The Stephen L Barstow collection consists of various architectural records dating between 1953 and 1988, mostly undated. The records are organized by topic. There may be drafts and copies, as well as some original blueprints for each building, but the collection does not include an entire set of complete blueprints for any building. Drawings include proposed developments, sketches, site plans, mechanical and other details, floor plans, survey maps, site profiles and plans, preliminary views, alternate plans, design development plans, elevations, master development plans, foundation plans, among others. There are various types of pencil notations on blueline and trace paper drawings. Items within each folder are numbered in pencil in the lower right corner to assist patrons in retrieving specific items.
The collection includes architectural drawings of various houses and churches of Midland, Michigan, including the Church of the Nazarene, and other nearby buildings including West Midland Community Center, Northwood Institute, Crown Petroleum, Inc. gas station on US-23, the Midland County Santa Claus Workshop [house], West Midland County Parks Site Plan, Midland Hospital’s chronic care room. Blueprints for Interlochen Music Camp, Kent Intermediate Schools, Bay Refining Company Station, Central Pumping Station, DePauw University Performing Arts Center, Kalamazoo Nature Center, the Leonard Refineries, Inc. service station and sign, Stadium Boulevard Site Plan, Theater for Wayne State University, Young Subdivision curb grades, Roscommon Congregational Church, Temple Beth-El in Spring Valley, New York, lamps and decks are also included.
Note: Some records are brittle due to high acidity and there is also an issue of fading.
Copyright Note: Many of the drawings in the collection are copyrighted by Alden B. Dow. It is unclear how or why Barstow collected them. “Copyright of all Aden B. Dow materials is held by the Alden B. and Vada B. Dow Creativity Foundation. Patrons wishing to reproduce the material for purposes other than scholarship purposes must contact the Foundation.” Drawings in the collection which are not under Dow copyright are so indicated in the folder listing.
Biography:
Stephen L. Barstow (1941-1992) was born on September 21, 1941 in Midland, Michigan, the son of Ormond E. and Phoebe Nickel Barstow. He graduated from Midland High School and attended Carleton College for two years, transferring and graduating from Michigan State University with a B.A. Stephen later earned a Bachelor of Architecture Degree at the University of Michigan.
Stephen was well known in the Midland and Mount Pleasant community as an accomplished architect. Throughout his career, Stephen worked in a number of architectural firms in Chicago and Midland. He was employed by Alden Dow in 1962. Stephen designed a large addition for a cottage in Higgins Lake, an extension of his brother, David’s, home in Atlanta, the Santa Claus House in Midland, and helped design the West Midland Family Center, among other buildings. In 1983 he purchased land fifteen miles west of Midland on the Chippewa River where he designed and built a contemporary home for himself.
During his lifetime, Stephen served on the board of the West Midland Family Center, the Barstow Foundation, which was established by his family, and was an active member of the Kiwanis, the Presbyterian Church, and the Higgins Lake Boat Club. Stephen was remembered for his charitable generosity and helping a number of foreign students find employment and eventually become U.S. citizens.
Stephen was a strong supporter of Central Michigan University’s art programs. After passing away on August 3, 1992 of a brain tumor, he donated his entire estate to the Central Michigan Art Department. The estate gift was valued at approximately one million dollars and included his home, a collection of his drawings, and funds to establish endowments to support art programs within the Central Michigan Art Department. The estate gift also included funding to support two need-based scholarships for art students with a special interest in promoting Native Americans into the arts. Since 1993, the Barstow Artist-in-Residence Program has brought many artists to Central Michigan University’s Department of Art and Design for semester-long residencies. His home functions as the residence for the program’s artists.
Stephen was survived by his brother, David, David’s wife, Marcia, and their five children. Stephen was buried from Memorial Presbyterian Church in Midland. (This information is from Stephen’s obituary from the Midland Daily News, August 5, 1992, CMLife, and the Social Security Death Index at http://ancestrylibrary.com accessed in February 2011.)
