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Funding from the Debutante Ball Society of Durham Inc. supported the processing of this collection. The processing of accessions 100423, 100589, 100852, 101142, 101249, and 101268 were supported by Elizabeth Moore Ruffin.
Size | 18.0 feet of linear shelf space (approximately 80 items) |
Abstract | The Debutante Cotillion and Christmas Ball of Durham, N.C., was established in 1955 by Mrs. Thomas Davenport Wright. In 1961, Mrs. Wright and others founded the Debutante Ball Society of Durham, N.C. Over the years, various traditions have been incorporated into the program, but the core events remain the same. The debutante social season begins when the names of the new debutantes, chiefly from Durham, Chapel Hill, and Orange County, N.C., are announced in May at the Mothers Day luncheon. Additional parties and other social events take place during the summer and fall. The season culminates with the cotillion and ball in December. The collection chiefly consists of scrapbooks of the Debutante Ball Society of Durham Inc. of Durham, N.C. The scrapbooks document yearlong preparations and events associated with the annual ball held in late December. Included are photographs, newspaper clippings, correspondence, announcements, invitations, yearbooks, and other materials that show the young women in formal, semi-formal, and casual attire as they attend parties held in their honor, learning about society, etiquette, and the traditional debutante dances. Also included is a pin with the Society's crest; ball programs; The Debutante Register, 1951; and a video recording of the 2002 Debutante Cotillion and Christmas Ball. |
Creator | Debutante Ball Society of Durham Inc. |
Curatorial Unit | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Historical Collection. |
Language | English |
Processed by: Nancy Kaiser and Margaret Dickson, December 2005
Accessions 100423, 100589, 100852, 101142, 101249, and 101268 were processed by Kiley Orchard
Encoded by: Nancy Kaiser and Margaret Dickson, December 2005
Funding from the Debutante Ball Society of Durham Inc. supported the processing of this collection. Accessions 100423, 100589, 100852, 101142, 101249, and 101268 were processed with support from Elizabeth Moore Ruffin.
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.
The Debutante Cotillion and Christmas Ball of Durham, N.C., was founded by Mrs. Thomas Davenport Wright in 1955. Through 1960, the Ball was given as a benefit for Kenmore, a colonial mansion in Fredericksburg, Va., built by Colonel Fielding Lewis for his bride Betty Washington, the only sister of George Washington. In 1961, Mrs. Wright, along with Mrs. Edward McCullough Cameron, Mrs. Charles Harris Livengood Jr., Mrs. Edward Stewart Orgain, Mrs. William Edwards Cranford, founded the Debutante Ball Society of Durham, N.C. At that time the Durham Arts Council, formerly Allied Arts, became the beneficiary of the ball.
The Durham Society is steeped in tradition. In every year since its founding, young women have been presented at the annual ball. The debutante calendar begins each year in February when young women, chiefly from Durham, Chapel Hill, and Orange County, N.C., are nominated by members of the Society. Members, formerly "patronesses," are a group of women selected as representative of the best civic and social life of the community, and invited to lend their names, prestige, and efforts to the ball, and to chair and serve on all ball committees. Mrs. Cameron served as the first chair of the patronesses in 1955.
In March, the Society selects young women to be debutantes and invites them to participate in the process. The Durham Society prides itself on its decision to select young women not only for their social standing, but for their personal achievements and special talents as well. The debutante social season begins when the names of the new debutantes are announced in May at the Mothers Day luncheon. Additional parties and other social events take place during the summer and fall. The season culminates with the cotillion and ball in December.
The first Debutante Ball consisted of a receiving line, the garland waltz, cotillion figures, singing of Christmas carols, a welcoming address by a local minister, and the first dance by the debutantes and their fathers. In succeeding years, the polka sleigh ride and the minuet were added, and the cotillion figure became the Christmas tree.
