Collections

The collection, 1974-2018 (Scattered) and undated, documents the impact of PBB on the Neyer family and their cattle and dairy farm, their ongoing efforts to educate themselves and the public about the dangers of PBB, in the media, and politically, and to fight for financial reimbursement in Circuit Court, and to understand and document the impact of PBB on their health.

The collection, 1974-2018 (Scattered) and undated, documents the impact of PBB on the Neyer family and their cattle and dairy farm, their ongoing efforts to educate themselves and the public about the dangers of PBB, in the media, and politically, and to fight for financial reimbursement in Circuit Court, and to understand and document the impact of PBB on their health. Parts of the collection were generated or collected by brothers David and George “Tim” Neyer. The collection has several broad series. The first and largest of these, over half of the collection, is collected documentation of the disaster and its impact. Research journal articles, newspaper and magazine clippings from local, state, and national publications, reports, fliers, and newsletters compose about half of the collection. Also in this series are correspondence, fliers, bills, and related information Neyer and his family collected from researchers, physicians, politicians, Michigan State University, Farm Bureau Services, the PBB Health Studies, a variety of beef and agricultural organizations. There are nine folders of materials from the Michigan departments of Agriculture and Public Health, later Community Health. Also included are communications, newsletters, and other information from organizations which sought to educate and inform farmers and the public about PBB and/or advocate for the farmers, notably the PBB Action Committee of Reed City (2 folders). A second series is the documentation of the direct impact of PBB on the Neyer family and farm as recorded the Neyer brothers’ ongoing efforts to tell the story from their perspective in the media, including newspapers and on television, in family cow photographs, family correspondence to Neyer and to politicians by Madden relatives, health test records, and the Neyers’ claim in Circuit Court, and related materials and correspondence with lawyers Abood, Abood and Abood, P.C. MI. Lastly, Tim’s efforts as a member of the PBB Citizens Advisory Board for Emory University, Rollins School of Public Health and its MI PBB Registry are documented in five folders. The collection is organized by size, alphabetically and chronologically.

Health test results are in Box 1 in 3 folders: Emory University, Rollins School of Public Health, MI PBB Registry, Correspondence, Test Results of George Neyer and Informational Materials, 2004-2018 (Scattered), undated; MI. Dept. of Public Health, Long-term PBB Study, Correspondence, Proposal, Forms, Test Results of George and Kacey Neyer, 1975-1988 (Scattered); MI. Dept. of Public Health, Long-term PBB Study, Correspondence, Test Results of George Neyer, 2000-2012 (Scattered). In 2023 Archivist Marian Matyn obtained permission from George and Kacey Neyer to retain and make available for public research the family’s medical test results. Copies of the permission form are in the relevant folders in Box 1.

Processing Note: A total of .5 cubic feet of materials, mostly acidic or poor-quality newspaper clippings and articles, such as thermal copies, were returned to the donor as per the donor form. Photocopies of these items were retained in the collection. Also returned to the donor were a few items that were peripheral to the collection, such as copies of general family photographs. All photographs remaining in the collection were sleeved for preservation and access purposes.

The collection consists of project renovations plans, meeting minutes, notes, blueprints, and other materials for Central Michigan University's Park Library and Finch Fieldhouse renovations, 1998-2009.

The Gerry Edgar Papers consist of project renovations plans, meeting minutes, notes, and other materials, and blueprints for the Park Library and Finch Fieldhouse renovations, 1998-2009.

Processing Note: Two cubic feet of materials, mainly duplicates and financial records (copies), were removed from the collection during processing.

Organizational records, 1988-2015 and undated, of the Central Michigan University chapter of the society.

Organizational records, 1988-2015 and undated, of the Central Michigan University chapter of the society include: meeting minutes, board materials, correspondence, new member materials, plaques, scrapbook materials, awards, statistics, merchandise (objects), conference materials. The records document the organization’s officers, members, social and volunteer activities.

Processing Note: 1 cubic foot of peripheral materials, duplicates, and unmailed invitations was withdrawn during processing. In addition, a box of pencils and pens was added to the supplies of the archives unit of the Clarke.

Papers include: awards and certificates of appreciation, biographical information, information concerning the Fulbright scholarship and Fulbright-Kommission conference, photographs, and plaques.

Papers, 1988-2017 (scattered), and undated, include: awards and certificates of appreciation, biographical information, information concerning the Fulbright scholarship and Fulbright-Kommission conference, photographs, and plaques. The collection is organized by format and size, alphabetically and chronologically.

