Collections : [University of Michigan Bentley Historical Library]

Two year custody battle over "Baby Girl Clausen" between Jan and Robby DeBoer of Ann Arbor, Michigan and her biological parents Cara Clausen and Daniel Schmidt of Blairstown, Iowa; and the national child advocacy group Hear My Voice. The collection consists of correspondence, news clippings, press releases, photographs, audio cassette tapes, digital materials, video tapes, and legal papers such as petitions, briefs, judicial orders, and amicus briefs.

The Robby DeBoer papers document the legal battle and media coverage surrounding the adoption of "Baby Girl Clausen," and also the organizational records of the national child advocacy group Hear My Voice. The collection consists of correspondence, news clippings, press releases, photographs, audio cassette tapes, digital materials, video tapes, and legal papers such as petitions, briefs, judicial orders, and amicus briefs. The collection has the following series: Biographical, Litigation, Hear My Voice, Publicity, Audio/Visual Materials, and General Correspondence.

Designer and automotive engineer with the General Motors Corporation; he later assumed increasing responsibilities within the company as president and chief operating officer and then chairman and chief executive officer. After leaving GM, he became chairman of Energy Conversion Devices (ECD). The Stempel collection documents his work with GMC and ECD and includes minutes of meetings, company memoranda and correspondence, speeches and other various presentations, publications, and photographs and other visual materials. Portions of the collection relate to other business and public service affiliations.

The Robert C. Stempel collection has been arranged into the following series: General Motors Corporation; Energy Conversion Devices; Speeches / Conferences / Presentations; Organizational Affiliations, Responsibilities, and Interests; Background / Personal information; Visual Materials, and Sound Cassettes.

African American civil rights activist and Black militant leader in Monroe County North Carolina who came to advocate armed self-defense in response to violence, left the United States in 1961 and lived in Cuba and China until 1969 when he settled in Baldwin Michigan. Papers include correspondence, newspaper clippings, audio-visual material, manuscripts, petitions, and government documents documenting the civil rights movement, black nationalism, radical politics in the United States and Williams's experiences in Cuba and China.

The Robert Williams papers, dating from 1951, include correspondence, notes, newspaper clippings, audio-visual material, manuscripts, petitions, and government documents. The collection documents a wide variety of subjects: the American civil rights movement, Black Nationalism, cold war politics, Castro's Cuba, Mao's China, and the radical left in the United States.

As Robert Williams continued to add to his collection following his initial donation in 1976, it was necessary to arrange and describe the materials based on groupings of dates of accessioning. Thus the bulk of the collection is divided into two subgroups: 1976-1979 Accessions and 1983-1997 Accessions with much overlapping of material. In addition, the collection contains a small series of papers collected by his son John C. Williams and a separate series of Audio-Visual Materials.

Papers include correspondence, diary, clippings, and photographs relating to his experience as a prisoner; correspondence relating to his Purple Heart award and the Prisoner of War medal. Also included a memoir by Sidney Esensten about his experience as an American P.O.W. during the Korean War.

Visual materials include photos relating to his experience as a prisoner; videotape entitled "P.O.W.--Americans in Enemy Hands" (1986), which includes interview with Fletcher; videotape of 1990 presentation by Fletcher and three Tuskegee Airmen, African American World War II aviators, describing their military experiences, and an undated videotape "Priority: P.O.W."

Russell Bidlack was the first Dean of the School of Library Science at the University of Michigan, serving in that post from 1969 to 1984, as well as an author and historian. His papers reflect his interests in library science, local history, and genealogy.

The Bidlack papers consist of seven series: Correspondence, Personal Material, Class Notes, Miscellaneous Files, Writings, the John and Ann Allen Research files, and the Elisha and Mary Ann Rumsey Research Files.

Historic restaurant based in Marshall, Michigan, specializing in American home-style cuisine. Since 1909, the Schuler family has owned and operated this Michigan institution. Records include administrative files, menus, advertising and publicity materials, slides, photographs, videotapes and scrapbooks.

