaster (QM)
1950 Sept. 2
Married Ruth Hortense Coles
1950-1953
1st Lieutenant, U.S. Army Corps
1951
B.S. in Business Administration, Virginia State University
1952
Instructor in Military Tactics and Strategy, U.S Army QM School
1954 Jan. 2
Assistant Hotel Manager, Love B. Woods, Inc., New York, NY
Son, John Jr., born
1954-1966
Captain, U.S. Army Officers Reserves
1955
M.B.A. in Marketing and Management, New York University, Graduate School of Business Administration
Special Advertising Representative and Space Salesman, AFRO-AMERICAN Newspapers, Inc., Baltimrore, MD
1955-1967
Assistant Professor of Business and Economics and Director of Publicity, Virginia Union University
1957 Dec. 25
Daughter, Vita Michelle, born
1964
Fellow, General Electric and National Association of Manufacturers, Claremont Men's Graduate School, Advanced Certificate in Basic Economics
1965
General Electric Fellow,University of Chicago, Graduate School of Business, Certificate in Applied Economics
Special Projects Officer, International Business Machines, Office Products Division
1965-1971
National Urban League Fellow
1966
Certificate in Macro Economic Theory, Case Institute of Technology. Republic Steel Fellow/Economics-in-Action Fellow
1967
Retired from Army Reserves
Advertising Planner and Special Markets Assistant, Eastman Kodak Company
1968
Associate Professor of Marketing and Management, School of Business, Virginia State University
General and Special Markets Advisor to Vice President, Pillsbury Company, Grocery Products Division
Consultant on Minority Affairs, U.S. Navy Department
NDE Fellow, Audio Visual Media Technology, Graduate School of Education, Virginia State College (now Virginia State University)
1969
Certificate in Advanced Advertising Management, Montauk, NY Association of National Advertisers (ANA)
Assistant Account Executive, Benton & Bowles Advertising Agency
1970
Member, President's Inter-Agency Socio-Economic Policy Staff for Minority Business Enterprise
1971
Assistant Brand Manager, The Proctor and Gamble Company, Toilet Goods Division
1972
Associate Professor of Marketing, School of Business, Virginia State University Evening School (10 years)
Director, Virginia State Office of Minority Business Enterprise and Special Assistant to Governor for Minority Enterprise, Office of the Governor, Commonwealth of Virginia
Consultant and Interim Director, Church Hill Economic Development Corporation
Information Specialist, USDA, Agriculture Stabilization and Conservation Service (ASCS)
Certificate of Honor presented by Virginia Union University president Allix B. James "In recognition of distinguished services to the University 1955-1972"
1973
Member, Southern Growth Policies Board (6 years)
Honorary Citizen of Dallas, TX
1974
African American Institute and Howard University Fellow to West Africa
Graduate School of Education, Howard University. Concentration in African American Relations, emphasis on marketing, business, and economic development
Circa 1974
Certificate in Marketing Education, U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare
1978
Stanford University, concentrated course on the "Role of Business in Society," ROBIS Institute/Intercollegiate Studies Institute, Certificate
1979
Director, Virginia State office of Minority Business Enterprise and Special Assistant to Governor for Minority Enterprise, Office of the Governor, Commonwealth of Virginia
1983
Fellow, The Direct Marketing Educational Foundation, Inc. and Direct Marketing Day
Fellow, Cleveland Scholarship Program, Inc. and Professorial Intern in Marketing, Cleveland Illuminating Company
2014 June 11
Died, Richmond, Va.
Acquisition information:
The John Benjamin Harris Papers were received by the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book Manuscript Library as a gift in 2005.
Processing information:

Processed by Stacy Lavin, March 2007

Encoded by Stacy Lavin and Richard Collier

Completed March 2007

Accession 2005-0101 is described in this finding aid.

Physical location:
For current information on the location of these materials, please consult the Library's online catalog.
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Contents

Using These Materials

Using These Materials Links:

Using These Materials

Restrictions:

Collection is open for research.

However, original audiovisual materials are closed to patron use. Use copies are available in the collections.

Researchers must register and agree to copyright and privacy laws before using this collection.

All or portions of this collection may be housed off-site in Duke University's Library Service Center. The library may require up to 48 hours to retrieve these materials for research use.

Please contact Research Services staff before visiting the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library to use this collection.

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The copyright interests in this collection have not been transferred to Duke University. For more information, consult the copyright section of the Regulations and Procedures of the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library.

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Preferred citation:

The John Benjamin Harris Papers, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University.