Collections : [University of Michigan Bentley Historical Library]

University of Michigan professor of political science, special advisor to the U.S. Military Government in Germany after World War II, participant in numerous government commissions; papers include correspondence, working files, speeches, course materials, and visual and sound materials.

The James K. Pollock papers represent an accumulation of files from a lifetime of academic teaching and research and an extraordinary number of public service responsibilities to both his state and his nation. The files within the collection fall into two categories: types of document (such as correspondence, speeches and writings, visual materials, etc.) and files resulting from a specific activity or position (such as his work as delegate to the Michigan Constitutional Convention or his service with the Office of the Military Government in Germany after World War II).

The collection is large and of a complicated arrangement because of Pollock's many activities. When received in 1969, the files were maintained as received; very little processing was done to the collection so that an inventory to the papers could be quickly prepared. The order of material is that devised by James K. Pollock and his secretarial staff in the U-M Department of Political Science. Recognizing the anomalies within the order of the collection, the library made the decision to list the contents to the collection while at the same time preparing a detailed card file index (by box and folder number, i.e. 16-8) to significant correspondents and subjects. While there was much to be said for this method of preparing a finding aid expeditiously, it also covered up some problems in arrangement. Thus series and subseries of materials are not always grouped together as they were created by Pollock. Files on the Hoover Commission and the Michigan Constitutional Convention, for example, come before Pollock's work in Germany after the war. In 1999, effort was made to resolve some of the inconsistencies and obvious misfilings of the first inventory but because of the numbering system used in 1969 and the card index prepared for the files, there are still some problems. Researchers should be alert to these difficulties and take time to examine different parts of the collection for material on a similar topic.

Eight letters of recommendation for Fisher from fellow officers relating to his Civil War service; correspondents include Melvin Brewer (Sept. 18, 1863), John W. Geary (June 31, 1863), W. D. Mann (Aug. 27, 1863), Angelo Paldi (Oct. 7, 1863), C. H. Town (Oct. 17, 1863), and C. I. Walker (Aug. 13, 1861); also one letter (April 21, 1863) from George C. Gordon of Company I, 24th Michigan Infantry. Collection also includes a typescript of excerpts from Fisher's diary describing a Michigan boat trip from Detroit to Ontonagon via Sault Ste. Marie in 1850, and student days at the University of Michigan in 1860; also diary of an overland trip to California in search of gold and the return trip by sea, with comments on mining; three University of Michigan student notebooks on courses by James V. Campbell, Thomas M. Cooley, and Charles I. Walker; and notes on the James Fisher family by Max Fisher.

Resident of Wooster, Ohio (later of Bedford, Iowa); 1862 graduate of the University of Michigan Department of Medicine and Surgery; surgeon in the 20th Ohio Volunteer Infantry during the Civil War. Civil War letters, diaries, newspapers, miscellanea and photographs; Civil War letters of his brother John Guthrie, also with the 20th Ohio Volunteer Infantry; and manuscript biography written by Helen Stephenson Guthrie.

The collection consists of school records, and correspondence and other documents relating to his Civil War service and activities.

Congregationalist missionary to Angola, and other members of the Miller family. Family letters, missionary newsletter, personal diaries concerning life in Hancock and Detroit, Michigan; Miller family materials; and photographs.

The collection consists of personal papers of Janette Miller and other members of the Miller family. The collection includes family letters, missionary newsletter, personal diaries concerning life in Hancock and Detroit, Michigan, photographs, and Miller family materials.

Jerome Ellison, 1907-1981, was a writer and editor who published a number of books and articles covering topics of fiction and literary criticism. The collection contains a large number of Ellison's drafts of stories and articles, as well as biographical materials. These include photographs, journals, and correspondence, in addition to material from his time as the president of the Phoenix Society.

The Jerome Ellison papers collection covers the years from 1910 to 1981, and consists of 1.4 linear feet and 1 oversize box.

Physician from Matherton, Michigan who served as medical steward and assistant surgeon with the Second Michigan Infantry during the Civil War. Diaries and correspondence concerning his Civil War service and two letters, 1863, from Sarah E. Edmonds Seelye, woman Civil War soldier who served under the alias Frank Thompson; also photographs.

The Jerome J. Robbins papers, consisting principally of journal and diaries, document his service as medical steward and assistant surgeon with the Second Michigan Infantry during the Civil War. The collection also includes some correspondence and other material relating to his civil war service and several portraits of Robbins. The collection has been organized into three series: Journals, Other Papers, and Photographs.

