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The Eaton-Shirley family papers consist of personal diaries, correspondence, military papers, legal and business documents, printed materials, and photographs. A primary figure in the collection, John Eaton, Jr., was Civil War Superintendent of the Freedmen and later Commissioner of Education under Grant. The papers also contains substantial material from other Eaton family members, including military papers and correspondence of his brother, Lucien B. Eaton, and papers of the Shirley family (the family of John Eaton, Jr.’s wife, Alice E. Shirley).

The Eaton papers consist of 1,903 items, dating from September 1790 to July 30, 1939. The bulk of the collection falls between 1850 and 1906. The papers contain 318 letters, 9 diaries/journals, 60 personal documents of John Eaton Jr., 275 legal documents and business papers, 112 military documents, 923 photographs, 84 printed items, and 122 miscellaneous items.

The majority of the correspondence is personal and relates to family matters. The 168 letters of John Eaton, Jr., contain extensive biographical information. Of particular interest are 44 Civil War-era letters including information about the freedmen, three letters pertaining to the publication of The Post, and two with content regarding the Ku Klux Klan. The collection also contains 22 letters to and from Alice (Shirley) Eaton, 31 letters to and from Lucien Eaton, and 32 miscellaneous letters from members of the Eaton family. Of the 30 letters written by Alice Eaton's parents (James and Adelaine Shirley), 10 letters regard compensation for the damage done to the Shirley House during the Civil War. Various other members of the Shirley family wrote 15 letters, and 20 letters are from other people unrelated to the Eaton and Shirley families.

John Eaton Jr.’s aunt, Ruth Dodge Eaton, wrote two diaries which consist almost entirely of Christian hymns and essays. John Eaton Jr.'s uncle, Horace Eaton, wrote one diary that contains Christian material written while he attended Dartmouth College. John Eaton, Jr., wrote two diaries, one of which he wrote as a youth, and the other as a student at Dartmouth. Other journals include two by John Eaton Jr.'s brothers, Frederick and Charles, and a household account book, kept by his sister Christina. Of particular importance is Alice Shirley’s diary, in which she described pre-civil war tensions between the north and the south, speculation on the upcoming Siege of Vicksburg, the early stages of the Siege of Vicksburg, and very personal feelings regarding her marriage to John Eaton, Jr.

The 60 personal papers of John Eaton Jr. include 17 documents regarding his appointments and titles, two documents about freedmen, and 41 miscellaneous address cards and invitations (including an invitation to the opening of the Brooklyn Bridge).

Of the 275 legal papers, 74 documents pertain to the sale of land in Mississippi; 7 concern Robert M. Jones’s claim to Choctaw Nation lands; and 25 relate to estate papers, deeds of trust and documents about the proceedings of Adelaine Shirley’s post-war relief claims; and a receipt for the sale of an African American woman. The remaining 176 legal papers are miscellaneous financial documents, such as tax documents, checks, and receipts.

Of the 112 military documents, 58 pertain to John Eaton, Jr., 7 of which are about freedmen. The military documents of Lucien B. Eaton number 54.

The 923 photographs consist of six photo albums, 31 cased daguerreotypes and ambrotypes, 144 cabinet cards, and 421 loose photographs and snapshots all depicting members of the Eaton and Shirley families, scenic locations, and the Shirley House.

Of the 84 printed items in the collection, 49 newspaper clippings pertain to the occupational and personal activities of John Eaton, Jr., and 9 miscellaneous clippings relate to the Eaton family. The remaining 26 items are published pamphlets, including addresses and reports concerning John Eaton, Jr.; a sermon written by Horace Eaton; a report of proceedings of an Ohio Brigade reunion; an Anti-Slavery Almanac from 1838; and an incomplete piece describing the history and restoration of the Shirley House.

The 122 miscellaneous papers of the John Eaton, Jr., collection consist of 53 recipes and 69 miscellaneous items including a partial autobiography of Alice Eaton.

