Jesse Helms

Source: David B. Stevens Papers, 1943-1946, 1973-1988, undated; East Carolina Manuscript Collection #779

Jesse Helms Photograph

Staff Person: Nanette Hardison

Description:

Jesse Helms (1921-2008) was a five-term U.S. Senator from North Carolina and a member of the Republican Party. He is well known for the great influence he had over both state and national politics during his Senatorial terms from 1973 to 2002. The undated photo shown below is of then-Senator Helms (standing third from right) with his staff and David B. Stevens (seated fourth from left), who was a professor of business and criminal law at East Carolina University. Professor Stevens’s wife Willa Stevens is also in the picture and she is seated to the left of Stevens. The photograph is of particular interest because it includes a short message by Jesse Helms to Professor Stevens along with his autograph at the bottom of the photo.

This picture is in the David B. Stevens Papers along with correspondence that documents Stevens’s discussions with Helms and other political figures about state and national legislation. The staff at the Special Collections Department will be happy to assist anyone who wishes to examine these documents and other material from this collection.

Sources:

David B. Stevens Papers, 1943-1946, 1973-1988, undated, #779 Collection Finding Aid – http://digital.lib.ecu.edu/special/ead/findingaids/0779/

Jesse Helms (Wikipedia entry) – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesse_Helms