Guide to the Selz C. Mayo Papers, 1936 - 1963

Collection Number MC 160

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Collection Information
Abstract:

The Selz C. Mayo Papers primarily contains documents from the 1940s and 1950s, when Mayo was a professor in the small but growing Department of Rural Sociology at North Carolina State College. Much of the collection consists of correspondence with fellow professors and researchers, organizations related to his research interests, and students and others whom Mayo assisted. Along with a limited amount of Mayo's writings and research, the collection contains records of his membership in professional organizations, including the North Carolina Rural Chuch Institute.

Contact Information:
Processed by
Valerie Gillispie
Date Completed
December, 2002
Encoded by
Valerie Gillispie

Descriptive Summary

Creator

Mayo, Selz C. (Selz Cabot), 1915-1983

Title

The Selz C. Mayo Papers, 1936 - 1963

Call Number

MC 160

Extent

3 archival storage box, 1.5 linear feet

Location

For current information on the location of these materials, please consult the Special Collections Research Center Reference Staff.

Information for Users

Restrictions to Access

This collection is open for research; access requires at least 24 hours advance notice.
Acquisitions Information

Gift of Selz C. Mayo, 1982.
Preferred Citation

[Identification of Item], Selz C. Mayo Papers, MC 160, Special Collections Research Center, North Carolina State University Libraries, Raleigh, North Carolina.
Copyright Notice

North Carolina State University does not own copyright to this collection. Individuals obtaining materials from the NCSU Libraries' Special Collections Research Center are responsible for using the works in conformance with United States copyright law as well as any donor restrictions accompanying the materials.

Biographical Note


Selz Cabot Mayo was born in Pamlico County, North Carolina on September 20, 1915. After attending high school, he received a B.S. in Sociology from Atlantic Christian College (now Barton College) in 1935. Mayo went on to earn an M.S. degree in Rural Sociology from North Carolina State College in 1938 and a Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of North Carolina in 1942.

Mayo joined the faculty of North Carolina State in 1939 as an instructor, and remained with the University for 42 years, until 1981. During that time, Mayo was a professor in the Department of Rural Sociology, and became the head of the department in 1960. In 1963, he was named head of the Department of Sociology and Anthropology as well, and in 1965 the Department of Rural Sociology was absorbed into the Department of Sociology and Anthropology. Mayo remained the head of this department until his retirement in 1981. During his career at North Carolina State, Mayo also taught courses at the Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary and Shaw University.

Always active as a professor as well as a community member, Mayo had broad interests, including farm labor, demography and population, health services, education, and social change. All of his interests revolved around his main professional focus, rural communities and their development. Mayo edited the journal "Rural Sociology" from 1941 to 1951, and was a member of the American Sociological Association, the Population Association of America, the North Carolina Rural Church Institute, and the Rural Sociology Society, in which he served as Vice President in 1963 - 1964. He also served as President of the Southern Sociological Society from 1963 - 1964, after being the Secretary-Treasurer of that organization. In 1974, Mayo was elected President of the North Carolina Sociological Association. In addition to his membership in many organizations, he also published over 150 articles and essays.

Upon Mayo's retirement in 1981, Frederick L. Bates remarked, "His career-long goal has been to bring the message of sociology and its research methods to other fields, particularly to fields such as education, engineering, and to the technical fields of agriculture, and to social work." Mayo continued to work after his retirement on a history of sociology at North Carolina State University. Mayo died at the age of 68 on November 16, 1983.

Scope and Content Note


This collection contains materials relating to both the personal and professional life of Selz C. Mayo. It documents his correspondence, research, writings, and membership in organizations primarily while he was professor of Rural Sociology at North Carolina State College in the 1940s and 1950s. The correspondence includes letters to and from researchers, professors, professional organizations, students, and community members. This correspondence documents Mayo's communication with others who shared his research interests, and those for whom he recommended materials pertaining to rural sociology. The research materials include both notes and collected secondary resources on rural sociology and extension activities. The documents relating to Mayo's research reflect his interest in rural people and education. There is a sampling of Mayo's own in the Writing series that demonstrate his professional and academic interests. These include both articles and booklets. Finally, the organizational documents describe Mayo's active involvement in the Association of Southern Agricultural Workers and the North Carolina Rural Church Institute, among others, through correspondence, memorandums, minutes, and organizational information.

