The Charles S. Sydnor Papers roughly span the period 1729-1978, the bulk dated 1923 to 1954. They include correspondence, research notes, writings, printed materials, and clippings, chiefly relating to Sydnor's teaching career at Duke University, as well as at Harvard and Queen's College, Oxford. The collection also includes information about his involvement with various historical associations and committees, including the American Historical Association, Southern Historical Association, North Carolina Literary and Historical Association, and the Advisory Committee of the Office of the Chief of Military History for the United States Army. There is background information pertaining to his various writings, including The Development of Southern Sectionalism (Volume V of the work A History of the South) (Baton Rouge, La., 1948), Gentleman Freeholders: Political Practices in Washington's Virginia (Chapel Hill, N.C., 1952), A Gentleman of the Old Natchez Region: Benjamin L. C. Wailes (Durham, N.C., 1938), Mississippi History (New York, N.Y., 1930), and Slavery in Mississippi (New York, N.Y., 1933). The papers contain notes and examinations for various history courses taught by Sydnor, student roll books, grade books, and papers. Additionally, there are a few notebooks and papers of Sydnor's while he was a student.