Collections : [University of Michigan Bentley Historical Library]

The University of Michigan Herbarium, started in 1837, is home to over 1.7 million species and is one of the world's leading botanical collections. The U-M Herbarium records collection includes correspondence, photographs, and research materials documenting early Herbarium history, U-M's ethno botanical research practices, and the international professional discourse surrounding botanical research.

The collection represents the Herbarium's actions as a collector of the historical correspondence and photographs of botanical researchers. The records contained within this collection primarily document the research methods and professional conversations of American botanists. Through the correspondence and papers of Michigan and U-M botanists, this collection also documents the development of the Herbarium, its activities, and its status as a collector of botanical specimens and historical records. Researchers should note that there are photographs and plant specimens scattered throughout the correspondence series, and whereas the plant specimens are noted in the box listing, the photographs are not. The collection's four series include Harley Harris Bartlett Papers, Herbarium Historical Correspondence, Herbarium Historical Photographs, and Archived Website.

John F. Shepard family; diaries, photographs, recipes and correspondence concerning family matters and nineteenth century farm life; also professional correspondence, student notebooks and lecture notes of John F. Shepard.

Although the Shepard family papers (1807-1934) cover three generations, the bulk of the materials are from John F. Shepard. The earliest correspondence is primarily addressed to his father Arthur, and to his grandfather John from family members and relatives. The letters deal with health, crops, and relatives. There are also letters from John F. Shepard's wife Berenice to her mother Mary Barnes (maiden name Van Valin) and from Berenice's father Charles to her mother. The Barnes and VanValins lived in Marshall, Michigan.

The John F. Shepard papers include professional correspondence from 1911 to 1934, mostly relating to University building plans. There are also minutes (1921-1925) of the Committee of Five on the Comprehensive Building Program, as well as Shepard's student notebooks from philosophy and psychology courses taught by James R. Angell and James H. Tuft at the University of Chicago, and by Alfred H. Lloyd and Walter B. Pillsbury at the University of Michigan.

The photographs are mainly of his wife's family, many from the late nineteenth century.

Professor of law at the University of Michigan; papers contain correspondence, teaching materials, papers relating to student discipline, proceedings of the University Judicial Council, 1950-1953; also research files and collected material relating to his study of Michigan's territorial court system; and copies of court records for Brown County, 1830s; also Wayne County Probate Court records, 1811-1825.

The William Wirt Blume papers include a memoir of his 192-1921 trip to China, a chronological correspondence file, teaching materials and other files related to his career at the University of Michigan, several reports on legal issues and research notes and files for his history of Michigan Territorial Supreme Court. The papers are arrange in five series: Travel, Correspondence, University of Michigan, Reports, and Notes and Research Material on Territorial Courts.

The series Notes and Research Material on Territorial Courts (boxes 6-18) contains Blume's notes and collected research materials relating to his study of U.S. territorial law and territorial court systems. Much of the emphasis of Blume's study concerned the Michigan Territorial Supreme Court and the various county and circuit courts under it. The researcher is directed to the Michigan Supreme Court record group for the original documents that Blume and his staff studied. This record group was transferred to the State Archives of Michigan in 2011. The researcher should also note that Blume's Transactions of the Supreme Court of the Territory of Michigan, with its extensive notes and historical commentaries is a superb introduction to Blume's career interests.

Papers of Benjamin Douglass and his sons, Samuel T. Douglass, Detroit attorney and jurist, and Silas H. Douglas, professor of chemistry at the University of Michigan, and member of Douglass Houghton's Northern Michigan survey. Correspondence, scrapbooks, letter books, and miscellanea concerning family affairs, business and university activities; also contains records of the Douglass and Walker and Campbell Law Firm; and papers of individual members of Silas Douglas’ family, including his wife Helen Welles Douglas, their children Samuel T. Douglas, Marie Louise Douglas, and Catherine Hulbert Douglas, and other Douglas and Welles family members; and photographs.

