Collections : [University of Michigan Bentley Historical Library]

Ben East was a prominent Michigan outdoorsman and outdoor writer. The bulk of his career was spent as a writer and editor for Outdoor Life, a nationally distributed outdoors magazine. Additionally, he wrote for a number of Michigan-based newspapers and publications, and was a prominent Michigan conservationist.

The Ben East papers contain material dating from as early as 1935 and spanning the next 45 years of his career as an outdoorsman, writer, and conservationist with the bulk of the materials focusing on his career as an outdoor writer and editor. The collection is divided into five series: Editorial Copy, Personal Papers, Photographs, Publications, and Topical Files.

Historian of the C.C.C. in Michigan. Research materials.

The Symon collection consists of research material created and accumulated for his book on the C.C.C. in Michigan. Included are correspondence with, and reminiscences of, former CCC members, miscellaneous CCC publications, newspaper clippings, and photographs.

Governor of Michigan, writer, businessman; papers include correspondence, business records, speeches, writings, visual materials, diaries.

The Osborn collection consists of correspondence, diaries, business papers, scrapbooks, photographs, and other materials accumulated during his life. Materials prior to 1889 are scarce possibly because of a fire which destroyed Osborn's home; thereafter and up to the time of his death in 1949, the Osborn papers are voluminous, documenting each of this man's varied activities. Although his career as elected public official was limited to one term as governor, the collection reflects the importance of his life in areas beyond politics alone. His voice was heard, in letters and speeches and monographs, speaking out on the issues of the day - prohibition, conservation, the New Deal, and of course his life-long interest in the development of Michigan's Upper Peninsula economy and natural resources.

Outdoor writer and photographer for The Ann Arbor News, advocate of environment issues, author of local interest and music review columns; articles written and photographs taken by Fulton, personal correspondence and documentation of awards received.

This collection documents Doug Fulton's career as a journalist and photographer for The Ann Arbor News. Personal correspondence and clippings are also included. The collection is divided into four series: Articles, Personal, Visual Materials, and Subject Files.

Founded in 1970, the Ecology Center of Ann Arbor is a grassroots community organization committed to increasing environmental awareness. Records include meeting minutes, financial statements, correspondence, news clippings, photographs and publications relating to the activities and functions of the organization, especially in the areas of recycling, energy conservation, and ecology.

The records of the Ecology Center document the efforts of this grassroots community organization to increase environmental awareness through the establishment of recycling and energy conservation programs, and by publicizing the need for pesticide control and responsible solid waste disposal among other issues. The series in the record group are: Administrative Files, Topical Files, Printed Materials and Publicity, and Visual Materials.

The Friends of the Jordan River Watershed. Records contains the organizational and non-organizational records of conservation activities pertaining to the Jordan River and other fresh water bodies in the northwest corner of Michigan's Lower Peninsula.

The Friends of the Jordan River Watershed Records makes a significant contribution to understanding late twentieth and early twenty-first century environmental advocacy within the state of Michigan, especially in the Lower Peninsula's northwest corner as it relates to conservation of freshwater systems. Further, FOJ's engagement with state and local government agencies illuminates the ways in which it has been able to increase the political and regulatory salience of environmental protection, despite and amidst the simultaneous rising influence of energy companies. The records will be useful for any researcher seeking to explore these dynamics and many others related to environmental justice.

The Friends of the Jordan River Watershed Records provides evidence of the organization's efforts to maintain the environmental and water quality of the Jordan River and its supporting water system. The collection is arranged into two series: Internal Business and External Business.

Republican Governor of Michigan, 1962-1969; Presidential candidate, 1968; Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, 1969-1972. Papers consist of extensive correspondence and subject files from his tenure as governor, campaign material, and files relating to service at HUD and his other political activities, includes photographs, films and videotapes and sound recordings.

The papers of George Romney document the many faceted career of an automobile executive, governor of Michigan, candidate for President, cabinet officer, and activist on behalf of volunteerism. In this electronic version of the finding aid to the Romney papers, there are six subgroups of materials. These are Gubernatorial Papers covering the period of 1962 to 1969, Pre-gubernatorial Papers covering the period before taking office in 1963, Post-gubernatorial Papers covering the period after 1968, records of Romney Associates (a group established during his bid for the presidency), Visual Materials covering mainly the period up to 1969, and Sound Recordings also covering up to 1969. There is some overlapping of dates, particularly around the time when Romney was first elected governor in 1962 and the period when he joined the Nixon administration in 1969. The researcher should also note that the papers of Lenore Romney are not part of this finding aid.

