Joyner Library exhibits Tarheel elections

GREENVILLE, NC   (Oct. 18, 2004)   —   Memorabilia, letters, diary entries and photographs of election history in North Carolina are now on exhibit in the Special Collections Department at East Carolina University’s Joyner Library. Seven display cases present “Tarheel Elections” from 1787 to 2000. The exhibit is open to the public.

The exhibit, which runs through Feb. 4, is located on the fourth floor of Joyner Library and is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturdays.

The election exhibit displays a wide variety of collections, including manuscripts, printed materials, photographs and artifacts illustrating North Carolina’s involvement in the nation’s political scene from its beginning to the present, including:

* A letter from Gov. Richard Caswell in 1787 asking William Blount to serve North Carolina at the Constitutional Convention is featured from the William Blount Rodman papers.
* Local campaigns are represented as well as national campaigns, when candidates visited North Carolina.
* A photograph of John F. Kennedy at a tobacco auction in Greenville from the Frank M. Wooten, Jr. papers is a more recent example of North Carolina’s national connections. 

Numerous campaign pins, buttons and bumper stickers are displayed as well as newspaper clippings, advertising contracts, rare remnants of unsuccessful campaigns and campaign audio recordings.

“This is a comprehensive and diverse exhibit, with something of interest to everyone who views it,” said Jonathan Dembo, head of special collections at Joyner Library.

The materials on exhibit are drawn from the extensive special collections at Joyner Library.

The Special Collections Department is a historical research facility containing a wide variety of archival, manuscript and published materials with a focus on the history of eastern North Carolina. The Department provides the most extensive repository for historical research materials east of Raleigh and is one of the largest such collections in North Carolina.