Collections : [University of Michigan Bentley Historical Library]

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Collection

Gordon Charles papers, 1934-2005 (majority within 1953-1998)

16 linear feet

Gordon Charles wrote syndicated columns on travel and outdoor activities for local Michigan newspapers. His collection contains his journals, copies and clippings of his articles, his books, subject files, slides, photographs, and correspondence.

The Gordon Charles papers contain his journals, copies and clippings of his articles, his books, subject files, slides, photographs, and correspondence related to his work as travel and outdoor activities writer for local Michigan newspapers. The papers are divided up into three series: Personal, Articles, and Subject Files.

Collection

Greg Kamm papers, 1963-2008

7 linear feet — 1 oversize folder

Student activist who was involved with SDS, co-founded Kalamazoo Gay Liberation at Western Michigan University in 1970, and was involved with the Gay Liberation Movement at Michigan State University in the early 1970s. Greg Kamm later became an ESL teacher and served in the Peace Corps before teaching English in Thailand, South Korea, and Saudi Arabia. Collection includes photographs, personal journals, and papers documenting Kamm's involvement with various organizations.

Due to his involvement with SDS in the late 1960's and the Gay Rights movement in the early 70's, the Greg Kamm papers are a highly valuable resource for scholars and citizens interested in the history of student activism in Michigan. The papers are especially important for understanding the evolution of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender rights in the state because Kamm, as cofounder of Kalamazoo Gay Liberation and an officer of the Gay Liberation Movement at MSU, was intimately involved with the movement in the years immediately succeeding the Stonewall riots. At the same time, materials related to Kamm's experiences abroad as a traveler and ESL teacher offer a Michigander's view of the world and his 31 years' worth of journals provide a fascinating insight into Kamm's transitions from activism to eastern philosophy and, ultimately, to the consolation of his early Catholicism. The Greg Kamm papers are divided into four series: Biographical Materials, Student Activism, Visual Materials, and Journals.

Collection

Hal Butler papers, 1930-2006

6 linear feet — 1 oversize volume

Detroit-based editor, pulp fiction writer, novelist, nonfiction author, and freelance travel writer; collection contains background materials and extensive business files which include correspondence, contracts, copyrights, photographs, and a wide range of publications.

The Hal Butler papers reflect the versatility, industry, and imagination of their creator's mind. Throughout his career as a writer and editor for the Ford Motor Company, Butler never ceased to follow his passion for describing his travels and telling tales of sports, mystery, and adventure. This collection will be of value to those interested in travel writing, the Great Lakes region, and publishing genres such as pulp fiction and 1950's men's magazines.

Collection

Harold Dunbar Corbusier papers, 1883-1979 (scattered dates) (majority within 1900-1902)

2. 4 linear feet (in 3 boxes) — 1 oversize folder

An orthopedic surgeon in the United States Army, author, inventor, and University of Michigan alumnus (B.S. and M.D. 1899). Corbusier served in the China Relief Expedition, the Philippines Campaign, the Mexican Border War, and World War I. The collection contains biographical information, correspondence, writings by Corbusier, collected articles and clippings, photographs and glass plate lantern slides, loose scrapbook materials, and a photo album. Materials document Corbusier's experiences during the China Relief Expedition, the Mexican Border War, the Philippines Campaign, and World War I. The collection also contains a small amount of materials focusing on his time as a student at the University of Michigan, as well as to his medical and military careers.

The papers of Harold Dunbar Corbusier include a range of materials focusing on his medical and military career with the United States Army Medical Corps and the Medical Department of the U.S. Army Reserves between 1900 and ca. 1945.

The Biographical series included his biography, a diary reflecting on his childhood experiences at Fort Mackinac in Michigan, a typed manuscript highlighting his experiences during the Boxer Rebellion in China. Also included here are his professional publications and collected articles, event programs and invitations.

The Correspondence series primarily includes letters to his then fiancé Louise Shepard, as well as letters from military and governmental departments, hospitals, and other military and medical associations. images The Visual Materials series includes glass plate slides and a photo album with images of Chinese landmarks and troops from the eight nations fighting against the Boxers. Also included are photographs mostly focusing on the China and Philippines campaigns, and loose scrapbook materials (mostly clippings) focusing on China and Asia in general.

Collection

Harold Studley Gray Papers, 1896-1972

12.5 linear feet — 1 oversize folder — 2 oversize volumes — 6 film reels — 2 digital audio files

Online
Conscientious objector during World Wars I and II and founder of the farming cooperative Saline Valley Farms. Correspondence, diaries, notebooks, and other materials relating to all phases of his career, including his work as Y.M.C.A. worker in England, 1916-1917, and as teacher at Central China University, Wuchang, China, 1922-1926; also family correspondence of Philip H. and Almena S. Gray, 1874-1926; also photographs and motion pictures.

The Harold Gray papers have been divided into seven series: Correspondence; World War I era activities; Personal and Miscellaneous; Printed, clippings, and miscellanea; Family and genealogical; Saline Valley Farms; and Visual Materials (photographs and motion pictures). The great strength of the collection are correspondence, administrative files, diaries, and visual materials documenting the operation of the Saline Valley Farms. There is significant, though smaller quantities of papers detailing Gray's opposition to serving in the military during World War I and his career as a teacher in China in the 1920s.