Jimmie Howard Reynolds (1925-2013) was a band director from Louisiana who taught and directed music programs at the high school and collegiate level. During the 1970/1971 academic year, Reynolds took a sabbatical leave from his position as Director of Bands at Louisiana Polytechnic University to serve as a graduate assistant under Dr. William D. Revelli during his final year as Director of Bands at the University of Michigan. Reynolds kept a journal of rehearsals and performances from that time and wrote extensively about the pedagogical practices Revelli employed as Director. This diary is a digital transcription of the entire diary as written, prepared by Reynolds' son, Dr. Patrick Allen Reynolds, in 2021.

The Jimmie Howard Reynolds diary, titled "Rehearsals with WRD", was maintained by Reynolds during the 1970-1971 academic year at the University of Michigan. Reynolds was a graduate student assistant for William D. Revelli during his last year as Director of Bands. The diary held by the Bentley Historical Library is a transcription, prepared and edited by Reynold's son, Dr. Patrick Reynolds, in 2021. Dr. Reynolds transcribed the diary as written, with minor changes to punctuation and grammar to aid in clarity. Dr. Reynolds also added some additional information to the text, usually to clarify names, dates, or events as written about by his father; these additions are added in brackets.

While Reynolds and Revelli maintained a close professional relationship for forty years, the diary documents criticisms Reynolds had of Revelli's conducting and pedagogy. In some entries, names have been removed by Dr. Reynolds to avoid embarrassment on behalf of the performers. A full note regarding Dr. Reynolds' transcription work is included in the digital file.

Marshall, Calhoun County, attorney, Republican state senator, 1878-1882; contain correspondence, legal files, diaries and financial records concerning business and family affairs and the history of Marshall; also family papers, including Civil War letters of brother, Philo D. Patterson, student letters from the University of Michigan of son, Frank D. Patterson, 1892-1894, and records of business partner William H. Brown.

The John C. Patterson collection is divided into the following series: Correspondence; Letterpress books; Legal files; Diaries; Miscellaneous business records; John C. Patterson personal; and Other family members and miscellaneous. Much of the correspondence is addressed either to Patterson or to William H. Brown and pertains to their law practice. Other correspondence relates to family matters, politics, and Hillsdale College. Included in the correspondence are nine letters of Philo D. Patterson written while he was serving in Company H, Ninth Michigan Infantry, February-September 1865. Two of the letters reflect on the assassination of President Lincoln. There are also letters from Frank Dean Patterson, 1892-1894, when he was a student at the University of Michigan.

Lawyer at Coldwater, Michigan, Civil War officer, U.S. Marshal of Eastern District of Michigan and Minister to Belgium. Correspondence from family, friends and associates regarding personal and business affairs, military matters, and Democratic politics; miscellaneous other materials and photographs.

The John G. Parkhurst collection consists of correspondence from family, friends and associates regarding personal and business affairs, military matters, and Democratic politics; miscellaneous other materials and photograph. the collections has been divided into the following series: Correspondence; John G. Parkhurst Civil War service; John G. Parkhurst diplomatic and other activities; and Other family materials, business records, and miscellaneous.

John Harris Forster was a geologist, engineer, surveyor, farmer, and chronicler of life in the Americas in the mid-19th century. As he traveled about North and South America, surveying boundaries, inspecting copper mines, mining gold with the California Forty-Niners, or raising hogs, Forster wrote of his experiences in his journals and used them and his acute memory to describe his travels to family, friends, and an interested public. His journals, correspondence, and speeches are a rich source of social history and geographical and architectural information on life in the areas in which he traveled, including the Great Lakes (Michigan and Wisconsin), Far West, and Central and South America. Forster's papers are of considerable interest for their detailed descriptions of the culture and lifestyle of the native populations he encountered, the terrain and climate of the areas in which he camped and surveyed, and the hardships of life in unsettled or recently settled areas.

The John Harris Forster papers are arranged in seven series. Correspondence primarily contains letters written by Forster to various family members, and is arranged chronologically by year. The Thomas Forster series contains materials of John's father, chiefly correspondence and documents pertaining to family and financial matters. Journals and Manuscripts is arranged by year, with titles provided on the contents list. Scrapbook Materials consist of clippings from various newspapers (most of which are unidentified). Forster evidently was a journalist correspondent for these papers, and his columns seem to be excerpts from his journals, with slight modification. His Speeches and Addresses to various Michigan organizations also are based to a large extent on his journals, but there are exceptions, such as the very interesting one detailing life as a Swine-herd in California. Miscellaneous consists mostly of biographical materials and financial documents. Photographs includes portraits and view of the family farm near Williamston, Michigan. For related materials on Forster, including biographical clippings, correspondence to his wife, family documents, and other Forster writings, the researcher should consult the Mullett Family Papers.