Bill Harris Papers, PC.5007

Scope and Content:

The Dare County Series, 1936-2014 and undated, contains papers related to the history of Dare County, North Carolina. The series includes subject files, brochures, yearbooks, newspapers and news clippings, maps, and other documents comprising Harris's research on various topics in Dare County's history. Harris was especially interested in the history of the town of Kitty Hawk, and this series includes several school yearbooks, newsletters, publications, photographs, maps, and historical sketches focusing on Kitty Hawk and its residents. Also included is significant documentation of the Outer Banks History Center and its Advisory Committee, with which Harris was involved for many years.

Scope and Content:

The Wright Brothers' First Flight Series, 1905-2016 and undated, contains materials related to the first successful heavier-than-air powered flight made by Orville and Wilbur Wright in 1903, including documentation of various anniversaries and commemorations of the event. The series includes historical publications, programs, photographs, invitations, correspondence, and clippings related to the Wright Brothers and their historic flight, as well as papers related to the Wright Brothers National Memorial in Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina, and material on aviation history. Included in this series are a number of records and papers related to the First Flight Society, of which Harris was a member for many years.

Scope and Content:

The Local Genealogy Series, 1882-2016 and undated, contains family histories, genealogical data, family trees, clippings, and correspondence related to various families inhabiting the Kitty Hawk and greater Outer Banks area. Many materials relate to members of Harris's own family, as well as the Baum, Wescott, Midgett, and other local families. Also included are a number of files relate to local churches and cemeteries, as well as extensive genealogical correspondence with Annie Lee Wightman.

Scope and Content:

The Lifesaving and Coast Guard Stations Series, 1862-2010s and undated, contains reproductions of wreck reports and other official records, clippings, correspondence, historical sketches, and photographs related to the U.S. Lifesaving Service, U.S. Lighthouse Service, and U.S. Coast Guard, primarily in the Outer Banks area. Nearly all the materials in this series are photocopies of original documents held at other repositories, and in most cases, the date range of the folder indicates the creation dates of the original document(s). No original station records are included. Rarely, original photographs of the various stations described in this series are included.

Scope and Content:

The materials in this series primarily relate to Bill Harris's oral history project, completed over the course of several decades (1960s-2000s). This series includes recordings of oral history interviews conducted by Harris with local residents of Kitty Hawk and the Outer Banks, as well as Harris's notes on the interviews and an index created by Harris indicating major topics covered by the project. Also included are three 3.5" floppy disks containing National Park Service photographs (1999), a DVD entitled "Hyde County and the Baum 45th Reunion" (2012), and a VHS tape entitled "Cape Lookout: A Diamond in the Rough with Gary Dean."

Scope and Content:

The Photographs series, circa 1870s-2003, contains photographic prints, slides, film negatives, tintypes, cabinet cards, and cartes de visite collected by Bill from various local families. Many of the photographs are originals, but some are reproductions printed on photo paper or copy paper. Photographs primarily consist of candid and posed portraits of various family members and groups, as well as images of automobiles, houses, and a few local events. Most of the people in the portraits are identified, but many individuals in candid shots are unidentified. The photographs primarily relate to the Baum, Harris, Sawyer, Tillett, and Wescott families.