Archival Collections

**Please Note: The University of North Florida Thomas G. Carpenter Special Collections and University Archives Afro-American Life Insurance Company Collection DOES NOT contain information on insurance policies or policyholders. Please contact the Florida Department of Financial Services through their website, https://www.myfloridacfo.com/, or call 1-877-693-5236 regarding any policy or insurance claim questions.**

As Director of the Jacksonville Expressway Authority during the pivotal transportation years of 1956-1972, Mr. Sollee was a major influence in the development of the Jacksonville, Florida road system in Duval County, Florida in the mid-twentieth century. The collection consists primarily of correspondence, subject files and reports, and newspaper clippings relating to transportation projects in Duval County. It includes extensive documentation on the development of Jacksonville's road system, circa 1950-1970, consisting chiefly of numerous, albeit irregular, primary reports / studies; beach erosion / bulkhead data; and personal notes on Jacksonville transportation issues from the perspective of a prime participant. Historical source documents include project files relating to plans for Metropolitan Park and the Duval County Courthouse, and correspondence / newspaper clippings relating to the University of North Florida site selection. Few personal items are included.

The collection contains awards, photographs, printed material, and realia. Items span the years 1920-2009, with the majority of the materials concentrated in 1970-96.

The Northeast region of Florida has an extensive and rich military history, from its discovery and settlement by the Spanish and French, its occupation by Union troops four different times during the U.S. Civil War, its important military role during both World Wars, and currently, home to two Naval Stations. During the Civil War, black soliders from Florida played a significant role in the Union Army as part of the Colored Infantry Regiments. The Collection's primary source materials provide historical evidence and documentation of the military service and daily lives of these Civil War veterans and, by extension, military activities in the region. The core of the collection are copies of primary documents from the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) regarding applications for Union army veteran's pensions submitted from veterans of the United States Colored Infantry regiments, their widows, and other relatives. The bulk of the materials are concentrated in the late nineteenth and the early twentieth centuries. The majority of the holdings are copies of legal forms, affidavits, and transcriptions, which were collected and edited by University of North Florida (UNF) history students as supporting materials for the website: Florida History Online.

The Cummer Museum of Art & Gardens in Jacksonville, Florida, has a distinguished history as a significant cultural resource of the region. The celebration of the Museum's 50th anniversary in 2011 marked its development into a major Florida cultural institution, with a collection of over 6,000 objects in a wide variety of media, and a strong community presence via exhibitions, outreach programs, and art initiatives for children. The Special Collections' holdings contain ephemera and printed materials which provide documentation of the Museum's exhibitions and programs from 1962 to date. Types of items include general museum and gallery guides, programming and exhibition guides, membership invitations and announcements, news items, and exhibition posters published by the Museum.

Documents pertaining to biographical research on Dr. James Hall, and the concerted efforts of several Jacksonville residents to recognize Dr. Hall as an American patriot and to publicize the historical importance of his burial site. The collection includes biographical materials, correspondence, newspaper clippings, research notes, minutes of meetings, maps, periodicals, presentations and speeches by Dr. G. Dekle Taylor, and photographs.

The primary source materials in this collection provide historical documentation and evidence of selective elections and political campaigns held in Duval County and Jacksonville, Florida. The earliest items are Duval County election records dated 1904; the majority of the materials date from the late twentieth century to the present decade. Printed materials include sample election ballots and guides, voting brochures and pamphlets, and a voting registration receipt card. Artifacts and memorabilia include political campaign buttons and stickers from Jacksonville mayoral, U.S. Senate, and Presidential campaigns.

Documents pertaining to issues and activities, including correspondence, newspaper clippings, presentations and speeches by Dr. G. Dekle Taylor, minutes of various Committee meetings, reports, brochures and fact sheets on the 1971 University Hospital complex, and two photographs of Dr. Taylor being inducted in 1969 as President of the Center's Medical Staff.

The collection consists of more than 1,000 items, primarily twentieth century material relating to Jacksonville, Florida. Includes letters, documents, and notes relating to the personal, political, and business activities of Eartha M. M. White. Some subject files include publications, reports, programs, photographs, and memorabilia. Of particular interest are materials pertaining to: Prominent African American leaders, e.g., James Weldon Johnson, A. Phillip Randolph, and Simuel Decatur McGill; Historic Jacksonville business, charitable, and religious organizations including Afro-American Life Insurance Company, Bethel Baptist Institutional Church, Clara White Mission, Community Chest Association, and Jacksonville Negro Welfare League; Florida social and educational organizations including Florida State Federation of Colored Women's Clubs, Florida Baptist Academy / Florida Normal and Industrial Institute.

The collection consists of the personal correspondence of Fleming Family members and other correspondents circa 1879-1930. Most of the letters are incoming correspondence from relatives and friends to the Francis Philip Fleming family members. The core of the collection are condolence letters sent to Mrs. Francis P. Fleming, wife of the Governor, after his death on December 20, 1908.