W. M. Piatt and Company records, 1914-1973
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Summary
- Abstract:
- Collection comprises correspondence, blueprints, proposals relating to construction or the improvement of sewage and wastewater treatment systems. Includes substantial amounts of material on the sewage treatment system for Winston-Salem and Durham, North Carolina. Other North Carolina localities and clients documented in the collection are Burlington Mills, Claremont, Cooleemee, Cothran, Cramertown, Dallas, Erwin Mills, Fairbanks Morse Company, Mooresville, Mebane, North Wilkesboro, and Wake Forest.
- Extent:
- 12.25 Linear Feet (9 boxes)
- Language:
- Materials in English
- Collection ID:
- RL.11770
Background
- Scope and content:
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Collection comprises correspondence, blueprints, proposals, and reports relating to construction or the improvement of sewage and wastewater treatment systems in the North Carolina Piedmont. Includes substantial amounts of material on a major expansion of the sewage treatment system for Winston-Salem, Forsyth County, for which the firm was a consultant to the city and county, and multiple projects in Durham County, North Carolina.
Other North Carolina localities and clients documented in the collection are Burlington Mills, Claremont, Cooleemee, Cothran, Cramertown, Dallas, Erwin Mills, Fairbanks Morse Company, Mooresville, Mebane, North Wilkesboro, and Wake Forest. Most of the projects date from the latter half of the 20th century.
- Biographical / historical:
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Company founded in Durham, N.C., 1910, with the name Piatt and Davis, Engineers; primarily responsible for designing sewage and wastewater treatment systems and plants. The company designed the Durham Waterworks, constructed in 1917 on Hillandale Road; also designed the Lake Michie dam. One of their largest projects was the expansion of the Winston-Salem wastewater treatment system in the late 1950s. The firm's founder, William M. Piatt III, originally from Pennsylvania, owned the Lochmoor residence in Durham. His partner was a P.D. Davis.
The company had several names, starting with Piatt and Davis, Engineers, then Piatt and Davis and Associates; and by 1968, W. M. Piatt and Company. The company still exists, with headquarters in Garner, N.C.
- Acquisition information:
- The W.M. Piatt records were received by the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book Manuscript Library as a deposit in 1984 and a gift in 2021.
- Processing information:
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The collection was given core-level processing by library staff in 1986. Guide encoded by Paula Jeannet, September 2019.
Accession(s) represented in collection guide: 7-10-1984, 2021-0159.
Updated by Leah Tams, January 2022.
Box 9 was treated for mold.
- Arrangement:
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Records are grouped by location.
- Physical facet:
- Approximately 6400 items
- Rules or conventions:
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Subjects
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Contents
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- Restrictions:
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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 copyright section of the Regulations and Procedures of the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library.
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- Preferred citation:
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[Identification of item], W. M. Piatt and Company records, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University.
- Permalink:
- https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/m1h723