Collections : [University of Michigan Bentley Historical Library]

Back to top

Search Constraints

Start Over You searched for: Repository University of Michigan Bentley Historical Library Remove constraint Repository: University of Michigan Bentley Historical Library Level Collection Remove constraint Level: Collection Places Grand Rapids (Mich.) Remove constraint Places: Grand Rapids (Mich.)
Number of results to display per page
View results as:

Search Results

Collection

William H. McNitt papers, 1968-1976

5 linear feet

Ann Arbor, Michigan, archivist; collected materials relating to local Democratic Party politics; student papers; and photographs.

The McNitt papers consist of materials collected relating to his interest in, and activities with, the local Democratic Party. Included are newsletters, leaflets, campaign materials and newspaper clippings concerning state, county, and municipal politics, particularly the presidential campaigns of Eugene McCarthy in 1968 and George McGovern in 1972, Ann Arbor City Council and school board elections; the New Democratic Coalition of Michigan; the Human Rights Party; the state presidential primary in 1972; Democratic state conventions; state elections in 1968, 1970, 1972, and 1974; and the election campaign of Congressman Richard F. VanderVeen in 1974.

The collection also includes copies of student papers on topics relating to Michigan history. The titles of these papers are "The Library Extension Movement in Grand Rapids", "Journalism and the Republican Party of Michigan, 1890-1920; A Study of the Michigan Republican Newspaper Association", and "Peace and American Society : Rebecca Shelley and the Peace Movement."

Finally, there are many hundreds of photographs taken by McNitt relating to the construction of the Bentley Library and to the accessioning of the papers of Gerald R. Ford.

Collection

West Michigan Environmental Action Council Records, 1968-2012

28 linear feet

Grand Rapids, Michigan-based environmental protection organization. Administrative, educational, legislative, and litigation files relating to various environmental issues, notably the Pigeon River Country State Forest oil drilling controversy, the problem of solid waste disposal, land and water use, and nuclear energy; contain files created during the tenures of executive directors Joan Wolfe, Roger Conner, Kenneth Sikkema, Frank Ruswick, Jr., Robert Newberry, Thomas Leonard, and Rachel Hood.

The records of the WMEAC, received in multiple accessions, but now melded together, have been retained in an order approximate to that maintained by the organization in its earlier years. The records include administrative, educational, legislative, and litigation files relating to various environmental issues, notably the Pigeon River Country State Forest oil drilling controversy, the problem of solid waste disposal, land and water use, and nuclear energy; contain files of executive directors Joan Wolfe, Roger Conner, Kenneth Sikkema, Frank Ruswick, Jr., Robert Newberry and Thomas Leonard. the records are organized into eight series: administrative files, educational files, legislative files, litigation files, chlordane ban efforts, WMEAC non-serial publications, WMEAC publicity and media coverage, and WMEAC serial publications.

Collection

Wesley W. Hyde papers, 1902-1913

1 linear foot

Grand Rapids, Michigan, attorney, member of the Michigan Commission on Uniform Legislation, and organizer of the Civic Club of Grand Rapids. Correspondence, speeches, articles and legal documents relating to his interest in municipal reform.

The Hyde collection is arranged into two series: Correspondence and other Personal Papers; and Speeches and Writings. The collection contains little relating to his legal or other public activities. Much of the correspondence concerns his efforts to have published his volume entitled "Social Guides." His speeches pertain to issues of good government and Grand Rapids municipal reform.

Collection

Vandenberg Family papers, 1923-1965

1 linear foot

Letters of Senator Arthur H. Vandenberg with family members John and Barbara Bailey; also papers of Arthur H. Vandenberg, Jr., aide to President Dwight Eisenhower, largely concerning Republican politics, 1948-1952, and election of 1952.

The Vandenberg Family papers, 1923-1965, and Washington, D.C.; include letters of Arthur H. Vandenberg with family members John and Barbara Bailey; also papers of Arthur H. Vandenberg, Jr., aide to President D. Eisenhower, largely concerning republican politics, 1948-1952, and the election of 1952. Correspondents include: Thomas Dewey, Dvight Eisenhower, and Nelson Rockefeller.

Collection

Tom Van Zoeren oral history collection, 1860s-2011 (majority within 2000-2010)

1.5 linear feet — 70.1 GB (online)

Online
Tom Van Zoeren was a park ranger at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. His collection contains oral history interviews relating to the history of the Sleeping Bear Dunes region and other Michigan localities.

The Van Zoeren collection contains oral history interviews conducted between 1979 and 2010, and includes copies of scanned photos and supporting documents. The interviews are available variously on audio cassette tapes and online. Transcripts or summaries are found in the collection for many of the interviews. The Van Zoeren collection is organized in two sections by format.

The first section contains analog files and audio cassette tapes. This section is arranged in series by family interview: Basch/Lanham/Van Zoeren oral history interviews, 1993-2000; George Burfiend oral history interviews, photo collection, and farm tour, 2005-2008; DeKorne family oral history and photographs, 2006; Doan family oral history interview, 2006; Dottie (Ashmore) Lanham oral history and photograph collection, 2003-2008; Alfred and Loraine (Olsen) Mason oral history interview and photo collection, 2001-2004; Leonard Thoreson oral history interview and photos, 2005-2006; and Frederick and Margretha Werner Farm oral history interview and photo collection, 2006-2007. These series contain information related to the families and interviews in the form of text, scanned and printed images, and audio and video recordings.