The records of Schuler's restaurant document the long history and background of this restaurant. The bulk of the materials come from the heyday of the restaurant from the 1950s to the 1980s when the restaurant experienced major growth and national recognition.

This record group contains the following series: Administrative, Advertising and Publicity, Menus, Visual Materials, and Scrapbooks.

Sherwin T. Wine was the iconoclastic founder of Humanistic Judaism and an openly gay rabbi who established the Birmingham Temple and formed the Society for Humanistic Judaism, the Center for New Thinking (a community forum for discussion of current events and issues), and various groups devoted to free thought and humanism. Papers include biographical content, correspondence, writings, educational and worship materials, sound recordings, visual materials, and various organizational records.

The Sherwin T. Wine papers illustrate the intellectual traits and organizational acumen of a man who devoted his life to the establishment of a new branch of Judaism and the advancement of humanistic values and rationalism. The collection will be of value to those individuals who seek a deeper understanding of Wine as a person as well as the founder of Humanistic Judaism. Writings, correspondence, and clippings detail the process by which Wine broke free from the traditions of Reform Judaism to found a new denomination. Materials from the Birmingham Temple and other Secular Humanist Judaism organizations trace the development and expansion of the movement. Content related to the many other groups with which Wine was involved reveal an individual able to organize and inspire others to act at local, national, and international levels.

University of Michigan Chapter of Sigma Xi, the Scientific Research Society. Records are dated from 1903 to 2002 and include audiovisual material, committee and chronological files, correspondence, membership records, minutes, programs of annual banquets, reports, topical files, and treasurer's records. The records primarily document the activities of the University of Michigan chapter and the involvement of Peggie J. Hollingsworth in Sigma Xi's national organization.

The material in the Sigma Xi, the Scientific Research Society, University of Michigan Chapter records is dated from 1903 to 2002 and includes audiovisual material, committee and chronological files, correspondence, membership records, minutes, programs of annual banquets, reports, topical files, and treasurer's records. The records primarily document the activities of the University of Michigan chapter and the involvement of Peggie J. Hollingsworth in Sigma Xi's national organization.

The Solar Car Team is an interdisciplinary student organization at the University of Michigan whose objectives are to design, finance, build and race a solar-powered vehicle from scratch. The collection documents the activities and experiences of several generations of the team, including team organization, design, fundraising, construction, testing and racing.

The records of the various U-M Solar Car projects have been received in multiple accessions and are generally described by accession. Accessions are typically organized around specific vehicles, but do contain material carried over from previous cars and races reflecting the fact that students learned from and built on the work of previous teams. For this reason, researchers are advised to review all accessions. The records contain a wide variety of documentation on the design, building, financing and racing of the solar cars and administrative and project management records.

Records include group reports; topical files; and binders containing newsletters and bulletins, and administrative and technical information for the cars; also included are videocassettes detailing design, building, and racing of the Sunrunner solar-powered automobile; photographs and albums of snapshots of team members performing general team tasks and captures of the Solar Car Team website.

Ann Arbor, Michigan, women's center founded in 1977 to help women cope with adjusting to life after widowhood or divorce. Soundings' main focus has been on job readiness, but it has offered workshops, programs, and individual and group counseling sessions on such topics as reentry into the workforce, assertiveness training, personal finance, and physical and emotional health and well-being. Records include background and history materials, administration, board of directors, grants and fundraising activities, finances, and audiovisual materials. Also includes the records of the Domestic Violence Project, Inc., a separate agency.

The collection is divided into seven series: Background, Administrative, Domestic Violence Project, Board of Directors, Grants and Fundraising, Financial, and Audiovisual. Types of materials and information include audio tapes and videotapes (primarily featuring interviews with Soundings staff and members), albums, photographs, slides, clippings, newsletters, annual reports, program files, client letters, workshop files, board meeting minutes, financial summaries, funding information and grant proposals, background and miscellaneous information, and files from the Domestic Violence Project, Inc. (a related agency).