Restrictions to Access

No restrictions. Open for research.

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], in the Elisha Mitchell Scientific Society Records #40183, University Archives, Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Provenance

Periodic transfer from the offices that create these records.

Sensitive Materials Statement

Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations, the North Carolina Public Records Act (N.C.G.S. § 132 1 et seq.), and Article 7 of the North Carolina State Personnel Act (Privacy of State Employee Personnel Records, N.C.G.S. § 126-22 et seq.). Researchers are advised that the disclosure of certain information pertaining to identifiable living individuals represented in this collection without the consent of those individuals may have legal ramifications (e.g., a cause of action under common law for invasion of privacy may arise if facts concerning an individual's private life are published that would be deemed highly offensive to a reasonable person) for which the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill assumes no responsibility.

The following terms from Library of Congress Subject Headings suggest topics, persons, geography, etc. interspersed through the entire collection; the terms do not usually represent discrete and easily identifiable portions of the collection--such as folders or items.

Clicking on a subject heading below will take you into the University Library's online catalog.

• Chapel Hill (N.C.)--Periodicals.
• Elisha Mitchell Scientific Society (Chapel Hill, N.C.).
• Journal of the Elisha Mitchell Scientific Society.
• North Carolina--Intellectual life.
• Scholarly periodicals--Publishing--North Carolina.
• Science--North Carolina--Societies, etc.
• University of North Carolina (1793-1962)--Periodicals.
• University of North Carolina (1793-1962)--Societies, etc.
• University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill--Periodicals.
• University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill--Societies, etc.

• University of North Carolina Papers (#40005)
• Office of Chancellor: Robert Burton House Records (#40019)
• Office of Chancellor: William Brantley Aycock Records (#40020)
• Office of Chancellor: Nelson Ferebee Taylor Records (#40023)
• Office of the Provost Records (#40039)
• Journal of the Elisha Mitchell Scientific Society, North Carolina Collection

The Elisha Mitchell Scientific Society was formed on 20 September 1883 under the leadership of Francis P. Venable and University of North Carolina President Kemp P. Battle. Composed of faculty, staff, and alumni of the university's science and mathematics departments, the society was organized to commemorate the name and contributions of Elisha Mitchell by fostering scientific research and by disseminating scientific knowledge. The primary means of reaching these ends was the publication of the annual Journal of the Elisha Mitchell Scientific Society. Originally, the journal published papers presented at the society's monthly meeting. By 1900, research papers were solicited from leading scientists for publication in the Journal.

During the second half of the 20th century, the society and its journal were faced by the twin problems of falling membership and rising publication costs. The institution of publication subsidies and contributions from the university and from the North Carolina Academy of Science provided needed support until the 1970s. The loss of university funding proved to be the final blow. At the society's centennial celebration, held 8-9 April 1983 in conjunction with the North Carolina Academy of Science, the North Carolina Archaeological Council, and the Southern Association for the History of Science and Technology, the Elisha Mitchell Scientific Society dissolved. The publication of the Journal of the Elisha Mitchell Scientific Society passed to the North Carolina Academy of Science.

Records, 1883-1983, of the Elisha Mitchell Scientific Society include administrative files and files of the Journal of the Elisha Mitchell Scientific Society. The administrative files contain material on the routine activities and operation of the Society. Included are correspondence of the officers, treasurers' records, minutes of the society's meetings, membership rolls, and other items. The records of the Journal of the Elisha Mitchell Scientific Society contain material on the organization, content, and finances of the journal, including correspondence with contributors.