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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.
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Collection Overview
| Size | 6.0 feet of linear shelf space (approximately 5000 items) |
| Abstract | The Sellars Family Papers, 1770s-1990s, document a white family who operated a department store in Alamance County, N.C.; the related white Kime, Coble, Jordan, White, Kerr, Scott, Staley, and Ritchie families in Orange County, N.C., and Randolph County, N.C.; and people who were enslaved by these families. The collection includes bills of sale for the trafficking of enslaved people and estate papers listing enslaved people by their first names. There is also a scrapbook containing a newspaper clipping from 1931 with a former enslaved man's obituary and a photograph of the elderly African American man, Jerry Sellars, who had been enslaved by Thomas Sellars Sr., in Alamance County, N.C. Other materials include genealogical files, photographs, correspondence, business records, and financial and legal documents. Genealogical files are extensive and contain family trees, family histories, and other materials. Photograph albums and loose images principally depict family members. One photograph album shows the redevelopment of downtown Burlington, N.C., during the 1970s in color snapshots. Correspondence includes letters from members of the armed services during World War II. Business records, including account ledgers and minutes of board meetings, document B.A. Sellars & Sons, Inc., and Sellars Department Store in Burlington, N.C., during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. |
| Creator | Sellars (Family : Alamance County, N.C.) |
| Curatorial Unit | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Historical Collection. |
| Language | English |
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Information For Users
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Processing Information
A summary description was created in October 2017 to provide information about unprocessed materials in Wilson Special Collections Library.
Encoded by: Laura Smith
Updated: May 2019
Revisions by: Nancy Kaiser and Rebecca Stubbs, January 2020
Conscious Editing by: Nancy Kaiser, November 2020. Updated abstract, scope content, and subject headings.
Since August 2017, we have added ethnic and racial identities for individuals and families represented in collections. To determine identity, we rely on self-identification; other information supplied to the repository by collection creators or sources; public records, press accounts, and secondary sources; and contextual information in the collection materials. Omissions of ethnic and racial identities in finding aids created or updated after August 2017 are an indication of insufficient information to make an educated guess or an individual's preference for identity information to be excluded from description. When we have misidentified, please let us know at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu.
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Subject Headings
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.
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Biographical Information
The Sellars were a white family in Alamance County, N.C., with extended family, including Kime, Coble, Jordan, White, Kerr, Scott, Staley, and Ritchie branches in Orange County, N.C., and Randolph County, N.C. This collection is focused on the family of Benjamin Abel Sellars (1816-1896), a physician and the son of Thomas Sellars (1782-1865), a wealthy cotton planter and enslaver. Dr. B.A. Sellars practiced medicine in Randolph and Guilford Counties until relocating to Burlington, N.C., where he met his wife, Frusannah "Fannie" Elizabeth Kime (1833-1922) and with her had six children: Benjamin Rainey, Walter Raleigh, Tom, Dorothy, Frank, and Mary Ruth.
In 1871, while practicing medicine on horse and buggy, Dr. Sellars established B.A. Sellars & Sons, with a department store that sold prescription medication, dry goods, and food staples. In 1888, there was a fire in the adjacent building that damaged the store. The following year, a new store was built on site. In 1896, Benjamin Rainey Sellars took over management of the store. In 1898, the store was relocated to a more suitable location to accommodate increasing demand. All of the children participated in the administrative and managerial operations of B.A. Sellars & Sons.
Biographical note derived from "Sellars Celebrates 100th Anniversary, " The Daily Times-News, 11 October 1972
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Scope and Content
The Sellars Family Papers, 1770s-1990s, document a white family who operated a department store in Alamance County, N.C.; the related white Kime, Coble, Jordan, White, Kerr, Scott, Staley, and Ritchie families in Orange County, N.C., and Randolph County, N.C.; and people who were enslaved by these families. The collection includes bills of sale for the trafficking of enslaved people and estate papers listing enslaved people by their first names. There is also a scrapbook containing a newspaper clipping from 1931 with a former enslaved man's obituary and a photograph of the elderly African American man, Jerry Sellars, who had been enslaved by Thomas Sellars Sr., in Alamance County, N.C. Other materials include genealogical files, photographs, correspondence, business records, and financial and legal documents. Genealogical files are extensive and contain family trees, family histories, and other materials. Photograph albums and loose images principally depict family members. One photograph album shows the redevelopment of downtown Burlington, N.C., during the 1970s in color snapshots. Correspondence includes letters from members of the armed services during World War II. Business records, including account ledgers and minutes of board meetings, document B.A. Sellars & Sons, Inc., and Sellars Department Store in Burlington, N.C., during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