The Glen Sheppard Papers document the research and writing undertaken by Sheppard during his 40-year tenure as editor, publisher, and writer for the North Woods Call, a small conservation newspaper dedicated to the stewardship and protection of Northern Michigan's natural resources. The collection's three series contain Sheppard's articles and writings, press releases and newspaper articles written by others, government reports and publications, audio and visual materials.

The Glen Sheppard Papers comprises materials collected and maintained by Glen Sheppard over the course of his career as editor and writer for the North Woods Call. The collection is divided into three series entitled Topical Files (First Alphabet), Topical Files (Second Alphabet), and Visual Materials. The Topical Files (First Alphabet) series contains materials on a greater array of topics than the Second Alphabet, though the latter is the larger of the two series. The two Topical files have been kept separate in accordance with Sheppard's own filing system. Materials within topical headings have likewise been maintained largely as Sheppard had organized them. Photographs are found interspersed with other materials in various topical files throughout the collection. The Visual Materials series comprises photographs, negatives, and maps that have been filed separately from the rest of the collection. A large proportion of the photographs in this series are alphabetized according to topic. Such topics include wildlife (namely birds, fish, and game animals), hunting and fishing, people (mainly politicians and important figures involved in Michigan conservation), and landscape photographs.

The Topical Files are primarily composed of various drafts of articles, press releases and newspaper articles written by other environmental journalists, research materials and notes, correspondence (mainly faxes), and photographs. The collection also contains a great deal of material pertaining to various government agencies, including bills and acts of legislation, memoranda, interoffice communications, reports and research studies, and pamphlets and other literature published and distributed by said agencies. These agencies include government bodies devoted to conservation issues, chief among which is the DNR (Department of Natural Resources). Other government agencies represented in this collection include the NRC (Natural Resources Commission) and the DEQ (Department of Environmental Quality). The collection also contains selected clippings from the North Woods Call along with logistical papers pertaining to the Call's operation.

The collection features materials on a broad array of topics of environmental import for the state of Michigan. The First Alphabet and Second Alphabet series feature articles, reports, environmental impact statements, and resource management plans pertaining to environmental issues impacting particular Michigan towns and counties. Such issues include the impact of corporations, factories, oil and gas resource exploitation, and pollution. The collection also includes files on the topics of land use management, water resource management, fisheries management, and Native American rights to Michigan's natural resources. The collection contains Sheppard's researches on Michigan flora and fauna (concentrated in the Second Alphabet series), with particular emphasis on deer, wolves, bears, and various species of fish. Sheppard's researches also include coverage of endangered wildlife, invasive species, and zoological diseases. The collection contains articles and research materials concerning hunting, fishing, tourism, and outdoorsmanship. Michigan's islands, rivers, lakes (particularly the Great Lakes), national and state parks, nature preserves and conservancies, wilderness areas, and wildlife refuges are all well represented in the collection (mainly in the Second Alphabet series). The collection also includes papers pertaining to the administrations of Michigan governors John Engler and Jennifer Granholm.

Traverse City, Michigan, free-lance writer and conservation editor of Field and Stream magazine; correspondence, manuscripts of writings, diaries, topical files, and photographs.

The collection includes correspondence, manuscript articles, and conservation columns; materials collected by the Michigan Writers' Program concerning Michigan logging; also diaries, speeches, newspaper clippings, notebooks, genealogy, photographs, and miscellaneous material concerning Titus' interest in conservation, forestry, and fishing.

Professor of law and president of the University of Michigan. Papers include correspondence, reports, and speeches relating to all aspects of his University activities; and visual materials.

The Harry B. Hutchins papers cover the years 1879 through 1929, and include records generated during his years as professor and dean of the law department, President of the University of Michigan, and in retirement. Boxes 1-18 are primarily comprised of correspondence. Reports of the departments, schools, and other units of the university are contained in box 19, folders 30-32, and box 20, folders 1-13. As president, Hutchins did not regularly submit annual reports to the Board of Regents. Additional materials include speeches, photographs, and biographical material.

