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Hugh Acton (1925-), the "Cowboy-Designer," was a furniture designer, specializing in mid-century modern furniture, and artist in Augusta, Mich. He is best-known for his 1973 Acton Stacker chair for American Seating, as well as for his 1954 Suspended Beam Bench. This collection includes a brief history of the designer through articles and resumes, with a primary focus on his designs--including photographs (with negatives, transparencies, and online), catalog information, sketches, and design boards for his various furniture designs.

The Hugh Acton papers includes a brief history of the designer through articles and resumes, with a primary focus on his designs--including photographs, catalog information, sketches, and design boards for his various furniture designs. The collection is divided into two series: the Personal series and the Designs series. All materials are dated in the 1960s-1970s, unless noted otherwise.

The Islamic Art Archives is composed of six collections, including those of Mehmet Ağa-Oğlu, Arthur Upham Pope, Donald Newton Wilber, Oleg Grabar, Marianna Shreve Simpson, and the Afghanistan Archaeological Remains Photographs Collection. The collection also includes photographic prints of the pages of the illustrated manuscripts Maqamat and Shah Nama, and additional photographs of Islamic architecture.

The Islamic Art Archives is composed of six collections, including those of Mehmet Ağa-Oğlu, Arthur Upham Pope, Donald Newton Wilber, Oleg Grabar, Marianna Shreve Simpson, and the Afghanistan Archaeological Remains Photograph. The Mehmet Ağa-Oğlu collection documents the Islamic and pre-Islamic art and architecture of the Middle East, Persia, the Caucasus, Western Asia, North Africa, and Southern Spain. Arthur Upham Pope focused primarily on Persian architecture and monuments, but his collection also includes photographs of Persian ceramics, textiles, and illustrated manuscripts. Wilber, Pope's colleague, also primarily studied Iranian monuments but he focused on those built during the Achaemenid and Sasanian empires. Oleg Grabar's work focused on the architecture of the seventh and eighth centuries of the Umayyad dynasty, the architecture of Jerusalem under Islamic rule, Arabic and Persian illustrated manuscripts and ornaments, and contemporary Islamic architecture. On the other hand, the Afghanistan Archaeological Remains Photograph collection depicts Afghanistan sculptures, statues, figural reliefs, pottery, and other archaeological remains, the majority of which are from the Kabul Museum in Afghanistan. Finally, Dr. Simpson's collection documents her work and her notes from her study of Islamic manuscripts around the world. The collection also includes photographic prints of the pages of the illustrated manuscripts Maqamat and Shah Nama.

The John W. Davis papers consist of 43 letters, 1 fragment, 17 photographs, and 4 strips of negatives sent from Davis to his wife, Nellie, while he worked on military construction projects in Puerto Rico with the Madigan & Hyland Company during the Second World War. He provided detailed descriptions of the weather, scenery, and local people and customs. He frequently commented on his pregnant wife's health and the couple's finances.

The Correspondence series contains 43 letters (April 24, 1942-September 3, 1942) and one fragment of a letter, all written by Davis to his wife, Nellie, in East Rockaway, New York. Davis worried about the effects of censorship on his correspondence and complained when portions of the New York Times, sent to him by Nellie, were excised (June 25). Despite these concerns, he revealed a little about his work and much about his daily experiences in and opinions of Puerto Rico. He provided Nellie with his early impressions of the island and its people (April 24). He mentioned local food prices and his eating habits, particularly in his later letters. Although he grew increasingly accustomed to the warm weather, he maintained a generally negative opinion of the island, mitigated slightly by a visit to more modernized Ponce (July 13).

Davis often remarked about the content of Nellie's letters, inquired about her pregnancy and about news of acquaintances on Long Island, and sent portions of his wages home (often accompanied by a discussion of the couple's financial situation). Despite believing that mail service was somewhat unreliable, he frequently sent money home to his wife and attempted to follow war-related news, though he complained of the difficulty of obtaining reliable information. He also commented upon his contract situation and intent to return to New York in early September, though he explicitly stated that most details of his work must remain confidential.

The Photographs series holds 17 black-and-white prints depicting tropical scenery, people sitting on and fishing off of a dock, and the Marine Studios Biological Station, as well as 4 strips of negatives, each with two images.

The Robert Twining collection is comprised of photographs, scrapbooks, slides, negatives, and films of Camp Al-Gon-Quian. Located on Burt Lake, Michigan, the camp was founded in 1925 by Herbert H. Twining as a summer camp for boys. The materials in the collection detail activities of Camp Al-Gon-Quian, such as fishing, archery, and horseback riding. There are also materials relating to Camp Mississauga, which was a camp for older boys in Canada.

The collection contains two series: Photographs and Film.

The University of Michigan Herbarium, started in 1837, is home to over 1.7 million species and is one of the world's leading botanical collections. The U-M Herbarium records collection includes correspondence, photographs, and research materials documenting early Herbarium history, U-M's ethno botanical research practices, and the international professional discourse surrounding botanical research.

The collection represents the Herbarium's actions as a collector of the historical correspondence and photographs of botanical researchers. The records contained within this collection primarily document the research methods and professional conversations of American botanists. Through the correspondence and papers of Michigan and U-M botanists, this collection also documents the development of the Herbarium, its activities, and its status as a collector of botanical specimens and historical records. Researchers should note that there are photographs and plant specimens scattered throughout the correspondence series, and whereas the plant specimens are noted in the box listing, the photographs are not. The collection's four series include Harley Harris Bartlett Papers, Herbarium Historical Correspondence, Herbarium Historical Photographs, and Archived Website.