Cyrus Baldwin King, born 31 October 1922, worked in the North Carolina State University Library for over twenty years and was active in a wide variety of efforts to promote civil rights and social justice. He grew up in North Carolina in a pacifist Quaker family and served with the United States Army in Europe during World War II. His father, Edward Scull (E.S.) King, was also very active in the N.C. State University community, serving as the secretary of the campus chapter of the Young Men's Christian Association for over thirty years.
Cyrus King earned his Bachelor's Degree in History from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1947 and his Master's Degree in History from the University of Kentucky in 1949. He worked for several years at the Student Supply Stores at North Carolina State College before joining the North Carolina State Archives as the Assistant State Archivist in 1960. In 1963, he was hired by N.C. State as an Acquisitions Librarian and was head of the department for many years. He eventually became the Assistant Director for Collection Management and Development before retirng in 1984.
King was and remains very politically active, writing tirelessly in support of the causes that he has adopted. He has worked through his church, the Community United Church of Christ, the Democratic party, and many local and national organizations. He spoke out in favor of of desegregation and other civil rights issues in the 1950s and 1960s and has remained active in support of a wide variety of efforts to promote social justice and non-violence. He has worked in support of greater voting rights, environmental issues, the abolishment of the death penalty, workers' rights, improving education in North Carolina, and many other civil rights causes.
From the guide to the Cyrus B. King Papers, 1950-2012, (Special Collections Research Center)