Processing Note: Less than .25 cubic foot of material (duplicates, peripheral materials) was withdrawn during processing.

The collection consists mainly of cassette recordings and slides of an African and multiple African American poets and authors reading their poems and parts of their books and discussing what poetry is and why it matters to them and to the community, 1972-2015 (Scattered), undated, mostly at Central Michigan University.

The collection consists mainly of cassette recordings and slides of an African and multiple African American poets and authors reading their poems and parts of their books and discussing what poetry is and why it matters to them and to the community, 1972-2015 (Scattered), undated, mostly at Central Michigan University. The collection is organized by format, alphabetically and chronologically. Physically the collection is in good condition.

The cassette recordings were mostly created when the poets presented to classes, were panelists at Paul Laurence Dunbar celebrations on campus, or presented in other public CMU forums. Most of the cassettes were recorded by CMU CSIC, while the remainder are amateur recordings. The recording quality varies.

There are also three small slide boxes of color kodak slides inside Box 1. Slide Boxes #1-2 are slides of multiple poets presenting to CMU classes, as panelists at Paul Laurence Dunbar celebrations on campus, or attending CMU receptions, October 1972. Slide Box 3 includes 4 slides of Etheridge Knight and 4 slides of Chinua Achebe on campus, all dated April 1973. There are also 8 sides of an Etheridge Knight talking with Dr. Eric Torgerson’s class with Dr. Martha Brown, including some images of him with Carroll Arnett (Gogisgi) and two other women at an airport, and at home with Dr. Eric Torgerson, August 1973. Poets and a few CMU people were identified in these slides by Dr. Tracy Collins and Dr. Ron Primeau in 2022.

Lastly, there are two folders of correspondence inside Box 1. One folder is a congratulatory letter from Pfeiffer to Alice Walker, 1983, on the occasion of her becoming the first woman of color to win the Pulitzer Prize for The Color Purple. The other folder includes correspondence Pfeiffer had with Octavia E. Butler, her biographical information, published interviews, lists of her publications, and an undated color photograph of Butler with Pfeiffer, 1982-2015 (Scattered).

Processing Note:

During processing about half of the original donation of cassettes were withdrawn because they were blank, copyrighted materials which are now available in more accessible formats, or personal recorded messages from family and friends to Pfeiffers. A few slides, which were images of book covers and a few pages of generic correspondence were also withdrawn. An oversized Ray Bradbury print was returned to the donor as per the donor form.

The collection documents Dr. Baugh’s time as a professor at CMU, the Affirmative Action Council, materials from Ken Hechler, Secretary of State, after his (and former Republican Congressman George Wortley’s) visit to CMU through the Congress to Campus program, Eyes on the Prize course materials, Task Force folder includes some extremely hateful and inappropriate terminology in letters and songs that students and faculty received at CMU which demonstrate the racism/prejudices theyfaced in the early 1990s.

The collection, 1984-2017 (scattered), and undated, . 5 cubic feet in 1 box, 1 Ov. Folder) consists of materials documenting biographical information about Dr. Baugh’s time as a professor at CMU, email correspondence regarding the materials she donated, meetings minutes and information pertaining to the Affirmative Action Council, and a newspaper clipping and associated letters and songs from Ken Hechler, Secretary of State, after his (and former Republican Congressman George Wortley’s) visit to CMU through the Congress to Campus program. The collection also includes early notes and a class syllabus for the Eyes on the Prize course, and meeting minutes, meetings notes, and three days of transcripts from the public hearings held on campus and the report done after they were concluded. The Task Force folder includes some extremely hateful and inappropriate terminology in letters and songs that students and faculty received at CMU which demonstrate the racism/prejudices they were facing even in the early 1990s.

This collection consists of the family papers of Leonard E. and Louise A. Plachta, providing a personal view into their childhoods, university experiences, married life and relationship with each other, friends, and relatives through their correspondence, and careers, mainly in Detroit and Mount Pleasant, Michigan.

This collection consists of the family papers of Leonard E. and Louise A. Plachta, providing a personal view into their childhoods, university experiences, married life and relationship with each other, friends, and relatives through their correspondence, and careers, mainly in Detroit and Mount Pleasant, Michigan. While most of the collection is in English, some correspondence, stories, family history and vital records, and school grades are in Polish. The collection is organized by creator and then alphabetically by topic and, finally, chronologically. Physically, the collection is in very good condition. Boxes 1-4 are letter-size .5 cubic foot and Box 5 is a letter-size .25 cubic foot box.

