Rene A. Henry Papers, 1890/2025

Access and use

Location of collection:
West Virginia and Regional History Center
West Virginia & Regional History Center
West Virginia University
P.O. Box 6069
1549 University Avenue
Morgantown, WV 26506
Contact for questions and access:
POC: Lori Hostuttler
Phone: (304) 293-3536
Restrictions:

No special access restriction applies.

Researchers may access born digital and digitized materials by requesting to view the materials in person by appointment or remotely by contacting the West Virginia & Regional History Center reference department.

Terms of access:

Permission to publish or reproduce is required from the copyright holder. For more information, please see the Permissions and Copyright page on the West Virginia and Regional History Center website.

Preferred citation:

[Description and date of item], [Box/folder number], Rene A. Henry Papers, A&M 3720, West Virginia and Regional History Center, West Virginia University Libraries, Morgantown, West Virginia.

Summary

Extent:
3.88 Linear Feet 2 document cases, 5 in. each; 5 document cases, 2.5 in. each; 1 record carton, 15 in.; 2 oversize flat storage boxes, 3.5 in. each; 2 oversize flat storage boxes, 1 in. each and 2.26 Gigabytes 31 files, formats include .doc, .mht, .txt, .docx, .iso, .cue, .md5, .jpg
Creator:
Henry, Rene A. and Henry, Rene A.
Abstract:
Historical material compiled by Rene A. Henry, documenting the history of South Charleston, WV; Henry's family; the West Virginia University football team; and his career in public relations and sports marketing.
Language:
English .
Preferred citation:

[Description and date of item], [Box/folder number], Rene A. Henry Papers, A&M 3720, West Virginia and Regional History Center, West Virginia University Libraries, Morgantown, West Virginia.

Background

Scope and content:

Historical material compiled by Rene A. Henry, documenting the history of South Charleston, West Virginia; Henry's family; the West Virginia University football team; and his career in public relations and sports marketing. An addendum of 2013-10-29 includes biographical material, correspondence, articles, clippings, scripts, photographs, and motion pictures pertaining to Henry, his work in sports journalism, and the WVU Mountaineers. An addendum of 2017-09-30 contains numbered prints of artworks (1970-1975). An addendum of 2018/01/19 contains photographs, publications, and other material (1910–2017). An addendum of 2021/07/31 includes scrapbooks and memorabilia from the Olympic Games and other athletic events as well as other material (1939-2005).

Series include:
Series 1. Initial Acquisition, 1950, 2013, and undated
Series 2. Addendum of 2013/10/29, Writings, Photographs, and Motion Pictures, 1919-2018 and undated
Series 3. Addendum of 2017/04/18, Postcards and Collectibles, 1910–2016
Series 4. Addendum of 2017/09/30, Artworks, 1970-1975, and undated
Series 5. Addendum of 2018/01/19, Photographs, Publications, and Other Material, 1910–2017
Series 6. Addendum of 2021/07/31, Olympic Games Scrapbooks, Memorabilia, and Other Material
Addendum of 2024/04/04, Photocopies of Articles, Pitch Packet, and Other Material, circa 1980s-2024 and undated
Addendum of 2024-2025, Correspondence, Writings, Family Papers, and Other Material, circa 1930s-2020s and undated
Addendum of 2025 July 2, Assorted Correspondence and Photocopies of Articles, circa 1950s-2020s and undated

This series contains the initial collection. It includes clippings regarding the history of South Charleston, WV, photographs and train orders from Henry's step-grandfather (Fred B. Secrest), and other material.

This series includes biographical material, correspondence, articles, clippings, scripts, photographs, and motion pictures pertaining to Henry, his work in sports journalism, and the WVU Mountaineers.

This subseries includes biographical material about Henry, copies of some of his awards and honors, copies of correspondence, and a slide presentation that he gave to a WVU Sports Management class.

