Collections

This is an incomplete, unofficial set of Vernon (Isabella County, Mich. : Township) Township records. Also included are three oversized scrapbooks and a copy of the graves in a cemetery.

The collection includes a miscellaneous group of incomplete township records. Most of the records are some type of election records, including absentee voter applications and lists, appointments, board of election inspectors miscellaneous, bonds, caucus meeting minutes, election returns, instruction ballot, oaths of office and acceptances, resignations and tally sheets, some of which are in book form. Other township records include Board of School Inspectors petitions, a dog tax list, meeting minutes, one set each) for the highway commissioners and township board, miscellaneous correspondence and receipts, and sheep damage bills.

Also included with the donation are three oversized volumes, all scrapbooks of mostly newspaper articles. Volume I, 1915-1969, mostly undated, includes mid-Michigan births, deaths, marriages, and events from local newspapers. Volume II, 1961-1966, documents mostly news of Shepherd high school, including sports, homecoming, and students. Other articles document soldiers, babies, some Winn, Michigan, news, two images with text of Representative Al Cederberg, and articles by Ruth Lau and Ida Clark. Volume III, 1914-1918, and 1941-1945, mostly document Isabella County, Michigan news articles of World War II soldiers, women who served, their letters, obituaries, and related article. There are two pages of WWI material, including an image with text of members of the Mount Pleasant Indian School who enlisted with a list of WWI dead soldiers from Isabella County on the back.

An oversized copy of the graves of Woodland Cemetery (Rosebush, Michigan), undated, on greased paper completes the collection. The location of the cemetery was identified by the donor. The copy includes names from gravestones but not the dates. The copy was repaired at one point with scotch tape, which was removed by the archivist, so now the copy is in two pieces. The copy has sustained some stain damage from water and perhaps mildew, although there is no odor.

Processing Note: Three live birth certificates were sent to the Michigan Department of Health. According to the township record schedule most of these records should have already been destroyed. However, they are now kept as examples. Acidic materials or those with mold were copied and the originals were withdrawn from the collection, totaling approximately .25 cubic feet.

The papers include mostly Minnie's diaries, 1901-1905, 1922-1923, 1924-1969; a 1902 embalming course workbook of her husband, E. G. Van Deusen, 1902; R.G. Van Deusen's account book,1842-1849, and meeting minutes of the Knights of the Modern Maccabees Tent 419 (Elsie, Michigan), 1910, 1915.

The collection consists mainly of Minnie’s diaries from 1901-1905, 1922-1923, and 1925-1969. She recorded the weather; her and her family’s daily activities; and local marriages, births, and deaths. Also included are her World War II ration books, 1943-1944; her miscellaneous correspondence; stock certificates; and copies of family-related newspaper clippings, 1899-1944 scattered). E. G.‘s embalming course workbook, 1902; his father’s account book, 1842-1849; meeting minutes of the Knights of the Modern Maccabees Tent 419 (Elsie, Michigan), 1903-1913; and some related correspondence, 1910 and 1915, are also included. E. G.’s brother, Milo R., was Commander and Secretary of Tent 419 from 1903-1913. Some clippings and biographical information on Milo R., Roe G., and E. G. Van Deusen are in the miscellaneous folder.

The collection, 1927-1962, and undated, documents the company history of Valley Chemical Company, through meeting minutes, photographs, company history, forms, bylaws, accounts, and stock certificates.

The collection, 1927-1962, and undated, totals 1.25 cubic feet (in 2 boxes, 4 Oversized volumes,), and documents the company history of Valley Chemical Company, through meeting minutes, photographs, company history, forms, bylaws, accounts, and stock certificates. All the boxes in the collection are .5 cubic foot letter-size boxes. Loose stock certificates within scrapbooks were collected, sleeved, and placed in a folder in box 2.

The collection is organized by size and then alphabetically and chronologically.

Researchers may also be interested in the Muskegon Rendering Company (Muskegon, Michigan) organizational records, 1937, 1939 which are also housed at the Clarke.