Timber manager of the Kneeland Bigelow Company of Bay City, Michigan. Autobiography; correspondence, 1899-1924 (scattered); Kneeland-Bigelow Company records, 1912 and 1923-1929; subject files relating to his interest in conservation, reforestation, forest fire prevention, local Republican party affairs, road improvement, and the development of the northern Lower Peninsula as a tourist and recreational region.

Documenting his business and public service activities, the Herman Lunden papers cover the period from the late 1890s to 1929. The collection includes Biographical/Personal material; Correspondence; Kneeland-Bigelow records; and an Alphabetical File.

Detroit Free Press outdoor writer and later faculty member in the University of Michigan School of Natural Resources. Files of Detroit Free Press outdoor pages and conservation articles, clippings, and photographs, correspondence, and notes on Michigan conservation history, pesticides, pollution, plants and animals, hunting and fishing, parks, rivers and lakes, conservation writing, and ecology; also manuscript of history of conservation in Michigan with background information; and materials gathered for intended biographical study of Michigan conservationists.

As a long-time observer of the Michigan conservation scene, Van Coevering collected a wide range of materials to document the history of hunting, fishing, and wildlife management, the development of state parks and forests, political development of the Department of Conservation and Conservation Commission, concerns about pollution and pesticide poisoning, and other conservation and environmental matters in Michigan. This collection is made up of his writings and background materials on all these topics.

The collection contains only a part of Van Coevering's papers. His "personal" papers were destroyed by his widow after his death. Included here are "historical" papers collected in the course of his work as an outdoor writer. The papers include press releases, clippings, memoranda, reports, and other documents collected by Van Coevering as well as correspondence. Van Coevering's outgoing correspondence is generally of the information-seeking type, and provides little insight into his ideas.

The collection is divided into five major series: Publications, Reference file, School of Natural Resources file, Michigan conservation history file, and Photographs. There is also a small folder of obituaries and other personal information in Box 1. In 1996, the library received an addition to the collection. This 1996 accession from Frank Angelo includes the manuscript of "A Brief History of Conservation in Michigan," and the accompanying research as well as background research for a proposed history of prominent Michigan conservationists.

Michigan based author of adventure stories set in Alaska and Canada, screen writer and motion picture executive, and conservationist, a founding member of Izaak Walton League and member of Michigan Conservation Commission. Papers documenting his literary, film and conservation activities include manuscripts of books, screenplays and other writing and correspondence and photographs.

The James Oliver Curwood papers include correspondence, newspaper clippings, scrapbooks, manuscripts of publications, copies of books, and miscellanea; include material concerning his literary activities, the writing and production of motion pictures, his promotion of conservation causes, especially forest fire prevention, deer herd management, and the campaign against water pollution, and his work with the Conservation Commission, particularly his disputes with the Michigan Department of Conservation, Governor Alexander J. Groesbeck, and state director of conservation, John Baird; also copies of correspondence collected by Ivan Conger.

Photographs include pictures taken on hunting and fishing trips to British Columbia, the Canadian Northwest, and other areas of Canada; portraits; and photos of the Saginaw River (Michigan), and of pollution caused by the Michigan Sugar Company; also one film (two videotape copies), including scenes from God's Country and the Law.

Republican member of the Michigan state legislature (House and Senate, 1971-1990); governor of Michigan (1991-2003); active member of the Republican Governors' Association and the National Governors' Association. The Engler collection consists primarily of materials created and maintained by Governor Engler and his staff during the period when he was governor, 1991-2003. Other records include papers from his several terms in the Michigan House and the Michigan Senate. The collection includes papers files, photographs, sound recordings, videotapes, memorabilia, and some electronic files. The gubernatorial files are arranged mainly by unit or functional responsibility within the governor's office. These series are Executive Office, Communications Division, Legal Division, State Government Affairs, Legislative Affairs Division, Operations Division, External Affairs, Scheduling, Washington DC Office, and Office of the First Lady. Topics extensively documented include state welfare and school funding reform, reorganization of state boards and commissions, notably the restructuring of the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, and Republican party politics.

The John Engler papers are the most important source available for the study of Michigan's state government from 1991 to 2002. The collection is particularly strong on the topics of welfare and school funding reform, state government reorganization and the rising impact of the National Governors' Association in state and national politics. Engler's efforts to attract commerce to Michigan are also well-documented. The materials are arranged into two main subgroups: Pre-gubernatorial Papers and Gubernatorial Papers. The bulk of the material relates to Engler's gubernatorial career, therefore, the analysis that follows focuses primarily on this subgroup.

