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Theses written by University of Michigan Medical School students; subjects concern the theory and treatment of specific diseases, as well as the psychology of medicine, attitudes toward women and child rearing, the social standing of the physician, and medical practices during the mid-nineteenth century.

The Dering Family papers contain correspondence received by Thomas Dering, a New York State congressman, and other members of the Dering family. Several letters are from Nathaniel Ray Thomas (d. 1791), a Loyalist from Massachusetts, and his wife, Sarah Dering Thomas; these concern both personal and business matters. Also included are letters from Republican Congressman and Sag Harbor resident Ebenezer Sage.

The Dering Family papers contain 133 correspondence received by Thomas Dering and other members of the Dering family, as well as 1 book, 1 newspaper clipping, and 1 photograph. 20 letters are from Nathaniel Ray Thomas (d. 1791), a Loyalist from Marshfield, Massachusetts, to Thomas Dering at Boston. 16 of these are dated 1755, and discuss business dealings and family affairs. Thomas's wife, Sarah Dering Thomas, wrote approximately 10 letters to Thomas and 15 to her nephew Sylvester between 1755 and 1800. These concern family life, hardships suffered from maintaining loyalist sentiments during the American Revolution, her ongoing health issues, and difficulties encountered in Nova Scotia after the war. In a letter dated April 16, 1800, to Sylvester, she commented on British and French interference of U.S. shipping and trade.

The collection contains 50 letters from Ebenezer Sage to his friend Henry Dering in the period 1806-1815, from Sage’s time in Washington, DC. Sage described his experiences in Congress: committee meetings, legislative updates, foreign affairs, and the social scene in Washington, DC. In particular, he discussed the debate on the national bank, the war hawks in Congress, efforts to have gun boats defend Sag Harbor, reports of enemy fleets off the Potomac, and news of the American victory at New Orleans in 1815. One letter by Ebenezer Sage gives an account of a reception for First Lady Dolley Madison (February 21, 1810). Additional letters are from Sage's daughter, Frances Mary Sage, to her friend Frances Dering. The letters convey a strong friendship between the women and their desire to spend time together. A letter from November 28, 1813, contains a drawing of a bouquet by Frances Sage.

The Thomas and Dering families were friends with the influential Nova Scotia residents, John and Frances Wentworth. Several letters reference their visits in Nova Scotia, and a letter from Sarah Dering Thomas to Elizabeth Gardiner mentions Sir John Wentworth being appointed governor of Nova Scotia (1792). In one letter to Thomas Dering, dated January 6, 1784, Lady Frances Wentworth (in New York City), enclosed a newspaper announcement for her wedding in 1769. In this letter, she wrote about the difficulty of finding a ship to take her away from New York City during the British occupation. The Dering Family Papers also include a postcard of John Singleton Copley's portrait of Frances Wentworth from the Lenox Collection of the New York Public Library (enclosed in Wentworth’s 1784 letter).

This collection contains A Sketch of Dr. John Smith Sage of Sag Harbor, N.Y., a book by Anna Mulford, published in 1897 in Sag-Harbor by J.H. Hunt. The book includes a biographical account of John Sage, and mentions members of the Dering family. It also contains “some interesting letters of his father, Dr. Ebenezer Sage, written in the early part of the century, and other matters relating to Sag-Harbor.”

The Detroit News was a prominent daily newspaper founded by James Edmund Scripps in 1873. The success and expansion of the paper is largely attributed to Scripps' son-in-law, George Gough Booth. The collection contains photographic materials including glass plate negatives, film negatives, and photographic prints of various sizes as well as scrapbooks of newspaper clippings from the Detroit News.

The Detroit News records, 1856-1991 (164.5 linear feet) consist of photographic materials including glass plate negatives, film negatives, and photographic prints of various sizes as well as scrapbooks containing newspaper clippings from the Detroit News. The arrangement of the collection is alphabetical and maintains original order as far as could be discerned. In instances where multiple formats were stored together, they have been rehoused separately for preservation purposes. Researchers are encouraged to review the entire container list of this finding aid to identify corresponding materials of different formats within the collection, which have been indicated.

The researcher will find that a significant portion of the photographic materials depict interior and exterior views of the Detroit News building designed by Albert Kahn and erected in 1917. Additional topics of photographic materials include the radio station, WWJ and various events hosted by the News. Images of the Scripps and Booth families as well as employees of the Detroit News are also present among the collection. The scrapbooks contain newspaper clippings, which present a broad range of subject matter as covered by a daily metropolitan newspaper. All of the glass plate negatives and a selection of film negatives have been digitized and can be viewed by following the links in the container list of this finding aid.

The Detroit Observatory, an astronomical observatory on the campus of the University of Michigan, was the vision of University of Michigan President Henry Philip Tappan. He recognized the need for institutions of higher education to pursue scientific endeavors. Built in 1854, the Detroit Observatory was named after the Detroit residents who helped finance the building project. Extensive restoration work of the Observatory was completed in 1999.

