The collection is open for research.
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Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [identification of item], [box], [folder], Carter Perkins, Jr., Papers, Ms1960-004, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.
The Carter Perkins, Jr., Papers were acquired by Newman Library in two accruals in 1960 and 1961.
The processing, arrangement, and description of the Carter Perkins, Jr., Papers commenced and was completed in February, 2011.
Carter Perkins, Jr., was born in Virginia on August 12, 1861. The son of Carter and Mary M. Graves Perkins, he was living with his parents in Charles City County, Virginia, in 1870. By 1880, the family had moved to New Kent County, and Perkins is described there as a 17-year-old sawyer, probably working for his father, whose occupation is listed as "sawmill man." In addition to his other activities, the elder Perkins apparently worked as a dentist and had business and banking interests.
Carter Perkins, Jr., of Newport News is listed as a special student in both the 1892/1893 and 1893/1894 catalogs of the Virginia Agricultural & Mechanical College (now Virginia Tech). The 1894/1895 catalog lists him as a sophomore.
By 1900, Perkins was living in Newport News with the family of his sister, Mary M. Lett, and her husband, attorney Ralph M. Lett. At the time, Perkins was employed as a clerk at a furniture company. Perkins seems to have remained a bachelor and continued to live with his sister's family. In the 1920 census, he was described as a self-employed salesman but had retired by 1930. Carter Perkins,Jr., died on December 8, 1935.
This collection contains the papers of Carter Perkins, Jr., a student at Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College (now Virginia Tech) during the 1890s and a resident of Newport News, Virginia. The collection consists largely of memorabilia relating to Perkins's college years, including the 1894/1895 VAMC catalog, copies of the 1895 and 1898 editions of the school's annual (
The collection also includes a business journal and a daybook, both bearing Perkins's name. The books both contain business transaction entries, and the daybook describes the establishment of the Auburn Bank at Blacksburg in 1894. Rather than detailing actual business transactions, the books were likely used by Perkins for class assignments in bookkeeping. The daybook, for example, includes several pages that are headed "Albany," which contain accounting entries copied verbatim from
The collection is arranged by document type.
The guide to the Carter Perkins, Jr., Papers by Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, is licensed under a CC0 (https://creativecommons.org/share-your-work/public-domain/cc0/).