This subseries includes newspaper clippings and articles. The newspaper clippings are mostly articles written by Henry for the South Charleston Free Press, of which he was editor. Articles include those written by Henry, generally regarding the WVU Mountaineers, as well as articles that are about him or mention him.

This subseries includes three scripts for motion pictures, all written by Rene A. Henry and Gabor Nagy and registered with Writers Guild of America, West. One script is about Rodney Clark Hundley, and another is about the 1953 College of William and Mary football team.

This subseries contains photographs, almost all of which include dates and descriptions. Subjects include Henry's family, sports figures such as Sven Tumba and Rod Hundley, politicians such as Margaret Thatcher and Gerald Ford, and other prominent individuals.

This subseries contains two DVDs. One DVD includes WVU sports video news releases (1954-1955). The other DVD contains a tribute video relating to 1984 Olympians (1984).

This series includes postcards from assorted locations in Europe, collectible pins, patches, and badges, and other material.

This series includes assorted writings and publications written by Henry, photographs of Henry with celebrities, biographical materials, and other material.

This series includes scrapbooks compiled by Henry as well as memorabilia from the Olympic Games and other athletic events. There is also material regarding Henry's non-athletics related professional activities and his memebership in a fraternal order.

Assorted photocopies of articles written by or on Henry documenting his career and other material, including a pitch packet for a screenplay titled West Virginia Kid on the life of "Hot Rod" Hundley and a USB drive.

Assorted materials, including photographs and papers of the Henry and Secrest (Henry's stepfather) families, correspondence with E. Gordon Gee and other notables, and Henry's editorials and other articles in the Huntington News Net.

Assorted correspondence with E. Gordon Gee and the College of William and Mary, as well as photocopies of assorted articles by Henry.

Biographical / historical:

From the Biographical Note in the Rene A. Henry Papers, College of William and Mary Special Collections (link in External Documents):

Rene Henry was born in Charleston, West Virginia in 1933 and his family moved to the Norfolk and Virginia Beach area in 1948. He graduated from Granby High School in Norfolk in 1951 and received an A.B. in economics from the College of William and Mary in 1954. During his time at William and Mary, Henry served as a student assistant in sports information and also student assistant to the director of intramural athletics. In January 1953, while in his junior year, he was named the Sports Information Director for William and Mary.

He was Sports Information Director at West Virginia University (1954-1956) and did graduate work in marketing. He also completed executive management courses at the law schools of Harvard and Georgetown universities.

Rene Henry's professional career includes work in public relations, sports marketing, housing and construction, presidential campaigns, higher education, television and entertainment, association management, and government service. As a volunteer, he directed the international media campaign for the selection of Los Angeles as the host city of the 1984 Olympic Games, and has been active in the promotion and organization of a number of United States Olympic activities since 1968. He has been involved in the management, marketing, and sales of world cup and world championship events in sports including basketball, cycling, hockey, soccer, and tennis. Henry has also worked at various levels of the building and housing industry, developing and promoting a number of commercial, industrial, and federal projects. From 1968 to 1977, he was Executive Director of the Council of Housing Producers, an organization of the largest community developers in the country. Between 1986 and 1988, he served as President and CEO of the National Institute of Building Sciences. In 1988, he volunteered on the presidential campaign to elect George H. W. Bush and Dan Quayle. From there, Henry was appointed to positions at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Agency for International Development, the Department of Labor in 1991, and the Environmental Protection Agency from 1996 to 2001.

Henry has been a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences and the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences since 1978. In 1994, he was elected to the College of Fellows of the Public Relations Society of America and served as Chair of the College in 2001. He is also a member of the Institute of Residential Marketing and former Trustee of the National Sales and Marketing Council of the National Association of Home Builders.

Additional information on Rene Henry may be found on his website (link in External Documents).

Physical location:
West Virginia and Regional History Center / West Virginia University / 1549 University Avenue / P.O. Box 6069 / Morgantown, WV 26506-6069 / Phone: 304-293-3536 / URL: West Virginia & Regional History Center
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard