Alfred M. Waddell Papers, 1768-1935 (bulk 1875-1900)

Collection Number: 00743

Collection Title: Alfred M. Waddell Papers, 1768-1935 (bulk 1875-1900)

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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Size	2.0 feet of linear shelf space (approximately 800 items)
Abstract	Alfred M. Waddell Papers document the 1898 Wilmington massacre and coup, called "race riots" by its white supremacist supporters, that murdered Black citizens, overthrew elected government, drove opposition Black and white political leaders out of Wilmington, and destroyed Black-owned property and businesses. Waddell became mayor in the aftermath of the insurrection. Other topics include national and state Democratic party politics; the Cameron family and other white politically and socially influential families in North Carolina; Waddell's service in the Confederate Army during the American Civil War with the 41st North Carolina Infantry Regiment; Waddell's law office; recipes; genealogical research into the DeRosset, Waddell, Moore, and Myers families; Gabrielle (DeRosset) Waddell and her involvement in United Daughters of the Confederacy and Colonial Dames; and commentary on art, architecture, religion, literature, politics, and history. Also included are a few colonial and early 19th century papers of the related DeRosset, Moore, Nash, and Waddell families of Hillsborough, N.C., and Wilmington, N.C. Materials include correspondence, writings, speeches, deeds, wills, legal papers, scrapbooks, notebooks, manuscripts, and clippings.
Creator	Waddell, Alfred M. (Alfred Moore), 1834-1912.
Curatorial Unit	University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Historical Collection.
Language	English

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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 M. Waddell Papers, #743, Southern Historical Collection, The Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Acquisitions Information: Gift of Mrs. Alfred M. Waddell prior to 1940, with an addition received from Mrs. D.C. Waddell of Georgetown, S.C., in April 1961.

Additional Descriptive Resources: A copy of the original finding aid for this collection is filed in folder 1a.

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.

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Processed by: SHC Staff

Encoded by: Noah Huffman, March 2008

Updated by: Kathryn Michaelis, January 2011

Conscious Editing Work by: Nancy Kaiser, August 2020. Updated abstract, subject headings, biographical note, scope content note, and container list.

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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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.

Expand/collapse Related Collections

DeRosset Family Papers (#214) and Meares and DeRosset Family Papers (#499), Southern Historical Collection, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Expand/collapse Biographical Information

Alfred M. Waddell (1834-1912) was a white lawyer, Confederate Army officer, journalist, author, orator, United States Representative, 1871-1879, leader of the successful white supremacist insurrection against the elected municipal government in Wilmington in 1898, and mayor of Wilmington, N.C., 1898-1905. Born in Hillsborough, N.C., Waddell attended the Bingham School and the Caldwell Institute, and later graduated from the University of North Carolina in 1853. He practiced law in Wilmington, N.C., and served in the Confederate Army as lieutenant colonel of the 3rd Cavalry, 41st North Carolina Infantry during the Civil War. Waddell served four terms as a Democrat in the United States House of Representatives from 1871 to 1879. After his reelection campaign failed in 1878, Waddell resumed his law practice in Wilmington, N.C., and engaged in various literary and historical pursuits. He served a brief stint as editor of the Charlotte Journal-Observer, 1881-1882, and was a delegate to the Democratic National Conventions in 1880 and 1896. During the 1898 Wilmington massacre and coup, Waddell led the white citizens group that forced the Republican mayor and city council to resign. After the insurrection, Waddell was installed as mayor of Wilmington, a position he held until 1905. As mayor, Waddell helped reestablished white control of the city, which ultimately led to the resurgence of the Democratic Party in the state. He died on 17 March 1912 and was interred at Oakdale Cemetery in Wilmington, N.C.

Publications by Alfred M. Waddell include: A Colonial Officer and His Times, 1754-1773: A Biographical Sketch of General Hugh Waddell of North Carolina (1890), Some Memories of My Life (1908), and A History of New Hanover County and the Lower Cape Fear Region, 1723-1800 (1909).

Note adapted from the Dictionary of North Carolina Biography (1996), vol. 6, edited by William S. Powell.

