Collections

Member of the Ann Arbor Township Planning Commission; minutes, correspondence, maps and photographs.

The James Morgan Papers include minutes, correspondence, maps and photographs. The collection is organized in three series: Ann Arbor Township Planning Commission, Personal, and Photographs.

Civil servant with Chinese Maritime Customs Service, later professor of Far Eastern art at the University of Michigan. Letters to his mother describing his experiences in China, other related papers, and photographs from his years in China.

The Plumer collection has been arranged into the following series: Letters to his mother from China; Other Materials; and Photographs. The letters to his mother are bound together in seven volumes with occasional descriptive photographs. The letters describe his experiences in Nanking, Manchuria, Shanghai, and Hankow, and his vacation trip to India in 1928. Also included are typescripts of selective letters. The Photographs series consists of people, buildings, and views in China, especially in Nanking and Manchuria. There are also photos of visits to Hong Kong, India, Japan, and the Philippines.

This collection contains correspondence, speeches, ephemera, and photographs related to James Naismith, the inventor of basketball. Naismith's incoming correspondence includes letters about the history of basketball in locations across Canada and the United States, and his typed speech notes primarily concern the relationship between athletics, morality, and religion.

This collection contains correspondence, speeches, ephemera, and photographs related to James Naismith, the inventor of basketball. Naismith's incoming correspondence includes letters about the history of basketball in locations across Canada and the United States, and his typed speech notes primarily concern the relationship between athletics, morality, and religion.

The Correspondence series contains 44 letters, including 27 Naismith received about the history of basketball and the implementation of basketball programs. Between 1917 and 1939, Naismith collected responses to his inquiries about basketball from Canada, Uruguay, and universities within the United States. These letters often reported the dates of the first recorded local basketball games, and some described early equipment and rules. A letter from Edmonton, Alberta (October 15, 1929) concerned the development of women's basketball, and one from Osage City High School stated that theirs was the first high school in Kansas to have a basketball team (March 22, 1932). Some correspondents inquired about Naismith's experiences with the game, shared their own experiences, or discussed rule changes.

Letters written after Naismith's death are commemorative, including one signed by members of the Wheelchair Bulldozers, written on stationery bearing the team's logo (November 6, 1948). Additionally, Raymond Kaighn, the last surviving member of Naismith's first basketball team, wrote 8 letters to Kenneth Crouch between April 16, 1958, and July 28, 1962, reminiscing about his experiences and extolling Naismith's contribution to the world of sports. The collection also holds four letters Naismith wrote, providing his thoughts on the center jump ball rule (January 7, 1930), requesting information on Canadian basketball (with two responses, December 15, 1930), describing the game around the time of its invention in 1891 (February 4, 1939), and addressing his wife about personal matters (undated).

The Speech Notes and Essays series contains 7 typed speeches delivered by Naismith, with his manuscript annotations. The speeches pertain to the historical and contemporary relationship between athletic activities, morality, and religion, such as the role of athletic and physical education in moral and ethical development. Naismith lamented the commercialization of basketball and discussed the effects of the radio on the presidential election of 1928 (October 1928). One undated essay relates to sexual immorality among soldiers in the United States military.

Photographs and Ephemera include one photograph each of James Naismith and Raymond Kaighn, a souvenir program, a magazine article, and an invitation.

An inventory of items in the final two series appears in the Detailed Box and Folder listing below.

James N. Morgan was a professor of economics and researcher in the Institute for Social Research at the University of Michigan from 1949 to 1987. The collection ranges from 1939 to 2010 with the bulk being from 1947-1999. It includes biographical information, research, and writings that Morgan produced before, during, and after his time at the university.

The James N. Morgan collection includes biographical information, research, and writings that Morgan produced before, during, and after his time at the university, spanning the years 1939 to 2010 with the bulk being from 1947-1999. The collection is organized in three series: Biographical Material, Correspondence, and Research.

