Collections : [University of Michigan Bentley Historical Library]

Files of state chairs, Neil Staebler, John J. Collins, Zolton Ferency, Sander Levin, James McNeely, Morley Winograd, Olivia Maynard, Richard Wiener, F. Thomas LeWand, and Gary Corbin; files of deputy state chair, Billie S. Farnum, vice chairs Adelaide Hart and Olivia Maynard, and vice chair Robert Mitchell; files relating to state constitutional convention, and to state and national political campaigns, since 1950; sound recordings and visual materials.

The records of the Democratic Party of Michigan have come to the library in several accessions beginning in 1967 and periodically thereafter. The record group is comprised of files mainly from the Lansing office of the Democratic Party of Michigan. The files are of the officers of the party: state chair, vice chair, deputy chair, and secretary among others. As might be expected, the records relate to the day-to-day operation of the party, the management of political campaigns (i.e. selecting candidates, defining issues, raising funds, getting out the vote, etc.). In addition, much of the records concern the state organization's relationship with the National Democratic Party and its participation in the national convention to select a presidential nominee. Because of inconsistencies in how files were maintained and used, the files of one party officer might also include materials of his / her predecessor. Thus the researcher should be examine the entire finding aid for material on any given topic or time period.

The records of the Democratic Party of Michigan has been arranged into the following series: (1) Earlier records, prior to 1965; (2) State Chair, Democratic State Central Committee files; (3) Other Party Officers; (4) Headquarters files; (5) Detroit Office Files; (6) Topical Files; (7) State Central Committee Meeting Minutes; (8) State and National Convention files; (9) Appeals Committee; (10) Publications and miscellaneous; (11) Visual Materials; (12) Sound Recordings.

Minutes, 1888-1919, including; correspondence, newspaper clippings, and scrapbooks concerning party affairs; also papers, 1929-1970, concerning Prohibition Party in Michigan; papers, 1918-1930, concerning prohibition in Great Britain; papers, 1951-1958, concerning the National Temperance and Prohibition Council; and minutes, 1872, of the State Central Committee of the Prohibition Party of Michigan; also photographs and films.

The Prohibition National Committee record group is arranged into the following series: Correspondence; Minutes and other papers; Press and printed; Sound recordings; Other organizations; and Visual materials. Except for the significant minute books of the party's national executive committee in the 1880s, most of the record group dates from the 20th century after the passage of the 18th Amendment. Information regarding the earliest years of the Prohibition Party in unfortunately missing in this record group.