Chronology

1834	Born in Hillsborough, Orange County, N.C., 16 September 1834.
1853	Graduated from the University of North Carolina.
1855	Admitted to the North Carolina Bar and began legal practice in Wilmington, N.C.
1856	Supported the American Party ticket.
1857	Married Julia Savage.
1860	Supported the Constitutional Union party ticket and attended the party's convention as a delegate from North Carolina.
1858-1861	Clerk of the court of equity of New Hanover County, N.C.
1860-1861	Owned and edited the Unionist newspaper, the Wilmington Herald.
1863-1864	Served as a lieutenant colonel in the 3rd Cavalry, 41st North Carolina Infantry Regiment, but resigned because of poor health.
1871-1879	Four terms as a Democrat in the United States House of Representatives. Waddell advocated the end of partisanship and sectionalism, and decried Radical Republican policies. In his final term, Waddell served as chair of the committee on post offices and roads.
1878	Married Ellen Savage after the death of his first wife Julia Savage. Julia and Ellen were sisters.
1879	Resumed law practice in Wilmington, N.C.
1880; 1886	Delegate to the Democratic National Convention.
1881-1882	Editor, Charlotte Journal-Observer.
1896	Married Gabrielle DeRosset of Wilmington, N.C.
1898-1905	Mayor of Wilmington, N.C. Waddell was the leader of the white citizens group during the 1898 Wilmington massacre and coup and was installed as mayor in the wake of the insurrection.
1912	Died, 17 March 1912, and interred in Oakdale Cemetery, Wilmington, N.C.

Expand/collapse Scope and Content

Alfred M. Waddell Papers document the 1898 Wilmington massacre and coup, called "race riots" by its white supremacist supporters, that murdered Black citizens, overthrew elected government, drove opposition Black and white political leaders out of Wilmington, and destroyed Black-owned property and businesses. The bulk of the collection, 1875-1900, consists of correspondence with national and state Democratic Party leaders and members of the Cameron family and other white politically and socially influential North Carolina families; legal correspondence; manuscripts and clippings of writings and speeches of a religious, literary, political, or historical nature; genealogical research into the DeRosset, Waddell, Moore, and Myers families; and correspondence with other writers and historians. There are some papers related to Waddell's service in the Confederate Army during the Civil War with the 41st North Carolina Infantry Regiment. Volumes in the collection include a letterpress copybook, 1886-1894, of Waddell's law office; a recipe book, 1890; scrapbooks belonging to Gabrielle (DeRosset) Waddell related to her involvement in the United Daughters of the Confederacy and Colonial Dames; and two notebooks belonging to Hugh Waddell, one containing notes on legal subjects, 1820s, and another containing notes on art, architecture, and classical literature.

Contents list

Expand/collapse Alfred M. Waddell Papers, 1768-1835.

About 800 items.