Michigan based author of adventure stories set in Alaska and Canada, screen writer and motion picture executive, and conservationist, a founding member of Izaak Walton League and member of Michigan Conservation Commission. Papers documenting his literary, film and conservation activities include manuscripts of books, screenplays and other writing and correspondence and photographs.

The James Oliver Curwood papers include correspondence, newspaper clippings, scrapbooks, manuscripts of publications, copies of books, and miscellanea; include material concerning his literary activities, the writing and production of motion pictures, his promotion of conservation causes, especially forest fire prevention, deer herd management, and the campaign against water pollution, and his work with the Conservation Commission, particularly his disputes with the Michigan Department of Conservation, Governor Alexander J. Groesbeck, and state director of conservation, John Baird; also copies of correspondence collected by Ivan Conger.

Photographs include pictures taken on hunting and fishing trips to British Columbia, the Canadian Northwest, and other areas of Canada; portraits; and photos of the Saginaw River (Michigan), and of pollution caused by the Michigan Sugar Company; also one film (two videotape copies), including scenes from God's Country and the Law.

Ypsilanti, Michigan, attorney, Washtenaw County circuit court judge. Papers concerning family history, Masonic activities, and legal interests; also photographs.

The Breakey papers includes personal and professional papers, files relating to his participation in different Masonic organizations, and photographs. Of special note is correspondence exchanged with U.S. Supreme Court Judge Tom C. Clark. There are also notes Breakey made concerning the visit of William Jennings Bryan to Ann Arbor. The photographs include portraits (photos and silhouette) of family members, including William F. Breakey; photos of homes, including the James A. Breakey farm near Cheney, (Crawford County) Michigan; photos of Ann Arbor and University of Michigan buildings; and photos of the Cleary College commencement in 1958.

This collection is made up of correspondence and photographs related to James Shearer's life in South America in 1921 and 1922 as an agent for the Bay City Industrial Works. Shearer's letters to his family concern his trip from New York to Chile; daily life and customs in Santiago, Chile, and other locations; and visits to Peru, Bolivia, Argentina, and Brazil.

This collection is made up of correspondence and photographs related to James Shearer's travels and life in South America in 1921 and 1922.

The Correspondence series (67 items) includes letters that Shearer wrote to his family in Bay City, Michigan, between June 27, 1921, and September 3, 1922. Shearer's first letters concern his voyage from New York City to Santiago, Chile, by way of the Caribbean, the Panama Canal, Ecuador, and Peru; he described his trip through the canal and other aspects of the locales he passed or visited. The bulk of the correspondence pertains to Shearer's life in Santiago, Chile, which he discussed in his frequent letters to his mother and, less often, his sister-in-law Winifred. He wrote about local customs and language, his work and the economy, historical influences on Chilean culture, and other aspects of his daily life. Shearer traveled in Peru and Bolivia in February and March 1922 and briefly returned to Santiago before traveling by railroad to Buenos Aires, Argentina, in June 1922. He compared Buenos Aires to Santiago and mentioned his attempts to locate potential clients for the Industrial Works of Bay City, Michigan. In the fall of 1922, he also wrote from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

The Writings series (2 items) includes an undated description of the collection's contents written by Shearer, with brief notes about his work at the time, and a typed article regarding earthquakes in Coquimbo and La Serena, Chile.

The Photographs and Postcards series (77 items) consists of 40 photographic prints, 28 picture postcards, and 9 photographic negatives; the negatives correspond to a group of prints. The photographs, which include Shearer's captions, show scenes from Chile, Peru, and Bolivia, including views of the Coquimbo harbor, views of railroad lines running through mountains, overhead views of cities and surrounding scenery, and street-level pictures of buildings and street scenes. Some images feature groups of people and, in one instance, a flock of llamas; 3 show a well-dressed man holding open a very large, manuscript musical book. The series includes a portrait of James Shearer from his South American trip and a formal portrait of Shearer taken in 1956. The postcards, many of which have captions by Shearer, feature pictures of Santiago landmarks; Chilean railroads; the town of Sewell, Chile; Chilean women; a mountain monument in Mendoza, Argentina; La Paz, Bolivia; and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Some of the postcards and photographs have numbers written on the back that appear to correspond to Shearer's letters.

