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This article is from the Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, 6 volumes, edited by William S. Powell. Copyright ©1979-1996 by the University of North Carolina Press. Used by permission of the publisher. For personal use and not for further distribution. Please submit permission requests for other use directly to the publisher.

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Weil, Herman

by William S. Powell, 1996

1 Jan. 1882–21 Oct. 1961

Herman Weil, manufacturer and philanthropist, was born in Goldsboro, the son of Henry and Mina Rosenthal Weil. In 1901 he was graduated from The University of North Carolina, where he was a trustee from 1949 until his death. His business interests included a plywood box industry, a brick manufacturing plant, the Goldsboro Ice Company, a storage warehouse, and the Carolina Rice Company. He served on the board of the Goldsboro Hotel Company and was a director of the Borden Manufacturing Company. Weil was treasurer of the Tuscarora Boy Scout Council from its establishment until his death and in his will left funds for the council. He also bequeathed a sum for the Wayne Foundation, a charitable organization.

Weil married Elizabeth Bogle, and they had two daughters, Elizabeth and Mina Anne.

In the knowledge that the board of trustees of The University of North Carolina would prepare a tribute to him following his death, he wrote it himself and asked that it be read at the customary time:

"Herman Weil was born in Goldsboro in 1882 and lived there all of his life.

"After attending public schools he entered the University of North Carolina in 1897. As the standards were not too high he was graduated in 1901.

"He was connected with a number of local industries and his record was in no way outstanding.

"He developed a liking for the university by association. His father, Henry Weil, was a trustee from about 1890 until his death in 1914. He was succeeded by his son, Leslie Weil, who was succeeded by Lionel Weil, who was succeeded by Herman Weil. "He leaves a widow, two daughters and three grand-daughters. The daughters graduated from UNC and the grand-daughters all under 5, have been instructed to attend the university if they can qualify.

"There is no need to send any resolution to his widow as she is thoroughly familiar with his long and short comings.

"If Herman Weil passes on while he is a trustee, please use this instead of the usual 5 per cent true eulogy."

References:

Chapel Hill Weekly, 23 Oct. 1961.

Daniel L. Grant, Alumni History of the University of North Carolina (1924).

Greensboro Daily News, 22 Oct., 3 Nov. 1961, 27 Feb. 1962.

Additional Resources:

Weil Family Papers, 1860s-1983 (collection no. 04696). The Southern Historical Collection. Louis Round Wilson Special Collections Library. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. http://www.lib.unc.edu/mss/inv/w/Weil_Family.html (accessed July 12, 2013).

 

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