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Unitarian minister, anti-imperialist, and advocate of independence for India. Extensive professional and family correspondence, diaries, sermons, manuscripts of books and articles, research notes, topical file on India, printed material, newspaper clippings, and miscellanea; also papers concerning his career first as a Baptist minister, later a Unitarian minister in Ann Arbor, Michigan and elsewhere, including his involvement in the Western Unitarian Conference.

The Sunderland papers are very complete for the early years of his career (1868-1887). The collection is divided into the following thirteen series: Correspondence, undated and 1868-1936, Visual Materials, Student papers and notebooks, Church and Ministerial Activities, Western Unitarian Conference, Diaries, Notebooks, etc., Sermon file, Manuscripts of Books and Articles, Research Notes and Manuscripts, Printed Materials, Topical Files on India, Miscellaneous Papers and Notebooks, Biographical/Autobiographical Material, and Topical File.

The Jacob Butler Varnum papers contain letters and documents related to Varnum's career as a factor at United States Indian trading posts in Sandusky, Ohio, and Fort Dearborn, Chicago; as a captain in the 40th Massachusetts Infantry during the War of 1812; and as a Washington D.C. merchant after he left government service. Included are letters and instructions from government officials concerning trade with Indians, as well as letters from Varnum to his father, Senator Joseph B. Varnum, concerning his activities as factor.

The Jacob Butler Varnum papers (79 items) contain letters and documents related to Varnum's career as a factor at United States Indian trading posts in Sandusky, Michilimackinac, and Fort Dearborn, Chicago; as a captain in the 40th Massachusetts Infantry during the War of 1812; and as a Washington D.C. merchant after he left government service. The collection is comprised of 59 letters, 1 diary, 13 documents and financial records, and 5 miscellaneous items. Included are letters and instructions from various government officials concerning trade with Indians in Ohio, Michigan, and Illinois, as well as five letters from Varnum to his father Senator Joseph B. Varnum (ca.1751-1821) concerning his activities as factor.

The Correspondence series (60 items) comprises the bulk of the collection. Forty-nine items document Varnum's governmental career spanning 1811 to 1826, during his service as Indian trade factor in Sandusky, Michilimackinac, and Chicago; and as captain of the 40th Massachusetts Infantry during the War of 1812. Varnum received instructions from various Indian agents and government officials concerning the regulation of trade with the Munsee, Ojibwe (Chippewa), Ottawa, Sioux, and Wyandot Indians, among others. Many letters came from the United States Office of Indian Trade at Georgetown, including four from Indian Officer John Mason (1812 and 1815), and 21 letters from Superintendent of Indian Trade Thomas Loraine McKenney (1816-1822). These contain discussions of trade operations, types of merchandise, questions arising about the sale of goods, and instructions for the reporting of financial accounts. Also of note are five letters from Varnum to his father, Joseph Bradley Varnum (1750-1821), in which he described his experiences at Sandusky and at Michilimackinac, as well as with the business of the trading house at Chicago (December 3, 1811; January 14, 1812; May 21, 1816; November 3, 1817; March 1, 1818).

• August 8, 1811: Joseph Bradley Varnum to John Mason, accepting the appointment of his son as agent of the United States Indian trading house at Sandusky, Ohio
• March 1, 1818: Varnum to his father predicting the outbreak of a great war with the Indians "from the Simenoles to the Sioux"
• February 8, 1820: Thomas L. McKenney letter to Jacob B. Varnum, giving instructions about the handling of money given to Varnum by Government Indian agents

Most of the 1823-1826 material concerns government reimbursements for military expenses at Fort Dearborn. The collection contains 11 letters documenting Varnum's post-governmental career as a merchant in Washington D.C. and Petersburg, Virginia (1826-1860).

• February 1827-August 1832: Five items regarding Varnum and John Biddle concerning mutual business interests in Detroit
• December 17, 1833: John H. Kinzie to Varnum concerning Chicago lands owned by Kinzie, a fur trader

The Diary series (1 item) contains a 26-page notebook with Varnum's description of his trip from Chicago to Dracut, Massachusetts, by way of Detroit and Buffalo (August 17-October 22, 1822), and from Detroit through New York and Philadelphia, to Washington D.C. (May 28-June 22, 1823). Varnum reported on his manner of travel (horse, ship, steamboat) and his travel route, describing stops at many of the major towns along the Erie Canal. He commented on the towns that he passed through including Rochester, New York, which had grown considerably since the opening of the Erie Canal (page 6). He also noted prices for room and board. The final five pages contain financial accounts for Varnum's military expenses incurred from 1813 to 1815.

The Documents and Financial Records series (13 items) contains material documenting Varnum's finances and his service in the War of 1812.