The Papers of Leonard E. Plachta:

The Papers of Leonard E. Plachta (in Boxes 1-3) includes his family history with family tree information, and his elementary grades (some in Polish) and high school grades and activities, such as childhood photographs and his Safety Patrol Pledge, Grade 7-8. His university materials included applications, in which he wrote about his hopes, dreams, interests, and lack of parental support to pursue a college degree. His university degrees and related commencement materials are included. There is one folder each of material documenting his wedding to Louise, and another his army training. We see some of his personal relationships with each other and family in Correspondence, from Leonard to Louise,; and in Correspondence, Personal to Leonard, Leonard and Louise.

The majority of his papers focuses his career at Central Michigan University (CMU His Annual Personal Data Report (Academic Accomplishments), are annual reports of his professorial academic accomplishments in the Business School. When he became Dean of the CMU Business School he wrote Some Thoughts on Becoming Dean of the School of Business Administration at CMU]. Photographs of Dean Plachta with students, other CMU faculty and administrators, and when he attended the Small Business Institute Award Dinners also document his time as dean.

Most of the CMU material is from his tenure as CMU president. When he became Interim President he received numerous congratulatory notes. Those retained in the collection are from CMU and Mount Pleasant people, among them former CMU Presidents Harold Abel and William B. Boyd, presidents of other universities, and Michigan politicians and businessmen. Other materials documenting his tenure as CMU president include: CMU Agreement with Universidad Autonoma de Guadalajara (student exchange program established), 1993; a Caricature by Paco; CMU Correspondence, Thank yous for Hospitality to Leonard and Louise from Alumni Class 1947 for their 50th Reunion; an invitation to the CMU Robert and Marjorie Griffin Endowed Chair in American Government Celebration Dinner; Morning Sun Interview Materials; Photographs in the collection document Awards and Recognition Events, one with Governor Jennifer Granholm, Commencements, 1992-1995, 1997; Groundbreaking, Official Building Openings and other events, Homecoming, 1995 and 1997; Students, Alums; and international visits to Villa Bosch, a conference center, in Heidelberg, Germany, and the Tatsuzawa Educational Establishments (Morioka Chou Senior High School),a preeminent private high school, in Morioka, Iwate Prefecture, Japan. Demands for his resignation in 1998 are documented in the folder labeled CMU Students Demand Plachta’s Resignation.

His retirement and honors received afterwards are documented by Awards and Certificates, Leonard and Louise together; CMU Correspondence, Congratulations Upon His Retirement; CMU Plachta Day, Dinner Invitation; CMU President Mike Rao, Goals, Strategic Plans, Correspondence. Certificates and awards, newspaper clippings, plaques, and CMU Correspondence- General span his entire career or entire life. There is one folder of materials from the semester he taught at Michigan State University. An overall view about him is provided by his obituary and self-generated biographical materials.

The Papers of Louise Plachta:

The Papers of Louise Plachta (in Boxes 4-5) document her family history in copies of her parents’ vital records, stories, and correspondence (some in Polish from her mother and other relatives), and secondary education with childhood elementary grades (some in Polish) and high school grades and class anniversary materials. Her University of Detroit materials include her degree. The one folder of their wedding material is filed under Leonard’s name. Her writing is documented in her English papers, Correspondence, and Stories, h Interview materials, Articles, and Speeches. Materials specifically related to her time at CMU include: Caricature by Paco, Brent Wisher; Certificates; her CMU Master of Arts Degree in Case; CMU Plachta Scholarships and Awards Materials; Identity Cards; her unofficial Correspondence, re: Leonard Resigning; all but one of her English papers; most of her Photographs and CMU Photo Identity Card; ‘Robert Frost and the rural’ CMU Bohannon Schoolhouse, Program, and Photographs; and two plaques. An overview of her life is found in her photographs, resume, and obituary.

Researchers may also be interested in the official CMU Office of the President Papers of Leonard E. Plachta, which are administrative in nature. For more detail please see that finding aid. Additional materials about both Plachtas may be found in multiple manuscript collections in the Clarke, especially those related to public relations, as well as digitized CMU publications. A copy of his 1964 dissertation, A search for a proper accounting for the issuance of stock dividends, is also available in the Clarke.

Processing Note: Approximately 1 cubic foot of materials were removed from the collection during processing including: miscellaneous financial information, pay raise requests, benefits information, letters of recommendation, generic travel mementos, generic correspondence, information with social security numbers, unidentified photographs, CMU publications (duplicates) and acidic materials, mainly newspaper clippings (copies were retained). Material of a more personal nature were returned to the donor as per the donor agreement.

