Collection is open for research; access requires at least 48 hours advance notice. Because of the nature of certain archival formats, including digital and audio-visual materials, access will require additional advanced notice. Copies of digital files may be provided for use in the SCRC Reading Room upon request.
The Catherine W. Bishir Papers chiefly contain research documentation compiled during the creation of North Carolina Architects and Builders, both for the book and also for the web-based platform, and for other articles and books written by Bishir, including her work on monuments in the American South. Among the files are many photographs of buildings and sites, mostly in North Carolina, organized by county. Launched in 2009, North Carolina Architects and Builders is a reference work that contains brief biographical accounts, building lists, and bibliographical information about architects, builders, and other artisans who planned and built North Carolina's architecture. The North Carolina Architects and Builders project website can be found here: http://ncarchitects.lib.ncsu.edu/
Catherine W. Bishir is author or co-author of several prize-winning publications, including North Carolina Architecture; Architects and Builders in North Carolina: A History of the Practice of Building; the three-volume Guides to the Historic Architecture of Eastern, Western, and Piedmont North Carolina; Southern Built: American Architecture, Regional Practice; and, most recently, Crafting Lives: African American Artisans in New Bern, North Carolina, 1770-1900s. From 1971 through 2001 she served as staff member and supervisor for the architectural survey and National Register of Historic Places programs in the North Carolina State Historic Preservation Office. She then served as senior architectural historian with the non-profit organization, Preservation North Carolina. As adjunct professor at North Carolina State University Department of Architecture she taught classes in vernacular architecture and North Carolina architecture. She was Curator of Architecture for Special Collections at North Carolina State University Libraries, where she was instrumental in the web-based North Carolina Architects and Builders: A Biographical Dictionary (ncarchitects.lib.ncsu.edu) and in collecting architectural drawings and other records.
Catherine W. Bishir, a native of Kentucky, has degrees in English from the University of Kentucky (Phi Beta Kappa) and Duke University, where she studied with support from a Woodrow Wilson Fellowship. From 1971 through 2001 she served as staff member and supervisor for the architectural survey and National Register of Historic Places programs in the North Carolina State Historic Preservation Office. She then served as senior architectural historian with the non-profit organization, Preservation North Carolina. As adjunct professor at North Carolina State University Department of Architecture she taught classes in vernacular architecture and North Carolina architecture. She was Curator of Architecture for Special Collections at North Carolina State University Libraries, where she was instrumental in the web-based North Carolina Architects and Builders: A Biographical Dictionary (ncarchitects.lib.ncsu.edu) and in collecting architectural drawings and other records.
Bishir is author or co-author of several prize-winning publications, including North Carolina Architecture; Architects and Builders in North Carolina: A History of the Practice of Building; the three-volume Guides to the Historic Architecture of Eastern, Western, and Piedmont North Carolina; Southern Built: American Architecture, Regional Practice; and, most recently, Crafting Lives: African American Artisans in New Bern, North Carolina, 1770-1900s. Her articles and essays include works on public memory and monuments, vernacular architecture, building practice, and African American builders and artisans.
She is a founding member and past president of the Vernacular Architecture Forum and has also served as president of the Southeastern Chapter of the Society of Architectural Historians and the Historical Society of North Carolina. She is an honorary member of the American Institute of Architects. The Vernacular Architecture Forum’s award for the best article in vernacular architecture studies is named for her. Recent awards for professional achievement include the Henry Glassie Award from the Vernacular Architecture Forum and the Cannon Cup from Preservation North Carolina.
The Catherine W. Bishir Papers chiefly contain research documentation compiled during the creation of North Carolina Architects and Builders, both for the book and also for the web-based platform, and for other articles and books written by Bishir, including her important work on monuments in the American South. Among the files are many photographs of buildings and sites, mostly in North Carolina, organized by county. Launched in 2009, North Carolina Architects and Builders is a growing reference work that contains brief biographical accounts, building lists, and bibliographical information about architects, builders, and other artisans who planned and built North Carolina's architecture. The North Carolina Architects and Builders project website can be found here: http://ncarchitects.lib.ncsu.edu/
A complete history of the North Carolina Architects and Builders research project can be found here: http://ncarchitects.lib.ncsu.edu/about/
The other series in the Catherine W. Bishir Papers include research files for other articles and books written by Bishir, including her important work on monuments in the American South. See, for instance, "Landmarks of Power: Building a Southern Past, 1885-1915," in Southern Cultures, inaugural issue, Autumn, 1993.
This collection is arranged in series:
The NC State University Libraries generally claims only physical ownership of most Special Collections materials. These materials are made available for use in research, teaching, and private study, pursuant to U.S. Copyright law. Libraries staff are unable to advise on copyright and other legal matters; the user assumes full responsibility for any use of the materials, including but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials. Helpful resources for assessing copyright include Cornell Libraries' "Copyright Services: Copyright Term and the Public Domain" and copyright.gov. This collection may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information about identifiable living individuals, which may be protected under federal or state laws and regulations. Researchers are advised that there may be legal ramifications for disclosing this information.
The University Archives operates in accordance with the State Public Records Act, with unrestricted access to records not covered by state and federal statutes and regulations.
[Identification of item], Catherine W. Bishir Papers, MC 00616, Special Collections Research Center, North Carolina State University Libraries, Raleigh, NC
Gift of Catherine W. Bishir, 2016-2017 (Accession 2016.0346, Accession 2017.0012, Accession 2017.0050, Accession 2018.0277, Accession 2018.0385)
Processed by: Gwynn Thayer, Hanna Howard, Linda Sellars, 2016-2019.
The collection is organized into fifteen principal series:
Collection is open for research; access requires at least 48 hours advance notice. Because of the nature of certain archival formats, including digital and audio-visual materials, access will require additional advanced notice. Copies of digital files may be provided for use in the SCRC Reading Room upon request.
For more information contact us via mail, phone, or our web form.
Mailing address:
Special Collections Research Center
Box 7111
Raleigh, NC, 27695-7111
Phone: (919) 515-2273
[Identification of item], Catherine W. Bishir Papers, MC 00616, Special Collections Research Center, North Carolina State University Libraries, Raleigh, NC
The NC State University Libraries generally claims only physical ownership of most Special Collections materials. These materials are made available for use in research, teaching, and private study, pursuant to U.S. Copyright law. Libraries staff are unable to advise on copyright and other legal matters; the user assumes full responsibility for any use of the materials, including but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials. Helpful resources for assessing copyright include Cornell Libraries' "Copyright Services: Copyright Term and the Public Domain" and copyright.gov. This collection may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information about identifiable living individuals, which may be protected under federal or state laws and regulations. Researchers are advised that there may be legal ramifications for disclosing this information.
The University Archives operates in accordance with the State Public Records Act, with unrestricted access to records not covered by state and federal statutes and regulations.