1 linear foot — 1 oversize folder
Genealogy and other vital information found in family Bible; travel diaries of Josiah Clark of trips to Canada and New York city; portraits of Tayler, Clark and Farmer family members. Materials documenting the career of Theron C. Tayler, specifically, his rotary kilns research and patented innovations.
The Tecumseh Products Company records series (12.6 linear feet and 12.2 GB) documents the history, business operations, and organizational structure of Tecumseh Products from 1930 to 2009. The series contains written accounts of the company's history and founder, reports, product descriptions, correspondence, a ceremonial replica of a compressor, photographs and audiovisual material. This series is separated into five subseries: History and Biographical Material, Presidential Files, Business and Financial Material, Printed Material, and Photographs and Audiovisual Material.
14.4 linear feet (in 15 boxes) — 12.2 GB (online) — 1 artifact
The collection consists of two series: Tecumseh Products Company records, 1930 to 2009, and the Herrick Foundation records, 1947 to 2006. The Tecumseh Products Company series includes written company histories, biographical material, correspondence of Tecumseh Products Co. presidents, financial material, annual reports, newsletters, manuals, technical product descriptions, photographs of employees, buildings, and products, audiovisual recordings of events, trainings, and plant tours, and a ceremonial replica of a compressor. The Herrick Foundation records series is comprised of primarily correspondence and project files.
8 cubic feet
Description: The Albert Merritt Ewert Collection documents Ewert’s remarkable life. Materials span from the 1890’s to 1984.
Subject Files include correspondence, newsletters, artwork (paintings, sketches and artifacts), church bulletins, a scrapbook, journals, typed poems and story manuscripts, and original sheet music. Items are grouped into folders, with folder titles reflecting subject content. The folders are arranged into a general chronological order. (Ewert moved frequently for much of his life. One could often discern approximate dates for an item by identifying Ewert’s location at the time. The biographical sketch above may sometimes aid researchers in providing greater context.)
The collection begins with some biographical information. The biographical file contains correspondence regarding Ewert’s 1962 State of Wyoming delayed birth certificate application. Also present are a few general outlines of Ewert’s life and career, and notes from an oral history interview. Ewert’s granddaughter, Cathy Ewert (now Cathy Ewert Benson), conducted the interview with her grandfather in 1971.
Materials of undetermined date – mostly artwork, poems and stories by Ewert –appear toward the front of the collection. Artwork consists of pencil sketches and pastel drawings, most of which depict nature scenes. The stories are fiction and feature a naïve, well-meaning protagonist named "King Friend." King Friend encounters various individuals and attempts to befriend them, often experiencing negative consequences as a result. The stories, with their philosophical nature, provide some insight into Ewert’s worldview.
The collection contains some of Ewert’s original sheet music. Many songs are hymns, but Ewert also wrote secular-themed tunes such as "Arapahoe War Dance." Appendix I contains a complete list.
Ewert served as Michigan State Prison Chaplain in 1933-1934. Materials from that time include church bulletins, a copy of a sermon by Ewert, correspondence between Ewert and Governor William Comstock and copies of radio addresses that Ewert delivered from the prison. The manuscript of Ewert’s "Little Red Book" contains advice for inmates. A folder of correspondence documents reactions to a conference that Ewert held on April 5, 1934. Scholars, attorneys and corrections officials were invited to attend, and Ewert explained his theories on prison reform. (His plan contained some controversial elements, including the idea that judges shouldn't be allowed to set the lengths of sentences. For a description of his views, see the inmate newsletter The Spectator, which is included in this collection.)
Some items reflect inmates’ points of view. These include correspondence by inmates to Rev. Ewert (Ewert’s responses are sometimes included, as well.). The folder labeled "Progressive Club Meeting" contains inmate ideas on prison reform (Ewert talked to them at the Progressive Club Meeting and invited them to submit their views.). An issue of the inmate newsletter The Spectator features Ewert and his thoughts on the penal system.
The collection also contains inmate artwork. These include pencil sketches and a Mothers Day card created by inmates for Anna Mabel Beard Ewert. There is also a scrapbook that inmates created for Rev. Ewert. It documents much of Ewert’s life to that point. It is thus helpful for biographical information and also serves as a symbol of the inmates’ affection for their Chaplain. (NOTE: Prisoner-made artifacts can be found in Series 4.2. Photographs of Jackson Prison scenes can be found in Series 3.)
When Frank Murphy won the 1936 gubernatorial election, he formed a Study Commission on Administration of Prison and Parole. Ewert was among those appointed. The Commission was charged with planning a new corrections system for Michigan. Study Commission materials include correspondence, meeting minutes and reports. The items address issues such as administrative organization, needed personnel, needed legislation and likely expenses.