Organization of the Collection


This collection is organized into four series: Correspondence, Research, Writings, and Organizations. Mayo, with some assistance from his secretary, had organized his papers into roughly these four groups. Correspondence was organized alphabetically, chiefly by surname. The Research series has been maintained in the order in which Mayo left them. A collection of Mayo's writings were received and filed together. Organizations were divided by group, and have been filed this way.

Online Catalog Headings

Personal Names

  • Mayo, Selz C., (Selz Cabot), 1915-1983

Corporate Names

  • Committee for North Carolina
  • North Carolina Rural Church Institute
  • North Carolina State University. Dept. of Rural Sociology
  • North Carolina State University. Dept. of Rural Sociology -- Faculty
  • North Carolina State University. Dept. of Rural Sociology -- History

Topics

  • Agriculture -- Social Aspects -- Southern States
  • Association of Southern Agriculture Workers
  • Rural churches -- North Carolina
  • Rural churches -- Southern States
  • Rural extension -- North Carolina
  • Sociology, Rural -- North Carolina
  • Sociology, Rural -- Research -- North Carolina
  • Sociology, Rural -- Southern States
  • Sociology, Rural -- Study and teaching -- North Carolina

Related Material

Charles Horace Hamilton Papers, 1930 - 1967

Detailed Description of the Collection


  • MC 160 Series 1:Correspondence, 1942 - 1951


    1.5 Archival Boxes , 0.75 linear feet

    This series contains correspondence between Mayo and other researchers, professors, organizations, students, and others. The three main categories of the correspondence series are People Related to Research Interests, Organizations Related to Research Interests, and General. Letters are arranged alphabetically according to personal name or organization name.

