75th Anniversary (1924-1999) of the founding of Duke University, 1999-2000

Scope and content:

Series includes logos, a commemorative mailing cancellation stamp, a press release, and a sound recording of a speech given by John Koskinen on the Y2K conversion, banner, a Durham County Resolution, and framed commemorative telephone directory cover. Additional information on the 75th Anniversary can be found in the Chronicle and the Duke News and Communications website at http://www.duke.edu.

Biographical / historical:

During the 1999/2000 academic year, Duke University celebrated the 75th anniversary of James B. Duke's creation of the Duke Endowment in 1924 -- the fund that transformed Trinity College into Duke University. The annual Founder's Day celebration, observed on Sept. 30, 1999, commemorated the Endowment with a series of events focusing on the University's ties to the Duke family. On Sept. 30, 1999 at the University's Founder's Day convocation in the Chapel, where Dr. James Semans and trustee emeritus Anthony Drexel Duke received honorary degrees from the University. Mary Duke Biddle Trent Semans, chair of the Duke Endowment and the granddaughter of Benjamin N. Duke, was the primary speaker at the convocation.

A bronze statue of Benjamin Duke was unveiled Oct. 2, 1999, in front of Baldwin Auditorium. The son of Washington Duke and the older brother of James B. Duke, Benjamin Duke served on the Board of Trustees longer than any other member of the Duke family.

Other events included: The Wilson Recreation Center was dedicated Oct. 1, 1999. Television journalist Charlie Rose moderated a panel discussion on economic progress in the Carolinas during the past 75 years. Also, author and anthropologist Mary Catherine Bateson spoke in Baldwin Auditorium Tuesday, Sept. 28, 1999. A special mailing stamp to grace all metered University mail was also created to commemorate the 75th Anniversary.

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Collection restrictions:

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

The collection is open for research, except box 100.19, labeled: "1939-2039. A collection of items presented to the President of Duke University at the Centennial Celebration, April 22, 1939; not to be opened until the occasion of the Two Hundredth Anniversary of the institution."

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Copyright for Official University records is held by Duke University; all other copyright is retained by the authors of items in these papers, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.

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