Collections : [University of Michigan William L. Clements Library]

Three young girls named Lillian Holmes Keyes, "Mildred," and "Edith" wrote these 6 letters to their grandparents in the summer of 1896. Edith's letters were penciled by her mother, Fannie. The girls wrote on illustrated children's stationery and commented on scenery, wildlife, health, and family news. Mildred addressed one of her letters from East Tilton, New Hampshire.

Three young girls named Lillian Holmes Keyes, "Mildred," and "Edith" wrote these 6 letters to their grandparents in the summer of 1896. Edith's letters were penciled by her mother, Fannie. The girls wrote on illustrated children's stationery and commented on scenery, wildlife, health, and family news. Mildred addressed one of her letters from East Tilton, New Hampshire.

Lillian Holmes Keyes wrote 2 letters to her grandparents on July 19 and 22, 1896, about her ongoing recovery from scarlet fever. Though she could not interact with other children, she did enjoy a trip to a nearby lake with her Aunt Alice. "Mildred" sent 2 letters (July 9, 1896, and undated), describing a picnic and other outdoor activities such as swimming. She also thanked her grandmother for throwing her a 7th birthday party. The final 2 letters are attributed to a child named Edith, though they are written by her mother, Fannie. The first letter reports family news, such as the recent sale of their store and an anticipated August vacation. The second offers greetings to various family members and bears scribbled drawings by a young child (possibly Edith).

Each letter is written on illustrated children's stationery with images of children writing, accepting a letter from a dog, riding in a cart, and repairing a doll.

The Holyoke Canoe Club photograph album contains pictures of canoeing and scenery along the Connecticut River, and of men and women socializing indoors and outdoors.

The Holyoke Canoe Club photograph album (19cm x 26cm) contains 65 pictures of scenery, communities, and activities along the Connecticut River. The red pebbled cloth cover has the title "Photographs" stamped in gold gothic letters on the front. Included are photographs showing wooded scenery and structures along the river, including pictures of the Holyoke Canoe Club boathouse, the sailing and paddling of canoes, and of men and women in sporting dress socializing indoors and outdoors. Many of the images focus on men in sailing canoes, including one view of a man sitting in a sailing canoe on shore with sails set. Two photographs show a woman standing next to a beached canoe and a woman paddling a canoe along a flooded street. Individual and group portraits appear, taken at a small cabin in a wooded area, in front of a doorway, beside an indoor fireplace, and beside indoor and outdoor tables set with food, among other scenes. A group gathered around a piano appears in two images, one of which shows two of the women holding banjos. The album contains exterior shots of churches and other unidentified buildings, some overlooking a body of water. A view of two horses pulling a large log on a sleigh is also included.

Of note are views of a steam launch at the canoe club dock; a view of canoes stored on racks inside the boathouse; and two views of the interior of what is likely a local textile mill.

This 88-page journal recounts Healy's travels from his home in Middlebury, New York, to northeastern Illinois between May 30 and July 13, 1838. The journal contains notes on his steamship voyages on the Great Lakes, descriptions of his overland travels and experiences in Illinois, and prayers and other religious reflections. This diary is a handwritten copy made by Horace Healy in 1841.

This 88-page journal recounts Healy's travels from his home in Middlebury, New York, to northeastern Illinois between May 30 and July 13, 1838. This diary is a handwritten copy made by Horace Healy in 1841.

Healy departed from Middlebury on May 30, 1838, with a friend, Hosea Wilson, and reached Buffalo the following day, where the men boarded the steamer Anthony Wayne, bound for Chicago via the Great Lakes. Healy kept a brief daily record of distances he traveled and the steamer's stops, until his arrival at Chicago on June 9. There, he took leave of Wilson. Along the way, Healy visited Fort Mackinac, Michigan, and described some of his fellow passengers. Upon his arrival in Illinois, he set out to visit acquaintances living southeast of Chicago, and then traveled westward and northward throughout the area for the rest of the month. A devout man, he recorded his religious activities, his attendance at church services, prayers, and religious thoughts.

The journal also contains brief descriptions of a few settlements, such as Naperville and Rockford, and of life on the Illinois prairie. One man at a camp meeting along the DuPage River mentioned his missionary work with local Native Americans (June 24, p. 38). On June 25, Healy left for home, though he remained in Chicago for several days awaiting a steamer; during this time, he visited Fort Dearborn and other sights. He boarded the Anthony Wayne on June 28, and spent a few days in early July near Detroit, Michigan, where he visited his brother Freeborn's grave in Macomb County (July 6, pp. 66-67). On July 10, he took the Clinton to Buffalo, where he arrived on July 12, his daughter's 14th birthday. The entry for July 12 also contains Healy's lamentation on the sinking of the steamboat George Washington on Lake Erie less than a month before (pp. 81-82). Healy arrived home in Middlebury on July 13, 1838.

Horace Healy transcribed this copy of his journal on October 21, 1841.

The Horatio Noyes collection is made up of letters and essays pertaining to Louisiana sugar plantations, life on the Wyoming frontier, travels through the South, the history of astronomy, and other subjects.

The Horatio Noyes collection is made up of 5 letters (28 pages) and 2 essays (70 pages). Noyes wrote a detailed letter to his son Charles in December 1871 about his travels in rural Louisiana, including his impressions of riverboat steamers and sugar plantations. A later draft (unsigned) describes the author's travels in Virginia and North Carolina, with a detailed description of Richmond and observations about Southern culture. Two unsigned letters from late 1879 and early 1880 describe a soldier's life on the Wyoming frontier, with Horatio Noyes's requests for the letters to be proofed and returned to him. Two lengthy essays concern the history of astronomy and contemporary astronomical knowledge, particularly about the Solar System. See the Detailed Box and Folder Listing for more information.

