Collections : [University of Michigan Bentley Historical Library]

Professor of economics at University of Michigan, 1880-1921, statistician for the Interstate Commerce Commission, 1887-1911, developed standard accounting procedures for railroads. Papers include personal and professional correspondence, diaries, travel journals, drafts of books, letter books, reports and printed materials concerning his work with the Interstate Commerce Commission, his activities as an expert witness in railroad compensation and tax cases, and University of Michigan affairs.

The Henry Carter Adams papers consist of personal and professional correspondence, diaries, travel journals, drafts of books, letter books, reports and printed materials concerning his work with the Interstate Commerce Commission, his activities as an expert witness in railroad compensation and tax cases, and University of Michigan affairs.

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.

Ann Arbor German-American family, owners of the Allmendinger Organ Company which later became the Ann Arbor Organ Company. Correspondence, scrapbooks, family genealogy, photographs concerning family affairs, materials on Helene Allmendinger's radio show, examples of spirit messages received by Helene Allmendinger from deceased family members; information pertaining to the Ann Arbor Organ Company, and family members still living in Germany.

The collection is divided into the following series: Family records and correspondence; Helene Allmendinger papers; Ina Allmendinger papers; Ann Arbor Organ Company; Harriet Birch papers, Other family members; Miscellaneous, and Photographs.

Minutes of board meetings, membership and treasurer's records, scrapbooks, and photographs.

The record group includes minutes of meetings, membership materials, and treasurer's records of the Young Men's Christian Association dating from 1902 to 1933. The history of the women's association is documented in greater detail with minutes and scrapbooks, dating back to 1894 and extending to the mid-1950s. There is very little material from the 1950s on.

Dr. Charlotte LeBreton Johnson Baker was a University of Michigan alumna (M.D., class of 1881) and San Diego, California physician who specialized in obstetrics and gynecology. Widely regarded as San Diego's first female physician, Baker was a prominent suffragist who also participated in numerous San Diego organizations. Consists of individual and group photographs of Baker and family members.

The collection consists of individual and group photographs of Baker and family members.

Monthly and annual reports, photographs, newspaper clippings, communicable disease record, dangerous disease record, and tuberculosis record.

The record group includes annual and monthly reports and minutes of the Michigan Community Health Program and the Hastings Health Service Committee. In addition, there are record books detailing the incidences of communicable diseases, tuberculosis, and "dangerous diseases" in the county. The photograph series includes photographs illustrating department activities. Of interest is an album, 1942, with photos of one-room schools in Barry County.

Correspondence and other files of Margaret Bell, chairman of the Department of Physical Education for Women of the University of Michigan, and physician in the University Health Service. Materials relate to University activities, conferences and speeches, copies of articles and other writings, and photographs.

The papers support the work and activities of Margaret Bell as Professor of Physical Education, Chairman of Department of Physical Education for Women, and a physician in Health Services at the University of Michigan from 1923 to 1956, and are divided into two sub-groups of personal activities and those specific to the University of Michigan.

The strength of the papers is found in the correspondence and reports which show the growth of physical education programs for women at the University and the identification of issues important to physical education and health in the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s, with the correspondence, speeches, and publications of Margaret Bell. Historical records about the Women's Athletic Building and the Women's Athletic Association are also important.

Significant correspondents include: Amos Alonzo Stagg, John Dewey, and Elmer D. Mitchell, as well as other physical education professionals: Elizabeth Halsey, Ernest Jokl, Julian Smith, Ruth Glassow, Jay B. Nash, Charles Harold McCloy, Mable Lee, Vance Blanchard, and Charles Forsyth.

Topics of special note include the article, "Athletic Competition for Women," written for AAU March, 29, 1954, as well as other articles about the physiological effects of exercise and sport for women. During the 1950s and early 1960s college women participated in playdays and sportsdays, rather than the organized intercollegiate athletic programs of the present day. There was concern that women were not physically capable of such strenuous demands of full-court basketball and were limited by the rules to half-court play during the 1950's, with two rovers being added in the 1960's.

Amateur photographer; sixty-two reels of film shot by Benz on various trips.

When the University of Michigan Media Resources Collection was accessioned by the Bentley Historical Library, a number of films were discovered in the vault that were not related to that collection. Within that material were travel films shot by Fred E. Benz. These films document Benz's travels around the world between 1929 and 1950. The films had been edited together and were probably used by Benz for presentation to local groups and as home entertainment.