• June 8, 1813: Affidavits (and a fragment of the same item) documenting the capture of Joseph B. Varnum's trunks, taken by the British as they were being transported from Michilimackinac to Detroit
• 1814: Six military district orders related to promotions, responsibilities, and discipline in the 40th Massachusetts Infantry, in which Varnum was a captain under Acting Adjutant General George P. Peters
• August 22, 1815: Copy of a bond oath signed by Varnum as factor for Indian trade at Chicago, and a copy of his father, Jacob Butler Varnum's oath of office
• 1816-1827: Four financial records of debts and receipts for goods purchased by Varnum
• Undated [1808]: Deposition of Richard Smyth regarding the sale of a lot in Detroit owned by Varnum's father-in-law John Dodemead

The Miscellaneous series (5 items) contains 3 envelope covers, one of which includes a recipe for a "Lazy Daisy" cake (c.1930). Also present are a photograph of a man and two women outside of a tent next to a car (c.1930), and a typed 13-page biography of Joseph Bradley Varnum, undated and unattributed.

Jalett Griffith of Hamlin, New York, and Gobles, Michigan, kept annual diaries about his farm labor, crops, and daily activities in the 1870s and 1880s. This collection is made up of his diaries for 1875, 1877, 1883, 1885, and 1887.

Jalett Griffith of Hamlin, New York, and Gobles, Michigan, kept 5 diaries about his daily life as a farmer in 1875, 1877, 1883, 1885, and 1887. The volumes are Excelsior pocket diaries, and Griffith wrote his 1885 journal in a diary with pre-printed dates for the year 1884. Each journal begins on January 1 and ends in January or February of the following year, with extra entries written on pages intended for memoranda and accounts. The first 4 items concern Griffith's life in Hamlin, New York, and the final item is divided between his time in Hamlin and, after April 1887, in Gobles. Griffith's brief daily entries pertain to farming life and to crops such as barley, oats, beans, potatoes, and corn. He mentioned trips to Brockport, New York, visits with family members and friends, and family and local news, as well as consistently noting weather conditions. Alice Foster Griffith, Jalett's wife, wrote brief notes in at least one of the diaries, and each volume contains financial records related to farm work. A recipe for a concoction made of lard and snuff appears in the back of one volume.

Papers of the Rev. James A. Brown, Michigan Methodist minister, and his wife Winifred Croel Brown. Correspondence, diaries, sermons, photographs and other materials relating in part to their pastorate in Elsie, Michigan, life during the depression; include comments on farming conditions, politics, and the effects of prohibition.

The James Brown collection consists of papers of James Brown, his wife Winifred Croel Brown and several relatives of James Brown. It includes correspondence, diaries, sermons, photographs and other materials relating in part to their pastorate in Elsie, Michigan, life during the depression. In addition to information on family and church matters, the papers include comments on farming conditions, politics, and the effects of prohibition. The collection has been arranged into three series: the papers of James A. Brown, Winifred Croel Brown, and the extended Brown Family.

While a member of Co. H of the nine-months' 26th Connecticut Infantry Regiment, James Lord carefully recorded his experiences in two small pocket diaries, including the assaults on Port Hudson, sharpshooting, and insubordination.

While a member of Co. H of the nine-months' 26th Connecticut Infantry Regiment, James A. Lord carefully recorded his experiences in two small pocket diaries, which together cover the entire period from the date of volunteering to the date he was reunited with his family. Lord was involved in only a single campaign, but a grueling and costly one, Port Hudson.

Having apparently received a strong education, Lord's writing displays a clarity lacking in many Civil War diaries, and is straightforward and engaging, if not quite eloquent. While the entries are usually brief, when the siege heats up, Lord lavishes greater attention and does not stint on the details. His accounts of each of the three major assaults at Port Hudson (May 27, June 13-14) are excellent, the last, when he was wounded, being truly outstanding. Equally worthwhile are his account of sharpshooting amid crawling rebels and heavy fire, afraid to shoot lest he reveal his position (May 31), and his version of defying his colonel's orders and the consequences that resulted is humorous and highly unusual.

Lord's original diaries were transcribed, probably in the 1960s of 1970s, and a penciled notation on the typescript indicates that the location of the originals has since been lost.

Diary by a 20-year-old teacher from New York, containing observations made during an 1853 stay in Mississippi, including thoughts on slavery, African American churches, Southern culture, and the outbreak of a yellow fever epidemic from which he died. The volume also contains a eulogy in a different hand for Mary Lyon, founder of Mount Holyoke.

The 79-page James A. Marshall diary covers July 5-August 27, 1853, during which time Marshall traveled around Mississippi before falling ill with yellow fever and dying on September 5. An unknown person removed 54 pages of writing preceding the July 5 entry. Marshall’s diary contains lengthy and opinionated daily entries, many of which probe Southern society, which, as a New Yorker, he found quite foreign. In one entry, Marshall criticized Southern women: “indulgence certainly is a distinguishing characteristic of the southern lady. Physical exercise they all are averse to and if they even drop their handkerchief upon the floor at their feet, if no servant or gallant is near to pick it up…it must lie there until one comes to restore it” (p. 73). In another entry, Marshall expressed surprise that Uncle Tom’s Cabin was available in Mississippi, writing, “it seems the people here are not ‘afraid’ of reading such books, or having them circulated” (p. 75).