The Douglass Family collection spans the period 1812-1911 and comprises eight linear feet of manuscripts, one linear ft. of photographs, three outsize volumes, and 1 folder of oversize materials. The collection include the papers of Benjamin Douglass and his two sons, Samuel T. (1814-98) a lawyer and Detroit judge, and Silas H. (1816-90), a professor at The University of Michigan. Although Silas came to use the family name of Douglas rather than Douglass, the paper indicate that there was little consistency.

The collection consists of personal and professional correspondence, letterpress books, business and legal papers, scrapbooks, photographs, and family materials. The collection, except for series of photographs and maps, is arranged by family member name.

Lawyer, Member of Michigan Supreme Court, 1842-1846, Democratic Governor of Michigan, 1846-1847, and holder of numerous other public offices; papers include correspondence and other papers documenting his career in public service.

The Alpheus Felch papers details the active life of this nineteenth century Michigan public servant. Not only are public issues discussed in the correspondence files but the researcher will also gain an understanding of some of the personal problems associated with public service. The collection also includes several files of other family members.

The University of Michigan's highest governing body is the Board of Regents. The Regents deal with virtually every aspect of university policy and campus life. The records of the Regents reflect this broad range of interests and authority. This record group contains exhibits from meetings beginning in 1899. These exhibits are the most complete record of the actions of the Regents, supplementing and detailing the published minutes Proceedings of the Board of Regents. Additional documentation in this record group includes manuscript minutes, 1837-1870, correspondence, material by and about the Regents, photographs, audio recordings of meetings, 1977-2011, and material on recent presidential searches.

As the official governing body of the university, the Regents deal with virtually every aspect of university policy and life. The records of the Regents--which includes exhibits of Regents' meetings, topical files, correspondence files, audio and visual material, and archived web content--reflect this broad range of interests and authority. But while the documentation is wide-ranging, it is not continuous. Certain types of records are continually before the Regents, particularly information regarding salaries, leaves of absence, appointments to faculty positions, and formal approval of degrees conferred upon students. More often, however, the Regents are presented with a specific problem and asked to resolve it through the creation of policy. After the creation and successful implementation of a policy, the situation which caused the issue to arise is usually no longer a matter of Regental concern. The Regents' records reflect this pattern of action. Issues arise, are resolved, and then are supplanted by new concerns.

New York State and Ann Arbor, Michigan family; family correspondence, business papers, student notebooks, photograph albums.

The Patterson family papers have been arranged as much as possible by family member name. To avoid confusion and because the name George Washington Patterson was passed down from father to son, the series names have been given a Roman numeral to distinguish one family member from another.

The collection incldues biographical sketch of Zina Pitcher and the Backus-Pitcher family genealogical information. Correspondence includes scattered letters relating to Pitcher's activities as Medical School professor at the University of Michigan; Emily Louisa Pitcher's undated letter to the University of Michigan President Angell in which she writes about Dr. Pitcher's professional accomplishments; a letter by the former University of Michigan professor of botany and founder of the Harvard Herbarium Asa Gray, addressed to Emily Pitcher. Collected Backus family papers include Civil War documents. Also included documents relating to Detroit property, notably a deed agreement with the Association for the Promotion of Female Education.

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.

University of Michigan unit established in 1990 in part to collect and disseminate information regarding the history of health sciences in Michigan. Records include newsletter of the Center; collected historical manuscripts, photographs, and motion pictures relating to the development of health sciences at the University of Michigan; include notebooks of medical school students, account book, 1831-1839, of Berrien Springs, Michigan physician, and miscellaneous materials relating to the medical school and to medical practice.

The records of the Center for the History of Medicine (CHM) records include administrative records documenting operation of the center and archival material collected by the center. The materials have been divided into three subgroups: Administrative, Collections, and Center for the History of Medicine Website.

Professor of geology and paleontology at the University of Michigan, director of the Michigan Geological Survey, and chancellor of Syracuse University, popular lecturer and writer on scientific topics and as a Methodist layman who worked to reconcile traditional religious beliefs to nineteenth-century developments in the fields of evolutionary biology, cosmology, geology, and paleontology. Papers include extensive diaries, field notes and maps from travels and geological expeditions, correspondence, speeches, articles and other publications and photographs.

