Subject Files, 1904, 1928-2019

Please Note:

This collection is currently being reprocessed to incorporate additional material before it becomes fully open to researchers in January 2027. Material may sometimes be unavailable because of this, especially in the remaining series: Correspondence and Writings and Speeches. This work is being funded by a grant from The Duke Endowment, along with funds from the Mary Duke Biddle Foundation, Mary Duke Biddle Trent Semans Foundation, the Josiah Charles Trent Memorial Foundation Endowment Fund held by Duke University, and the children of Mary Duke Biddle Trent Semans. For more information, please contact the Rubenstein Library.

Access restrictions for this series:

Access to this material will be consistent with the 1991 agreement between Duke University Library, James H. Semans, and Mary Duke Biddle Trent Semans. Access to any correspondence, legal papers, and financial papers is restricted and will be permitted only with prior written permission, which should be sought from the chair of the board of the Mary Duke Biddle Foundation. This restriction shall be in place until 1 January 2027, after which all material shall be considered open for research.

Access restricted. Records of the University's Board of Trustees which have been in existence for at least fifty years are available for scholarly research with the permission of the University Archivist. Access to records which have been in existence for less than fifty years shall be granted only by special permission, in writing, from the Board of Trustees. Contact Research Services for more information.

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Scope and content:

The largest series, Subject Files documents the organizations, people, and subjects that MDBTS and James H. Semans were involved with or interested in. They were most involved with Duke University and its Medical Center, The Duke Endowment, and the North Carolina School of the Arts, and they were interested in supporting causes related to the arts, education, and medicine, including disability and rehabilitation. They were extremely well-connected within Durham and North Carolina across multiple spheres of influence, and this series (in part with the Correspondence series) shows their relationship with politicians and civic leaders, artists, educators, medical professionals, and other philanthropists. Types of material includes correspondence, meeting packets/agendas and minutes, speeches and remarks (mostly by others), clippings, and printed material (including autographed items).

Biographical / historical:
Multiple administrative assistants created and maintained the family's files over the years, including Dorothy "Dot" King, Alma Blackwelder, Helen Thomas, Jennifer Tuckinsky, Kathy Harrison, and Mamie Brock.
Processing information:

This series is a combination of multiple runs of subject files plus material that was found loose. An extensive amount of work was done to weed then integrate this material to make it more user-friendly. Weeding focused on removing duplicates and mass-produced items and retaining material related to Durham or that shows personal involvement.

Arrangement:

Organized into seven subseries: Duke University (DU), Duke University Medical Center (DUMC), The Duke Endowment (TDE), North Carolina School of the Arts (NCSA), Other Organizations, People, and Subjects.

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Collection restrictions:

This collection is currently being reprocessed to incorporate additional material before it becomes fully open to researchers in January 2027. Material may sometimes be unavailable because of this, especially in the remaining series: Correspondence and Writings and Speeches. This work is being funded by a grant from The Duke Endowment, along with funds from the Mary Duke Biddle Foundation, Mary Duke Biddle Trent Semans Foundation, the Josiah Charles Trent Memorial Foundation Endowment Fund held by Duke University, and the children of Mary Duke Biddle Trent Semans. For more information, please contact the Rubenstein Library.

Access restricted. Access to this material will be consistent with the 1991 agreement between Duke University Library, James H. Semans, and Mary Duke Biddle Trent Semans. Access to any correspondence, legal papers, and financial papers is restricted and will be permitted only with prior written permission, which should be sought from the chair of the board of the Mary Duke Biddle Foundation. This restriction shall be in place until 1 January 2027, after which all material shall be considered open for research.

Access restricted. Collection includes materials from the Duke University Board of Trustees. Records of the University's Board of Trustees which have been in existence for at least fifty years are available for scholarly research with the permission of the University Archivist. Access to records which have been in existence for less than fifty years shall be granted only by special permission, in writing, from the Board of Trustees. Contact Research Services for more information.

Access note. Some materials in this collection are fragile audiovisual formats that may need to be reformatted before use. Contact Research Services for access.

Access note. Some materials in this collection are electronic records that require special equipment. Contact Research Services with questions.

Use & permissions:

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 and Manuscript Library.

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