The materials in the "Gubernatorial Papers" subgroup are arranged according to the offices and subdivisions of the governor's office that created them. This means that the governor's speeches and press releases, for example, may be found within a grouping or "series" called "Communications Division," within the "Gubernatorial" subgroup, while legislative histories for various public acts may be found within the "Legislative Affairs" series.

While some kinds of documents were produced uniquely by one division, other kinds were produced in several divisions of the governor's office. The governor's correspondence, for example, was drafted and approved by several different staff members. Letters to important business and political leaders may be found within the "Executive Office" series, the "State Government Affairs" series, and the "Washington DC Office" series in particular. There no comprehensive chronological correspondence file.

In using the collection, the researcher should think functionally and ask who would have created the information sought. For example, the policy advisors in the State Government Affairs Division created individual topical files which gathered together correspondence and research materials to support briefing memoranda which they presented to the governor, while the speechwriters in the Communications Division often gathered different types of materials to help them shape the presentation of the same policies to the public.

Ann Arbor, Michigan, businessman, publisher of Ann Arbor Courier, Republican politician, and regent of University of Michigan. Correspondence, letter books, speeches, newspaper clippings, and photographs; papers (1909-1920) of Michigan Public Domain Commission, of which Beal was a member; papers (1877-1904) concerning Port Huron Gas Light Company; and printed material and miscellanea (1885-1905) concerning League of American Wheelmen and his interest in bicycling.

The Junius E. Beal papers include correspondence, papers accumulated from his various interests and organizational activities, subject files, speeches, newspaper clippings, and photographs. The series in the collection include: Correspondence, Michigan Public Domain Commission, Topical Files; and Other Materials. Most of the files in the collection relate in some way to Beal's life in Ann Arbor, either as a student, a businessman, a public figure, as someone who took civic responsibility seriously and was determined to serve his community and the university that he loved.

Professor of fisheries and zoology at University of Michigan. Correspondence files detailing his professional career and his interests in conservation, ichthyology, and fishery research and development.

The original order of the Karl Frank Lagler papers has been maintained and comprises one alphabetically arranged series of topical files.

The bulk of the documents within the files consist of correspondence between Lagler and other fishery biologists throughout the world. Also included, however, are files containing reports and minutes of meetings from a number of scientific and sporting associations in which Lagler was active. Lagler's research interests are well represented in the several groups of files dedicated to his various research projects. His work with salmon in Alaska as a consultant for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in the summer of 1958 is particularly well documented. Research project files are alphabetized by geographic place name (i.e., Fleming Creek; Golden Lake; Port Walter, Alaska). In addition to background materials, notes, and final reports on the research project, many of these files contain a substantial amount of raw data on several Michigan lakes and ponds. Together, Lagler's correspondence with his colleagues, the materials he collected concerning his activities with a variety of organizations, and his own research materials chronicle the development of fishery conservation as a profession and as a science in the 1940s and 1950s.

The collection contains a fair amount of correspondence concerning several of Lagler's publications, but not as much as might be expected from such a prolific scholar. Although some course and University materials are included in the collection, there is little documentation of Lagler's administrative work as Chair of the Department of Fisheries from 1950 to 1965. Likewise, there is little documentation of Lagler's activities as a consultant for numerous foreign governments as well as for the United Nations.

Lagler filed his correspondence either by the last name of the correspondent or by subject. Therefore, researchers should search for materials on specific topics by both correspondent and subject.

Local and state League of Women Voters official, Dearborn, Michigan, civic activist. Papers relating to her organizational involvements, especially Church Women United, 1962-1969; the Citizens Committee for Equal Opportunity, 1963-1969; the Governor's Special Conservation Study Committee, 1963-1964; the state office and Dearborn chapter of the League of Women Voters, 1950-1970; the Michigan Constitutional Convention, 1961-1963; the Michigan Council of Churches, 1963-1969; the Northwestern Child Guidance Clinic, 1962-1966; also files relating to her opposition to parochiaid, or public funding of private schools; and photograph.

The papers, 1950-1970, of Katherine Moore Cushman reflect her involvement in several organizations. They have been arranged alphabetically by organization.

