Collections

Calvin Mehaffey's letters to his (unnamed) mother document two periods of Mehaffey's Civil War service in the 1st U.S. infantry regiment. They especially provide coverage of parts of the Peninsular Campaign (March-June, 1862), as well as the period of time in which he was posted near Vicksburg, in the Teche Country, and in New Orleans (August-November, 1863).

Calvin Mehaffey's letters to his mother represent only a small percentage of a once voluminous correspondence. From the eighteen letters that survive, it seems clear that Mehaffey wrote home regularly. The collection documents two periods of Mehaffey's Civil War service, providing excellent coverage of parts of the Peninsular Campaign (March-June, 1862), as well as the period of time in which he was posted near Vicksburg, in the Teche Country, and in New Orleans (August-November, 1863). The remainder of Mehaffey's service is essentially undocumented.

Mehaffey's correspondence reflects the frenetic activities and experiences of a junior staff officer, shouldering administrative responsibility rather than muskets, and the letters provide a number of detailed, fleshed-out stories illustrating the duties and activities of staffers. Among the descriptive masterpieces in the collection is an outstanding account of Mehaffey patrolling the James, confiscating boats and securing supplies, and a novel-like account of the Teche country operations of October 1863. Although Mehaffey describes little in the way of military engagements in this letter, his stories of the local scenery, citizenry, and the movements of troops are engaging and important for conveying, if nothing else, a sense of the logistical demands confronting the federal army in the deep South. In other letters, his encounters with the brothers of George McClellan and ex-President John Tyler, and with the father of Ulysses S. Grant, provide unusual insights into those men.

Mehaffey's comments on Yorktown during the Peninsular Campaign are packed with details about the condition of the city after the Confederate departure and the response of federal officers. From a narrowly military perspective, the letter written in the wake of the Battle of Malvern Hill may be even more interesting. In it, Mehaffey provides a furious sketch of the confusion in federal forces after the battle, the pain of the wounded and the presence of shell shock among many of the survivors. His involvement in assisting in the organization of field hospitals and ferrying the wounded, and the palpable swing in mood from his previous admiration of McClellan to his dread at enduring the humiliation of retreat are equally noteworthy.

In a different vein, Mehaffey's position with the Provost Marshal put him in a unique position to see and comment upon the administration of military justice. Two letters are particularly valuable in documenting an incident in which a slave, Lightfoot, allegedly exacted revenge on the family of his slave master by tying them to a tree and raping the women. Tried and convicted, Lightfoot was himself tied to a tree overnight to await public execution. He escaped, however, setting in motion a full scale search.

This collection contains the disbound contents of a scrapbook that Massachusetts minister Calvin Durfee kept during the mid-19th century. The scrapbook includes Durfee's journal about a trip through New York and the upper Midwest in 1851, newspaper clippings containing biographical sketches he composed, and manuscript sermons.

This collection contains the disbound contents of a scrapbook that Massachusetts minister Calvin Durfee kept during the mid-19th century. The first item is Durfee's 14-page journal describing his domestic travels from April 22, 1851-June 20, 1851. He embarked from South Dedham, Massachusetts and travelled, often by steamboat, across northern New York, Ohio, Michigan, Illinois, and Wisconsin. The journal records Durfee's daily activities, including delivering sermons and making social calls in numerous cities, and also contains a genealogical record of his sister's family, the Lashiers of Maine, New York (page 10).

The journal is followed by biographical sketches of pastors from Pittsfield and Lanesboro, Massachusetts, clipped from the Berkshire Courier (approximately 14 pages); the clippings include manuscript annotations. Two additional clippings are a history of the pastors of the Presbyterian Church at Whitfield, Massachusetts, and a note regarding the marriage of Durfee's son Charles. The collection also contains 7 sermons that Calvin Durfee delivered by between 1852 and 1876, consisting of 6 manuscripts and one newspaper reproduction. Four of the sermons are between 18 and 30 pages long.