This collection contains a journal and recipe book, family photographs, and other material related to Elizabeth Coffin Tuttle of Newburyport, Massachusetts, and Lancaster, New Hampshire.

This collection (23 items) contains a journal and recipe book, family photographs, and other material related to Elizabeth Coffin Tuttle of Newburyport, Massachusetts, and Lancaster, New Hampshire. Tuttle kept a Journal and Recipe Book (44 pages) between around 1875 and 1882. From January 11, 1875-July 16, 1875, she regularly wrote brief diary entries about food purchases, weather, and other topics. Though Tuttle continued to make brief notes about cattle prices and other financial transactions as late as 1882, the remaining pages are largely comprised of manuscript recipes giving instructions for making cakes, pies, puddings, other desserts, and a cure for smallpox. Two newspaper clippings are pinned into the volume: a recipe for "pop corn candy" and an obituary for Henry Lunt. Two late pages contain knitting instructions, and two additional small clippings are pasted into the volume's back cover.

Elizabeth Coffin wrote a 2-page Essay entitled "Account of a Freshet" on October 15, 1857. The manuscript is about a flash flood in northern New Hampshire following heavy rains.

The Photographs series (19 items) contains several types of materials. The photograph album holds 12 black-and-white photographs of Tuttle family members, such as "Mama Tuttle," in an informal outside setting; one shows a horse-drawn carriage. Of the 5 tintypes, 3 are housed in stamped metal frames, one with pictures of a drum and cannon and the words "The Union Now and Forever." The other 2 tintypes are pictures of a young boy and a young girl. The 11 card photographs show Winifred, Bert, and Edith Tuttle in 1888; a group of young women; a group of schoolchildren; the Atlantic Ocean; a farmhouse in Amesbury, Massachusetts; 3 structures in Newburyport, Massachusetts; a carriage parade; and 4th of July celebrations in Lancaster, New Hampshire. Two 20th-century color snapshots are pictures of the Theodore Atkinson Coffin house in Newburyport, Massachusetts, and another residence.

The Printed Items series is comprised of the following two items: a newspaper clipping about the death of Robert Tuttle and a pamphlet by Edward Melcher entitled A Sketch of the Destruction of the Willey Family by the White Mountain Slide, on the Night of August 28, 1826 (1879).

Eliza C. Kane of New York City collected recipes, business cards, and other material in this volume around the 1840s-1850s. The recipes pertain to baked goods, food preparation and storage, and household products.

Eliza C. Kane of New York City collected recipes, business cards, and other material in this volume (approximately 82 pages) around the 1840s-1850s. The recipes pertain to baked goods, food preparation and storage, and household products. Business cards and calling cards are pasted into the volume's endpapers, as well as the bookplate of Grenville Kane.

Pages 1-64 primarily contain manuscript recipes attributed to various women, including Eliza C. Kane. The recipes are for baked goods such as waffles, cakes, and puddings; beverages, including bitters; pickled walnuts; brandied peaches; Madeira nuts, cured beef; jellies; and catsups. Two recipes concern "Indian cakes" and "Indian baked pudding." Instructions for dressing a calf's head, making cologne, and mixing a "southern cough remedy" are also included. The recipes are copied in several hands, and one is dated June 3, 1845. Some pages have addresses for businesses and private residences. Additional items are pinned or pasted into the volume, including a gas company circular, a manuscript note to Eliza C. Kane (with a recipe), and printed recipes. One recipe is pasted over a manuscript copy of the title page from William Lee's The Excellent Properties of Brandy and Salt as an Efficacious Medicine in Several Dangerous Diseases Incident to Mankind. In 1854, the Croton Aqueduct Department fined Eliza C. Kane for a violation of its rules related to street washing; the receipt for her subsequent payment is pasted into the volume.

