William Clair Turner papers, circa 1960s-2013

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Summary

Creator:
Turner, William Clair
Abstract:
William Clair Turner, Jr. earned his B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Duke University in 1971, his M.Div. from Duke Divinity School in 1974, and his Ph.D. in religion in 1984. He has held several administrative positions at Duke, including Assistant Provost and Dean of Black Affairs and Acting Director of the Afro-American Studies program. In 1982 he became a full-time faculty member in the Divinity School, directing the Office of Black Church Affairs before being appointed Professor of the Practice of Homiletics. He has pastored several churches, including his current position at Mt. Level Baptist Church and was previously ordained in the United Holy Church of America, Inc. denomination. The collection documents Turner's academic and personal activities. Materials include personal and administrative correspondence regarding Turner's roles as pastor and administrator, manuscripts of lectures and sermons, syllabi and notes for courses taught, notes from classes taken while a student, subject files, and records of the United Holy Church of America. The collection also includes VHS, CD, and DVD recordings of some of his sermons.
Extent:
18.5 Linear Feet
Language:
Materials in English
Collection ID:
UA.29.02.0250
University Archives Record Group:
29 -- Papers of Faculty, Staff, and Associates
29 -- Papers of Faculty, Staff, and Associates > 02 -- Individuals

Background

Scope and content:

The collection documents the academic and personal activities of William C. Turner, Jr., Duke alumni and faculty member at Duke Divinity School. Materials include personal and administrative correspondence regarding Turner's roles as pastor and administrator, manuscripts of lectures and sermons, syllabi and notes for courses taught, notes from classes taken while a student, subject files, and records of the United Holy Church of America, Inc. denomination in which Turner was deeply involved and on which he wrote his Ph.D. dissertation. The collection also includes VHS, CD, and DVD recordings of some of his sermons. Major topics covered include black student life at Duke; Turner's involvement in the Department of Afro-American Studies, Office of Black Affairs, and Office of Black Church Studies; Turner's academic work on the Holy Spirit and black spirituality; pastoral work in African American churches in Durham; and the history of the United Holy Church of America, Inc.

Biographical / historical:

William Clair Turner, Jr. was born April 26, 1948 in Richmond, VA to Ruth Randolph Turner and William Clair Turner, Sr. In 1971 he earned his B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Duke University – playing on the football team as an undergraduate – followed by a M.Div. from Duke Divinity School in 1974 and his Ph.D. in religion from Duke in 1984. He also held several administrative positions at Duke; in 1974 he became Assistant Provost and Dean of Black Affairs (now the Office of Intercultural Affairs), and from 1975 to 1977 he was Acting Director of the Afro-American Studies program (now African and African American Studies). In 1982 he became a full-time faculty member in the Divinity School. He taught theology and black church studies, directing the Office of Black Church Affairs, before being appointed Professor of the Practice of Homiletics. His academic interests include pneumatology, or the study of the Holy Spirit, and the spirituality and preaching of the black church. Turner currently teaches courses on preaching and doctrine of the Holy Spirit; he also fulfills many speaking engagements as preacher and lecturer.

Turner has been deeply involved in pastoral ministry in Durham. In 1973 he was ordained in the United Holy Church of America, a Christian denomination started near Raleigh, NC in 1886 as the oldest African American Holiness-Pentecostal denomination. Turner pastored Fisher Memorial United Holy Church from 1974-1979 and Faith Gospel Tabernacle United Holy Church beginning in 1979. In the 1970s and 1980s he was deeply involved in the work of the denomination, participating in multiple committees and serving as President of the Young People's Holiness Association, a department focused on outreach and support for the church's youth. In 1990 Turner began his current position pastoring Mt. Level Baptist Church in Durham, NC and was ordained in the East Cedar Grove Missionary Baptist Association shortly after. Turner has dedicated time to working with parishioners in need, particularly the incarcerated, as well as connecting Divinity School students with field experience assignments. He has also been involved with other local ministries and social justice groups in the region, such as the Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance of Durham and Vicinity and Churches for Action.

Acquisition information:
The William Clair Turner Papers were received by the University Archives as a transfer in June, 2014.
Processing information:

Processed by: Jamie Patrick-Burns, May 2015.

Accessions described in this finding aid: UA2014-0043.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Contents

Using These Materials

Using These Materials Links:

Using These Materials

Restrictions:

Researchers must register and agree to copyright and privacy laws before using this collection.

For a period of twenty-five years from the origin of the material, permission in writing from the office of origin and the University Archivist is required for use. After twenty-five years, records that have been processed may be consulted with the permission of the University Archivist. Some administrative materials in this collection fall under this restriction.

In accordance with the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 as amended, Duke University permits students to inspect their education records and limits the disclosure of personally identifiable information from education records.

Records, such as search committee files or others pertaining to employment where individuals are identified, are closed for 70 years. Some personal correspondence materials are restricted for 70 years from the date of origin unless permission is given by the donor.

All or portions of this collection may be housed off-site in Duke University's Library Service Center. The library may require up to 48-hours to retrieve these materials for research use.

Please contact Research Services staff before visiting the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library to use this collection.

Terms of access:

Copyright for Official University records is held by Duke University; all other copyright is retained by the authors of items in these papers, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.

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Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], William Clair Turner Papers, circa 1960s-2013, University Archives, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University.

Permalink:
https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/m18q68