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Collection

Ann Arbor Young Men’s - Young Women's Christian Association (Mich.) records, 1894-1956

2 linear feet — 1 oversize folder

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.

Collection

Arthur Lyon Cross Papers, 1897-1940

16 linear feet — 1 oversize folder

Professor of English history at University of Michigan. Correspondence with European and American historians, publishing houses, editors of learned journals, members of his family, and friends; also manuscripts of books and articles, lecture notes, student records, business papers, personal account books, diaries, 1938-1940, with comments on world events, and miscellaneous papers; and photographs.

The Cross papers are divided into the following series: Correspondence; Miscellaneous and undated papers; Personal/Biographical; University of Michigan; Publications, articles, and related; Research and lecture materials, and Photographs.

Collection

Artin Hovsepian Photograph collection, ca. 1918-1941

81 items (3 boxes)

The Artin Hovsepian photograph collection contains heavily colored portrait crayon enlargements and other portrait photographs created by Artin M. Garabed Hovsepian, an Armenian immigrant who worked as a photographer in Detroit, Michigan during the first half of the twentieth century.

The Artin Hovsepian Collection contains 78 photographic prints, predominantly portrait crayon enlargements. The majority of the subjects are young women, but portraits of men and children are also included. A number of images include props and outfits suggesting first communions, confirmations, and graduations. Other images suggest related religious themes, including a portrait series of a priest, and a group photograph of a religious school class, possibly at St. Albertus School in Detroit, Michigan. Also included in the collection are photographs of buildings from Hovsepian's Detroit neighborhood; animals; one portrait of an African American male; a man in a uniform; a costumed couple; and a group photograph of a 1925 meeting of the National Council of Women. Of special interest is an enlarged carte de visite of the "904-lb. Woman, Big Laura Wolford."

More than half of the collection is comprised of oval hand colored or tinted crayon enlargements colored with a variety of artistic media and techniques including crayon, pastels, airbrushing, and paint. Many of the images are on a convex molded cardboard or paper meant to create the illusion of three-dimensionality when framed in an oval domed "bubble" glass frame.

Collection

Clara Marian Wheeler papers, 1874-1948

6 linear feet — 1 oversize folder

Grand Rapids, Michigan educator, principal of the Grand Rapids Kindergarten Training School, and advocate of kindergarten education. Correspondence, lecture and class notes, programs, photographs, and miscellaneous scrapbooks, ledgers, and account books.

The collection is comprised of correspondence and other papers largely concerning kindergarten education and her involvement in a parent and teacher organization. The series in the collection are Biographical / Personal materials, Correspondence; Kindergarten education; National Congress of Parents and Teachers; and Miscellaneous.

Collection

Lewis G. Vander Velde Papers, 1855-1975 (majority within 1933-1968)

7.75 linear feet

Professor of history and director of Michigan Historical Collections of University of Michigan. Personal and professional correspondence; class notes and lectures; Michigan Historical Commission files; research material on Thomas M. Cooley; material concerning Azazels, University faculty club; letters written as student at University of Michigan, 1912-1913, and at Harvard; and letters written as instructor at Culver Military Academy, and at Teachers' College, St. Cloud, Minnesota in the 1920's; also photographs.

The papers of Lewis George Vander Velde date from 1855 to 1975 and comprise 7 and 3/4 linear feet of material. The collection is valuable for its documentation of the life of an historian and teacher. Vander Velde papers show a constant attention to, and interest in, Michigan local history. The Collection is arranged into seven series: Biographical Materials; Professional Files; University Class Notes and Lectures; Research Materials (Thomas M. Cooley); Family Papers; Personal Correspondence; and Miscellaneous.

Collection

Marguerite Novy Lambert papers, 1910-1920s, 1974-1982

0.4 linear feet — 14 volumes — 1 oversize folder

Student at the University of Michigan, later Ann Arbor, Michigan local historian. Listings of death and marriage notices from selective counties taken from Michigan newspapers at the Bentley Historical Library; also other papers, scrapbook 1910-1913, of activities while a student at the University of Michigan; and photographs.

The collection is comprised of two series: Personal and Genealogical and other Research Materials.

The photographic materials deal mainly with the youth of Mrs. Lambert and her brother Frederick G. Novy, Jr. in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Included are two albums relating to Mrs. Lambert's childhood and youth at Ann Arbor, the University of Michigan, and at camp in New Hampshire. There is also a scrapbook of clippings and other memorabilia from the period when she was a student at the University of Michigan, 1910-1913.

The genealogical material consist of fourteen volumes, arranged alphabetically, and containing death and marriage notices from Michigan newspapers up to approximately 1865.

Collection

Martha Cook Building (University of Michigan) records, circa 1913-2016

22.65 linear feet (in 23 boxes) — 12 oversize volumes — 1 oversize folder

The Martha Cook Building (MCB) opened in the fall of 1915 as the second all-women's dormitory on the University of Michigan campus. It was a gift of Mr. William Wilson Cook, a lawyer-philanthropist from New York City who was born and raised in Hillsdale, Michigan. The Martha Cook Building records are dated from circa 1913-2016 and include blueprints; chronological files; clippings; correspondence; financial records; minutes, particularly of both the MCB's Board of Governors and House Board; publications; reports; scrapbooks; subject files; and visual materials, such as negatives, photographs, and photograph albums.

