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This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held in the Wilson Library at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in our reading room, and not digitally available through the World Wide Web. See the Duplication Policy section for more information.
This collection was rehoused and a summary created with support from the National Endowment for the Humanities; this finding aid was created with support from NC ECHO.
Size | 0.5 feet of linear shelf space (approximately 155 items) |
Abstract | William Richardson Davie was a lawyer, state legislator, Revolutionary officer, member of the United States Constitutional Convention, Federalist governor of North Carolina, and peace commissioner to France, and was influential in the founding of the University of North Carolina. He moved from Halifax County, N.C., to Lancaster District, S.C., in 1805. These papers include letters to, from, and about Davie and his family. Two long narratives pertain to Davie's Revolutionary War experiences as a cavalry officer in North and South Carolina and as commissary general to Nathanael Greene. Other papers, of scattered dates, relate to Davie's varied activities and to his family and the related Crockett family, with only a few items later than 1805. Also present is a copy of a report of William Richardson, Presbyterian minister, on his mission to the Cherokee Indians, 1758. Collection is, in part, photostatic and typed transcript copies. The Addition of March 2009 consists of a land survey and a land grant signed by Davie. The Addition of November 2012 consists of a 14 June 1787 letter from Davie to Mary Edwards concerning the case of "Bayard versus Singleton," which helped establish the principle of judicial review. |
Creator | Davie, William Richardson, 1756-1820. |
Curatorial Unit | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Historical Collection. |
Language | English |
Processed by: SHC Staff
Encoded by: Noah Huffman, December 2007
Updated by: Kate Stratton and Jodi Berkowitz, October 2009
This collection was rehoused and a summary created with support from the National Endowment for the Humanities.
This finding aid was created with support from NC ECHO.
Updated by: Danielle Fasig, January 2013, because of additions.
Back to TopThe 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.
William Richardson Davie (1756-1820) was a lawyer, state legislator, Revolutionary officer, member of the United States Constitutional Convention, Federalist governor of North Carolina, and peace commissioner to France, and was influential in the founding of the University of North Carolina. He moved from Halifax County, N.C., to Lancaster District, S.C., in 1805.
Back to TopThe collection, in part, photostatic and typed transcript copies, includes letters to, from, and about William Richardson Davie and his family. Many items are related to military matters, some mention politics and a boundary controversy with South Carolina. Two long narratives pertain to Davie's Revolutionary War experiences as a cavalry officer in North and South Carolina and as commissary general to Nathanael Greene. The narratives discuss Augustine Prevost's expedition against Charleston, S.C.; the Battle of Stono; the battle at Ramsours; the post at Rocky-mount attacked; the battle of the Hanging-Rock; Horatio Gates's defeat; Thomas Sumter's surprise and defeat; the Battle of Wahab's Plantation; action at Charlotte, N.C.; and the Battle of Guilford.Other papers, of scattered dates, relate to Davie's varied activities and to his family and the related Crockett family, with only a few items later than 1805. Also present is a copy of a report of William Richardson, Presbyterian minister, on his mission to the Cherokee Indians, 1758.
The Addition of March 2009 consists of a land survey and a land grant signed by Davie.
The Addition of November 2012 consists of a 14 June 1787 letter from Davie to Mary Edwards concerning the case of "Bayard versus Singleton," which helped establish the principle of judicial review.
Back to TopFolder 1a |
Original finding aid |
Folder 1 |
William Preston Richardson report, 1758-1759Photostatic copy. William Preston Richardson, Presbyterian minister, report on his mission to the Cherokee Indians from West Virginia through North Carolina and South Carolina to Fort Prince George, S.C., and Fort Loudoun, Tenn. He describes in diary form his travels and attempting to preach to the Cherokees. |
Folder 2 |
1767-1779 |
Folder 3 |
1780 |
Folder 4 |
1781 |
Folder 5 |
1782 |
Folder 6 |
1783 |
Folder 7 |
1784 |
Folder 8 |
1785 |
Folder 9 |
1787 |
Folder 10 |
1788 |
Folder 11 |
1789-1790 |
Folder 12 |
1791 |
Folder 13 |
1793-1794 |
Folder 14 |
1795-1796 |
Folder 15 |
1798 |
Folder 16 |
1799 |
Folder 17 |
1800 |
Folder 18 |
1801-1803 |
Folder 19 |
1807 |
Folder 20 |
1808-1809 |
Folder 21 |
1812-1816 |
Folder 22 |
1817-1818 |
Folder 23 |
1819 |
Folder 24 |
Undated papers and printed material |
Folder 25 |
Genealogy |
Folder 26 |
Number not used |
Folder 27-28
Folder 27Folder 28 |
Revolutionary sketches by William Richardson DavieRemembrances of of William Richardson Davie, 1779-1781, written in two parts. Recounts participation in military activities in North Carolina and South Carolina from the battle of Stono, June 1779, through his service as commissary general to General Nathanael Greene during operations in North Carolina and South Carolina, July 1781. At the beginning of the narrative, Davie was serving as a cavalry officer under Count Casimir Pulaski in the army of Benjamin Lincoln. Later he led an independent volunteer company in North Carolina and then was a colonel of cavalry. Topics discussed are Augustine Prevost's expedition against Charleston, S.C.; the Battle of Stono; the battle at Ramsours; the post at Rocky-mount attacked; the battle of the Hanging-Rock; Horatio Gates's defeat; Thomas Sumter's surprise and defeat; the Battle of Wahab's Plantation; action at Charlotte, N.C.; and the Battle of Guilford. |
Folder 29 |
Preston Davie correspondenceIncludes correspondence of Preston Davie chiefly with library staff at the University of North Carolina related to William Richardson Davie and his papers. |
Extra Oversize Paper Folder X-OPF-1793/1 |
Appointment as brigadier general, 19 July 1798Original and photostat copy of William Richardson Davie's appointment as a brigadier general, signed by John Adams. |
Image P-1793/1 |
Photograph: William Richardson Davie oil portrait reproduction |
Image P-1793/2 |
Photograph: William Richardson Davie pastel portrait reproduction |
Image P-1793/3 |
Postcard: William Richardson Davie's house, Halifax, N.C. |
Oversize Paper Folder OPF-1793/1 |
Land grant and surveyLand grant with accompanying survey. The land grant and survey concern the sale of 30 acres of land in Guilford County, N.C., to William Spruce. The survey was conducted on 1 August 1798 by John Starrat. The land grant was signed by William Richardson Davie, then the Federalist governor of North Carolina, in Raleigh on 7 June 1799. |
Folder 30 |
Letter from William Richardson Davie to Mary Edwards, 14 June 1787Written while William Richardson Davie was a member of the Constitutional Convention and addressed to Mary Edwards of New York. The letter concerns the case of "Bayard versus Singleton," which dealt with the property of a Tory that had been confiscated and sold by the state of North Carolina. The case became important in the establishment of the principle of judicial review; this letter discusses some details of its development in civil procedure. |