Collections : [University of Michigan Bentley Historical Library]

Records of the retail business activities of the Phelps family of Manton, Michigan in Wexford County.

This record group covers the years 1890 to 1964 and consists of the diaries and a biographical sketch of Charles D. Phelps, a history of the business written by D. Maynard Phelps, and various business records. The business records series consists of income tax returns, papers pertaining to the sale of the business, and miscellaneous inventories, journals and a ledger.

Records, 1895-1931, of the Postum Cereal Company of Battle Creek, founded by Charles W. Post; include time books, payrolls, invoice and voucher records, trial balances, cash receipts registers, and sales and advertising material.

The Postum Company records are an incomplete set of employment and financial records covering the period 1895-1931. The records have been described in two series: Payroll and Employee Records and financial and Miscellaneous Records. The records include employee time books, payrolls, invoice and voucher records, trial balances, cash receipts registers, and sales and advertising material.

The collection includes 164 outsize volumes. A unique sequential number (1-166, there is no vol. no. 91 or 92) has been assigned to each volume to aid in identification and location of the volumes. This number is given at the beginning of descriptive entry in the contents list. Some volumes had a number or letter stamped on the spine. This number is listed in square brackets at the end of the item entry.

Papers and photographs collected by Robert D. Aldrich relating to the history, people and institutions of Concord village in Jackson County, Michigan; include correspondence, diaries, account books and other papers of Concord residents; records of Concord social organizations, businesses, schools, and church and governmental bodies.

The Robert D. Aldrich collection consists of materials--manuscript, printed, and photographic--documenting the history of Concord, Michigan, in western Jackson County. The collection spans the period from the arrival of the first settlers in 1831 to the 1980s. There are a few items dating back into the eighteenth century (as early as 1783) since the papers of some pioneer families predate their arrival in Concord. The bulk of the collection, though, falls in the period since the Civil War.

The collection documents every facet of life in Concord. Included are the papers of numerous Concord citizens consisting of personal correspondence, diaries, account books and newspaper clippings about them. In addition, Aldrich collected the records of various Concord businesses and organizations, as well as some church, school, and governmental records.

The collection has been divided into two series: Manuscript and Printed Materials, and Visual Materials. Both series are arranged alphabetically either by personal name or name of organization, or by general subject area, such as Circus, Underground Railroad, etc.

Mining company superintendent; correspondence, reports, background information, and financial miscellanea.

The collection consists of business correspondence relating to mining activities. There is some correspondence with members of the Hayes family, including California Congressman, Everis A. Hayes, and newspaper publisher and fruit raiser, J.O. Hayes. In addition, the collection includes reports of mining developments and disasters in the 1880's and 1890's, documentation of the Germania Mine, information about Hurley Wisconsin, travel diaries, and miscellaneous ledgers.

Residents of Highland Township, Oakland County, Michigan. Civil War reminiscences and other papers of James D. Rowe, soldier in the 1st Michigan Cavalry; Civil War letters of Spencer D. Lee, related family member, also in the 1st Michigan Cavalry; business records of Grant and Carrie Jackson Rowe, publishers of the Milford Times; sermons of Samuel Simpson Marquis as transcribed by Mrs. G. S. Rowe; collected materials largely concerning Milford and Highland Township history; and miscellaneous photographs and Civil War print.

The collection is divided into three series: Rowe Family Papers, Milford Historical Materials, and Milford Times Records. The bulk of the collection consists of correspondence, genealogical material and reminiscences relating to the Rowe family. The Civil War years are particularly well documented in letters written by in-laws: William Putnam, brother of Helen; the wife of James Rowe; and Spencer Lee, who married Helen's sister, Sarah. The Milford Times Records series contains business correspondence and records of the Milford Times, a newspaper published and edited by members of the Rowe family from 1890 to 1950. Carrie Jackson Rowe, who ran the Times for 46 years with her husband, Grant, was interested in Highland County local history; her writings on historical topics, as well as the historical documents she collected, form the Milford Historical Materials series.

Records of the Ruggles & Rademaker of Manistee, Michigan, and of the predecessor land and lumber enterprises of Charles Ruggles and Edward Buckley, including the Buckley and Douglas Lumber Co., the Manistee and Northeastern Railroad, and the Emeline Bath Co. of Chicago, Ill. Financial records and business correspondence of Edward Buckley, Charles Ruggles, and John Rademaker; also files concerning lawsuit between Ruggles and Buckley.