The Stearns collection consists of 45 letters written by Ezra Stearns to his sister, Ellen M. Brewer while he served as a private soldier in the 1st Michigan Engineers, plus two letters from his brother, Edwin (a private in the 20th Michigan Infantry), and 10 post-war letters from Stearns' wife, Mary, all written to Ellen. Ezra Stearns' letters document aspects of camp life, particularly his culinary activities as a military cook, including recipes of several dishes.

The Stearns collection consists of 45 letters written by Ezra Stearns to his sister, Ellen M. Brewer while he served as a private soldier in the 1st Michigan Engineers, plus two letters from his brother, Edwin (a private in the 20th Michigan Infantry), and 10 post-war letters from Stearns' wife, Mary, all written to Ellen.

Stearns' letters provide an account of service in an important Engineer regiment in Tennessee. While the letters do not include much insight into the engineering activities of the regiment, they are quite useful at documenting aspects of camp life, particularly the culinary activities and tastes of a talented military cook. Stearns relishes in his descriptions of cooking and he provides recipes for biscuits and pork soup, among other dishes. Other interesting letters include one with a description of a guerrilla attack on a train (1863 October 23), some letters with commentary on the recruiting and service of African-American soldiers, and the series of letters written during the Atlanta Campaign.

Finally, among the post-war correspondence are two excellent letters from Ezra's wife, Mary. The first, written from July 29-August 2, 1868, includes a description of settling into a new life on an isolated farm, becoming a "real Mohawk" in their new life in the woods and battling a fire threatening their new home. The second letter, written on October 11th, 1870, provides an account of the malarial infection afflicting Ezra and their young son, Arthur.

This collection is made up of 5 diaries that Frederick Lafferty composed while serving with the United States Army during World War II. Lafferty, who worked in a communications unit, described his experiences at Camp Edwards, Massachusetts; Victoria, Australia; New Caledonia; and Guadalcanal.

This collection is made up of 5 diaries that Frederick Lafferty composed while serving with the United States Army during World War II. Lafferty, who worked in a communications unit, described his experiences at Camp Edwards, Massachusetts; Victoria, Australia; New Caledonia; and Guadalcanal. The volumes cover March 24, 1941, and November 17, 1942, with detailed entries for January 20, 1942-August 11, 1942, and October 1, 1942-November 17, 1942.

Lafferty began his first diary with his enlistment and early training in the United States, and started keeping regular entries in late January 1942, after his deployment overseas. In a note to Helen dated August 15, 1942 (pp. 27-29), Lafferty indicated his desire for her to read his diary. He anticipated an upcoming assignment, and shared his belief in military service as a duty to one's country.

Lafferty wrote about his experiences onboard the transport ship Santa Elena while traveling from the United States to Australia via the Panama Canal; his stay in Ballarat and Melbourne, Australia; and his journey to New Caledonia, where he remained for several months. As a member of a communications unit, he often worked in a "message room" and reported rumors of upcoming maneuvers and news of recent battles; his unit worked in cooperation with French radio operators. He heard, and related, stories of Marines who had participated in combat against Japanese forces.

Lafferty's diaries primarily reflect aspects of soldiers' daily lives, such as meals and the poor quality of the food, mail, inspections, leisure activities, and religious habits. A Catholic, he often reported his discussions with priests, attended mass, and prayed the rosary. He also occasionally discussed air raids and training exercises.

Lafferty's final diary almost exclusively concerns his active participation during the Guadalcanal campaign. This diary also has a list of items the soldiers carried (pages 34-35).

Non-textual matter includes a picture of Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Winston Churchill posed next to the Statue of Liberty and the flags of the United States and Britain (cover of the 3rd diary). Also, an entry is written on the inside of a Philip Morris cigarette package (laid into the 5th diary).