    • People Related to Research Interests, 1942 - 1951
      • A - Bi [MC 160 Box 1, Folder1]
        • Alexander, Frank D., 1951
        • Atwater, Reginald M., 1947
        • Barlow, Frank D., Jr., 1947 - 1948
        • Beers, Howard W., 1948 - 1951
        • Bishop, Charles E., 1950
      • Bl- Br [MC 160 Box 1, Folder2]
        • Blackwell, Gordon W., 1944 - 1951
        • Bobbitt, Robert McDaniel, 1947 - 1951
        • Brewer, Earl D. C., 1945
        • des Brunner, Edmund, 1951
      • C - Da [MC 160 Box 1, Folder3]
        • Chambers, Martin Reed, 1945 - 1947
        • Christensen, Harold T., 1950
        • Comfort, Richard O., 1946
        • Davies, Vernon, 1947 - 1948
        • Davis, Dan R., 1948
        • Davis, Joseph S., 1950
        • Davis, Kingsley, 1951
      • De - Du [MC 160 Box 1, Folder4]
        • Dean, S. P., 1945 - 1947
        • Demerath, Nicholas, 1947
        • Denton, Alfred M., Jr., 1951
        • Duncan, O.D., 1948 - 1951
      • E - F [MC 160 Box 1, Folder5]
        • Ensminger, Douglas, 1948
        • Ferriss, Abbott L., 1942 -1949
        • Fessler, Donald R., 1951
        • Fink, Arthur E., 1948 - 1949
        • Forster, G. W., 1946 - 1950
        • Fullerton, Kie, 1946 - 1948
        • Furfey, Paul Hanly, 1942
      • G - H [MC 160 Box 1, Folder6]
        • Gamble, Clarence J., 1950
        • Gee, Wilson, 1950
        • Gibson, W. L., 1947
        • Greene, R. E. L., 1950
        • Grigsby, S. Earl, 1949 - 1950
        • Grisette, Felix A., 1945 - 1951
        • Hagood, Margaret Jarman, 1950 - 1951
        • Hamilton, C. Horace, 1949 - 1951
        • Hay, Donald G., 1949 - 1950
        • Hedrick, W. P., 1950
        • Hitt, Homer, 1950 - 1951
      • J - L [MC 160 Box 1, Folder7]
        • Jocher, Katherine, 1946 - 1947
        • Johnson, Alice M., 1949
        • Larson, Olaf F., 1948 - 1951
        • Leagans, J. Paul, 1948
        • Lewis, Myron F., 1947 - 1949
        • Longmore, T. Wilson, 1950 - 1951
      • M - Sc [MC 160 Box 1, Folder8]
        • McCoy, Charles S., 1950
        • Martin, Robert E., 1947 - 1951
        • Matthews, M. Taylor, 1950 - 1951
        • Robinson, William McKinley, 1947
        • Santopolo, Frank, 1951
      • Schuler, Edgar A., 1944 -1949 [MC 160 Box 1, Folder9]
      • Sm - W [MC 160 Box 1, Folder10]
        • Smith, Marion B., 1948
        • Taylor, Carl C., 1951
        • Tate, Leland B., 1947
        • Tripp, Thomas Alfred, 1947 - 1948
        • Umstead, Vertee, 1945
        • Vance, Rupert B., 1951
        • Wakeley, Ray E., 1951
        • Williams, Robin M., Jr., 1948 - 1950
    • Organizations Related to Research Interests, 1942 - 1951
      • A - B [MC 160 Box 1, Folder11]
        • American Association of University Professors, 1945 - 1951
        • American Council for the Community, 1950 - 1951
        • Bureau of the Census, 1942 - 1949
      • C [MC 160 Box 1, Folder12]
        • Carolina Power and Light Company, 1950 - 1951
        • Committee for North Carolina, 1946 - 1947
        • Community Council of Raleigh and Wake County, Inc., 1949 - 1951
        • Cooperative Extension Work in Agriculture and Home Economics, State of North Carolina, 1945 - 1951
        • Cooperative Extension Work in Agriculture and Home Economics, State of Wisconsin, 1945
      • F - N [MC 160 Box 1, Folder13]
        • Farmers Cooperative Exchange, 1948 - 1951
        • National Planning Association, 1947
        • North Carolina Conference for Social Service, 1947 - 1949
        • North Carolina Council of Churches, 1946
        • North Carolina Dental Society, 1947
      • P - Sh [MC 160 Box 1, Folder14]
        • People's Hospital, Inc., 1946
        • Progressive Farmer, 1945 - 1952
        • Shaw University, 1947 - 1951
      • So - W [MC 160 Box 2, Folder1]
        • Southeast Regional Land Tenure Research Committee, 1951
        • Southern Sociological Society, 1944 - 1951
        • State Planning Board, 1944
        • United States Department of Agriculture, 1944 - 1945
        • Wake County Health Department, 1949
    • General, 1942 - 1951
      • A - B [MC 160 Box 2, Folder2]
      • C - D [MC 160 Box 2, Folder3]
      • E - G [MC 160 Box 2, Folder4]
      • H - L [MC 160 Box 2, Folder5]
      • M [MC 160 Box 2, Folder6]
      • N - R [MC 160 Box 2, Folder7]
      • S - Y [MC 160 Box 2, Folder8]

    [Return to Descriptive Summary]


  • MC 160 Series 2:Research, 1948 - 1953


    0.1 Archival Boxes , .05 linear feet

    This series includes notes, speeches, lists, statistics, and a booklet about two research topics in which Mayo was interested: extension activities and the study of rural sociology in the south. The contents of each folder were filed together originally, and this arrangement is preserved.