Folder 1a	Original finding aid
Folder 1	Papers, 1768-1889 Items include original, copies, and transcriptions of eighteenth-century Waddell family papers, official papers concerning Alfred M. Waddell's American Civil War service, several letters to Waddell, and poems, speeches, and other writings by Waddell. Items of interest include a letter from W. Burgwyn to Mrs. Waddell, 17 March 1768; will of Hugh Waddell of Bladen County, N.C., 10 November 1772; will of John Nash of Prince Edward County, Va., 8 March 1776; will of Mary Waddell of Bladen County, N.C., 20 April 1776; a letter from Francis Nash at Trenton, N.J., to his wife Sally (Moore), 25 July 1777; and a letter to a Mr. Drinkwater at Gloucestershire concerning Hugh Waddell's sons, 23 January 1783. Official papers concerning Alfred M. Waddell's Civil War service include his commission as assistant deputy quartermaster for the 3rd Brigade, North Carolina Militia, 15 January 1859; his appointment as captain of the 4th North Carolina Infantry, 23 May 1861; a letter of resignation, 19 August 1861; his appointment as 1st lieutenant and later lieutenant colonel of the 41st North Carolina Regiment, 16 March and 4 August 1863; a letter of resignation, 10 August 1864; and a signed oath to renounce his support of the "so-called Confederate States of America," and to support the Constitution, 14 March 1865. Additional items Addtional items include a letter, 1862, from Hugh Waddell Jr. to his mother, describing his shipwreck experience; a letter, 3 April 1867, from Wade Hampton to Waddell regarding Waddell's "Address to the Colored People" given at the Wilmington Theater on 26 July 26 1865; a letter from A. J. DeRosset to Waddell, 13 August 1870; clippings of a speech Waddell gave denouncing the Grant administration, 19 October 1872; a poem titled "My Southern Home," 1876; letters from Abram Hewitt, 1884; and letters from Anna Alexander Cameron and Rebecca Cameron of Hillsborough, N.C., regarding southern pride and the Lost Cause, 1887.
Folder 2a	Papers, 1890-1896 Copies of speeches delivered by Waddell including his "Defense of the Cause"; letters to Waddell from James Sprunt and others praising his speeches, including one given at the unveiling of a Confederate monument in Raleigh, N.C., in 1895; a petition from the Democratic citizens of Wilmington, N.C., urging Waddell to address them; and letters from Carrie Moffitt and Mary Stevens Beall. There is also lengthy correspondence between Waddell and Richard H. Lewis regarding Waddell's religious beliefs, specifically, his refutation of "everlasting misery" for sinners, and his decision to hold the church responsible for "misrepresentations of Truth" and "libel on our Father."
Folder 2b	Papers, 1898-1899 Materials chiefly concern Waddell's role in the 1898 Wilmington massacre and coup, called "race riots" by its white supremacist supporters, that murdered Black citizens, overthrew elected government, drove opposition Black and white political leaders out of Wilmington, and destroyed Black-owned property and businesses. Items include: a letter from the Committee of Colored Citizens of Wilmington, N.C., renouncing their support of newspaper editor A. L. Manly; a 9 November 1898 declaration issued by the white citizens of Wilmington, N.C., establishing an ultimatum for Manly to leave the city; a list of African-American citizens summoned by Waddell and other leaders of the white citizens group; and letters from Rebecca Cameron to Waddell, calling for violence to resestablish white control of Wilmington, and others, including J. M. Cameron and W. H. Tate, praising Waddell's role in the coup.
Folder 3	Papers, 1900-1906 Correspondence between Waddell and Tulane University President Edwin A. Alderman regarding "southern character" and its contribution to American civilization; a resolution of the United Confederate Veterans honoring John B. Gordon; letters from Bennehan Cameron; and letters to Waddell in response to a speech he delivered at Newberry College, S.C.
Folder 4	Papers, 1906-1910 Chiefly letters to Waddell from other historians and writers praising his memoir Memories of My Life and concerning other historical topics. Correspondents include W. Henry Hoyt, Newton Martin Curtis, Kemp Plummer Battle, R. D. W. Connor, and Samuel A. Ashe. There is also a list of books, speeches, lectures, and sketches published by Waddell between 1872 and 1906.
Folder 5	Papers, 1911-1935 Letters, clippings, and other materials concerning the Waddell family and Alfred M. Waddell's death in 1912.
Folder 6	Writings and genealogical materials Writings by Waddell, including "The Bride of St. Philip: A Colonial Romance," and genealogical materials concerning the Waddell family and other early families of the Cape Fear area.
