William S. Turman Jr. papers, 1930-1942
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Summary
- Creator:
- Turman, William S., Jr., 1911-1983
- Abstract:
- William S. Turman Jr. (1911-1983) was a friend of the Josiah C. and Mary Duke Biddle Trent family and a resident of Durham, North Carolina from approximately 1937-1942. An Okmulgee, Oklahoma, native, he served in the Civilan Conservation Corps (1933) and the United States military (1941-1946, 1949-1967). This collection includes a scrapbook assembled by Turman documenting his Civilian Conservation Corps service and a photo album that, in part, shows his friendship with the Trent family and life in Durham. The collection also includes Turman's high school diploma, a class photo, and three handwritten pages of English-to-German translations.
- Extent:
- 0.2 Linear Feet (One half document box.)
- Language:
- Material in English.
- Collection ID:
- RL.13108
Background
- Scope and content:
-
This collection includes a scrapbook assembled by Turman documenting his Civilian Conservation Corps service and a photo album that, in part, shows his friendship with the Trent family and life in Durham, North Carolina. The collection also includes Turman's high school diploma, a class photo, and three handwritten pages of English-to-German translations.
- Biographical / historical:
-
William Swanson Turman Jr. was born on 19 February 1911 in Okmulgee, Oklahoma, to lawyer William Swanson Turman Sr. (1873-1932) and teacher Elizabeth "Bessie" Leota Fisher Turman (1877-1958) and had seven siblings. He graduated from Okmulgee High School in 1931 and served in the Civilian Conservation Corps, Company 895, in 1933. He moved to Durham, North Carolina by June 1937, likely due to his acquaintance with Josiah C. Trent. Trent was another Okmulgee native who had graduated from Duke University in 1934 and married Mary Duke Biddle (Trent Semans) in 1938. By 1940, Turman was employed as an assistant superintendent of the estate of Mary's mother, Mary (Lillian) Duke Biddle. Turman went on to serve in the U.S. Army Air Forces from 8 April 1942-23 February 1946 and the U.S. Air Force from 11 July 1949-30 September 1967. He died on 24 March 1983 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
- Acquisition information:
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The William S. Turman Jr. papers were received by the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book and Manuscript Library as a transfer from the Semans family papers in 2024.
It is unknown how this material came to be in the possession of Mary Duke Biddle Trent Semans, although she (and Durham) is pictured in the photo album.
- Processing information:
-
Processed by Zachary Tumlin, November 2024.
- Arrangement:
-
The William S. Turman Jr. papers are arranged alphabetically by title.
- Rules or conventions:
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Subjects
Click on terms below to find related finding aids on this site. For other related materials in the Duke University Libraries, search for these terms in the Catalog.
- Subjects:
- World War, 1939-1945 -- North Carolina -- Durham
- Format:
- Photograph albums
Scrapbooks - Names:
- Civilian Conservation Corps (U.S.). Company 895 (Okla.)
Semans, Mary Duke Biddle Trent
Trent, Josiah C. (Josiah Charles), 1914-1948
Turman, William S., Jr., 1911-1983 - Places:
- Durham (N.C.) -- Photographs
Nederland (Colo.) -- Photographs
Contents
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- Restrictions:
-
Collection is open for research.
- Terms of access:
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The copyright interests in this collection have not been transferred to Duke University. For more information, consult the Rubenstein Library's Citations, Permissions, and Copyright guide.
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- Preferred citation:
-
[Identification of item], William S. Turman Jr. papers, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Duke University.
- Permalink:
- https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/m1cf39