Restrictions to Access

No restrictions. Open for research.

Copyright Notice

Copyright is retained by the authors of items in these papers, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], in the Alfred S. Lawrence papers #4350, Southern Historical Collection, The Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Acquisitions Information

Received from Mrs. R. Emmet Gribbin, Northport, Ala., in March 1983.

Sensitive Materials Statement

Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations, the North Carolina Public Records Act (N.C.G.S. § 132 1 et seq.), and Article 7 of the North Carolina State Personnel Act (Privacy of State Employee Personnel Records, N.C.G.S. § 126-22 et seq.). Researchers are advised that the disclosure of certain information pertaining to identifiable living individuals represented in this collection without the consent of those individuals may have legal ramifications (e.g., a cause of action under common law for invasion of privacy may arise if facts concerning an individual's private life are published that would be deemed highly offensive to a reasonable person) for which the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill assumes no responsibility.

Processed by: Pamela Dean, Richard Ramponi, February 1985

Encoded by: ByteManagers Inc., 2008

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.

• Chapel Hill (N.C.)--Church history.
• Chapel Hill (N.C.)--Social life and customs.
• Chapel Hill School of Religion.
• Chapel of the Cross (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
• Cheshire, Joseph Blount, 1850-1932.
• Clergy--North Carolina--History--20th century.
• Episcopal Church--North Carolina--History--20th century.
• Episcopal Church. Diocese of North Carolina.
• Haines, Elwood.
• Lawrence, Alfred S. (Alfred Stratton), 1882-1958.

• Chapel of the Cross Records (#2141); Joseph Blount Cheshire, Jr., Papers (#146).

Alfred Stratton Lawrence was born in Essex, England, on 15 April 1882. He had two brothers and four sisters. He lived in London until age twelve when he moved to the United States, to Long Island, New York. He attended Trinty School and Columbia University in 1902, received a masters degree in 1905, graduated from General Theological Seminary in 1907, and became an Episcopal pastor in North Carolina.

Lawrence served North Carolina parishes at Highlands, Cashiers, Concord, Lenoir, and Hillsborough. He was also a chaplain in World War I. The bulk of his career was spent as rector of the Chapel of the Cross in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, 1921-1943. He also served as examining chaplain, secretary, and registrar for the Diocese of North Carolina, and as chaplain for the local American Legion post. Lawrence was also involved in the founding of the Chapel Hill School of Religion.

Lawrence was married to Elsie Millicent Perkins and they had two sons and three daughters. He died on 28 March 1958 after many years as an invalid.

This collection deals primarily with Alfred S. Lawrence's work as rector of the Chapel of the Cross. The bulk of the collection centers around the daily affairs of the parish, and the construction of a new church building.

This collection also documents Lawrence's duties in the various administrative positions he held for the Diocese of North Carolina, 1915-1920. Most of this documentation is in the form of correspondence between Lawrence and Bishop Joseph Blount Cheshire, Jr. There is also a series of letters between Bishop Cheshire and Elwood Haines, who was executive secretary of the Diocese, 1928-1929.

Also included in the collection are articles and historical sketches on the Episcopal Church in North Carolina, and on various parishes in the state, and material concerning the Chapel Hill School of Religion, 1925-1926.