Edwin F. Harris Papers 1957-2014

Edwin F. Harris, nicknamed "Abie," was born January 7, 1934, in Elkin, North Carolina. He graduated from Elkin High School in 1952 and enrolled at the North Carolina State College, School of Design (later North Carolina State University, College of Design) to pursue a Bachelor of Arts in architecture. He graduated with honors in 1957. Harris was awarded the 45th Paris Prize in Architecture in 1958 which he used to travel to Paris, after a period of Army service. After returning from Paris, he became a lecturer at the NC State University School of Design and joined Leif Valand and Associates as an Architect-in-Training. In 1966 he was a co-founder and partner of Harris & Burns, Architects (1966-1968) and then a co-founder and principle for Envirotek, Inc. (1969-1974). In 1966, Harris also joined the campus planning department at NC State University. In 1970 he became Director of Facilities Planning and in 1980 University Architect. In addition to being an avid runner, Edwin F. Harris spent much of his spare time participating in design competitions and serving as a consultant on various projects. His honors include the grand prize in a planning competition for the University of Miami in 1986, his election as an American Institute of Architects Fellow in 1987, and the 9th Annual Frank B. Turner Award in 1991.

The Edwin F. Harris Papers, 1957-2014, collection contains drawings, blueprints, maps, correspondence, photographs, and other documents related to the professional career of Edwin F. Harris. The collection reflects Harris’ work as an architect on a number of university campus planning projects and commercial building projects. During his more than two decades of employment with North Carolina State University, Harris contributed to the design and construction of many portions of the university, including Centennial Campus and the College of Veterinary Medicine. Harris also contributed to the design of several commercial buildings in North Carolina’s Research Triangle and buildings on other North Carolina university campuses. These projects include The Carolina Theatre and the North Carolina Biotechnology Center in Durham, the Worrell Professional Center at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, and the YMCA at Guilford College in Greensboro.

This collection is organized into 4 series: Professional Papers and Related Materials, North Carolina State University, Consulting Work, and Oversized Materials.

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This collection may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations. 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 North Carolina State University assumes no responsibility.

This collection may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations. 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 North Carolina State University assumes no responsibility.

[Identification of item], Edwin F. Harris Papers, MC 00258, Special Collections Research Center, North Carolina State University Libraries, Raleigh, NC

North Carolina State University Oral Histories, 2014-2016, MC 00449

Donated by Edwin F. Harris, Jr., 1999 and 2015 (Accession nos. 1999.0006 and 2015.0040)

Processed by Kellie Strickland, 2008 March Encoded by Kellie Strickland, 2008 March Revised by Gwynn Thayer, 2015 March; Fully processed by Jennifer Baker with assistance from Austin Robinson and Leah Bullard, August 2017.