A related folder contains a report of the Subcommittee of the Committee on Prison, Parole and Probation (Ewert served on this Subcommittee.) The report provides detailed cost estimates for a state probation system. It also contains statistical data on probationers and corrections professionals, including probation officers, county welfare agents and circuit judges.
In 1937, Governor Murphy established the Michigan Department of Corrections. He appointed Ewert Deputy Assistant Director of Probation. In 1949, Ewert was promoted Director of Probation, and he held this position until his retirement in 1952. Correspondence, reports, newsletters, newspaper clippings and publications represent Ewert’s years with the Department of Corrections. "Work journals" document his daily activities, as he routinely noted appointments and travel destinations. A 1938 Department booklet provides a history of the then-new Department of Corrections and of corrections practices in Michigan. Ewert retired in 1951 and died in 1984. His post-retirement days are documented largely through correspondence and newspaper clippings. A 1958 guest register contains signatures from Albert and Mabel Ewert’s fiftieth wedding anniversary celebrations. Obituaries and condolence letters document the 1961 death of Anna Mabel Beard. A 1981 letter from Michigan Governor William Milliken congratulates Ewert on his 95th birthday. A copy of a death certificate, condolence letters, newspaper obituaries and a memoir by Ewert’s grandson, David, document Ewert’s death in 1984.
A second subseries consists of materials of Anna Mabel Beard Ewert and her daughter, Kathleen Ewert Lourim. Anna Mabel Beard Ewert’s journals date from 1943-1946, 1953-1954, 1956 and 1960-1961. The 1943-1946 journals contain the most detailed entries, with Mabel often noting the weather conditions and commenting on daily activities. Later volumes primarily contain calendars and note appointments. Occasionally, loose correspondence was filed with the journals. This correspondence remains, in order to preserve the context. Most of it concerns rentals of the Ewert’s vacation cabins. However, there are also two 1954 letters from William Lourim, the Ewert’s son-in-law. Lourim comments on weather conditions and on recent family activities.
Items of Kathleen Ewert Lourim all pertain to Lourim’s work environment. She was employed in the Michigan Department of Natural Resources from 1943 to 1969. A scrapbook consists almost completely of photographs – all depicting scenes and individuals from the Department. Also present are a photocopy of Lourim’s 1943 Employee Information form, a 1966 article and photograph of the DNR softball team, and letters congratulating Lourim on her 1969 retirement. Finally, there is an n.d. cartoon by DNR cartoonist Ozz Warbach. The cartoon features a likeness of Lourim and depicts her working at her desk. Books Owned by the Ewert Family include Bibles, prayer books and other religious publications. A few secular works include a book of poetry, a joke book (titled Best of the World’s Good Stories) and a book entitled Choice Readings, which contains random essays and speeches selected to improve one’s skills in elocution. Some books are signed by the owner and dated. Occasionally, an additional note appears, often explaining how the owner acquired the book or how the book was used. Books are filed in individual folders and arranged chronologically by signature date, when such a date exists. When not, the publication or copyright date is used instead.
Photographs span the years 1890-1984. These are grouped into folders according to subject and arranged in roughly chronological order. Folders consisting only of n.d. photos are filed at the front of the series. There are many portraits of Albert Merritt Ewert and photos depicting Ewert family members. Researchers may wish to consult the biographical sketch above when attempting to place items in context. When viewing Ewert family photos, it is also helpful to note that Albert and Anna Mabel Ewert’s daughter, Kathleen, was born in 1912 and their son, Quentin, was born in 1915. The approximate ages of the children can sometimes aid in estimating the date of a photo.
Besides the photos of Ewert and his family, the series also contains images of Michigan prisons, inmates and Corrections officials (including prison wardens). One folder contains photos dating from 1933-1934, when Ewert served as Chaplain at Michigan State Prison in Jackson. These photos depict Ewert’s office and staff, the Prison library and a memorial service. There are also signed portraits of inmates, including a portrait of a prison musical band. Other prison photos likely date from about 1938, when the Department of Corrections was formed. Some were published in a 1938 booklet by the then-new Department (A copy of this booklet appears with the photos in Box 11, Folder 4.). Prison photos depict inmates in cells, at work in prison factories and in inmate softball teams. There are also photos of Prison administrative buildings. Finally, one folder depicts Ewert and co-workers in a Department of Corrections office at various points during Ewert’s time with the Department.
Artifacts are divided into two subseries. The first consists of personal artifacts of Albert Merritt Ewert. Most of these are not dated, although some dates can be inferred. For example, Ewert’s Army belt likely dates from the 1920’s, when he served as a chaplain with the Michigan National Guard. Ewert’s Deputy Assistant Director of Probation badge likely dates from about 1938, when he first assumed that office.