The Fred E. Benz Collection contains sixty-two, 400 foot reels of silent 16mm film. It is made up of eight series, one for each trip taken. The series are: Africa, Australia/New Zealand, Guatemala, Havana, Mexico, Russia, South America, and a World Cruise. The contents of each reel are described in the finding aid. Benz has included handwritten descriptions of the images found on the Russian and World Cruise series attached to the inside lids of each can of film. Benz was careful to document most of the locations with a handwritten note displayed before the camera. When cities or natural markers are noted in the finding aid, the identifying information was taken from that supplied by the film maker on the screen or from his notes in the can lids. The spelling of geographic locations in the finding aid reflect the information on the film and not current spellings.

Short notes found with the Mexican footage indicate it was the result of two different trips. The reels retain their original numbering because the numbered reels (1,2,3,4) appear to comprise one trip and numbered/lettered reels (1a, 3a, 4a) comprise the second trip.

The value of the collection is that it captures moments in time, documenting lifestyles, architecture and modes of travel which no longer exist or have evolved over time. Footage exists of London on the eve of war and Shanghai one year before being destroyed by the Japanese invasion.

Perhaps the greater value lies in the depiction of the indigenous lifestyles captured on film. Benz, as an amateur photographer, was interested in the common events that he experienced as he traveled. The collection features extensive recordings of people working or playing, and children of different cultures going about their daily activities. The films show barren huts in remote areas of Russia in the 1930s, families living under stone bridges outside of Buenos Aires, life-saving competitions in Sydney and the plethora of street markets found in most cultures and countries that he traveled through.

Because these are travel films, the scope of the footage included often extends beyond the geographic area used to identify the series. For example, the Australia footage includes material filmed on various Pacific islands, the Asian continent and Japan. The Russian trip contains footage of England and Northern Europe, and the South American films contain shots of the departure from New York. Each series should be examined for additional geographic content.

Special attention should be given to the Mexican series containing film recordings of Mt. Rushmore with construction only partially complete. Included as well are extensive shots of bullfighting in addition to other Mexican scenes. Also of note is the extensive depiction of women throughout all of the series. On the canister containing reel 5 in the Russia series is a receipt from United States Navy Department stating that this reel was being forwarded to Chicago for study of the shots of Kirkenes, Norway.

The color in the Africa, Guatemala, Havana, Mexico and South America series is excellent. The wide, clean, lush cityscapes of Havana and Capetown are richly captured in color and give an indication why they were popular travel destinations at this time.

In addition to the eight travel series, the collection also included one reel of World War II footage assembled by Castle Films from public domain footage. This type of film was sold through camera stores and mail order houses and Benz probably purchased a reel for his own use. The identifying writing on the film can is in Benz's handwriting and clearly belonged with his collection.

Formerly the Bethlehem Evangelical Church. Minutes of annual congregational meetings, church council and board of trustees meetings, and treasurer's reports; records of the Frauen Vereines, or Ladies Aid Society, and Verein, or the Bethlehem Brotherhood, and the Jugend Vereins, or Youth Fellowship; fundraising materials, miscellaneous printed programs and newsletters, correspondence and clippings; treasurer's book, 1909-1916; and photographs.

The Bethlehem United Church of Christ of Ann Arbor records span one hundred and forty years, from 1833 to 1973. The materials, partially in German, provide a good view of the congregation's history. Included are minutes and constitutions of the congregational annual meetings which span the period, 1855 to 1922. There are also records of the church council complete from 1897 to 1919, and financial records and treasurer's reports, and fund raising materials. There are records of several church organizations and photographs of church buildings and activities.

Charlotte, Michigan, attorney, legal advisor to Governors Frank Fitzgerald and Luren Dickinson and justice of the Michigan Supreme Court. Correspondence, newspaper clippings and other materials on Michigan politics, the Republican Party, and his association with Governor Dickinson; scrapbook, 1885-1889, compiled by Fred A. Pennington; account book, 1904-1905; day book, 1941; log book, 1942, of Beaver Island cabin; and miscellaneous notebooks and photograph albums.

The Emerson Boyles papers consist of correspondence, newspaper clippings and other materials on Michigan politics, the Republican Party, and his association with Governor Dickinson; a scrapbook, 1885-1889, compiled by Fred A. Pennington; account book, 1904-1905; day book, 1941; log book, 1942, of Beaver Island cabin; and miscellaneous notebooks and photograph albums. The collection has been arranged into three series: Correspondence and other papers; Miscellaneous personal and family; and Photographs.

Historian, manuscript curator, and the director of the Detroit Historical Museum; collected historical materials and various activities files.