Papers, of the Josiah Littlefield family of Monroe County and Farwell, Clare County, Michigan. Correspondence, typescript of autobiography, and excerpted typescript of University of Michigan student diary, 1867-1871, of Josiah Littlefield, surveyor, lumberman, and conservationist; also letters of other members of the Littlefield and Hall families; and photographs.

The Littlefield family collection documents several generations in the life of a family which migrated from Grafton, New York about 1830, and came to Michigan, settling first near Ash in Monroe County and later in Farwell in Clare County. The collection (311 items) spans the period of 1834 to 1935, and consists almost entirely of letters among family members, though there is a small group of printed items dealing with University of Michigan activities and life in Farwell, Michigan. Included with the papers are the correspondence, autobiography, and excerpted diary of Josiah Littlefield. There is also correspondence of Littlefield's wife, Ellen Hart Littlefield, his mother, Mary Hall Littlefield, his daughter, Ellen Littlefield Elder, and his uncle, Edmund Hall.

The correspondence comprising the collection includes several recurring subjects: schooling, medical treatment, social customs, religious matters (selecting ministers, sermons, and church activities), agriculture (types of crops grown and prices received), food prices in Michigan, fashions of domestic furnishings (see Josiah Littlefield folder: September 13, 1874, September 24, 1874, October 4, 1874 and January 1, 1874 from Ellen Hart Littlefield; Mary Hall Littlefield folder: October 14, 1874 from Josiah Littlefield; Ellen Hart Littlefield folder: March 3, 1875 from Lucy Hart and October 5, 1873, letter from Josiah Littlefield; see Ellen Hart Littlefield folder: April 25, 1875 from Jessie Hart Williams).

Interesting though brief descriptions of Oberlin College in the 1830's occur in letters from Edmund Hall (see Martha Smith Hall folder: February 15, 1840 from Edmund Hall; and Mary Hall Littlefield folder: May 21, 1836 and October 11, 1836 from Edmund Hall). Mr. Hall apparently became involved in abolition activities in Michigan in the mid 1840's. A listing of seven speeches scheduled for September or October, 1844 is in the first Edmund Hall folder.

In the area of women's history, parts of the collection cover several topics of interest in addition to those referred to as recurring subjects. Martha Smith Hall, Josiah Littlefield's maternal grandmother left her husband E.F. Hall in New York state about 1830 and migrated to Michigan with her children. She managed to establish a new home and raise and educate her family without any economic help from her husband. (see Martha Hitchcock folder: February 2, 1854 from E.F. Hall, October 12, 1855 from Carolina A. Kinsley; see Edmund Hall folder: August 13, 1855 and August 21, 1855 from Carolina A. Kinsley, October 20, 1855 from Martha Hitchcock, and October 2, 1855 to Mrs. Kinsley from Edmund Hall).

Reference to a case of post-natal depression so severe that it culminated in temporary insanity and the killing of a child occurs in the Josiah Littlefield folder (January 15, 1875 from Ellen Hart Littlefield). Descriptions of another serious post-natal depression are contained in the Josiah Littlefield folder (January 15, 1875 from Ellen hart Littlefield and May 21, 1877 from Margaret Hart).

Michigan Citizens Against Toxic Substances (MCATS) was a grassroots environmental organization that was formed in response to a proposed hazardous waste disposal facility in Augusta Township, Michigan. MCATS raised awareness in the surrounding communities about the dangers against such a facility, through technical research, meetings, press releases and various other activities. The records reflect MCATS’ active opposition against the proposed hazardous waste facility.

The records of Michigan Citizens Against Toxic Substances relate to its activities as a grassroots environmental organization. The material documents their active opposition to the proposed hazardous waste disposal facility on top of the Arkona Road Landfill. The bulk of the record group dates from the creation of MCATS in 1989 to 1998 when plans for the facility were withdrawn.

The Lansing-based Michigan Environmental Council (MEC) formed in 1980 to coordinate lobbying and other member activities, distribute information, and monitor the environmental policies of state government. More recently, the council has focused almost exclusively on distributing information, directing funding, and building broad consensus on land use issues. The MEC records include information on significant environmental issues in Michigan as well as administrative papers pertaining to the council's operation.

The Michigan Environmental Council records depict the incremental growth of one of Michigan's pre-eminent environmental organizations. In addition to administrative records dealing with the council's operation, the record group also contain information on key environmental issues, major council initiatives, and MEC members. These records therefore will be of value to those interested in the environmental movement, Michigan legislative process, and the development of non-profit organizations.