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University buildings and grounds

The Pit

In Chapel Hill. 12 dated events, 1968–2024.

Map tiles © OpenStreetMap contributors. Site locations from the N.C. State Historic Preservation Office survey, Open Orange, Orange County GIS, OpenStreetMap and a few other published sources named on each site’s page; town and community pins show approximate locations.

People in its history

People named in events about this site, ordered by number of mentions. Each example links to an entry with a source citation.

Sites linked through the same people

In the chronology

  1. The Student Union and Student Stores open beside the undergraduate library around the Pit In 1968 the Frank Porter Graham Student Union and the Josephus Daniels Student Stores opened on South Road with the new R. B. House Undergraduate Library. The two-story concrete and glass buildings frame a sunken brick court, the Pit, and moved the center of student life there. NC Digital Collections: M. Ruth Little, The Town and Gown Architecture of Chapel Hill, 1795-1975 (2004), p. 90
  2. A notice of a Klan meeting draws Black students to the Pit Black students gathered near the Pit at the time a notice in the campus calendar had set for a Young Klansmen meeting; no one appeared. Black Ink compared it with an unclaimed Klan meeting notice posted after David Duke's 1975 visit. Black Ink (Black Student Movement, UNC), October 14, 1980, p. 2
  3. The association's chair protests repeated thefts of its banners and posters In a letter to the Daily Tar Heel, the Carolina Gay and Lesbian Association's chair reported that a banner for one of its events had been torn down in the Pit for the third time in two years and that posters for its AIDS benefit dance had been stripped from bulletin boards within hours. The letter linked the thefts to daily harassment of a member in his dormitory and to a member's firing. Lambda (Carolina Gay and Lesbian Association, UNC), November 1985, p. 1
  4. The association's AIDS memorial Christmas tree is stolen from the Pit A Christmas tree the Carolina Gay and Lesbian Association set up in the Pit, hung with one ribbon for each North Carolinian who had died of AIDS (358 at the time), was stolen. In April 1989 an association officer listed the theft among the harassment directed at the group. Lambda (Carolina Gay and Lesbian Association, UNC), April 1989, p. 10
  5. Housekeepers and student allies hold a cook-out to publicize the housekeepers' demands UNC housekeepers, Students for the Advancement of Race Relations and the Student Environmental Action Coalition held a cook-out in November 1991 to make the housekeepers' demands public. Chancellor Paul Hardin later recalled buying lunch from the housekeepers in the Pit to show support. Black Ink (Black Student Movement, UNC), January 21, 1992, p. 6
  6. Students march across campus from the Pit to close Celebration Week At noon students and allies carrying signs marched from the Pit around campus with author Mel White, who then answered a Pit preacher who, Lambda said, was railing against homosexuals, as students gathered to sing. The week ended that night with a dance on Duke's campus. Lambda (Carolina Gay and Lesbian Association, UNC), May 1998, p. 10
  7. BSM members march through the Pit for affirmative action during BSM Month During the first Black Student Movement Month, BSM members held an affirmative action demonstration in the Pit, marching with signs while President Tamara Bailey answered questions about the organization and Harmonyx sang the Black national anthem. Black Ink (Black Student Movement, UNC), December 1998, p. 24
  8. LGBTIQ students stage a kiss-in in the Pit At noon on the Friday of Coming Out Week, LGBTIQ students who had planned it quietly gathered in the Pit for a kiss-in, to make onlookers face their reactions to displays of same-sex affection. Lambda said the story was picked up nationwide. Lambda (Carolina Gay and Lesbian Association, UNC), October 2004, p. 12
  9. The Committee for a Queerer Carolina stages a Valentine's Day Kiss-In in the Pit At 11:53 a.m. on Valentine's Day about 40 people marched into the Pit and kissed, held hands and handed out fliers to point up the double standard same-gender couples face. Students at other campuses held similar events the same day. Lambda (Carolina Gay and Lesbian Association, UNC), February 2005, p. 16
  10. Several thousand gather in the Pit on the anniversary of Eve Carson's death Students, faculty and staff met in the Pit, where friends spoke about Carson, Chancellor Holden Thorp recalled her service, the Clef Hangers sang and the Bell Tower tolled Hark the Sound. People: Holden Thorp Carolina Alumni (GAA), archived copy: Ceremony Remembers, Celebrates Eve Carson
  11. UNC dedicates the James L. Cates Jr. Memorial in the Pit On the 52nd anniversary of his death, UNC dedicated a black lectern-style marker near the spot where Cates was stabbed, with an inscription from the University and the Town of Chapel Hill. Speakers included Chancellor Kevin M. Guskiewicz, Congresswoman-elect Valerie Foushee for the family, student body president Taliajah Vann and BSM president Julia Clark. People: Valerie Foushee, Kevin M. Guskiewicz, James L. Cates Jr. UNC-Chapel Hill: Carolina dedicates James L. Cates Jr. Memorial
  12. Student groups hold a memorial for James Cates in the Pit The Southern Student Action Coalition, the Black Student Movement, the Community Justice, Abolition and Anti-Racism Collective and the UNC NAACP held a memorial at the Pit, where speakers criticized the wording and placement of the 2022 plaque. People: Danita Mason-Hogans, James L. Cates Jr. Daily Tar Heel: 'This was a life': UNC community gathers for memorial to honor James Cates

Open these in the chronology →

Indexed works

The index has no works about The Pit itself yet. The surveys and maps below cover where it stands. Search the index for The Pit, or tell us about a book or record we have missed.

