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.

Environmental group formed in 1978 by landowners in Clare County, Michigan in resistance to government plan to use pesticide to control gypsy moth population. The organization has since broadened its focus to include other environmental issues such as solid waste management, wetlands protection, the use of herbicides, concerns about toxic waste, and problems of pollution in Michigan. Series in this record group include organizational files, Eco Conferences, subject files, and related organizations. Organizational files includes minutes, newsletters, reports, correspondence, grant proposals, and other materials relating to the work of the organization. The Eco Conferences series documents annual conference bringing together speakers to lead talks and workshops. This series includes annual planning files and audiocassettes and videocassettes of the conferences. Subject files contains correspondence, reports, background information, and other information on environmental issues. Related organizations consists of files on other Michigan and local environmental groups.

The Citizens for Alternatives to Chemical Contamination record group provides an in-depth look at the life of a very active and influential Michigan environmental organization, for a period of nearly two decades -- from 1978 to 1997. While describing in particular the activities of one individual organization, the collection also lends itself to research about environmental issues and Michigan environmental organizations in general. The collection is arranged into four record series: Organizational Files, Eco Conferences, Subject Files, and Related Organizations.

Student papers, 1930-1987 prepared for classes in history at the University of Michigan (primarily Michigan history class taught by Lewis G. VanderVelde, but also including research papers for classes taught by Sidney Fine and others); topics concern Michigan social and political history; Michigan biography and bibliography; and local community history.

The student papers are organized alphabetically by author in two series, which are similar in date range and topics covered. Topics of papers concern Michigan social and political history; Michigan biography and bibliography; local community history and University of Michigan history. A topical index to the papers is available in the first box of the collection.

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.

Citizens action group concerned with health and environmental issues. Series in record group include Administrative, Grants and Proposals, Litigation, Topical, and Great Lakes and Water Resources Planning Commission.

The records of the East Michigan Environmental Action Council (EMEAC) comprise 8 linear feet of materials spanning the years 1969-1989. The records have been retained in the order maintained by the organization and consist of 5 series: Administrative, Grants and Proposals, Litigation, Topical, and Great Lakes and Water Resources Planning Commission. The collection documents the founding of EMEAC, its development and operation as an important grass-roots organization, as well as a variety of environmental issues affecting southeast Michigan.

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.

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.

Granholm was the Democratic governor of Michigan from 2003 to 2010. Records are primarily arranged by office of origin and staff member and document Granholm's service as governor. The series in the collection are: Transition 2002, Legal Division, Policy Division, Executive Office, Communications Division, Economic Recovery Office, Northern Michigan Office, Other Executive Divisions, Office of the Lieutenant Governor, Office of the First Gentleman, Archived Websites, and Memorabilia. The collection includes paper, digital materials, and audio-visual materials. Extensively documented topics include economic diversification, renewable energy, environmental issues, education, Michigan's response to the 2008 financial crisis, the Governor's Hearing on the Removal of Kwame Kilpatrick from the office of Mayor of Detroit, and Michigan soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Jennifer Granholm papers document the activities, policies, and accomplishments of the executive branch of Michigan's state government from 2003 to 2010. The collection consists of twelve series and is primarily arranged according to office of origin. The series are: Transition 2002, Legal Division, Policy Division, Executive Office, Communications Division, Economic Recovery Office, Northern Michigan Office, Other Executive Divisions, Office of the Lieutenant Governor, Office of the First Gentleman, Archived Websites, and Memorabilia. While the collection documents the full range of Governor Granholm's activities, it is especially strong in documenting the governor's efforts in the areas of economic diversification, renewable energy, education, and Michigan's response to the 2008 financial crisis. Also of note are the documents pertaining to the Governor's Hearing on the Removal of Kwame Kilpatrick from the office of Mayor of Detroit, the Legal Division files on the state's interactions with Michigan's Native American tribes, the administration's work on behalf of the University of Michigan in the Gratz and Grutter affirmative action lawsuits, the administration's response to Proposal 2, and dossiers kept on each Michigan soldier killed in action in Iraq and Afghanistan.