This collection is made up of correspondence and other items related to Philadelphia resident James Shields, particularly concerning his interest in 19th-century American author Eugene Field.

This collection (59 items) is made up of correspondence and other items related to Philadelphia resident James Shields, particularly concerning his interest in 19th-century American author Eugene Field.

The Correspondence series (45 items) contains incoming and outgoing letters of James Shields, primarily from July 1917-October 1932. Many are the writers' responses to Shields's inquiries about Eugene Field manuscripts and writings, Field's possible acquaintance with Patrick Lafcadio Hearn, and the possible location of a Field death mask. Some of Shields's correspondents had been personally acquainted with Field. An article about Hearn from The New Republic (October 7, 1972) is enclosed with Shields's draft letter of December 10, 1917. Later items, dated 1939-1942, pertain to a donation that Shields made to the Free Library of Philadelphia and the publications of the Aitkin-Kynett Company.

The Eugene Field Manuscripts (5 items) include fragments of 4 personal letters that Field wrote to his "Aunt Alice" from October 1894-October 1895, mostly about family news. The series also contains a manuscript copy of Field's poem "The Dreams."

The Poetry, Photographs, and Ephemera series (14 items) includes pamphlets containing remarks about Eugene Field by Eugene V. Debs and a brief poem by Field, a manuscript poem about hermit crabs attributed to Francis Sedgwick Child, a brief essay about Ralph A. Lyon, a name card, and other items. The photographs include images of a woman laying flowers on Field's grave and of Francis Wilson playing theatrical parts "Young Rip" and "Old Rip."

Professor of geology, and director of the Institute of Science and Technology at the University of Michigan. Files relating to his professional career, especially his interest in seismology and investigations into earthquake reduction; and photographs.

The papers of James Tinley Wilson consist of 1.5 linear feet of manuscript, photographic and printed material covering the years, 1940-1978. There is material from most aspects of Wilson's professional activities, but nothing relating to his private life.

The papers of James Tinley Wilson are most valuable as supplementary to other archival materials available at the Bentley Historical Library. Of most importance are the records of the Institute of Science and Technology. Unfortunately, as an independent research source, the usefulness of the collection is more limited. The full span of Wilson's professional life is documented, but not in any great depth. Researchers interested in the development of seismology as a field of scientific endeavor would possibly find Wilson's papers helpful, but those seeking information about any of the professional associations or the workings of the IST should be aware of the sparseness of these records.

The papers have been arranged in the following series: Biography, Associations, Conferences, Consulting, Correspondence, University of Michigan, Writings, Photographs.

University of Michigan professor of law, Detroit, Michigan, attorney, Michigan Supreme Court justice. Family correspondence, journal of trip to Sandusky, Ohio, in 1844, and lecture materials; also papers of Valeria Campbell, corresponding secretary of the Soldiers' Aid Society of Detroit, U. S. Sanitary Commission, concerning the society, the Detroit Soldiers' Home, and other relief agencies; and University student letters, 1872-1876, of Henry M. Campbell.

The James V. Campbell papers include materials documenting Campbell's career as professor of law at the University of Michigan, lawyer, and Michigan State Supreme court justice as well as papers of other Campbell family members. The papers include family correspondence, a journal of a trip to Sandusky, Ohio, in 1844, and lecture materials; also papers of Valeria Campbell, corresponding secretary of the Soldiers' Aid Society of Detroit, U. S. Sanitary Commission, concerning the society, the Detroit Soldiers' Home, and other relief agencies; and University student letters, 1872-1876, of Henry M. Campbell.