Processing Note: During processing a small number of duplicates and blanks were removed from the collection and returned to the donor as per the donor agreement.

Family papers include correspondence, diaries, account books, school notebooks, autograph books, legal papers, obituaries, teaching contract and certificate, a history of Shepherd, Michigan, and specifications for the Shepherd town hall.

This collection of family papers includes correspondence, diaries, account books, school notebooks, autograph books, legal papers, obituaries, a teaching contract and certificate, a history of Shepherd, and specifications for the Shepherd town hall. It provides an interesting view of the lives of early Shepherd pioneers.

The collection consists of the company's business correspondence, 1894-1900.

In general, the correspondence was addressed to the Company from field sales personnel working in Michigan, Ohio, and Indiana, reporting their sales, failures, and market potential. Most of the correspondence concerns the tactics and interference of salesmen of the National Publishing Company of Boston, a chief competitor, which eventually bought out the Union Publishing Company in 1899. Also included are scattered accounts, invoices, and expense accounts, as well as materials relating to H. O. Kenyon’s involvement in the Kenyon and Thomas Company, manufacturer of Hale’s ointment.

Collection of materials written about Twain and his works, and related materials.

The collection consists of two types of materials. The first group of materials, which were collected by Dr. Norman E. Clarke, includes items that were either written or endorsed by Mark Twain, or written about Mark Twain and his works. This group of materials includes: two brief handwritten notes by Twain, undated, and his wife, Olivia, 1890; postcards; portraits (mostly reproductions); newspaper and magazine clippings (originals and copies); articles about Twain, his works, and house; advertising fliers for Twain books; a Mark Twain calendar, 1910; various items published by the Mark Twain Assn. of America and the Mark Twain Birthplace Memorial Shrine; play bills, 1881; artifacts, including: a Mark Twain bust, Mark Twain brand cigar box, a Mark Twain brand memory game, a Mark Twain brand Scrap Book, and a brick from his house]; periodicals; and other materials.

Originally, this material came to the Clarke with Dr. Clarke’s large collection of books by and about Mark Twain. The books have been separately cataloged and are also housed in the Clarke Historical Library.

The second type of materials in the collection are various lists generated by the Dr. Norman E. Clarke and the Clarke Historical Library staff about Dr. Clarke’s Twain collection. These latter items, which are identified by an * [asterisk] preceding the folder description in the Box and Folder Listing, were compiled in order to produce the book entitled, the Norman E. Clarke Mark Twain collection: an exhibition for collectors, which was published by the Clarke in 1971. A copy of this is available at the Clark and Park libraries. These materials are typed and/or handwritten, and include galley proofs of the publication.

Papers include family genealogical materials, Tuma's biographical materials, awards and certificates, photographs, DVDs and a cassette tape of anniversary and reunion celebrations, large framed photographs, and other materials documenting the Embers Restaurants in Mount Pleasant and Traverse City, Michigan..

The Clarence Tuma Papers consist of the Tuma family genealogy, newspaper clippings, magazine articles, speeches, recipes, menus, bank statements and awards and certificates. The topically grouped material is arranged alphabetically. Newspaper clippings,1960 – 2007, include information on Tuma’s World War II Service, The Embers, and the Rashid Family. Photographs consist of Tuma’s service in World War II, family, The Embers, and Rashid Family Reunions. A special note is to be given to three photographs in the collection of a funeral of an unidentified individual. Also included are awards and certificates, 1964-2007, and plaques comprising of the Trustee Appreciation Award, the Salut Au Restaurateur Award, and the Alumni Recognition Award. Oversize Folder 1 contains oversized documents such as bank statements and certificates. Oversize Folder 2 contains family photos. Oversize Folder 3 contains a photograph of the Embers Restaurant in Traverse City, Michigan. Oversize Folder 4 contains photos of the Rashid Club of America.

Electronic sources include DVDs of Clarence Tuma’s 80th Birthday, the 75th Reunion of the Rashid Club of America and the Lion’s Club Farewell to the Embers. A cassette tape is also included, which is titled “Congratulations Clarence and Janet Tuma.” A later addition includes a thank you note from Rosalynn Carter, 2015.