Two of the diaries contain enclosures:

• Volume 1
  • Printed maps of Ballarat, Australia [ca. 1942]
  • La France Australe, New Caledonia newspaper (August 13, 1942)
• Volume 5
  • Recipe for developing film (undated)
  • United States Army bulletin regarding military information and artillery practices, "Sterling Brand" Grape Juice, and battle precautions (August 9, 1942)
  • Real photograph postcard from Fred to Mrs. Eliza Lafferty, Boston, Massachusetts (September 4, 1906)
  • New Caledonia stamp [ca. 1942]

The collection holds two loose items. The first is a letter from Frederick Lafferty to his sister Helen about his intention to send her his diaries after the conclusion of the war. The other is a printed program for a memorial service held by the Elks of Boston, Lodge No. 10. Frederick Lafferty is recognized in a list of "Deceased Brothers," 1945-1946.

The Gray family papers document the family relationships of William and Eckley Gray, while serving in the Union Army, and Lucy Doan Gray, William's wife and Eckley's mother, as she managed the family farm in New Salem, Illinois.

The papers of William and Eckley Gray present an unusual view of side-by-side service of a father and son during the Civil War. As a junior officer and enlisted man, respectively, the Grays present strikingly different personalities, the stable and directed father paired with his unstable and seemingly rudderless son. Information on military aspects of the war is relatively scarce in the Gray papers. However, the collection provides excellent insight into the effect of the war on family relationships, hinting obliquely at some of the long term effects that the war had on some of its participants.

In a sense, the heart of the collection is the letters written by Lucy Gray. More than anything, the anguished tone of her letters stands out, as she pleads with the men to return home and assist the family and farm, or as she complains about the Eckley's profligacy, drinking and gambling. The tension between mother and son, and his occasional, half-hearted efforts to patch things between them take on a particularly tragic tone given the apparent aimlessness of his later life and his death by drug abuse.

Among the more interesting individual letters in the collection are three letters from Eckley to his mother, one describing a night-time bombardment at Vicksburg (1863 July 9), another discussing the anti-Lincoln attitudes of the soldiers of the Veterans Reserve Corps (1864 October 10), and an extraordinary letter (July 19, 1864), bemoaning Lincoln's latest call for troops and his apparent inhumanity.

The Gray Family Papers include a manuscript receipt book dating circa 1840s-1860s, which belonged to William Gray. The recipes are largely medicinal, including entries for treatment of influenza, Dr. Thomas Hopes remedy for cholera morbus, a powder of mandrake, plaster for a lame back, Beeches Black salve, saline laxative, Beeches emetic, anti-billious powder, lotion for "Falling of the hair & Impetigo," a treatment that "cured Mr Gess's boy of Epilepsy of five years Standing The boy is 9 years old," mild counter-irritating linaments, ipicac, lotion for "falling of The hair and all scaly Eruptions," paste for piles, Dr. White's Toothache Drops, diaphoretic powder, a treatment "for Secondary Syphilis," and a treatment for cholera. Opium is an ingredient in multiple recipes. Non-medical recipes include an entry for making gunpowder from sawdust and several short recipes for corn bread and tea bread.

Dr. H. A. Bolles of Cortland, New York, copied medicinal recipes into this volume in or around 1876.

Dr. H. A. Bolles of Cortland, New York, copied recipes for medical treatments in this volume in or around 1876 (the volume contains 300 pages, over half of which are used). Many of the entries are arranged alphabetically by ailment, and some illnesses have multiple suggested treatments and cures. A few recipes are attributed to other doctors and outside sources such as a volume of Materia Medica. The book contains syrups and other mixtures intended to treat chronic conditions, diseases, and afflictions such as acne and baldness. The first few pages include instructions for working with cocaine, converting older medical measurements, and producing an aphrodisiac. One of these notes cautions against mixing chrome acid and glycerin on account of the risk of explosion. A recipe in the back of the volume purports to "remove all bad odors." A few late pages contain lists of medical substances and the ailments they may be used to treat, as well as notes regarding the use of oxygen gas and nitrous oxide. A clipping from The OD Quarterly concerns a method for testing the acidity of urine and recommended dietary guidelines for those suffering from uric acid, gravel, gout, or rheumatism.