Folder 7	Papers of Gabrielle (DeRosset) Waddell Architectural drawing of a memorial to Francis Nash and various essays on religious and other topics possibly authored by Gabrielle (DeRosset) Waddell.
Folder 8	Clippings and map of Wilmington, N.C. area Various newspaper clippings probably compiled by Gabrielle (DeRosset) Waddell, and a hand drawn map of Wilmington, N.C., and Brunswick County, sketched circa 1890s-1900s, that appears to depict the area during the Revolutionary War era. The map includes the names of property holders in the area, and the location of sawmills, forts, and other landmarks. Digital version: Map of Brunswick County
Folder 9-10 Folder 9 Folder 10	Writings and clippings Clippings concerning the 1898 Wilmington massacre and coup, called "race riots" by its white supremacist supporters, that murdered Black citizens, overthrew elected government, drove opposition Black and white political leaders out of Wilmington, and destroyed Black-owned property and businesses. Also included are essays and other writings of Gabrielle (DeRosset) Waddell related to her involvement in the Colonial Dames and the United Daughters of the Confederacy, and poems by Alfred M. Waddell.
Folder 11	Essay and clippings on religious topics Newspaper clippings and a 21-page essay by Waddell concerning his religious beliefs, chiefly, his views on the afterlife and eternal punishment.
Folder 12	R. P. Ashe letters and other materials Two undated letters, circa 1860s-1870s, from R. P. Ashe in San Francisco, Calif., to Waddell that describe mining and other activities in the Utah Territory and in California. Also included are clippings, essays, and other materials on political topics produced by Waddell or possibly by Gabrielle (DeRosset) Waddell.
Folder 13	Gabrielle (DeRosset) Waddell materials Chiefly materials pertaining to Gabrielle (DeRosset) Waddell's activities in the United Daughters of the Confederacy.
Folder 14	Waddell family history Genealogy of the Waddell and related families.
Folder 15	Volume 1: Notebook, 1872-1875 Notebook containing mounted newspaper clippings of texts and extracts of speeches and writings of Alfred M. Waddell.
Folder 16	Volume 2: Notebook, 1874 Sixteen-page manuscript copy of extracts from Karl Wilhelmi's Life of the Northmen in Iceland and Greenland (Heidelburg, 1842), translated from the German. There is also a five-page article on the subject by Alfred M. Waddell, 1874.
Folder 17	Volume 3: Notebook, 14 January 1878 Notebook containing text, partly in manuscript and partly mounted clippings, of the address "Two Americans Morse and Maury," delivered at Masonic Temple, N.Y., and various other locations.
Folder 18	Volume 4: Letterpress Copy Book, 1886-1894 Letterpress book recording outgoing correspondence of Waddell's law office in Wilmington, N.C.
Folder 19	Volume 5: Recipe Book, circa 1890 Recipe book kept by Gabrielle DeRosset at Princeton, N.J., and Wilmington, N.C.
Folder 20	Volume 6: Scrapbook, 1872-1894 Scrapbook contains clippings about Alfred M. Waddell's speeches and activities, remembrances of the Civil War, events in Wilmington, N.C., state and national politics, and the 1880 National Democratic Convention in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Folder 21	Volume 7: Scrapbook, 1899-1932 Scrapbook contains clippings about Alfred M. Waddell; obituaries and clippings about the DeRosset, Waddell, and Myers families; material on the Colonial Dames, the United Daughters of the Confederacy, and Episcopal Church matters; and clippings concerning the death of Katherine DeRosset Meares in 1914.
Folder 21a	Enclosures from Volume 7
Folder 22	Volume 8: Scrapbook, 1925 Clippings, photographs, souvenirs, invitations, and other materials related to a visit by the Colonial Dames of America to Sulgrave Manor, England, the ancestral home of George Washington's family. Gabrielle DeRosset Waddell was regent of the North Carolina Colonial Dames.
Folder 23	Volume 9: Law Student Notebook of Hugh Waddell, 1820s. Law notebook contains definitions, notes on legal concepts, and memoranda on acts of the Assembly. A note in the back of the book, written by Hugh Waddell in 1858, indicates that the notebook was made by him in the 1820s and had been useful in the years since.
Folder 24	Volume 10: Moore Family History, undated Bound manuscript volume containing 13 pages of Moore family history in narrative form. It includes quotations from an address by George Davis at the University of North Carolina on 8 June 1855 and copied some time after the Civil War.
Folder 25	Volume 11: Hugh Waddell Notebook, circa 1850s-1860s Hugh Waddell's notes on art, architecture, and classical literature (50 pages).

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Collection Number: 00743 Collection Title: Alfred M. Waddell Papers, 1768-1935 (bulk 1875-1900)