The second subseries consists of artifacts made by prison inmates. These date from 1933-1934, when Ewert served as Chaplain of Michigan State Prison. Artifacts include book ends, a wooden box, a compass and a photo frame.
1.25 linear feet — 3 oversize volumes
The records of The Budd Company are comprised of Administrative Files, which include a supervisor's manual, contracts, and general ledgers. A complete collection of The Budd Company records can be found at Hagley Museum in Wilmington, Delaware.
1 volume
Seventeen individuals answered the questions printed in J. E. Spears' The Mental Portrait Album. For Recording the Autographic Confessions of Friends and Acquaintances Regarding their Opinions, Tastes, Fancies, Etc. (St. Louis: John L. Boland Book & Stationery Co., [1895]), which has a pictorial cloth cover showing a female figure and flowers. Entries between 1894 and 1895 were filled in by individuals residing in Louisville and Danville, Kentucky; Pleasant Hill, Kansas City, Harrisonville, and Hughesville, Missouri; and Kansas City, Kansas, while the later entries from 1910 to 1972 were written by those residing in Forney and Wichita Falls, Texas. Answers reveal contributors' favorite items, their tastes in music and literature, their opinions on admirable and detestable personality traits in men and women, as well as their beliefs about transportation, great reforms, follies, and wonders of the world. Varying beliefs and prejudices are reflected, including those relating to women's rights, immigration, race (in particular against those of Mexican descent), and politics. Common answers celebrating emerging technologies, inventors, and historical figures, such as Thomas Edison and Robert E. Lee, indicate broader social phenomena.
Contributors noted their favorites of the following categories:
Color, Flower, Book, Animal, Season, Poet or Poetess, Prose Writer, Composer, Character in History, Character in Romance, Scenery, Music, Amusement, Occupation During a Summer's Vacation, and My Pet Hobby.
2.3 linear feet — 1 oversize volume
The T. Hawley Tapping collection includes material documenting his student days at the University of Michigan and University of Iowa, the Acacia fraternity and his work as consultant to f University in the Philippine Islands and service to the University of Michigan Alumni Association. The papers are arranged into three series: Correspondence; Scrapbooks; and Photographs.
7.4 linear feet
The Theodore Huntington Hubbell papers form a disparate collection that documents not only his professional career as an entomologist and curator, but also sheds light on the late nineteenth and early twentieth-century Hubbell and Hussey families. The far-reaching scope of these papers derives from Theodore H. and Grace Griffin Hubbell's diligent collecting of family papers and photographs. The bulk of the early materials are Hussey family papers consisting of the personal papers of Grace's mother, Lenora Hussey Griffin, and her mother's nuclear family. This family consisted of Lenora's parents, John Milton and Mary C. Hussey, and her siblings, William J., Edgar P., Arthur, and Alice, and their spouses.
The Theodore H. Hubbell papers should be viewed as a subset of a larger universe of collections which include the Hussey family and Hubbell family collections here at the Bentley Historical Library and the John Milton Hussey letters and diary at the University of Michigan's William Clements Library. The strengths of this collection are diverse, ranging from a rich run of Civil War correspondence between John Milton and Mary C. Hussey, to Lenora Hussey Griffin's letters to her family about her education at Stanford, to Theodore Hubbell and J. Speed Rogers correspondence with various entomologists regarding field work and collecting. The collection will be of use to researchers interested in nineteenth-century agriculture, the Grange in Ohio, family life and customs, Joseph B. Steere's expedition to the Philippine Islands, and visual images of turn of the century Michigan and the University of Michigan. The collection is weak on documenting Theodore Hubbell's work as a teacher and curator of the Museum of Zoology; these records are retained by the museum for use in administering their collections.
The Theodore H. Hubbell papers span the years 1833-1988, with the bulk of materials covering the years 1852-1970; they are organized into five series: Genealogy, Hussey Family, Hubbell Family, Personal, and Professional. The first three series reflect Theodore and Grace Griffin Hubbell's efforts as genealogist/archivist for their respective families. The Personal series primarily deals with the private lives of Theodore and Grace Hubbell, but it also contains some materials linked to the first three series in the correspondence with Lenora Hussey Griffin. The materials in the first four series were rearranged during the course of processing to facilitate access to the Hussey and Hubbell family papers. The last series consists of Theodore Hubbell's professional correspondence (including letters to his cousin Roland F. Hussey) and project related materials; this series retains its original order.
6 linear feet
The Theodore Mead Newcomb papers document the career of one of America's foremost social psychologists and pioneer of survey research. The papers which arrived in the 1985 accession were organized into six series: Biographical, Correspondence, Research Projects, University of Michigan, Professional Activities, and Miscellaneous.