In 1964, the Society held its inaugural debutante art exhibit, and in 1967, it introduced the creative writing contest. In 1989, debutantes began the tradition of presenting a long-stemmed red rose to their mothers, and in 1990, the chorale was re-introduced.
Other traditions of the Durham Society include the crest, designed by William Cranford, the husband of one of the founders, with the inscription Integras, Virtus, Gratia (integrity, virtue, grace)--the qualities emphasized by the Society throughout the debutante year. During 1969 and 1970, the crest adorned a canopy under which the debutantes were introduced. The canopy was replaced by a set built by students of the North Carolina School of the Arts for the ball's relocation to the Omni Hotel and Convention Center Ballroom. Today the crest is featured on a charm that is presented to each debutante.
Since its inception, more than 2,000 young women have been presented by the Debutante Ball Society of Durham, N.C.
Note: Adapted from a history of the Debutante Ball Society compiled by past chairs.
Back to TopThe collection chiefly consists of scrapbooks of the Debutante Ball Society of Durham Inc. of Durham, N.C. The scrapbooks document yearlong preparations and events associated with the annual Debutante Ball held in late December. Included are photographs, newspaper clippings, correspondence, announcements, invitations, yearbooks, and other materials that show the young women, chiefly from Durham, Chapel Hill, N.C., and Orange County, N.C., in formal, semi-formal, and casual attire as they attend parties held in their honor, learning learning about society, etiquette, and the traditional debutante dances. Also included is a pin with the Society's crest; ball programs; The Debutante Register, 1951; and a video recording of the 2002 Debutante Cotillion and Christmas Ball. Note that scrapbooks from 2000 and 2003 through 2006 are not included in the collection; volume numbers SV-5199/18, 21-24 are not used.
Back to TopArrangement: chronological.
Debutante Cotillion and Christmas Ball programs; The Debutante Register, 1951; Tomes-Toms family genealogical chart; The Debutante Cotillion and Christmas Ball: Personal Recollections and a Pictorial History ; and a video recording of the first 13 minutes of the 2002 Debutante Cotillion and Christmas Ball.
Folder 1 |
The Debutante Register, 1951: Martha Erwin |
Folder 2 |
The Debutante Cotillion and Christmas Ball, 1955-1962: Mary Toms Cameron |
Folder 3 |
The Debutante Cotillion and Christmas Ball, 1963-1969: Mary Toms Cameron |
Extra Oversize Paper Folder XOPF-5199/1 |
Tomes-Toms genealogical chart, 1967Martha Erwin Uzzle is listed as a descendent. |
Folder 4 |
The Debutante Cotillion and Christmas Ball, 1970-1977: Mary Toms Cameron |
Folder 5-15
Folder 5Folder 6Folder 7Folder 8Folder 9Folder 10Folder 11Folder 12Folder 13Folder 14Folder 15 |
Programs, 1970, 1975-2002 |
Folder 16 |
Annual meeting, 2002List of models and dresses and an agenda for the 2002 Debutante Ball Society annual meeting, as well as a copy of The Debutante Cotillion and Christmas Ball: Personal Recollections and a Pictorial History, given by Mrs. George Wright Meyer, Jr. |
Folder 17 |
The Debutante Cotillion and Christmas Ball: Personal Recollections and a Pictorial History, 2002Copy of presentation given by Mrs. George Wright Meyer. Differs slightly from the presentation above. |
Digital Item DI-5199/1 |
48th Debutante Cotillion and Christmas Ball, 200213-minute video recording of the opening dances of the 48th Debutante Cotillion and Christmas Ball. |
Folder 18-20
Folder 18Folder 19Folder 20 |
Programs, 2003-2009Includes duplicates for 2004, 2005. |
Folder 21 |
Stationery |
Acquisitions Information: Acc. 102070, 102188, 102525, 103330, 103641
Debutante Cotillion and Christmas Ball programs.
Box 6 |
Debutante Cotillion and Christmas Ball programs, 2013-2015, 2017-2018 |