The Martha Cook Building records (circa 1913-2016) document the activities of those involved with the Martha Cook Building and include blueprints; chronological files; clippings; correspondence; financial records; minutes; reports; scrapbooks; subject files; and visual materials, such as negatives, photographs, and photograph albums.

Significant people and groups featured in this collection include William. W. Cook; various House Directors, such as Sarah Rowe, G.J. Diekema, Olive Chernow, Josette Allen, and Rosalie Moore; the building's Board of Governors and House Board; and Martha Cook Building students and alumnae. Other notable topics include the construction, furnishing and remodeling of the Martha Cook Building; various scholarships; and activities, such as various anniversary events and the Messiah Dinner.

Collection

Pageant of the Dunes Photograph Album, 1917-1918

92 photographs in 1 album

The Pageant of the Dunes photograph album contains 92 photographs including snapshots of scenery in and around the vicinity of Chicago, Illinois, as well as images of the “Pageant of the Dunes” event held in Port Chester, Indiana, in 1917.

The Pageant of the Dunes photograph album contains 92 photographs including snapshots of scenery in and around the vicinity of Chicago, Illinois, as well as images of the “Pageant of the Dunes” event held in Port Chester, Indiana, in 1917.

The album (19 x 29 cm) is string-bound and has black paper covers and pages. Contents begin with images of Chicago scenery including views of Navy Pier, Edgebrook, and the Chicago River, while the following section features several images that appear to be related to an exhibition of statues of World War I soldiers at an unidentified venue. Photographs in the section captioned “Pageant of the Dunes, 1917” consist of images of crowds as well as actors and actresses, including some dressed as Native Americans. Three photographs dated to 1918 are also present.

Collection

Saline Woman’s Club (Mich.) Records, 1905-1987

1.25 linear feet

Administrative records, newspaper clippings, and photographs, 1905-1987, of the Saline Woman’s Club, founded in 1904. The organization’s initial literary focus later expanded to include welfare and civic improvements.

The records of the Saline Woman's Club include 1.25 linear feet of administrative records and clippings dating from 1905 to 1987. The collection is arranged alphabetically by topic, excepting a folder of organizational histories located at the front of the collection. Items within folders are arranged chronologically.

Of particular interest to the researcher will be the organizational histories, minutes, and presidents' reports which detail the Club's deeds and concerns.

Collection

Same-Sex Affection and Gender Studies Photograph Collection, ca. 1850s-1940s

approximately 150 photographs

The Same-sex affection and gender studies photograph collection contains approximately 150 examples of photographs that illustrate closeness between subjects of the same sex as well as aspects of non-traditional gender presentation.

The collection includes photographic examples in multiple formats with real photo postcards, tintypes, cabinet cards, cartes de visite, and small format mounted photos being the most numerous. 145 images are contained in Box 1 of the collection while an additional 5 photographs on larger format card mounts are stored in Box 2. Images mainly consist of portraits of men posing familiarly with other men, women posing familiarly with other women, and portraits of groups and individuals engaged in cross-dressing. Due to the subjective nature of assessing these images combined with historical differences in what was considered socially acceptable displays of affection and the general lack of verifiable context, many of these photographs remain open to a variety of interpretations.

Numerous photographs show same-sex duos and larger groups holding hands, placing their hands on each other, leaning on each other, or demonstrating affection in some other observable way. Most subjects are unidentified, though occasionally individuals have been identified through the presence of inscriptions. In some cases, individuals pictured together have been confirmed to be relatives.

Numerous photographs of male and female individuals and groups engaged in cross-dressing are also present. In many instances, the cross-dressing most likely occurred for humorous reasons.

Examples of images of interest include:
  • Postcard showing two men embracing with the printed caption "We're looking for girls at Lansing, Mich."
  • Real photo postcard bearing a studio group portrait of two men, one of whom appears to have an unbuckled belt.
  • Cabinet card studio group portrait by Beardsley of Charlotte, Michigan, showing two men, one of whom holds a guitar, whose arms appear to align behind them in a manner that suggests they may have been holding hands.
  • Two different group portraits of the same female couple identified through inscriptions as "Agnes Davis" and "Anna Wickerham."
  • 1940s group portrait of four men included in a souvenir packet for “Swing Rendezvous,” a New York City-based lesbian/gay bar.
  • Real photo postcard bearing a portrait of an unidentified man wearing women's clothing, including a dress, flower-laden hat, and beaded necklace.
  • Postcard showing a man wearing women's clothing sat on a bench with the printed caption "The Male is late!"
  • Outdoor portrait of two women dressed in men's clothing captioned "A pair of Peaches."
  • Real photo postcard captioned "Four of a kind" showing two cross-dressed male-female couples sitting together, with the women sat in the men's laps.
  • Series of four images showing a woman posing in World War I-era soldier's uniform.