Sponsor: Historical Society of North Carolina.
- 1953 — Hugh F. Rankin
- 1954 — Hugh F. Rankin
- 1955 — Paul Conkin
- 1956 — H. G. Jones
- 1957 — Diffee W. Standard and Richard W. Griffin
- 1958 — H. H. Cunningham
- 1959 — Frense A. Logan
- 1960 — Vincent P. De Santis
- 1961 — Richard L. Watson, Jr.
- 1962 — Otto H. Olsen
- 1963 — John L. Bell, Jr.
- 1964 — Richard Bardolph
- 1965 — Richard L. Watson, Jr.
- 1966 — Joseph F. Steelman
- 1967 — Joseph F. Steelman
- 1968 — Melvin L. Urofsky
- 1969 — William P. Cumming
- 1970 — Joseph F. Steelman
- 1971 — Edwin A. Miles
- 1972 — Don Higginbotham
- 1973 — Memory F. Mitchell
and Thornton W. Mitchell
- 1974 — James M. Clifton
- 1975 — Peter Kent Opper
- 1976 — Roberta Sue Alexander
- 1977 — Gaines M. Foster
- 1978 — James T. Baker
- 1979 — Victor B. Howard
- 1980 — Lala Carr Steelman
- 1981 — Richard Reid
- 1982 — David D. Scarboro
and William T. Auman
- 1983 — Thomas C. Parramore
- 1984 — William T. Auman
- 1985 — Marcus B. Simpson, Jr.
- 1986 — Thomas E. Jeffrey
- 1987 — Marc W. Kruman
- 1988 — Marcus B. Simpson, Jr.
and Sallie W. Simpson
- 1989 — Paul D. Escott
- 1990 — Gregory De Van Massey
- 1991 — Glenda Elizabeth Gilmore
- 1992 — Gordon B. McKinney
- 1993 — Kenneth R. Janken
- 1994 — David S. Cecelski
- 1995 — Jon F. Sensbach
- 1996 — Jane Turner Censer
- 1997 — Sarah Carolina Theusen
- 1998 — Patrick J. Huber
- 1999 — David C. Carter
- 2000 — Sayoko Uesugi
- 2001 — Robert B. Outland III
- 2002 — Karl E. Campbell
- 2003 — Mark L. Bradley
- 2004 — Elizabeth Gillespie McRae
- 2005 — Chris Myers Asch
- 2006 — Michelle LeMaster
- 2007 — Roger Biles
- 2008 — Mark Newman
- 2009 — David La Vere
- 2010 — Jerry Gershenhorn
- 2011 — Charles W. McKinney Jr.