The Henry D. Brown papers are divided into three series, the Collected and research materials series, the Personal and miscellaneous series, and the August 2017 Accession.

Battle Creek, Michigan, resident; glass negatives of houses and house interiors, of children, women, boating scenes, and a railroad car, possibly taken in the Battle Creek, Michigan area.

The collection is arranged into a single series of glass negative with two subseries for different sizes (4"x5" and5"x8"). The negatives are unidentified, but they are probably of a Battle Creek area family or families, perhaps the family of Burns's wife, Betty Hoyt.

Educator, director of the Lewis Institute in Chicago, Illinois; professional and personal correspondence, diaries, and photographs.

The George N. Carman collection includes professional and family correspondence, autobiography and related materials, diaries 1875-1880, partly concerning his student life at University of Michigan, genealogical materials, photographs, and miscellanea relating to the Lewis Institute.

Detroit based philanthropic foundation created by Senator James J. Couzens and administered by William J. Norton to fund organizations in Michigan involved in child health and child guidance; includes administrative records, correspondence, reports of field visits, and topical files.

In the period beginning from the start of the depression and continuing through the mid-1950s, the Children's Fund of Michigan (CFM) was the state's most important private source of funding for programs having to do with children's health and recreational needs. Established just as the depression was beginning, it is impossible to overestimate the contribution made by this organization in such areas as rudimentary child health and dental care, pediatric care, in the establishment of area children's clinics, in its grants to nursing associations and hospitals, in its sponsorship of research in areas pertaining to childhood diseases and ailments, and in the funding and support of such youth-related organizations as the Girls and Boys Scouts, the Green Pastures Camp for Detroit area African American youth, and the Society of St. Vincent de Paul. The organization affected thousands of young lives at a time when help was most needed. The record of its contribution is fully documented through such records as minutes, correspondence, reports from the field, memoranda, and financial records. Topics documented within this collection include the condition of children and young people in mid-Twentieth Century America as the nation went through depression, world war, and the uncertainties of the post-war; the administration of a unique multi-million dollar charitable organization and how it allocated its resources; and, lastly, the activities during a twenty-five year period of the several statewide organizations begun or largely supported with CFM funding.

This record group consists of files from the CFM office in Detroit. The files are of CFM executive director and secretary, William J. Norton, and various other division directors, in particular Maud Watson and John M. Dorsey of the Child Guidance Division and Bernard W. Carey of the Child Health Division. They cover the period of 1929-1954, the twenty-five year life of the Fund, although there are included some papers dating up to the early 1960s. The presence of this later dated material is easily explained. As someone who was involved in social welfare organizations other than CFM, Norton continued to use the files (as he had in the past) for those papers relating to his other philanthropic and charitable organization activities. This filing practice, in addition to the fact that Norton (after 1954) continued to receive and file reports and memoranda from organizations and facilities that had received CFM funding, accounts for post-1954 materials in this record group. Norton was so closely identified with both CFM and the numerous local and state charitable organizations of the time that it is not feasible to divorce the two kinds of records - especially as Norton chose to file them as one. The researcher should note that the library has a separate William J. Norton collection that was received separately from the CFM records and which was most likely maintained in a different location. This Norton collection includes more personal materials not necessarily relating to the Children's Fund.

Professor of sociology at University of Michigan. Papers contain correspondence, including letters, 1881-1884, written to his family while traveling in Europe, and correspondence with his parents, Mary E. and Thomas M. Cooley, and his wife, Elsie Jones Cooley; addresses, notes, essays, book reviews, notes and material for sociology courses; student notebook, 1893-1894, on lectures given by John Dewey; diary of a trip through the Smokey Mountains in 1883; and journals detailing his personal thoughts and tracing the evolution of his ideas on sociology and democracy; and photographs.

The Charles Horton Cooley papers consist of correspondence, journals, Cooley's notes for lectures, student notebooks, various writings by Cooley, articles about Cooley and reviews of his books and photographs. The papers, particularly the correspondence, reveal much about Cooley's personal and family life. The journals and lecture notes provide insight into the development of Cooley's ideas and his place in the field of sociology. Though the collection includes only a small amount of correspondence with other leading sociologists, the journals and lecture notes record Cooley's comments on and critiques of the theories and methods in the developing discipline.

Population planning director of Center for Population Planning at the University of Michigan. Diaries, correspondence, research on population planning in China, faculty minutes and general files for Center and Department of Population Planning; also materials relating to the School of Public Health.