Information about selected interviews:
  1. Basch, Laura (Oleson), of the Port Oneida, Michigan, area (audio cassettes and online)
  2. Burfiend, George, relating to Burfiend farm and Port Oneida (online)
  3. DeKorne, Jack relating to the family of Boudewyn and Kate DeKorne of Grand Rapids and Glen Lake, Michigan (online)
  4. Fargo, Judy Carole and Ruth Ann Doan Jones, relating to the Frank and Alma Doan family of Croswell, Michigan ( online, filed under Doan family)
  5. Lanham, Dottie, relating to her life and to Burdickville and surrounding area (online)
  6. Lanham, John, of Burdickville, Michigan (audio cassettes and online)
  7. Mason, Alfred and Lorraine [referred to as 'Loraine' in some collection materials] (Olsen), relating to their families, the family farms and the Port Oneida community (online)
  8. Miller, Charles, relating to the Frederick and Margretha Werner farm in Port Oneida (online, filed under Werner)
  9. Stuber, Mary Lou, relating to the Frederick and Margretha Werner farm in Port Oneida (online, filed under Werner)
  10. Thoresen, Leonard, relating to his family, the family farm and the Port Oneida community (online)
  11. Thoreson, Leonard, relating to the Frederick and Margretha Werner farm in Port Oneida (online, filed under Werner)
  12. Van Noord, Trudy, relating to the family of Boudewyn and Kate DeKorne of Grand Rapids and Glen Lake, Michigan (online, filed under DeKorne family)
  13. Van Zoeren, Jay, of Vriesland, Michigan, 1948 graduate of the University of Michigan Medical School (audio cassettes and online)

Additional files relating to these and other persons are available online.

The second section consists of one series of digitized material, oral histories, photos, and other historic materials from the Sleeping Bear Dunes region. The digital files were created or assembled by Van Zoeren and were received on an external hard drive. This series is further divided into subseries by type of material: Information on Farms, Families, etc.; Oral History Audio Files; Historic Images; Video Recordings; Genealogies; Census and Cemetery Records; Historic Maps; and Other Resources. Some of the content may be digitized versions of items in the analog portion of the collection.

Collection

Sligh Family Papers, 1842-2012

36 linear feet (in 41 boxes) — 31 oversize volumes — 1 oversize folder

Online
Grand Rapids, Michigan family, involved in furniture making and other businesses, also active in local state and Republican Party politics and businessmen's associations. Papers include family papers and correspondence, business records, scrapbooks and visual materials.

The Sligh family collection consists of the personal and business papers of the four generations of Slighs mentioned in the biographical introduction: James W. Sligh, Charles R. Sligh, Charles R. Sligh, Jr., and Robert L. Sligh. Although there is some overlap, the files have been arranged into seven series, one for each of these three Slighs, one for the Sligh Furniture Company and related family businesses, and one each for Newspaper clippings and Scrapbooks, and Visual Materials.

Collection

Sanford W. Lyon papers, 1843-1864

30 items (in 2 folders)

Civil War sergeant and commander from Grand Rapids, Michigan, wounded in action in 1865. Collection contains correspondence, memorabilia, and photographs.

This collection contains correspondence, memorabilia, and photographs. The correspondence is concerned chiefly with the illness and death of Henry L. Tracy, and the disposal of his effects. The collection also contains a tintype portrait of Lyon in uniform.

Collection

Religious Communities of Michigan Web Archive, 2010-2014

30 web sites (online; multiple captures)

Online
Web collection of websites created by various religious communities of the State of Michigan, archived by the Bentley Historical Library using the California Digital Library Web Archiving Service crawler from 2010-2015 and the Archive-It web archiving service beginning in 2015.

The Web Archive of Michigan's Religious Communities collection contains archived websites created by various religious communities and institutions of the State of Michigan. The websites have been archived by the Bentley Historical Library, using the California Digital Library Web Archiving Service crawler from 2010-2015 and the Archive-It web archiving service beginning in 2015. Access to all websites archived by the Bentley Historical Library is available at: https://archive-it.org/organizations/934.

Web Archives include websites of churches, mosques, religious community centers and educational institutions who call the state of Michigan home. The collection is especially strong in documenting African American, Arab American, and Native American communities, business, religious, cultural and civil rights organizations, as well as distinguished individuals who belong to these communities.

The year that appears next to the website title in the contents list indicates the date that the website was first archived. Archived versions of the site from later dates may also be available.

Collection

Raymond Wesley Starr papers, 1860s-1968 (majority within 1936-1947)

11 linear feet — 1 folder

Grand Rapids, Michigan attorney, state attorney general, 1937-1938, associate justice and chief justice of the Michigan Supreme Court, U.S. District Court Judge for the Western District of Michigan. Correspondence, newspaper clippings, and business and professional papers, including material, 1950-1968, relating to his interest in Ferris State College, Big Rapids, Michigan; and photographs.

The Starr collection consists primarily of correspondence from 1936 to 1947. These correspondence files are arranged alphabetically with the bulk of them dated 1946 to 1947, the period when Starr was first appointed U.S. District Court Judge for the Western District of Michigan. A smaller portion of the collection relates to Starr's association with Ferris State College, to his various other organization interests, and to his real estate and business activities.

Collection

Postcard Collection, 1890s-[ongoing]

14.4 linear feet (in 15 boxes) — 1 oversize folder

Postcard views of Michigan cities and the University of Michigan.

The Michigan Historical Collections postcard collection contains picture postcards of Michigan scenes. The collection was brought together by MHC staff. The postcards depict a large number of Michigan communities, with the largest number of cards relating to Ann Arbor, the University of Michigan, and Detroit.

The postcards are arranged by the name of the town shown in the picture. In cases where names have changed, or for rural places that might be identified with several surrounding towns, the postcards are filed according to the name used on the card. For instance, postcards of the Irish Hills region can be found under that name as well as under the nearby towns of Brooklyn and Onsted.

Outsize postcards are located in Box 12, and a few postcards too large for that box are located with the medium sized photographs in UCCm.