The papers of Alexander Winchell are those of an orderly man who carefully documented his own life through well-organized correspondence, diaries, notebooks, and scrapbooks. Winchell kept thorough evidence of his activities, writings, lectures, and thoughts, for most of his life. The only area that seems poorly documented is his university teaching. The collection does not appear to include significant material relating to relationships with students in the classroom.

"Alexander Winchell, an editorial tribute," published in The American Geologist (Feb. 1892, MHC call number DB/2/W759/A512), includes a year-by-year account of Winchell's life, based on the papers, and probably written by his brother N. H. Winchell. Although there are no footnotes in this work, it provides a useful summary of Winchell's activities and clues to the existence of documentation in the collection.

The collection is divided into six major series: Biographical, Correspondence, Diaries and journals, Writings and lectures, Reference and research files, and Scrapbooks; and three smaller series: Visual materials, Processing notes, and Card files.

Winchell's bibliography is located in Box 1 (the most complete copy is in the "Permanent memoranda" volume), and drafts of many of his writings are found in Boxes 8-14. Copies of many, but not all, of Winchell's publications are found in the MHC printed collection. The card catalog includes details for all separately cataloged items. There are also three collections of pamphlets that are not inventoried: two slightly different bound sets prepared by N. H. Winchell after Alexander Winchell's death (MHC call numbers DA/2/W759/M678/Set A and DA/2/W759/M678/Set B) and a two-box collection of pamphlets collected by the University Library (MHC call number Univ. of Mich. Coll./J/17/W759).

Professor of entomology at the University of Michigan. Personal and professional papers of Hubbell and his wife Grace Griffin Hubbell; also collected genealogical and family papers relating to the Hubbell and Hussey families (Grace Griffin Hubbell's mother was Lenora Hussey Griffin); Hussey family series includes papers of John Milton and Mary C. Hussey and their children and relate to John M. Hussey's Civil War service, Ohio agriculture and Grange activities and family life and customs; Hubbell family series includes papers of Clarence W. and Winifred Waters Hubbell relating in part to his work as engineer in the Philippines, 1907-1913; and collected Hubbell family photos and albums, including views of Benzonia, Michigan family farm and relating to C. W. Hubbell's service as engineer in the Philippine Islands, 1909-1911; also personal photograph series, including various residences of Hubbell, his scientific field trips to Tennessee, Florida, and the Philippines, and postcard views of Michigan communities.

The Theodore Huntington Hubbell papers form a disparate collection that documents not only his professional career as an entomologist and curator, but also sheds light on the late nineteenth and early twentieth-century Hubbell and Hussey families. The far-reaching scope of these papers derives from Theodore H. and Grace Griffin Hubbell's diligent collecting of family papers and photographs. The bulk of the early materials are Hussey family papers consisting of the personal papers of Grace's mother, Lenora Hussey Griffin, and her mother's nuclear family. This family consisted of Lenora's parents, John Milton and Mary C. Hussey, and her siblings, William J., Edgar P., Arthur, and Alice, and their spouses.

The Theodore H. Hubbell papers should be viewed as a subset of a larger universe of collections which include the Hussey family and Hubbell family collections here at the Bentley Historical Library and the John Milton Hussey letters and diary at the University of Michigan's William Clements Library. The strengths of this collection are diverse, ranging from a rich run of Civil War correspondence between John Milton and Mary C. Hussey, to Lenora Hussey Griffin's letters to her family about her education at Stanford, to Theodore Hubbell and J. Speed Rogers correspondence with various entomologists regarding field work and collecting. The collection will be of use to researchers interested in nineteenth-century agriculture, the Grange in Ohio, family life and customs, Joseph B. Steere's expedition to the Philippine Islands, and visual images of turn of the century Michigan and the University of Michigan. The collection is weak on documenting Theodore Hubbell's work as a teacher and curator of the Museum of Zoology; these records are retained by the museum for use in administering their collections.

