R. Kelly Bryant Jr. remembered as 'dean' of community historians

Dec. 08--DURHAM -- Mr. R. Kelly Bryant Jr. was remembered Monday as the "dean" of community historians, a title he earned as a result of his love for and incomparable knowledge of Durham's rich and storied history.

Mr. Bryant died Sunday after a lengthy illness. He was 98.

Mr. Bryant knew a lot about Durham's history first hand, because he had the benefit of living through a large chunk of it.

Born in Rocky Mount in 1917, Mr. Bryant moved to Durham shortly after he graduated from Hampton University, where he majored in accounting.

Like many African-Americans of his generation seeking upward mobility, Mr. Bryant moved to Durham in the early 1940s and was eventually hired by North Carolina Mutual Life Insurance Company, where he worked until his retirement.

With an accountant's precision and demand for order, Mr. Bryant kept copious records and reams of documents detailing the history of his adopted hometown, particularly the goings-on in the African-American community, which was considered one of the nation's most successful.

"He was a wealth of information about Durham and the African-American community here," said Andre Vann, coordinator of university archives and instructor of public history at N.C. Central University. "He would tell you that he was not formally trained as a historian but he was certainly passionate about recording that history."

Many of Mr. Bryant's papers are housed in the Durham County Library's North Carolina Collection, including approximately 2,500 funeral programs and obituaries.

Lynn Richardson, the North Carolina Collection librarian, said she heard about Mr. Bryant soon after she took the job in 2001 and the two later worked together on a project collecting photos for a Civil Rights Movement project.

"He had an amazing memory," Richardson said. "He just knew so much history and he knew so much about Durham history."

Richardson often encouraged Mr. Bryant to share his collection and he eventually allowed his impressive collection of funeral programs and obituaries to be photocopied.

In addition, Mr. Bryant made donations of materials related to his life and work, including his involvement in social, professional and alumni organizations, his long-time involvement with the Boy Scouts and his work on the historically black Geer Street Cemetery, where many of his relatives were buried, and other cemeteries in Durham.

The North Carolina Collection has gathered all of Bryant's donated materials and created an online exhibit titled the "R. Kelly Bryant Jr. Collection."

"I don't think people have a clue about how much he was involved in," Richardson said. "He was so unassuming and he

never did anything for praise or recognition. He was just a doer."

Keith Bryant, Mr. Bryant's grandson, said he will always remember his grandfather as someone who was "generous, involved and active."

"All of those words come to mind," Keith Bryant said. "He and I were particularly close. He was my best friend."

Although a native of Rocky Mount, Mr. Bryant had deep roots in the Durham community long before he moved here.

Vann said Mr. Bryant's beloved White Rock Baptist church grew out of a weekly prayer service held at the house of Margaret Faucette, who was Mr. Bryant's grandmother.

Vann said he considered Mr. Bryant an elder in the African tradition, a real leader in the community that people admired and respected.

"While it appears we've lost something, he has left many markers along the way for us to follow," Vann said.

The lighted pedestrian/bikeway that spans N.C. 147 near downtown Durham is named in honor of Mr. Bryant.

Vann said it will serve as a reminder of Mr. Bryant's commitment to Durham, its people and its history.

"That's a wonderful way to remember a community servant who was committed to the history of Durham," Vann said. "He was one of Durham's greatest cheerleaders."

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