Collection

Harold Titus Papers, 1908-1967

5.2 linear feet

Traverse City, Michigan, free-lance writer and conservation editor of Field and Stream magazine; correspondence, manuscripts of writings, diaries, topical files, and photographs.

The collection includes correspondence, manuscript articles, and conservation columns; materials collected by the Michigan Writers' Program concerning Michigan logging; also diaries, speeches, newspaper clippings, notebooks, genealogy, photographs, and miscellaneous material concerning Titus' interest in conservation, forestry, and fishing.

Collection

Hazel Littlefield Smith Papers, circa 1830s-1979

5.3 linear feet — 1 oversize folder

Resident in China from Farwell, Michigan; papers concern her family life in Farwell, and missionary activities; include letters, diaries, and accounts of father, Josiah L. Littlefield, Farwell lumber dealer and visitor to China, 1916-1917; letters, 1918-1928, of husband, Dr. Dennis V. Smith, medical missionary to China, describing in part Chinese politics and civil war, 1918-1920; letters and other papers of Hazel Littlefield Smith, including materials concerning various European travels, and manuscripts of writings about Irish author Lord Dunsany, her father, and Farwell, Michigan; and photographs. Other correspondents of Hazel Smith include world-renowed scientists (Edwin Hubble and William Beebe), from Chinese Princess Der Ling, and from distinguished European writers and actors (Pierre LaMure, Selma Lagerlof, Brian Aherne, and Ronald Colman).

This collection was accumulated by Hazel Littlefield Smith and consists of materials concerning her career and interests and those of her family, specifically her husband, Dr. Dennis Smith, and her father, Josiah Littlefield (1845-1935), a pioneer lumberman and businessman in Farwell, Michigan.

The collection is particularly valuable for three topics: early days (late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries) in Farwell, Michigan; missionary life in China in the period ca. 1915-1928; and the travels and writings of Hazel Littlefield Smith. The materials include correspondence, compositions and business-related materials of Josiah Littlefield; correspondence and other materials of Dr. Dennis Smith, Hazel Littlefield Smith (and Josiah Littlefield) concerning conditions in early republican China; and correspondence and other materials of Hazel Littlefield Smith concerning her travels in Europe (1920s-1950s), her management of the family farm near Farwell, Michigan (1940s), and her essays, poetry and other publications, including Lord Dunsany: King of Dreams.

The three principal figures in the collection--Hazel Littlefield Smith, Dennis Smith and Josiah Littlefield--were highly perceptive observers of persons and events. Their letters are rich in detail, whether describing travel experiences or everyday life in rural northern Michigan.

The collection is arranged into six series: Littlefield Family, China-related materials, Hazel Littlefield Smith, Miscellanea, Dr. Dennis V. Smith, and Visual Materials.

Collection

Henry D. Jones Papers, 1918-1987

1 linear foot

Presbyterian clergyman, missionary to China and Japan. Diary, 1918, detailing study at Ripon College and service in the Students' Army Training Corps; files relating to foreign missionary activities, including photographs; correspondence, 1935-1986; articles and biographical material; and personal and professional miscellanea relating in part to his interest in the history of Welsh Americans in Michigan.

The papers of Rev. Henry D. Jones consist of one linear foot of materials from 1918 to 1987. The collection is arranged topically and chronologically. Each folder is also chronologically arranged. The collection is divided into seven series, including: Pastoral Career and Home Mission, Foreign Mission Activity, Later Career, Correspondence, Articles and Biography, Photographs, and Welsh in Michigan.

Collection

Houck, Kibler, and Smith families papers, 1853-2012 (majority within 1910-1946)

5.0 linear feet — 1 oversize box

Genealogical collection for the Houck, Kibler, and Smith families, whose ancestors settled Michigan between the 1840s and 1900s. Includes correspondence, estate records, diaries, photographs, scrapbooks, war records, and other materials.

This genealogical collection traces the roots of three Michigan families. The papers include correspondence, estate records, visual materials, and war records.

Collection

Hull Family Papers, 1869-1984 (majority within 1869-1960)

1 phonograph record — 3 oversize volumes — 4 linear feet

Letterbook (1869-1872) of George Hull, Livingston County, Michigan, farmer and businessman, relating to his grocery business, and letters (1888-1899) to his son Lawrence then attending Lawrenceville School in New Jersey relating to the family's fruit farm at Pleasant Lake; papers of Lawrence's wife, Eliza Darling Hull, student at the University of Michigan; papers of Lawrence and Eliza's son Leroy relating to World War I service; papers of Lawrence and Eliza's daughter Isabelle MacFarlane Hull; diaries of Leroy's wife, Frances Ball Hull, 1915-1919 and 1947-1957; papers of Leroy and Frances's son George M. Hull; papers of Leroy and Frances's daughter Jean Hull Ruhman; photographs; and scrapbooks.

The Hull Family Papers consists of nine series: Family Materials, George L. Hull and Isabelle M. Hull, Lawrence C. Hull and Eliza Darling Hull, Isabelle MacFarlane Hull, Dr. Leroy Hull and Frances Ball Hull, George M. Hull, Jean Hull Ruhman, Audio-Visual Materials, and Scrapbooks. The collection contains letters, diaries, photos, clippings, and ephemera. The strength of the collection lies in its documentation of life in nineteenth-century southern Michigan, the World War I correspondence of Dr. Leroy Hull, the World War II correspondence of George M. Hull, and the 1950s travel correspondence and photographs of Jean Hull Ruhman.