Collections

The Department of Political Science was established in 1910 under the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts; offers coursework in American politics, comparative politics, world politics and international relations, political theory, law and courts, and methodology. The collection spans from 1910-2009 with a bulk of the material from 1970-2000. These records document the administrative functioning of the department and contain committee meeting minutes, information on courses and degrees, departmental meeting minutes, information on faculty, various topical files, and audio-visual material.

The records of the Department of Political Science document its administrative functions from 1910 to 2009 and the bulk of the records date from 1970 to 2009. The record group is divided into seven series: Committees, Correspondence, Course and Degree Information, Departmental Meetings, Faculty, Topical Files, and Audio-Visual.

University of Michigan professor of political science, special advisor to the U.S. Military Government in Germany after World War II, participant in numerous government commissions; papers include correspondence, working files, speeches, course materials, and visual and sound materials.

The James K. Pollock papers represent an accumulation of files from a lifetime of academic teaching and research and an extraordinary number of public service responsibilities to both his state and his nation. The files within the collection fall into two categories: types of document (such as correspondence, speeches and writings, visual materials, etc.) and files resulting from a specific activity or position (such as his work as delegate to the Michigan Constitutional Convention or his service with the Office of the Military Government in Germany after World War II).

The collection is large and of a complicated arrangement because of Pollock's many activities. When received in 1969, the files were maintained as received; very little processing was done to the collection so that an inventory to the papers could be quickly prepared. The order of material is that devised by James K. Pollock and his secretarial staff in the U-M Department of Political Science. Recognizing the anomalies within the order of the collection, the library made the decision to list the contents to the collection while at the same time preparing a detailed card file index (by box and folder number, i.e. 16-8) to significant correspondents and subjects. While there was much to be said for this method of preparing a finding aid expeditiously, it also covered up some problems in arrangement. Thus series and subseries of materials are not always grouped together as they were created by Pollock. Files on the Hoover Commission and the Michigan Constitutional Convention, for example, come before Pollock's work in Germany after the war. In 1999, effort was made to resolve some of the inconsistencies and obvious misfilings of the first inventory but because of the numbering system used in 1969 and the card index prepared for the files, there are still some problems. Researchers should be alert to these difficulties and take time to examine different parts of the collection for material on a similar topic.

University of Michigan professor of political science, research scientist at the Mental Health Research Institute, and pioneer in the interdisciplinary and quantitative approach to conflict resolution. Administrative papers of Center for Research on Conflict Resolution, Correlates of War Project, and the Journal of Conflict Resolution, topical files on numerous organizations and subjects, and research papers from disarmament negotiations study.

The J. David Singer papers document the career of a leading political science researcher, teacher, and peace activist. The bulk of the materials span the 1950s to the year 2000 and are arranged into nine distinct series:

1. Biographical Materials
2. Topical Files
3. Correspondence
4. Lectures and Conferences
5. Publications
6. Grant Proposals
7. Teaching
8. Programs
9. Later materials
10. Audio-Visual Materials

Social psychologist and political scientist, professor of sociology and political science at the University of Michigan, and director of the University's Institute for Social Research. Materials provide an overview of Philip Converse's career at the University of Michigan and document its three main components: scholar, professor, and administrator. Records include correspondence, topical and administrative files, research material, photographs and oral history.

The Philip Converse collection is divided into ten series: Biography; Writings and Lectures; Correspondence; Teaching Materials; Study Materials; Conferences, Professional Associations and Committees; Administrative Files; Grant Proposals; Photographs; and Oral History. These divisions are designed to provide an overview of Philip Converse's career at the University of Michigan and document its three main components: scholar, professor, and administrator.

Professor of political science at the University of Michigan and Democratic mayor of Ann Arbor, Michigan for one term, 1957-1959. The collection consists primarily of Eldersveld's mayoralty subject files. There are also some of his writings, as well as notes, course materials, correspondence, departmental memos, reports, biographical material, and recordings of interviews.

The Samuel J. Eldersveld Papers document Eldersveld's academic career, his mayoralty, and personal background. The collection consists primarily of Eldersveld's writings, notes, course materials, correspondence, departmental memos, reports, oral history project, biographical material and mayoralty subject files. The collection contains the following series: Mayoralty Files, 1957-1959, Ann Arbor City Council, Personal/Biographical, Academic Career and Sound Recordings.