The Hair documents, ephemera, and prints collection is comprised of 103 items, mostly printed materials related to hair, shaving, and wigs. Included are ephemeral advertisements, trade cards and price lists, government acts relating to hair and wigs, manuscript letters and indentures, caricatures and cartoons, broadsides, sheet music, other miscellaneous prints, and one braided lock of hair.

The Hair Documents, Ephemera, and Prints collection is comprised of 103 items, mostly printed materials related to hair, shaving, and wigs. Included are ephemeral advertisements, trade cards and price lists, government acts from British monarchs George II and George III relating to hair and wigs, manuscript letters and indentures, caricatures and cartoons, broadsides, sheet music, other miscellaneous prints, and one braided lock of hair. The material spans from 1717 to the late 1980s, with the bulk of materials dating from the late eighteenth century to the end of the nineteenth century. A majority of the materials are from England, although some are from Belgium, France, Switzerland, and Scotland. Many of the items are satirical and are commentary on fashion and the idea that the local barber was the "jack of all trades." Two similar items, a comical manuscript resume of "Isaac Morgan" and a fictitious advertisement for the varied services of "Isaac Factotum" offer exaggerated illustrations of how a barber did more than cut hair. Of interest is a series of mid-nineteenth century Valentines which center around the love-lives of barbers. Also included is a letter from Alex Campbell to his relative John Campbell, the Cashier of the Royal Bank of Scotland during the Jacobite rising of 1745. There is also sheet music from the composer (Franz) Joseph Haydn (1732-1809), A Pastoral Song, better known as My Mother bids me bind my hair. Of note are prints by British satirists William Hogarth, Isaac and George Cruikshank, and Thomas Rowlandson.

The Heinrich Family photograph collection is made up of a photograph album, loose photographs, correspondence, and other items pertaining to Eberhardt William Heinrich, and his parents, Bruno Otto Paul Heinrich and Helene Heinrich. The Heinrich family immigrated to Dubuque, Iowa, from Germany in the early 1920s. The photograph album contains photographs related to Bruno Heinrich's service in the German army in Eastern Europe during World War I. The remainder of the collection documents the family's immigration story, life in the United States, and later trips to Germany.

The Heinrich family photograph collection consists of 1 photograph album, 102 loose photographs, 4 letters, 1 passport, 76 postcards, 18 loose album pages, and 1 ceramic beer stein relating to the family of Eberhardt William Heinrich. The collection depicts the life of a German soldier during World War I and the immigration of a middle-class German family to the United States between the wars. Eberhardt Heinrich compiled the materials and wrote a brief family history, two copies of which are included in the collection.

The photograph album (13cm x 19cm) of Eberhardt Heinrich's father, German soldier Bruno Heinrich, contains 101 photographs and photographic postcards related to Bruno Heinrich's army service in Eastern Europe during World War I. Captions in English, added later by his son, identify people, locations and dates. The volume has a red cloth cover with a printed iron cross on the front, dated 1914. Bruno Heinrich's Iron Cross medal is placed in a clear plastic envelope inside the volume's front cover.

The Bruno Heinrich album shows individual and group portraits of German soldiers playing cards, resting in earthwork bunkers, in trenches, drinking, sitting by large artillery pieces, posing in ruined buildings, and mounted on horseback. Several photos are posed with local residents or refugees; one image features captured armored tanks. Most of the photographs were taken in Serbia, Poland, and Russia, though a few came from France and Germany. Although many of the photographs show soldiers and civilians at leisure, others depict the devastation and the humanitarian crisis created by the war. Images of note include a photograph captioned "Waking up in the ditch after a party;" a German cemetery of fresh graves and birch wood crosses; soldiers displaying a captured Serbian banner; Heinrich in a domestic interior with his rifle, hat, and "bridal picture" on the wall behind him; and a view of a Russian cloister with a large crowd of civilian refugees. Photographs at the end of the album depicting Bruno Heinrich and his brothers-in-law Paul Hobach, Heinrich Hobach, Richard Albert, and Willi Osterloh, who served on the Western front, may have been added later.