The collection consists of materials created and collected by two Central Michigan University (CMU) students, Lynn M. Riker and Mary Beth Erdman, who gave her materials to Riker.

The collection consists of materials created and collected by two Central Michigan University (CMU) students, Lynn M. Riker and Mary Beth Erdman, who gave her materials to Riker. Riker’s material documents her extensive activities in committees connected to her membership and leadership of CMU Residence Halls Assembly, which led to her involvement leading or co-leading the planning of the state, regional and national RHA conferences at CMU, including: the Michigan Residence Halls Assembly Conference in 1989, the Great Lakes Affiliate of College and University Residence Halls in 1984, and the National Association of Colleges and University Residence Halls, Inc. For the national she was involved with two bids, the unsuccessful 1985 and the successful 1986. Her papers include a wide variety of conference planning materials and bid packet materials include minutes, notes, correspondence, forms, schedules, budgets, lists of committee responsibilities, members and contacts, reports, conference invitations, banquet programs, certificates, fliers, stationery, and evaluations. Mary Beth Erdman’s materials include: 1950s and 1960s photographs and historical information about CMLife and CMU history articles that she wrote about or edited, including student demonstrations over censorship, 1960-1962, correspondence about her censorship editorial from CMU officials, including Wilbur E. Moore, Vice President of Academic Affairs, and a history of the Mount Pleasant High School student newspaper, the Stude, she wrote in 1954. Erdman also donated a photograph of a New Moon camper show with movie posters of The Long, Long Trailer, a 1953 MGM romantic comedy movie starring Lucy Ball and Desi Arnaz filmed in a New Moon trailer. The collection is organized by size and then alphabetically and chronologically.

The collection documents the reconstruction and new addition of the CMU Park Library building, as well as ongoing life in the new building.

This collection documents the reconstruction and new addition of the CMU Park Library building, as well as ongoing life in the new building, located on the corner of Preston and Franklin Streets in Mount Pleasant, through photographs, webpages, clippings (copies), publications, and other materials. This collection was kept separate from prior Park Library collection due to its timely nature and for ease of retrieval, as requested by the Dean of Libraries.

Included here are various publications of exhibits and events, news articles, website pages, and brochures generated since 2002 documenting ongoing events in the building. Of particular note is Library needs of faculty in a changing environment: report of findings, a report based on a survey, written by Professor Mary A. Senter, December 2006. Also included are two CD-Roms, one of the library’s opening, January 9, 2002, and another of the 50th anniversary of the library’s federal depository program, January 24, 2008.

Later additions to the collection from the Dean’s Office include materials used to plan the new building, 3 CD-Roms of photographs of the construction and dedication. The collection is ongoing. A 2023 addition from the Libraries Business Services legacy files includes photographs of the interior construction and completed building exterior, and a Michigan Construction journal featuring the new building, and a questionnaire asking for construction details which were included in the article (see Box 1 Exhibits/Events Brochures folder).

Reference Point, the Park’s newsletter, is separately cataloged and housed as a periodical in the Clarke’s collections.

For additional information about the Park, see other, related collections documenting the history of the Park Library in the Clarke Historical Library.

The collection consists mostly of Central Michigan University conference materials and programs related to middle level teachers, scrapbooks and photographs of Central Michigan students minoring in Middle Level Education, and Transitions Summer Camp materials of Mount Pleasant Public School students entering middle school.

Collection includes biographical materials on Bailey (1 folder), 2014; Learn today .... teach tomorrow conference (held at Central Michigan University (CMU) for pre-service teachers) programs, 2006-2014 (1 folder); and a plaque from the National Middle School Association presented to CMU, the host site for CMLA, November 1999 (1 folder). Also included are beautiful Collegiate Middle Level Association at CMU (CMLACMU) scrapbooks, 1996-2013, created by student members.

Later additions to the collection include: Photographs, matted, of CMU Graduates with a Middle Level Education Minor, 1996-2014, which were originally displayed in the hall of the unit. There are also photographs of graduates unmatted, 2015-2018. Also added were Transitions Summer Camp Materials, which include forms, agendas, plans, notes, some financial and grant information, and photographs, 2009-2013. This camp was for students entering middle school. They reviewed math, spelling, science skills, coping and confidence-building exercises, and learned how to cope with locker combination locks. CMU students led the camp for Mount Pleasant area students.