Local figure

Walter Royal Davis

Walter Royal Davis (1920–2008), a North Carolina-born petroleum businessman, was a UNC trustee from 1972 to 1980 and in the 1970s pressed for the proceeds of the sale of the university's utilities to go to the university. Davis Library, opened in Chapel Hill in 1984, is named for him.

Source: Carolina Story: Walter Royal Davis (1920-2008) and Davis Library

1920–2008 as the Library of Congress records it · Library of Congress authority record ↗

2 indexed works are connected with this person.

Search these 2 works Research sources View indexed works ↓

Indexed works

Works in the index that concern this person directly, or were written by them. Each links to the institution that holds or provides it; background reading with wider context sits further down.

The Walter Davis story : one man who made a difference

Cline, Ned. · 2009

Ned Cline's biography of Walter Royal Davis, 1920 to 2008, the North Carolina businessman who made his fortune in the Texas petroleum trade and became a philanthropist and benefactor of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and its library. Privately printed for Jo Ann Davis in Chapel Hill in 2009, 297 pages with sixteen pages of plates, some illustrations in color.

Why this is here: Catalog heading in the Durham record: Davis, Walter Royal, 1920-2008.

NC Cardinal NC State NCCU Durham Library of Congress UNCSA CH Historical Society UNC

Walter Royal Davis Library : the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill : a dedication to learning.

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library · 1985 · University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Library

A sixteen page illustrated booklet from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill library marking the Walter Royal Davis Library in 1985. Subjects include both the building and Walter Royal Davis himself, who lived from 1920 to 2008. The library stands on the Chapel Hill campus in Orange County.

Why this is here: Catalog heading in the UNC record: Davis, Walter Royal, 1920-2008.

UNC

Life and Orange County connections

Dated events connected with this person, earliest first. See these 2 dated events in the chronology →

1972–1980 Walter Royal Davis serves as a UNC trustee Davis sat on the university's board of trustees and in the 1970s argued that proceeds from the state's sale of the university's utilities should go to the university.Search the index · Carolina Story: Walter Royal Davis (1920-2008) and Davis Library
1984 Davis Library opens The university's new library building, named the Walter Royal Davis Library for the trustee and benefactor, opened in Chapel Hill.Search the index · Carolina Story: Walter Royal Davis (1920-2008) and Davis Library

Places in this person’s story

Buildings, schools, churches and other sites named in the dated events on this page, the most often named first.

UNC Libraries University schools and programs · Chapel Hill · 1 event here

All places and the county map →

Search further

The index lists works with an Orange County connection. To find everything else about Walter Royal Davis, search these catalogs.

Books about Walter Royal Davis

More catalogs that show where copies are

Chapel Hill Public Library (opens in a new tab) Public library in Chapel Hill
Durham County Library (opens in a new tab) Public library next door in Durham
UNC Libraries (opens in a new tab) University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Duke Libraries (opens in a new tab) Duke University, Durham
NC Cardinal (opens in a new tab) The State Library of North Carolina and public libraries across the state

Photographs, papers, and newspapers

Searched with the Library of Congress heading Davis, Walter Royal, 1920-2008, so the results are about this person and not others with the same name. Each link opens that catalog’s own results in a new tab. The Friends have not reviewed what they return.

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Research sources

Additional research sources

Other catalogs to search and local organizations that can help.

Background context: NCpedia: Walter Royal Davis NCpedia Dictionary of North Carolina Biography entry
Read contemporary evidence: DigitalNC newspapers: 73 Orange County pages naming Walter Royal Davis DigitalNC Searchable pages from historic Orange County newspapers
Search beyond the index: NC LIVE: prepared search for Walter Royal Davis NC LIVE An advanced search of the state’s shared databases already scoped to Orange County’s places and this subject; edit it freely, and sign in through your North Carolina library to read
Ask locally: Rebecca B. Wall Local History Collection, Orange County Public Library Rebecca B. Wall Local History Collection (OCPL) The county library’s local-history room at the Main Library in Hillsborough: books, journals, maps, and microfilm of county records from 1752
Ask locally: Local History Help Hours and request form OCPL Local History Liaison The library’s Local History Liaison helps in person most Mondays, 12 to 3, at the Main Library, or by the online request form

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