Marshall had an interest in African Americans, and on several occasions, visited a “Colored People’s Church, Methodist I inferred,” but criticized the service for its loudness, comparing it to a “meeting of the shaking Quakers” (p. 85). On July 23, he gave details of a slave auction that he attended: “One girl was sold for eight hundred and eighty dollars, only 16 years old and quite good looking. The man who bought her made no scruple of telling his object in buying her” (p. 98). Despite his special interest in African Americans, his opinions were paternalistic, and he expressed support for slavery, even speculating about owning a plantation himself: “It really would be very interesting it seems to me to have, as all the large planters have, a family of several hundred at ones control: not because of the power allowed, but to feel the satisfaction of being a tender Master to them, and to feel that all their interest were united and to enjoy the pleasure of giving them pleasure” (p. 117).

At the end of the diary, Marshall mentioned the yellow fever epidemic that would kill him within weeks, writing, “I shall not stop at Natchez on account of the Quarantine which has been established both at N. and Vicksburg on account of the prevalence of yellow fever… I am convinced that there is little if any danger to any one who uses due caution in diet” (103).

The volume also contains a 7-page eulogy on Mary Lyon, the founder of Mount Holyoke College, seemingly written by someone who knew her personally. The essay describes Lyon’s personality, manner of dress, and recounts things she said to her students. Also laid into the volume is a religious meditation.

James and Sybil (Hunter) Irwin were early setters of Washtenaw County, Michigan. Their two sons, John E. and (James) Leman Irwin, fought in the Civil War as volunteer members of the 20th Michigan Infantry. Correspondence, diaries, and ledgers from these and other branches of the family are preserved in the Irwin family papers.

The James and Sybil Irwin family papers feature letters written from various Civil War battlefields and encampments by the brothers John E. and (James) Leman Irwin. There are four additional Civil War letters from cousins Samuel H. Row, James H. Irwin, S. Baker, and S.H. Loveland, as well as a transcription of William B. Irwin's journal. The collection also provides insight into the lives of Michigan farmers in the second half of the 19th Century and early 20th Century by way of letters, ledgers, photographs, and diaries. In addition, the correspondence record details the experience of prospectors on the Minnesota Iron Range and life on a Great Lakes freighter. Also extant are sketches by Harriet (Hattie) Irwin, poetry by Harriet and Civil War veterans John E. Irwin and Samuel H. Row, and some early documents pertaining to the North Sharon Methodist Episcopal Church.

The James and Sybil Irwin family papers are divided into the following series largely as maintained by the donor: Civil War Materials; the Baker-Rice and Irwin Families; the individuals Amy (Rice) Irwin, Fred C. Irwin, Harriet S. Irwin, Isaac Irwin, James and Sybil (Hunter) Irwin, John E. Irwin, Max H. Irwin, (James) Leman Irwin, and Max H. Irwin; the North Sharon Methodist Episcopal Church; Miscellaneous items; and Postcards.

James Alexander Sprowl, a young man from Gibson County, Ind., enlisted in the Union army on October 21st, 1861, and was assigned to Company B of the 58th Indiana Infantry. His journal contains brief daily entries from March 26th through September 14th, 1862. Sprowl's descriptions are spare, but while lacking detail, they do give an impression of the rough edges of life in the service.

The Sprowl journal is pocket-sized and contains brief daily entries from March 26th through September 14th, 1862. Sprowl's descriptions are spare, but while lacking detail, they do give an impression of the rough edges of life in the service. The best sections in the journal are those that deal with the tense month spent in the siege of Corinth, and the much easier days of foraging through eastern and central Tennessee.

Papers of James Burrill Angell, the third President of the University of Michigan (1871-1909) and U.S. Minister to China (1871-1909) and Turkey (1897-1898). Includes correspondence, lectures and lecture notes, addresses and articles, subject files and personal materials, and photographs.

The Angell papers documents Angell's academic and diplomatic career. There is extensive material on all phases of University of Michigan business, particularly Angell's contacts with the state legislature, the board of regents, faculty relations, and the various schools, colleges, departments and divisions. Much of the correspondence and the Angell diaries relate to his diplomatic missions, higher education in the United States, and family matters.

Soldier from Detroit, Mich., member of Co. E, 339th U.S. Infantry who served in the Allied intervention in Russia, 1918-1920, the "Polar Bear Expedition." Collection includes diary of service in Russia, Nov.7, 1918-Jan.14, 1919 and other war-related papers.

The papers include a diary, Nov. 1918-Jan. 1919, describing daily life, monotony, the weather, and fighting at Kodish, Dec. 1918. Also included are newspaper clippings, miscellanea, and photographs. Also artifacts: helmet, shell casing trench art (75 mm), 37 mm shell, VFW Post 436 cap, and uniform insignia. (The photographs and artifacts have not been digitized.)