The Detroit Observatory record group includes administrative materials of the Observatory's later years (post-1994), including documentation on the Observatory's restoration project and materials encompassing the Observatory's publicity and outreach efforts. The collection also contains various historical documents and artifacts such as logbooks and records, photographs and other visual materials, motion pictures, architectural drawings, and publications. The collection includes all of the documents, artifacts, and records transferred to the Bentley Historical Library in 2005. Materials not physically transferred to the Bentley that remain in the Observatory (such as telescopes, clocks, and associated astronomical devices) have not been identified here, but documentation can be found listed in the various inventories and databases found in the administrative series.

This collection contains the following series: Administrative, Publicity and Outreach, Research, Historical, and Publications.

The Devereux papers consist primarily of essays and speeches written by the progressive philosopher and politician George H. Devereux between about 1840 and 1870 in Massachusetts. The collection also contains book reviews, biographies, fiction, and poetry by Devereux, along with a small number of his letters, legal documents, and printed items related to his sons' service in the Civil War.

The Devereux papers (205 items) consist primarily of essays and speeches written by the progressive philosopher and politician George H. Devereux between about 1840 and 1870 in Massachusetts. The collection also contains book reviews, biographies, fiction, and poetry by Devereux, along with a small number of his letters, legal documents, and printed items related to his sons' service in the Civil War.

The Correspondence series consists of 5 items including a four page letter from George Devereux’s son John Forrester from on board the frigate Constitution, describing Arthur's and his movements with the army (April 26, 1861). George Devereux copied a portion of a letter from his son Arthur that gave an account of his regiment saving the old frigate Constitution from the rebels in Annapolis. Another item is a brief undated letter from Nathaniel Bowditch (1773-1838) to his cousin John Forrester, inviting him to meet the President.

The Legal Documents series contains 2 items. First is a deed of sale transferring the late Reverend Thomas Carlile's "Chaise, Plate, and all the house-hold Furniture" to John Forrester from a group of Salem merchants. This document inventories every object of the house room by room. The second document is an 1866 quit-claim deed to George H. Devereux from Nathaniel Silsbee, husband of Marianne Cabot Silsbee, Georges' sister.

The Essays, Speeches, Poems, and Other Writings series contains 189 items and comprises the bulk of the Devereux Collection. The series consists of essays, speeches, poems, and works of fiction, written by George H. Devereux, between about 1840 and 1870. These reflect his deeply held political and social progressive viewpoints. Devereux wrote an extensive, mulit-part work on the French Revolution and Emperor Napoleon I; 7 essays are on historical topics (including two on the Civil War written during the war); 13 are on philosophical topics (common sense, time, mythology, human nature); and several minor essays are on a wide range of topics, including abolitionism, modern science, spiritualism, Unitarianism, proper names, and woman's rights. He wrote orations for the Children's Friend Society, and on topics of free thought, the forest, and the Massachusetts Legislature (pre-Civil War). While in Maine, Devereux wrote an essay on Moosehead Lake, and composed another on Maine's climate.

Other writings include book and literature reviews concerning Roman and Greek literature, both popular and modern literature; biographical sketches on Lord Byron and Colonel Timothy Pickering; and poetry, of which the most substantial item is Camillus, A Roman Legend, a poem in two parts with illustrations. Many of Devereux's poems are based on Aesop's Fables, such as The Frogs, The Dog and Bone, The Crow and Urn, The Wolf and the Crane, and other animal-themed verses. Other poem titles are: The Sun and the Wind, The Two Curses, The Youthful Wanderer (1836), and The Retrospect (1859). Several of the poems have multiple drafts. Some fragments of untitled prose and one 32-page work entitled Zeke Cutter are writings of fiction. Finally, this series includes three undated and untitled pages of writing and manuscript instructions for card tricks.

• The Weal = Reaf The Record of the Essex Institute Fair Held at Salem: September 5-8 (1860), which describes the vendors and activities, and features contributions from Nathaniel Hawthorne and his son.
• A copy of Our Roll of Honor, a collection of poems written by John Forrester Devereux. These poems commemorate his friends from the Salem Light Infantry who died in the war.
• A pamphlet reprint of the Essex Institute's October 1963 article, "The Nineteenth Massachusetts Regiment at Gettysburg," by Hugh Devereux Purcell, which describes Colonel Arthur Devereux’s role at Gettysburg.

The Graphics and Realia series consists of one photograph, a carte-de-visite of John Forrester Devereux in the 11th Massachusetts Infantry, taken by Childs and Adam, Marblehead, and a of a pair of his epaulets.