This collection, 1956, 2020, and undated, consists mainly of land and timber statistics, maps, and reports that Trygg researched, compiled and wrote, which were used as exhibits during various Indian Claims Commission trials in the 1960s to prove that Indian tribes were undercompensated for land in Michigan and Wisconsin that they ceded to the United States Government.

This collection, 1956, 2020, and undated, consists mainly of land and timber statistics, maps, and reports that Trygg researched, compiled and wrote, which were used as exhibits during various Indian Claims Commission (ICC) trials in the 1960s to prove that Indian tribes were under compensated for Michigan and Wisconsin land they ceded to the U.S. Government. Trygg was a meticulous, detailed researcher, as demonstrated by this collection. Information includes land acreage, value, abstracts of deeds and land surveys; historical and economic background reports about the land by Dr. Helen Knuth and its settlement; data about the economic value of land on water ways; and timber and forest statistics, value and prices. Other information includes: a report on school forest in Michigan by John H. Carroll, Michigan State University, [1968]; a predictive article Water Supply, Water Demand 1960-1980 by C.R. Humphrys in 1959; and a Report of Investigation of the Value of the land, by Thomas LeDuc, 1958. There are four folders in the front of the box related to Trygg, including: Biographical Materials (about him, his family and others whose research helped Native Americans), information about books he wrote, his collections at other institutions, and some of his historical research correspondence, 1961, 1965.

Native American tribes of Michigan and Wisconsin documented in the collection include the Chippewa, Odawa, Potawatomi, Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe of Michigan, and the Red Lake Band, including the Bay Mills Indian Community, the Ottawa and Chippewa Indians of Michigan, Wyandot and Winnebago. Royce areas documented in the collection, include 111, 117, 177, 205, 211, 242, 220, 261, and 268.

Most of the material is in good condition, with some acidification and brittleness. Many pages are copies, dittos, faded, or onion-skin paper

Researchers may be interested in his collections at the Minnesota Historical Collections and Bois Forte Heritage Center in St. Louis County, Minnesota. Trygg also wrote several books, copies of which are separately cataloged in the Clarke.

Processing Note: During processing 4 cubic feet of duplicates, heat-transfer copies of reference and reading materials and unidentified materials were withdrawn from the collection during processing. Pages which were severely acidic, often heat-transfer copies, were photocopied and the modern copies retained in the collection. Seven titles were also separately cataloged.

The papers include Robert Troup's accounts, land papers for New York counties, legal papers,correspondence, miscellaneous, genealogical materials, and materials of his children, Louisa and Robert.

The collection consists mostly of Robert Troup’s Accounts, 1790-1831, undated; Land Papers for New York counties, 1759-1826, undated; Legal Papers, 1812-1831; Correspondence, 1793-1831, undated; Miscellaneous, 1763-1851, undated; Genealogical Materials; and the Papers from two of Robert’s children, Louisa and Charles Goelet Troup. Of note are land documents re: the Puteney Estate, Phelps-Gorham Tract, and the Holland Purchase. Originally, this collection had been split into two separate collections.

Photographic materials collected by the Trelfas, documenting a wide range of Michigan and national people, places and events.

This collection, 6.25 cubic feet (in 14 boxes) 1849-1925, and undated, was donated over a period of time by one or both of the Trelfa brothers and is divided into six series. The series were established by accession number and topic matter. For a more detailed listing see the Box and Folder Listing. Overall the collection is in good physical condition.

Series 5 consists of 0.75 cubic ft. (in 2 boxes) Acc#2643, Spanish-American War images. Box 1 includes 52 and Box 2 contains 19 film negatives in homemade glass casings, #807-1740, #1742-1760, all undated, each measures approximately 5x4 inches. Topics include views of Washington, D.C., war camp, streets and buildings, camp, officers, soldiers, horses, tents, two unidentified African-American girls, three unidentified African American boys, an unidentified native man with a mule cart full of furniture, parade ground, railway, people, animals, etc.