The Theodore H. Hubbell papers span the years 1833-1988, with the bulk of materials covering the years 1852-1970; they are organized into five series: Genealogy, Hussey Family, Hubbell Family, Personal, and Professional. The first three series reflect Theodore and Grace Griffin Hubbell's efforts as genealogist/archivist for their respective families. The Personal series primarily deals with the private lives of Theodore and Grace Hubbell, but it also contains some materials linked to the first three series in the correspondence with Lenora Hussey Griffin. The materials in the first four series were rearranged during the course of processing to facilitate access to the Hussey and Hubbell family papers. The last series consists of Theodore Hubbell's professional correspondence (including letters to his cousin Roland F. Hussey) and project related materials; this series retains its original order.

Professor of paleontology and director of the University of Michigan Museum of Paleontology. Includes correspondence and topical files.

The Lewis Burnett Kellum papers (5.8 linear feet and 1 oversized folder) primarily documents Kellum's professional life. The material is dated from 1837-1995 and consists of correspondence and topical files. Significant subjects in the collection include Kellum's fieldwork in Mexico as well as his involvement in 20th International Geological Congress that was held in Mexico. Also included in the Topical Files series is a small amount of material relating to his wife Gail Kellum Curtis (married in 1949).

Harlan Henthorne Hatcher (1898-1998) was president of the University of Michigan from 1951 to 1967. The papers span the years 1837-1998 and document Dr. Hatcher's University of Michigan presidency, Ohio State University career, literary career, organizational involvement, personal life, and family history. Includes correspondence, newspaper clippings, manuscripts, speeches, yearly datebooks, oral history interview transcripts, magnetic audio tape recordings, an audiocassette recording, and photographs.

The Harlan Henthorne Hatcher Papers document his University of Michigan presidency, Ohio State University career, literary career, organizational involvement, personal life, and family history. The collection spans the years 1837-1998, with the bulk of the materials covering 1891-1986. It includes correspondence, newspaper clippings, manuscripts, speeches, yearly datebooks, oral history interview transcripts, magnetic audio tape recordings, an audiocassette recording, and photographs. The collection is strongest in its documentation of Dr. Hatcher's presidency at the University of Michigan, especially in correspondence and speeches. Documentation is weakest on the subjects of his Ohio State University career before 1944 and organizational involvement before 1967. The collection may be useful to researchers interested in the history of the University of Michigan from 1951-1967, the duties of university administrators and their spouses, authors of the 1920's to 1950's, and environmental activism in Michigan in the 1970's and 1980's.

The Harlan Hatcher collection has been divided into two subgroups of files: those which were created or accumulated from his tenure as president of the University of Michigan (1951-1967) and those materials (mainly personal) dated either prior to or subsequent to Hatcher's presidential years.

The library, as archives of the University of Michigan, is the repository for all of the files of its presidents. For historic reasons, all of the papers of presidents up to and including Harlan Hatcher have been treated as personal collections and cataloged under the name of the president. Beginning with Hatcher's successor - Robben Fleming - and continuing to the present, the files of individuals occupying the president's office have been considered both personal and institutional. Records created from an individual's responsibility as president, usually materials from the years when he was president, are treated as office files and have been cataloged as part of the University of Michigan President's Office record group. Materials from either before or after an individual's tenure as president have been treated separately and have been cataloged under that president's name.

Records generated by administrators and offices charged with the financial activities of the University, including Secretary and Vice-President Shirley W. Smith and Controller and Assistant Secretary John C. Christensen; include general University financial records; records of land; trust fund records; proposed development and construction projects; operating records of buildings, divisions and other units.

The records of Financial Operations date from 1837 to 1982, primarily after 1910. The 27 linear feet of manuscript material, 52 oversized volumes and one reel of microfilm reflect not only the financial records normally associated with an accounting office, but also the broad range of subjects which became a concern under the leadership of Shirley Smith. What would eventually become Financial Operations may have served as a records storage office for many of the other units under Smith's control. In any event, Financial Operations became the guardian of a wide variety of records, documenting the University in a number of ways not normally expected of an accounting service.

Of particular note, the collection contains a variety of different record formats. Bound materials, in the form of books, are included in the boxes and when numbering more than one, are listed in the finding aid as multiple volumes. The collection also contains oversized volumes, in the form of large accounting books. These oversized volumes are numbered and stored separately. They are listed in the finding aid where intellectually appropriate, and designated by volume number. Enclosed in this finding aid is an index of the oversized volumes, organized by number, and their contents.