Collection of correspondence belonging to De Witt and Sarah Clarke, who were residents of Battle Creek, Michigan during the Civil War. Bulk of collection consists of letters Sarah sent De Witt from Michigan while he was serving in the 2nd Missouri Cavalry. Remainder of the collection includes personal correspondence with other family members and friends as well as De Witt's business correspondence. Bulk of business correspondence dates after De Witt relocated the family to the developing town of Le Mars, Iowa in 1871, where he was a prominent merchant and community leader.

The collection consists of Sarah and De Witt Clarke's personal correspondence and De Witt's business correspondence. The bulk of the collection consists of letters from Sarah to De Witt, written from Michigan while De Witt was away with Merrill's Horse in Arkansas and Tennessee from 1864 to 1865. In her letters, Sarah expresses anxiety for her husband, reports on home and family life, and describes caring for their child in his absence. The collection includes De Witt Clarke's letters to his wife and personal correspondence with other family members and friends during and after the war. De Witt Clarke's business correspondence dates from after the Civil War and includes receipts, ledgers, price lists, notices, and advertisements, as well as correspondence with typewriter manufacturers in New York and Ohio.

Also included in the collection are typewritten transcriptions and lists of letters compiled by Anne Meis Knupfer.

De Witt Clinton Spaulding (circa 1841 or 1842-1926) was a white Michigan resident who served in Company G. of the Union Army's 8th Michigan Infantry regiment during the American Civil War. Included in the collection is Spaulding's physical Civil War diary (which includes comments on his capture and confinement at Andersonville Prison), a transcription of the diary with additional information and images, digitized copies of Spaulding's military service and pension records, scattered physical correspondence and miscellanea, and a DVD-R containing related materials.

The De Witt C. Spaulding papers (0.1 linear feet and 42.5 MB) include scattered correspondence and miscellanea, digitized copies of Spaulding's compiled military service and pension records from the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, and Spaulding's diary. The physical diary—dated from 1861 to 1864—provides information about Spaulding's Civil War experiences, including his capture and confinement at Andersonville Prison. A digital transcription of Spaulding's diary by Clare M. Cory is also present in this collection. It contains additional biographical and genealogical information, as well as images of Spaulding and his relatives.

Finally, the collection includes a DVD-R containing a transcription of the diary with additional biographical information and photos.

The Dixon family papers contain the letters of Anna Marie Dixon's family: her parents, Bennet and Phebe Prindle, and her children. Of note are six letters from Sylvanus Dixon to his mother, between October 1862 and August 1863, describing his time in the Union Army as he traveled through Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, and Indiana.

The Dixon family papers are comprised of 12 letters. The earliest letter in the collection (July 1, 1833) is from Betsy Stilson to her son Bennet Prindle. She discussed family news and health ("No Chlrea or any other prevailing Sickness in N. York") and advised him on business decisions relating to the price of lumber.

The next six letters are from Sylvanus to his mother, between October 1862 and August 1863, while he was with the Union Army. He wrote from Union encampments in Danville, Kentucky; Murfreesboro and Tullahoma, Tennessee; Stevenson, Alabama, and from on board a steamer 40 miles from Evansville, Indiana. Sylvanus wrote in detail about his company's activities and the general state of the war. He discussed the Battle of Perryville and mentioned Generals McCook, Sill, Terrill, and James Jackson (October 13, 1862). In a letter dated March 22, 1863, he discussed Generals Bragg ("old Bragg") and Rosecrans ("Rosey"). After Gettysburg and Vicksburg, at a time when the North was more optimistic about the direction of the war, Dixon wrote:

"Yes, Our Glorious success is now apparant to all, I only wish I could have done more than I have towards it,...If I was to end the life of a Hundred traitors I could not be the cause of any suffering. They first endangered the lifes and happiness of the whole Country; and made a necessity for the sacrifice thousands of Patriots have made...Thus makeing their own bed of woe, and that of thousands besides who are innocent. I therefore claim it my duty to never lay down the sword untill every traitor, both male and female, Child and adult, whether in the south or in the north, is extinguished (August 12, 1863).

In an undated letter, Sylvanus wrote to his sisters Phebe and Vashti, scolding them for never writing to him. Another item in the collection is a letter to Anna from her distraught father Bennet Prindle, relating that her brother Washington had died from inflammatory rheumatism (January 16, 1865). The remainder of the collection consists of two letters to Anna from her mother, asking her to visit, and a letter from Anna to her daughter Vashti.

Attached to the letter from April 25, 1863, is an illustrated patriotic envelope listing all of the states in the Union.

University of Michigan graduate, 1867, and lawyer in Macomb County, Michigan. Collection of pamphlets and other printed material relating to history of the university, the legal profession and other matters.

The Lowell pamphlet collection consists of 6 bound volumes of pamphlets and other publications relating primarily to the history of the University of Michigan, including reports and addresses of the presidents, commencement addresses, and reports on misappropriation of funds in the chemistry department; messages and reports of the Michigan governors, and a number of articles on law and the legal profession.