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Bishops files, records of executive and administrative bodies and of diocesan organizations, staff files, parishes and mission's materials, and visual materials and sound recordings.

The records of the diocese of Michigan have been arranged into the following series: Bishops' files, Executive and administrative bodies, Diocesan organizations, Diocesan programs, Diocesan staff, Parishes and missions, Clergy, Audio and visual material, and Miscellaneous.

The record group is most valuable for its documentation of the history of the diocese and the individual churches within its administration, with a lesser amount of material pertaining to religious functions performed and to the operation of diocesan administrative groups and departments. For a number of reasons, there is scant material pertaining to the administration of the diocesan office or to the special programs that have been initiated by it over the years. Some of this material may be found in the papers of individual bishops whose papers have also come to the library and are separately cataloged. These include Samuel McCoskry, Samuel Smith Harris, Charles D. Williams, Herman Page, and Richard Emrich.

Michigan-born lawyer, judge, politician and diplomat, served as Detroit Recorder's Court Judge, Mayor of Detroit, Governor General of the Philippines, Governor of Michigan, U. S. Attorney General and U.S. Supreme Court Justice. Papers include extensive correspondence, subject files, Supreme court case files, scrapbooks, photographs, newsreels and audio recordings, and other material.

The Frank Murphy Collection documents in detail the life and career of one of Michigan's most distinguished public servants. Through correspondence, subject files, scrapbooks, visual materials, and other documentation, the collection traces Murphy's life from his years as Detroit judge, later Mayor, to his service in the Philippines, his tenure as governor, his stint as U.S. Attorney General, and culminating in his final years as U.S. Supreme Court Justice.

The Frank Murphy Collection consists of eight series: Correspondence, Other Papers, Supreme Court Case Files, Speech File, Speech Material, Miscellaneous, Visual Material, and Newsclippings/Scrapbooks.

Pacifist, participant in World War I peace movement and later peace activities, member of Fellowship of Reconciliation, Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, and Women Strike for Peace. Papers include Correspondence, newspaper clippings, pamphlets, periodicals, reports, photographs, and other materials relating to the International Congress of Women, 1915, the Ford Peace Ship, the American Neutral Conference Committee, the Emergency Peace Federation, and the People's Council of America.

The papers of Rebecca Shelley (1887-1984) were donated by Shelley in several accessions between 1964 and 1984. The papers make up twenty-one linear feet of materials and cover the years 1890-1984, though only a few photographs and printed items predate 1910. Her anti-war activism, legal battles, writing career, and courtships with Franz Willman and Felix Rathmer are all well-represented. In addition to her personal papers, there are groups of material belonging to Emily Balch, Richard Olsen, Felix Rathmer, Paul Shelly, and William A. Shelly.

Many peace organizations are also documented in these papers through flyers, pamphlets, periodicals, newsletters, and correspondence. These include the American Neutral Conference Committee, Emergency Peace Federation, People's Council of America, Fellowship of Reconciliation, Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, Women Strike for Peace, and many others. As Shelley served as an officer in the Michigan Fellowship of Reconciliation (F.O.R.) through the 1950s and 1960s, many of the organization's official papers came to be in her possession. Therefore, an effort was made to remove most of these official papers to the separate Michigan F.O.R. collection.

The collection is arranged in eleven series: Biographical; Newspaper Clippings; Correspondence; Topical Papers; Miscellaneous Papers; Papers Of Other Individuals; Printed; Periodicals; Diaries And Notebooks; Photographs; and Writings.