The loose photograph series includes 102 photographs arranged by subject matter, dating between 1910 and 1979. Some photographs have manuscript captions in English and German on the verso. A majority of the images show the families of Bruno Heinrich and of his wife, Helene, and of a young Eberhardt Heinrich. Family members are often identified on the verso. Also included are photographs of the family's immigration to the United States, crossing the Atlantic aboard the German steamship SS Yorck, and trans-Atlantic voyage to Germany in 1930 onboard the German ocean liners SS Bremen and SS Europa. Images depict groups and individuals onboard ship and views taken of the ocean en route. Also included are snapshots taken at the University of Michigan's geological field station in Wyoming, Camp Davis; plus other images of travel and family life in Dubuque, Iowa. Of note are three photos taken on separate dates of Bruno Heinrich, Helene Heinrich, and Eberhardt Heinrich, each posed atop a camel in front of the Great Sphinx and the pyramids at Giza in Egypt.

The collection's manuscripts consist of four letters and one passport. Three manuscript letters are written in German on business letterhead; two dated June 16, 1910, and one dated March 13, 1911. The latter includes two recipes written in English on the verso. One letter, in English, is dated July 29, 1985 and typewritten on Ann Arbor News letterhead. The United States passport was issued to Helene Heinrich on March 21, 1960, and tracks her travel to numerous countries around the world throughout the early 1960s.

The collection of postcards contains 76 lithographic and photomechanical souvenir postcards from Germany and the United States dating from the early to mid-twentieth century. Some notes inscribed on the verso are written in English and German and may have been added by Eberhardt William at a later date. A majority of the postcards depict German cities visited by the Heinrich family in 1930. Also included is a group from Chicago, Illinois museums; and a group of "Bonzo" dog cartoons by George E. Studdy. Of note is a group of sentimental postcards of German soldiers from the World War I era; a photographic postcard of Eberhardt William and Helena Heinrich aboard the SS Yorck during their immigration from Germany to the United States in 1923; and a souvenir postcard from Bremen, Germany featuring a colored lithograph of a traveler with a rucksack. A paper flap under the rucksack lifts to reveal a miniature accordion-fold viewbook of Bremen scenes.

The loose album pages series includes 18 loose pages separated into five groups dating from 1923-1964. Pages were likely previously part of compiled albums though no longer extent. Captions in English and German may have been added by Eberhardt Heinrich at a later date. Group 1 includes photographs taken aboard the SS Europa, during the October 1930 trans-Atlantic voyage from Bremerhaven, Germany to the United States. Images include photographs taken from the ship and from shore at Bremerhaven, Germany, including dramatic photographs of large seas taken from the ship's deck. Group 2 is primarily commercial photographs from the family's 1930 trip to Germany depicting Bremen; the Breitachklamm gorge, and towns of Sonthofen and Oberstdorf in the Allgäu region; Berlin; and the Spreewald. Group 3 features photographs of East and West Berlin taken in October 1963 by Helena Heinrich. The final two groups are photographs of a family visit to the gravesite of Julian Dubuque in Dubuque, Iowa, August 1964, and a trip to the 1939-1940 New York World's Fair in October 1940.

The final item in the collection is a half-liter ceramic regimental beer stein with a decorative pewter lid. The family history included in the collection notes that the stein belonged to Helena Heinrich's brother-in-law, Willi Osterloh, a member of the Kaiser's Garde-Kürassier-Regiment. The stein, manufactured by the Mettlach factory of Villeroy and Boch, with a production date of 1895, is decorated in the PUG (Print Under Glaze) style. It is inscribed with "Garde-Kürassier-Regiment" and depicts Garde-Kürassier-Regiment soldiers both standing and astride horses. The soldiers wear the normal service uniforms and the parade uniforms of the regiment. The pewter lid has a cast eagle thumb lift and is decorated with the seal and motto of the Order of the Black Eagle: "Summ Cuique."

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.