UNC University Archives

With the weather we’re expecting it’s going to be a good weekend to stay inside and rely on more analog forms of entertainment. Carolinaopoly anyone? The puzzle and games shown here are part of the North Carolina Collection in Wilson Library.

Any changes to hours as a result of the weather will be shared at library.unc.edu.

On this day in 1993, the Grateful Dead played the first of two sold-out shows at the Dean E. Smith Center. These backstage passes - from the Chapel Hill and other North Carolina Dead shows - are from the Lew Powell collection in the North Carolina Collection Gallery in Wilson Library.

Did you know that UNC’s school colors come from the Dialectic and Philanthropic societies? The “Di Phi” debating societiers are the oldest student organization at Carolina. In the early days of the university, student diplomas included a ribbon in the color of their society - white for the Philanthropic and light blue for the Dialectic.

This early 19th century diploma, held in Wilson Library, is one of the oldest surviving examples of Carolina Blue.

We were saddened to hear of David Mozart Dansby Jr.'s passing. Dansby enrolled as an undergraduate at UNC in 1957 and became the first Black Student to receive an undergraduate degree in 1961. He later went on to attain his law degree from UNC in 1964.

Learn about how preserves student life records. Preserve your own records by contacting us. Link in bio

Happy Halloween! Can you guess what movie characters these Tar Heels are dressed as? Hint, I wouldn't feed them after midnight. 

The Black Student Movement organized a protest on University Day, October 12, 1977, to voice their concerns regarding UNC's alleged lack of action in response to the Housing, Education, and Welfare Department's accusations that the UNC System was not providing sufficient funding and support for African American students.

Image credit: "BSM members protesting at University Day ceremonies, 10/12/1977"

The UNC Story Archive is an ongoing collection of over 40 recordings from the community about moments in UNC Chapel Hill's history. With a focus on collecting stories from historically underrepresented communities, the Story Archive provides Carolina students, alums, residents, former/current staff, and other affiliates with the opportunity to take the lead on documenting UNC history.

These recordings vary in length (from as short as 5 minutes to as long as an hour) based on the story that the contributor would like to share. Every recording is led by the person sharing their Carolina story.

The UNC Archives is always accepting participants for the Story Archive. Want to contribute to the UNC Story Archive? Visut go.unc.edu/UNCStoryArchive to view the collection and complete a short interest form!

The UNC Story Archive is an ongoing collection of over 40 recordings from the community about moments in UNC Chapel Hill's history. With a focus on collecting stories from historically under-represented narratives, the Story Archive provides Chapel Hill students, alums, residents, former/current staff, and other affiliates of varying identities with the opportunity to take the lead on documenting UNC history.

These recordings vary in length (from as short as 5 minutes to as long as an hour) based on the story that the contributor would like to share. Every recording is led by the person sharing their Carolina story. The UNC Archives is always accepting participants for the Story Archive. Want to contribute to the UNC Story Archive? Then check out go.unc.edu/UNCStoryArchive to view our collection and complete a short interest form! Link in bio.

Next February will be the 40th anniversary of the opening of Davis Library (it first opened to students on February 7, 1984). For our 1980s alums: do you remember the early days of Davis Library? What was it like? Also, if anyone has any suggestions for finding the student pictured in this DTH photo, please let us know!

Here's an interesting approach to scheduling college football games. Even though it's coming from Trinity College (before they changed their name to Duke) we have to respect their willingness to take on all comers.

Image from the Raleigh News and Observer, Oct. 31, 1891. https://newspapers.digitalnc.org/lccn/sn84024516/1891-10-31/ed-1/seq-4/