This record group, although named for the salt company owned and operated by Charles F. Ruggles and John Henry Rademaker from 1920 to its sale in 1931, is also an accumulation of records of the business enterprises and land dealings of Charles Ruggles beginning in 1866 and of the partnership operations of Ruggles and Edward Buckley. Included are business correspondence, financial records, organizational materials, and litigation files. Many of the financial records have been microfilmed.

The Salling, Hanson and Company Records are the business records of the lumber company Salling, Hanson and Company based in Grayling Michigan from 1881-1928. The records include financial data, annual reports, daily activity information as well as some records from other Grayling businesses.

The Salling and Hanson records on microfilm begin with a series of ledger books, complete from 1881 to 1923, except for one volume which was missing. All of the company's financial transactions were transferred to the ledgers (which are arranged by accounts), making them the most complete records of company business. The journals and lumber journals (arranged chronologically) provide records of daily operations. Since these transactions were eventually recorded in the ledgers, only sample years of the journals and lumber journals were preserved. For both series, all records of even numbered years were microfilmed, including records for 1881, the earliest year for which Salling, Hanson records exist. The lumber journals may be of particular interest, since they indicate the amounts of various types of lumber produced and sold. An entire series of time books (1891-1907) was filmed, giving payroll accounts of Salling, Hanson employees. One petty accounts ledger (1917-1927) and one tax record book (1881-1891) complete the Selling, Hanson Company microfilm edition. Records preserved in the original form include 5 index volumes for the time books, trial balances, records of total lumber shipped, and annual reports of two subsidiary companies. In addition, two color-coded surveyor's books and three volumes of daily operations records (containing the only narrative material in the collection) have been preserved in the original.

More than half of the Salling, Hanson records were discarded. In addition to alternate years of the journals and lumber journals, several series of records were entirely discarded. Day books and cash books were discarded because information recorded in them was duplicated in the journals and ledgers. Merchandise ledgers and cash books for the Salling, Hanson Company store were discarded, along with lumber order books and a few miscellaneous volumes.

The Salling, Hanson microfilm series concludes with records of several companies with which Rasmus Hanson was affiliated. Hanson Lumber Company records (1901-1907) consist of one ledger and one journal. R. Hanson and Sons records (1909-1912) consist of a record of cars received. Hanson Land Company records (1914-1927) consist of ledgers, journals, and log records. Grayling Box Company records (1918-1943) consist of journals, sales journals, and payroll books. Finally, Grayling Hotel records (1916-1936) consist of ledger and journal books.

Tecumseh, Michigan, builder; account books and miscellaneous family papers.

The collection consists of account books of Salmon Crane's business activities, including a ledger previously used for the accounts, 1838-1841, of Spafford and Smith, Tecumseh merchants, and as day book, 1857-1858, of the Tecumseh Herald newspaper. In addition, there are miscellaneous papers of Crane's sons, Theodore H. and Eugene W. Crane, both soldiers in Co. E, 18th Michigan Infantry during the Civil War. Other family members represented in the collection include Charles S. and Verner B. Crane. Photographer Walker Evans was the great-grandson of Salmon Crane.

Founder of the S.S. Kresge Company. Business and personal files relating to his financial dealings and to his involvement with various churches and educational institutions; also photographs.

The Sebastian S. Kresge Papers are divided into two series: Business Records, and Personal Records. The papers were microfilmed in 1994 and are available for inter-library loan. The collection was filmed in its entirety except for a few folders of financial data, such as stock and business receipts.

Papers of the Squier family of Battle Creek, Michigan. Include letters and diary of John E. Hickman, Civil War soldier in Co. C, 13th Michigan Infantry; letters and miscellanea of Theodore L. Squier, Sr., University of Michigan undergraduate student, medical student and instructor ca. 1914-1921 and Nina La Barge Squier, student in the University of Michigan Nurses' Training Program, 1919-1920; and letters and miscellanea of several family members who served in WWII. Also some records of the American Manufacturing Company of Battle Creek, Michigan.

The Squier Family Papers are organized into nine series, eight series of documents related to specific members or branches of the family and one series of photographs.