Surveys and maps of the area

Not about The Pit alone: the architectural surveys that cover its town or the county, and maps drawn while it stood. Several of the surveys can be read free online at NC Digital Collections.

The Town and Gown Architecture of Chapel Hill, North Carolina: 1795-1975

Little-Stokes, Margaret Ruth · 2006

Margaret Ruth Little-Stokes's survey of Chapel Hill's town and campus buildings from 1795 to 1975, published by the Preservation Society of Chapel Hill in 2006. Chapters run from the first campus buildings through David Swain's romantic campus to midcentury modernism, followed by area surveys of the campus, east and west Chapel Hill, downtown, Northside and the suburbs.

Included because: A survey or map of the town or county where the site stands.

NC Cardinal UNC Duke NC State Durham Chapel Hill PL Library of Congress CH Historical Society

The town and gown architecture of Chapel Hill, 1795-1975

Little, M. Ruth · 2004 · Preservation Society of Chapel Hill

M. Ruth Little's 2004 architectural history of Chapel Hill and the university campus from 1795 to 1975, written for the Preservation Society of Chapel Hill. A 99-page survey with a bibliography.

Included because: A survey or map of the town or county where the site stands.

NC Cardinal NC Digital Collections DPLA

NC Digital Collections record courtesy of the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.

Chapel Hill historic sites survey : final report.

Gatza, M. B. · 1992 · Chapel Hill Planning Department

M. B. Gatza's final report of the 1992 Chapel Hill historic sites survey for the town Planning Department, with contributions by Beverly C. Kawalec and Catherine Bishir. It covers historic buildings and districts in Chapel Hill in 80 pages.

Included because: A survey or map of the town or county where the site stands.

NC Cardinal NC Digital Collections DPLA

NC Digital Collections record courtesy of the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.

Found a book OCPL doesn’t own? You can often borrow it through interlibrary loan at OCPL.

Start at OCPL

    Where to look on the shelf

    These books don’t necessarily mention The Pit, but they cover where it stands, its kind of building and the land, family and burial records behind it, and they are where a search for a place like this usually goes next. All are at OCPL, most in the Wall Collection.

    Histories of the town and county

    • Rebecca Wall Collection · NC 975.656 STO Chapel Hill: A Pictorial History Stolpen, Steven · 1978

      Steven Stolpen's pictorial history of Chapel Hill, one of the Donning Company's photographic town histories, published in Norfolk, Virginia in 1978. Photographs and portraits carry the story of the town and the university, including references to Thomas Wolfe's years as a student at Carolina. 156 pages with illustrations.

    • Foundational · 975.656 RYAN Orange County Trio: Hillsborough, Chapel Hill, and Carrboro, North Carolina, Histories and Tour Guides Ryan, Elizabeth Shreve · 2004

      Elizabeth Shreve Ryan's combined histories and tour guides for Hillsborough, Chapel Hill and Carrboro, the three towns of Orange County, with the University of North Carolina treated alongside Chapel Hill. Each town gets a narrative history and a tour of its streets and buildings. Published by Chapel Hill Press in 2004, 369 pages with illustrations and maps.

    Buildings and surveys

    • Foundational · NC 720.975 BIS A Guide to the Historic Architecture of Piedmont North Carolina Bishir, Catherine W. · 2003

      Catherine W. Bishir and Michael T. Southern's field guide to the historic buildings of the North Carolina Piedmont, arranged county by county from Wake and Franklin in the east to Mecklenburg and Gaston in the west. The Orange County section takes in Hillsborough, Chapel Hill and Carrboro along with the rural county, with entries on individual buildings and maps for finding them. Published 2003, 596 pages with illustrations and maps.

    • Foundational · NC 917.56 HIS Historic Buildings and Landmarks of Chapel Hill, N.C Chapel Hill Historical Society · 1973

      A pocket-sized guide to the historic buildings and landmarks of Chapel Hill, prepared by the Chapel Hill Historical Society and printed by Creative Printers in 1973. Forty pages with illustrations and maps, 14 by 22 cm. Topics include architecture, historic buildings and historic districts in Chapel Hill, and the guide is useful for a walking tour of the older parts of town.

    Research sources

    Sources cited in this site’s history, National Register documents, and places to get research help. Research guide: Investigate a school or community institution.

    Background

    Historic sites, markers, and maps

    Records of the time 11

    Show all 11

    Collections and databases

    Local help 5

    Nearby

    Two mice reading back to back against a leaf, with the hand-lettered words Friends of the Orange County Public Library
    Illustration by Caldecott Medalist Matthew Cordell, gifted to the Friends 2026