    • Extension Activities in North Carolina, 1951 - 1953, [no date] [MC 160 Box 2, Folder9]
    • Rural Sociology in the Southeast, 1948 [MC 160 Box 2, Folder10]

    [Return to Descriptive Summary]


  • MC 160 Series 3:Writings, 1946 - 1963


    0.1 Archival Boxes , .05 linear feet

    The Writings series contains a small sampling of Mayo's writings on rural communities, distribution of healthcare specialists in North Carolina, and other rural sociology topics. Several articles are reprints from sociology journals, and one article is a progress report written for the North Carolina Agricultural Experiment Station. Also included is a booklet about changing population trends in North Carolina. These writings, which cover a broad span of time, were originally grouped together in the collection, and this organization is preserved.

    • 1946 - 1963 [MC 160 Box 2, Folder11]

    [Return to Descriptive Summary]


  • MC 160 Series 4:Organizations, 1936 - 1963


    1.3 Archival Boxes , .65 linear feet

    The Organizations series contains correspondence, memoranda, minutes, and other organizational information about several groups to which Mayo belonged. The Association of Southern Agricultural Workers, the North Carolina Rural Church Institute, and Committee for North Carolina were all organizations in which Mayo contributed his expertise on rural sociology. Mayo's participation in the School of Agriculture Open House Planning Committee and the State of the University Conference Committee reflects his long-standing relationship with the University. Each organization's materials were originally filed all together, and have since been broken down into smaller categories, such as correspondence, conference materials, and so on.

    • Association of Southern Agricultural Workers, 1947 - 1951
      • Correspondence
        • 1947 - October, 1948 [MC 160 Box 2, Folder12]
        • November, 1948 - September, 1950 [MC 160 Box 2, Folder13]
      • Announcements, Conference Materials, 1949 - 1951, [no date] [MC 160 Box 2, Folder14]
      • Speech Notes, 1949 [MC 160 Box 2, Folder15]
    • News Service, Committee for North Carolina, 1947 - 1948
      • Correspondence, 1947 - 1948 [MC 160 Box 2, Folder16]
      • Press Releases and Clippings, 1948, [no date] [MC 160 Box 2, Folder17]
    • North Carolina Rural Church Institute, 1936 - 1953
      • Correspondence
        • 1942 - 1949 [MC 160 Box 2, Folder18]
        • 1950 - 1953 [MC 160 Box 2, Folder19]
      • Memoranda, 1947 - 1952 [MC 160 Box 3, Folder1]
      • Minutes, 1940 - 1953 [MC 160 Box 3, Folder2]
      • Organizational Information, 1951, [no date] [MC 160 Box 3, Folder3]
      • Constitution, By-Laws, Articles of Incorporation, 1947 - 1948 [MC 160 Box 3, Folder4]
      • Articles, Brochures, 1951 - 1953, [no date] [MC 160 Box 3, Folder5]
      • Financial Records, 1936 - 1953 [MC 160 Box 3, Folder6]
      • Member and Attendence Rosters, 1944 - 1953, [no date] [MC 160 Box 3, Folder7]
    • School of Agriculture Open House Planning Committee, 1961 - 1963
      • Memoranda, 1961 - 1963 [MC 160 Box 3, Folder8]
      • Minutes, 1962 - 1963 [MC 160 Box 3, Folder9]
      • Organizational Materials, 1962 - 1963 [MC 160 Box 3, Folder10]
      • Planning Information, Brochures, 1962 - 1963, [no date] [MC 160 Box 3, Folder11]
    • State of the University Conference Committee, 1953 - 1954
      • Correspondence, 1953 - 1954 [MC 160 Box 3, Folder12]
      • Memorandums, 1953 - 1954 [MC 160 Box 3, Folder13]
      • Conference Materials and Programs, 1953 - 1954 [MC 160 Box 3, Folder14]
      • Discussion Topics, 1953, [no date] [MC 160 Box 3, Folder15]
      • Reports and Recommendations, 1953 [MC 160 Box 3, Folder16]
      • Participant Rosters, [no date] [MC 160 Box 3, Folder17]
      • Extension Services Materials, [no date] [MC 160 Box 3, Folder18]
      • Presentation Notes, 1954, [no date] [MC 160 Box 3, Folder19]

    [Return to Descriptive Summary]