The Leslie Corsa, Jr. collection consists of six linear feet of papers covering the years 1937 to 1986. In addition to some biographical material, mainly articles about Corsa and personal notes that he entitled "The Course of My Life" in which he discusses his education and training in the period 1940-1947, the bulk of the collection consists of professional correspondence, personal diaries, and subject files relating almost entirely to his career and professional interest in population planning. These subject files largely reflect Corsa's organizational activities: Center for Population Planning (of the U-M's School of Public Health); Department of Population Planning; and School of Public Health. There is also a China series consisting of correspondence and other materials gathered by Corsa in his study of population planning in China. Much of this research was done jointly with Dr. Pi Chao Chen of Wayne State University. The collection concludes with a series of topical files, some of which concern his association with the American Public Health Association and the Office of Technology Assessment in 1979-1980.

Professor of astronomy at University of Michigan. Personal correspondence, mainly with family, describing his various astronomical expeditions to Chile and Sumatra; also speeches and photographs.

The collection consists mainly of copies of letters to family describing his work in astronomy, trips to Mexico, Sumatra and Europe and comments on current events with frequent references to personal family matters. There is one letter, July 19, 1925, concerning the teaching of evolution in the schools with comments about Clarence Darrow, William Jennings Bryan, and the Scopes trial.

Michigan Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution; minutes of the state executive board, proceedings of the Michigan state conferences, publications, reports, and scrapbooks; also papers concerning their genealogical work, record of activities during World War I and II; historical files for individual chapters of the Michigan DAR; and photographs.

The records of the Daughters of the American Revolution of Michigan document its organization, history, and activities. As the state society of the DAR, the organization also collected material on the activities of the various local chapters. The records have been arranged into the following series: State Executive Board Minutes; State Conference Proceedings (original and published); Reports; Various Records of DAR State Historian; Miscellaneous; Chapter Records (original materials, collected material, and membership yearbooks); Publications; Scrapbooks; Topical files; and Photographs.

Social Service organization serving the Detroit African American community, affiliate of the National Urban League; includes minutes of the Board of Directors, correspondence and topical files of Executive Directors and Presidents, budgets and financial records, and papers concerning National Urban League conferences and Green Pastures Camp; also departmental files relating to community services, housing, vocational services, health and welfare, job development and employment, and education and youth incentives; and photographs.

The records of the Detroit Urban League include minutes of the Board of Directors, correspondence and topical files of Executive Directors and Presidents, budgets and financial records, and papers concerning National Urban League conferences and Green Pastures Camp; also departmental files relating to community services, housing, vocational services, health and welfare, job development and employment, and education and youth incentives. The records also include photographs of chapter activities, meetings, and ceremonies; photos of buildings and staff (notably executive directors, John Dancy and Francis Kornegay); also films.

Gerontologist, faculty member at the University of Michigan, first with the Bureau of Psychological Services, later with the Institute for Human Adjustment, and as co-director of its successor unit, the Institute of Gerontology. Files detailing her participation at various meetings and conferences, her other professional activities and affiliations, research projects files, University of Michigan administrative and teaching materials, and videotapes of presentations at 1979 conference, "White House Conferences as Agents of Social Change", also photographs.

The Wilma T. Donahue papers document her career as a teacher, researcher, and administrator at the University of Michigan. The papers span the years 1945-1990 with the bulk of the material falling within the two decades bound by 1949-1969. The Donahue papers are a subset of the Michigan Historical Collections/Institute of Gerontology Joint Archives in Gerontology and can best be understood as an integral element of that larger set.

The Donahue papers provide a clear insight to the development of the field of gerontology as an academic discipline and as an area of concern for policy makers and the general public. The earliest files reflect Donahue's training as a psychologist as it relates to her research on testing, returning veterans, and the blind. In the late 1940s Donahue and Clark Tibbitts began to research and publish articles on the aging population in America. Donahue's papers reflect this new interest as the focus of her writings now turns to issues of aging: housing, mental and physical health, adult education, and the economics of retirement. These issues dominated Donahue's research for twenty years and her papers document her increasing stature as an influential figure in gerontology at the state and national levels, especially her involvement with the University of Michigan Annual Conferences on Gerontology, the Michigan Commission on Aging, and her "cutting edge" research on housing the aging.

The collection came to the library in different accessions and from different sources. Although there is some overlap, the files as received represent distinct series. These series are Articles, Conferences, Addresses and Meetings, 1949-1970; Professional Activities and Affiliations, 1953-1970; Research Projects, 1955-1971; University of Michigan: Administration and Teaching, 1946-1968; Videotapes: White House Conferences as Agents of Social Change, 1979; International Center for Social Gerontology; and Miscellaneous.