The collection is divided into six series: General University Financial Records; Trust Fund Records; Records of Land, Proposed Development and Construction; Operating Records of Buildings, Divisions and other Units; Miscellaneous Reports, Studies and Volumes; and Accounting Office Records.

The University Library system at the University of Michigan provides information resources and services to faculty, students, staff, and the public, and is comprised of undergraduate, graduate, and subject-oriented divisional collections. The record group includes administrative files of library directors, reports, committee files, financial records, photographs, and publications.

The records of the library of the University of Michigan document the development and administration of the central library. The records include topical files, miscellaneous correspondence and reports, and business record books, 1886-1916; include files of librarians/directors/deans Theodore W. Koch, William W. Bishop, Warner G. Rice, Frederick H. Wagman, Richard Dougherty, Robert M. Warner, Don Riggs, William A. Gosling, and Paul Courant; also assorted papers of earlier librarians, Andrew Ten Brook and Raymond C. Davis.

1. The records are organized into elleven subgroups:
2. Assistant Director for Technical Services, 1984 - 1999
3. Associate Director for Public Service Files, 1976 - 1998
4. Associate Director for Technical Services, 1979 - 1986
5. Associate Director's office, 1982 - 1989
6. Audio - Visual Materials, 1954 - 2001
7. Collection Development Office, 1949 - 1986
8. Deputy Director's Office, 1980 - 1991
9. Directors Office, 1905-2013
10. Human Resources, 1956 - 2001
11. Miscellaneous Records, 1837 - 1985
12. Other Offices and Programs, 1904 - 2004

Professor of mathematics at University of Michigan. Correspondence, printed materials and miscellanea relating to his research in mathematics and the history of science, his interest in collecting historical manuscripts, maps, and rare books, and his personal affairs; also photograph.

The collection has been arranged into the following series: Correspondence, Collected letters of historical personages; Mathematics and cartographical interests; Collecting historical documents (with materials collected by LCK); and miscellaneous.

Admission records, statistics on faculty and students, and records of examinations; also reports, petitions, and resolutions of the faculty of the University's College of Literature, Science and the Arts.

The records of the Registrar document the functions of the registration and admission of students at the University of Michigan including on admission and registration policy and procedures, official lists of registrants, and the automation of registration process. The records are organized in seven series: Admissions; Faculty Reports, Petitions and Resolutions; Topical Files, Faculty Card Files, and Academic Record Project.

Papers, 1925-1979, of Charles L. Stevenson, professor of philosophy at the University of Michigan, and his wife, Louise Destler Stevenson. Correspondence with philosophers George E. Moore and Ludwig Wittgenstein; Stevenson-Destler courtship letters; student letters from Yale in the 1920's; also manuscripts and lecture notes on philosophy; diaries of Louise Stevenson; draft of her novel; and sermon books 1841, 1845-1846 of his great grandfather, the Rev. Isaac D. Williamson, New York state clergyman.

The Charles L. Stevenson papers consist of his student notebooks from Yale, Cambridge and Harvard Universities; course materials and notes for his lectures in philosophy courses at the University of Michigan and professional correspondence, including letters with Ludwig Wittgenstein and George E. Moore; professional writings; and personal and family papers. The collection is divided into the following series: Personal/biographical; Correspondence; Education: Yale, Cambridge, Harvard; Course materials and lecture notes: Yale, University of Michigan; Writings and Research Notes; Miscellaneous; Louise Destler Stevenson Papers; and Other Family Members.

Dr. Corydon L. Ford was a professor of anatomy and physiology at the University of Michigan Department of Medicine and Surgery (now the Medical School), He taught from 1854 to 1894. The collection contains reports on his faculty activities, scattered correspondence, lecture notes, syllabi, plates, and other papers relating largely to his work in the Medical School; also visual materials.

The Corydon L. Ford papers offer strong documentation of medical education and practice in the last half of the 19th century. The collection is arranged in three series: Teaching Records, Topical Files, and Miscellaneous.