Collections : [University of Michigan Special Collections Research Center]

The Lee Walp Family Juvenile Book Collection is the collection of the late Russell Lee Walp (1906-2003), an avid book-collector and Professor of Botany at Marietta College (Marietta, Ohio). Mr Walp, along with his wife, Esther "Sparkie" Walp, collected materials related to the best in 20th century children's literature, with an emphasis on well-known illustrators and their illustrations. He corresponded with many illustrators and authors, whose letters, manuscripts, and original artwork may be found in the collection. Ed Emberley and Robert Andrew Parker are the most well-represented, but Roger Duvoisin, Hardie Gramatky, Robert Lawson, and Shimin Symeon, as well as scores of other luminaries in the world of children's literature are also represented. Included in the collection are notes, bibliographies, and catalogues documenting how Mr. Walp built and used his collection to educate the public are included, along with a small amount of material related to the study and teaching of botany.

The Lee Walp Family Juvenile Book Collection contains two types of materials: information about the Walps and their collecting, and information about the illustrators and authors. Material related to Mr. Walp's collecting may be found in the following series: Personal, Book Collecting, Walp Library Catalog Cards, and Articles, Exhibits, and Lectures by the Walps. Information about the illustrators and authors is concentrated in the series Illustrators and Authors and Art, and also in Articles and Clippings, Audiovisual, Posters, and Realia. The approximately 5,000 books in the Walp Collection include a complete set of first editions of the Caldecott Medal Books, and first editions of all but three Newbery Medal-winning books. These books are cataloged separately.

The Walp Collection has material by or about over 250 children's book illustrators and authors. The two most well-represented are Ed Emberley and Robert Andrew Parker. There is also a significant amount on Roger Duvoisin, Hardie Gramatky, Robert Lawson, and Symeon Shimin.

Formed in 1913 by Carl G. Fisher, Frank A. Seiberling, and Henry B. Joy, the Lincoln Highway Association was made up of representatives from the automobile, tire, and cement industries. The Association aimed to plan, fund, construct, and promote the first transcontinental highway in North America. The route ran from New York to San Francisco, and covered approximately 3,400 miles. The Detroit headquarters of the Association closed in 1928. This collection contains: correspondence, particularly between members of the Association and government officials; meeting minutes; reports, bulletins, and newsletters published by the Association; motorist maps of the route; and annotated editions of The Complete Official Road Guide of the Lincoln Highway. Photographs from the Lincoln Highway Association Records have been digitized and are accessible online at the Lincoln Highway Digital Image Collection (http://quod.lib.umich.edu/l/linchigh). The Digital Image Collection contains over 3,000 images including views of construction underway, towns and cities, markers, bridges, cars, camp sites, scenic views, and snapshots of Association directors and field secretaries traveling the route.

The Lincoln Highway Association Records date from 1911 to 1993 with the bulk of materials concentrated before 1930. The records are divided into five series: Official Business (1912-1941), Correspondence (1912-1929), Planning (1914-1940), Publicity (1911-1993), Publications (1915-1935), Jens Jensen Drawings (1922-1924) and Miscellaneous.

The Lincoln Highway Association archive was donated to the University of Michigan's Transportation Library in 1937. The archive was transferred to the Special Collections Library in 1992.

Communication was frequent between members of the Association as well as with officials from towns, counties, states, and the federal government. Correspondence and meeting minutes make up an important part of the collection. The Association published reports, bulletins, and newsletters to keep board members and the public aware of the Highway's progress. Maps of the driving route along with mileages were provided for motorists for navigation as were five editions of The Complete Official Road Guide of the Lincoln Highway .

Photographs from the Lincoln Highway Association Records have been digitized and are accessible online at the Lincoln Highway Digital Image Collection (http://quod.lib.umich.edu/l/linchigh). The Digital Image Collection contains over 3,000 images including views of construction underway, towns and cities, markers, bridges, cars, camp sites, scenic views, and snapshots of Association directors and field secretaries traveling the route.