PEMBROKE, N.C., Sept. 9 -- The University of North Carolina at Pembroke issued the following news release:

As Jacob Worriax carefully turned the pages of archival documents inside the Library of Congress, he realized he was likely among the first people to examine some of the materials in decades.

Among thousands of manuscripts documenting American life during the Great Depression, the UNC Pembroke junior kept encountering references to Lumbee folk hero Henry Berry Lowrie - an unexpected discovery that rewarded days of patient research.

"It was a lesson in perseverance," Worriax said. "I kept searching, and during the last two days I started seeing references to Henry Berry Lowrie appear. That's when I realized all the work had been wort...