Here you'll find archival resources from the Rubenstein Library. For the most part, these collections mention a large number of subjects - but they may contain an item or several items that could be useful to your eugenics research.
This is not a list of all relevant archival collections - use the search tips in this guide to find more!
First page of "Family Allowances, Birth Control, and Eugenics" by William McDougall. From the William McDougall Papers.
Cox was a white supremacist who advocated for, among many things, Virginia's Racial Integrity Act of 1924, a law influenced by the eugenics movement and closely tied to the Virginia Sterilization Act of 1924, the law challenged in the case of Buck v. Bell. Cox gave speeches before the Eugenics Research Association and corresponded with other well-known eugenicists like Madison Grant.
Bassett was a physician from Savannah, Georgia. His papers include documents related to Better Baby Contests. These contests, held at state fairs across the country, were heavily influenced by the eugenics movement and introduced average people to the movement's ideas.
McDougall was a psychologist who taught at Duke University from 1927 to 1938. McDougall was interested in eugenics and wrote a short piece, included in his papers, titled "Family Allowances, Birth Control, and Eugenics.". His views on eugenics may be reflected elsewhere in the collection. McDougall also published several books including Psychology in the Service of Eugenics and A Practicable Eugenic Suggestion (both held by the library).
Ellwood was a prominent sociologist who established Duke's Department of Sociology in 1930. Ellwood believed in social reform and human improvement through rational evolution. He wrote about both eugenics and criminology. Some of his writings are included in his papers while others can be found in the library catalog - for example, Ellwood's 1913 speech "The Eugenics Movement from the Standpoint of Sociology" published in Eugenics: Twelve University Lectures.
Bradway taught law at Duke from 1931 to 1951. The collection contains some material on North Carolina's sterilization law as well as material from organizations, like the N.C. Mental Hygiene Society, that may relate to the eugenics movement.
Physician and supporter of women's reproductive rights from Jacksonville, N.C. Collection contains material on sterilization and, in particular, sterilization in North Carolina including a report published by the N.C. Eugenics Board in the 1960s as well as statistics on people sterilized by the board.
Reproductive Rights National Network Records:
Organization formed in 1978 with the goal of making reproductive choices available to all women. The group fought against sterilization abuse and, in particular, the sterilization of poor women or women deemed to be unfit mothers. Collection includes material related to sterilization abuse as well as general organization material.
Feminist writer and activist involved in many organizations including Committee for Abortion Rights and Against Sterilization Abuse (CARASA). Collection includes CARASA files that document the organization's efforts to end sterilization abuse.
Rankin taught political science at Duke from 1927 until 1969. Collection includes a copy of "Eugenical Sterilization in North Carolina," a booklet published by the Eugenics Board of N.C. in 1938. The booklet provides an overview of the state's sterilization law and includes the forms used to the board to have an individual sterilized.
