Old East was the first university building in Chapel Hill and was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1966. The cornerstone was laid on October 12th 1793, but sometime between 1865 and 1875 its commemorative plate was stolen. In 1916, the plate was discovered in a pile of scrap brass that was ready for melting at a foundry in Tennessee. Luckily, the foundry's owner was a UNC alumnus and recognized the name "Davie" on the plate. He had the plate cleaned and returned to the school. It can now be found in the North Carolina Collection of the Wilson Library.[32]
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