H. W. Blumenthal, a Jewish sailor in the United States Navy, kept this diary in November and December 1918. He wrote several times each day about many aspects of his military service and the politics of the Balkan Peninsula at the end of World War I.

H. W. Blumenthal, a Jewish sailor in the United States Navy, kept this diary (approximately 70 pages) from November 7, 1918-December 17, 1918. He wrote several times each day about many aspects of his military service and the politics of the Balkan Peninsula at the end of World War I. The front cover has a United States Navy seal stamped on the front, as well as the title "Cattaro," the date November 7, 1918, and the initials "H. W. B." A printed sheet containing information about five captured Austrian vessels is laid into the front cover.

Blumenthal commented in depth about his assignments, meetings (with American naval officers and others), his desire to obtain information about naval operations, and other aspects of his military service. He wrote briefly about the navies of Austria-Hungary, Great Britain, and France, as well as the Austrian and Italian armies. Much of the diary focuses on the politics of the Balkan Peninsula during and just after the end of World War I, particularly with regard to attempts to establish what would become the Kingdom of Yugoslavia.

This collection pertains to a letter written by United States Navy Lieutenant Huyler B. Ellison in February 1944. Ellison, who was asked to defend his remarks about the United States Army, offered a lengthy explanation of his history with the army and the reasoning behind his controversial comments.

This collection (6 items) pertains to a letter written by United States Navy Lieutenant Huyler B. Ellison in February 1944. The collection includes a copy of a typed V-mail letter that Ellison sent to John D. Nordberg of West Orange, New Jersey, on February 25, 1944. In the letter, Ellison complained about his assignment with the army and threatened to resign from the navy. Three letters by Captain Tully Shelley, a naval intelligence officer, and W. H. Tuck, commander of the United States Navy Reserve, address Ellison's comments about the army and contain requests for an explanation by Ellison (March 1944). A later letter by Tuck informs Ellison that he would suffer no further disciplinary actions (March 20, 1944). Also present are 2 typed copies of Ellison's explanation, concerning his history with the army and his disillusionment following an incorrect medical diagnosis and subsequent discharge.

This collection contains 98 receipts from 1776 for supplies given to Indians and settlers in Western Pennsylvania.

The Indian Commissioners' receipts collection consists of receipts for supplies delivered to Native Americans in Western Pennsylvania in the second half of 1776. The receipts were most often written by John Montgomery, Jasper Yeates, Thomas Walker, and John Harvie and sent to "Boreman," "Morgan" (likely George Morgan) and, on one occasion, to "Wilson." The supplies include rum, clothing items, blankets, bridles, powder and lead, salt, utensils, dyes, and other items. Some receipts contain additional notes. For instance, the September 30, 1776, receipt for a keg of rum states, "There is no living without it." The October 1 receipt notes "add 6 lb Powder & 12 Lb Lead for the Shawnese to induce them to stay till the Treaty." An undated receipt lists "4 of the largest cutter of Scalping Knives that you have in your store." The Shawnee are the only tribe mentioned by name in the receipts, but supplies may have also gone to other Native American groups.

This collection consists of six manuscript documents relating to the operations of the Ipswich, Massachusetts, Overseers of the Poor in 1834. Five certificates identify men and women in the House of Correction who had no residence in the state and no family to support them. The documents note the individuals' names, where they were born, and when they came to Massachusetts. The final document certifies six men and women that were on the "State Pauper List."

This collection consists of six manuscript documents relating to the operations of the Ipswich, Massachusetts, Overseers of the Poor in 1834. Five certificates identify men and women in the House of Correction who had no residence in the state and no family to support them. Notes the individuals' names, where they were born, and when they came to Massachusetts. The final document certifies six men and women that were on the "State Pauper List."

This collection consists of six manuscript documents relating to the operations of the Ipswich, Massachusetts, Overseers of the Poor in 1834. Five certificates identify men and women in the House of Correction who had no residence in the state and no family to support them. The documents note the individuals' names, where they were born, and when they came to Massachusetts. The final document certifies six men and women that were on the "State Pauper List."

This collection consists of six manuscript documents relating to the operations of the Ipswich, Massachusetts, Overseers of the Poor in 1834. Five certificates identify men and women in the House of Correction who had no residence in the state and no family to support them. Notes the individuals' names, where they were born, and when they came to Massachusetts. The final document certifies six men and women that were on the "State Pauper List."

This collection contains 6 letters written by Irving L. Blinn to his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Lewis W. Blinn of Los Angeles, California, during a trip around the world in 1892. Blinn and an unnamed companion traveled primarily by steamship and railroad, and made their way from Kobe, Japan, to Paris, France, between May 9 and September 14, stopping at Bombay, Cairo, and Athens.

This collection contains 6 letters written by Irving L. Blinn to his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Lewis W. Blinn of Los Angeles, California, during a trip around the world in 1892. In his first letter, written on May 9, 1892, Irving reported that he had just left Kobe, Japan, for Hong Kong on the steamer Ancona. He commented on the nationalities of the ship's passengers, who were mostly British, and noted that the ship was loaded for cargo intended for the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago. In further letters written in India and on the Red Sea, he continued to report on his progress, and detailed his anticipated westward route, which included a stop at Cairo. He often described the geography of his surroundings as well as his fellow passengers on the Hassiha; among the passengers was a British soldier headed home after being stationed in India. Blinn maintained an interest in the presidential election cycle, and noted the nomination of Grover Cleveland, who ran for president against the incumbent Benjamin Harrison. In his final two letters, written in Athens, Greece (August 10, 1892), and Paris, France (September 14, 1892), he described his sightseeing activities and wrote about the experience of traveling.