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Sellars Family Papers
| Box 1 |
Indentures, 1811-1875Bill of Sale for Alee, age unknown, who was trafficked by William Rainey to Thomas Sellars, 17 May 1814, Orange County, North Carolina. Bill of Sale for a family of six: Abe, 42 years of age; Jinny, 45 years of age; Sam, 17 years of age; Hannah, 16 years of age; Isack, 14 years of age; and Jacob, 10 years of age; who were trafficked by Robert Shaw to George Kime, 18 December 1823, Guilford County, North Carolina. Bill of Sale for Sealy, 12 years of age, who was trafficked by Eli Cobb to David Kime, 24 June 1825, Randolph County, North Carolina. Bill of Sale for Isaac, 17 or 18 years of age, who was trafficked for 420 dollars by David Kime to Sarah Kime, 31 March 1827, location unknown. Bill of Sale for Isaac, 19 years of age, who was trafficked by David Kime to William B. Ferguson, 2 July 1829, location unknown. Bill of Sale for Cresy and Peter, siblings, who were trafficked by William Holt to Thomas Sellars, 26 October 1830, Orange County, North Carolina. Bill of Sale for Chaney, 24 years of age, and her children, James Monroe, 2 years of age, and William Anderson, four months of age, who were trafficked by Abram Staley to B.A. Sellars, 25 May 1833, Alamance County, North Carolina. Bill of Sale for Linney, 22 years of age, and Wesley, 17 months of age, who were trafficked by Abraham Staley to David Kime, 22 July 1842, Orange and Randolph Counties, North Carolina. Bill of Sale for Orren, 14 years of age, who was trafficked by Abraham Staley to David Kime, 19 July 1850, Alamance County, North Carolina. |
PapersIncludes the newspaper clipping of "Uncle Jerry Sellars Old Slave, dead"; the wills of Martin Staley and Benjamin Rainey; letters from Fred Sellars to his wife Lulu; and genealogical research materials. Also included are scattered photographs of "Uncle Jerry" and the Sellars family. |
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| Box 2 |
PapersIncludes account statements, meeting minutes from First Presbyterian Church, Court Summons, a history of North Carolina beginning in 1584, newspaper clippings, and genealogical research materials. |
| Box 3 |
PapersIncludes genealogical research materials, newspaper clippings regarding the Sellars family, and meeting minutes from B.A. Sellars & Sons department store. Also included is a scrapbook album with photographs. |
Letters written by George Herman Gibson to his wife, Mary Ruth Sellars Gibson, 1942-1945Gibson's letters were written from the Phillippines, where he was stationed with the U.S. Army during World War II. Also included are military service pins. |
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Memorial book for Lulu Sellars, 1960 |
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Memorial book for Fred Sellars, 1954 |
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| Box 4 |
Account book, 1938Personal ledger of the Sellars family. |
Account book, 1883-1892Inventory of B.A. Sellars & Sons stock. |
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Cash Sales, 1907-1915Daily cash operations of B.A. Sellars & Sons |
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Account book, 1888-1890/ 1886-1892B.A. Sellars and partners account books documenting the transactions of personal and commercial goods. |
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Account book, 1887-1892Individual accounts with Sellars that document the purchase of food staples. |
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B.A. Sellars & Sons Inc. cash vouchers |
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| Box 5 |
Account book, 1897-1907B.A. Sellars and partners account books documenting the transactions of personal and commercial goods. |
B.A. Sellars & Sons Inc. Stockholder Meetings, 1916-1936Includes meeting minutes. |
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Account book, 1877-1881Individual accounts with Sellars that document the purchase of food staples. |
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| Box 6 |
Account book, 1882-1888Individual accounts with Sellars that document the purchase of food staples. |
Account book, 1911-1932Individual accounts with Sellars that document the purchase of food staples. |
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| Oversize Volume SV-5505/1 |
Scrapbook, 1990sIncludes the papers found in the Montreat home of B.A. and Fannie Sellars, compiled by Karen Young, 1985. |
| Oversize Paper Folder OPF-05505/1 |
Indentures, 1810s-1840sIncludes land ownership deeds. |
| Oversize Paper Folder OPF-05505/2 |
"Descendants of Benjamin Able Sellars and Frusannah Elizabeth Kime Sellars"Family tree. |
| Rolled Item R-05505/1 |
Genealogy of Dr. Benjamin Able Sellars and Frusannah Elizabeth Kime Sellars, 1951 |
| Photograph Album PA-5505/1 |
Photograph and scrapbook albumIncludes photographs with descriptive captions of the Sellars family. |
| Photograph Album PA-5505/2 |
Photograph Album"The Brides Scrapbook, 1894-1944" |
| Photograph Album PA-5505/3 |
Photograph AlbumImages depict scenic views of Ontario, Canada, and a 1938 camping trip. |
| Photograph Album PA-5505/4 |
Photograph Album, 1970sImages depict the redevelopment of Burlington, North Carolina, during the 1970s. |
| Image Box 1 |
Sellars family portraits, 1880s-1930sBlack-and-white photographic prints Color photographic prints Black-and-white negatives Carte-de-visite C.V. Sellers Photography Studio in Burlington, North Carolina; Also includes two framed images. |
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Items Separated