Additional printed material includes a program from Charles S. Durfee's ordination in Newburyport, Massachusetts, on September 8, 1869; a related letter of congratulation; and a printed invitation from the First Presbyterian Church of Newburyport (August 24, 1869). The original scrapbook cover is housed with the collection.

• Thomas Allen
• William Allen
• Thomas Penderson
• Heman Humphrey
• Rufus William Bailey
• John W. Yeomans
• Chester Dewey
• H. N. Brinsmade
• John Todd
• S. A. Allen

• Daniel Collins
• John De Witt
• Noah Sheldon
• Ransome S. Cook
• John Furgerson
• Edward Joab Brace
• Martyn Tupper
• Chauncey Eddy
• Charles Newman

Newspaperman and curator of mollusks at the University of Michigan Museum of Zoology; correspondence from friend W. N. Weech writing from England during World War II; unpublished writings; and photographs.

The collection has been arranged into the following series W. N. Weech; Unpublished writings; and Photographs. The Weech series consists of letters from W. N. Weech describing conditions in England during World War II. The Unpublished writings includes the manuscript of his unpublished book, "Immigrant Michigan," with sections on transportation, newspapers ,pioneer life, and immigration. There are also manuscript of articles and notes on various topics. The photographs are of nineteenth century homes, farms, and businesses in various Michigan communities. There is also a photograph of a bust of Goodrich sculpted by Carlton Angell.

The Calvin Mixter papers are primarily comprised of seventy-five letters written from stateside military camps during the Spanish-American War. Mr. Mixter served as a drummer in the Fifth Massachusetts Infantry Regiment.

The Calvin Mixter papers are primarily comprised of seventy-five letters written from stateside military camps during the Spanish-American War. Most were addressed to members of the family of William H. Campbell at his home in Massachusetts. These letters provide interesting accounts of routine military activities, such as dress parades, monthly inspections, and band rehearsals and marches. The collection also contains newspaper clippings, photographs, and miscellaneous items (including 2 military passes).

The collection documents not only the various rumors circulating at the military camps, but also how the regiment dealt with death and sickness. The high mortality from disease, much of it preventable, was a hot topic with Mixter and his fellow soldiers, and runs throughout the collection. Having remained healthy himself, Mixter was able to take several small trips in the vicinity of the camps, and in one letter, gives a fine description of Gettysburg and the battle that took place there during the Civil War.

The collection also contains numerous references to African-Americans, with whose culture Mixter seems to have had little direct experience. Mixter considered their church services "amusing," though he felt at least that they were "earnest." He and his friends easily fell into disparaging comments, such as Will Mann's comments of September, 1898, Frank B. Harmon's of November, 1898, or Mixter's own notice of a cook at Camp Meade who had been dismissed for stealing (October, 1898).

Professor of education at University of Michigan. Correspondence, diary of European trip (1931), manuscripts, lecture notes and articles.

The bulk of the Davis collection consists of manuscripts, lecture notes and articles. Included is his manuscript autobiography entitled "A Country Lad" and "History of the Ann Arbor Rotary Club." The lectures are on educational topics. In addition, the collection has correspondence largely relating to University of Michigan and School of Education affairs, and a diary of a trip to Europe in 1931.

The Pease collection consists of letters to family members, letters to the state legislature of Vermont, commencement speeches, lectures, funeral eulogies, and sermons written by Calvin Pease a pastor, professor, and president of the University of Vermont.

The Pease collection consists of 72 manuscript items spanning a 24 year period (1839-1863). The collection is diverse, comprised of letters to family members, letters to the state legislature of Vermont, commencement speeches, lectures, funeral eulogies, and above all, sermons.

The earliest documents in the Pease papers consist of letters from Pease to his brother, Thomas, discussing the state of his health and family matters. Among the lectures are ones pertaining to the temperance movement, the parental duties of a Christian household, the "Thorough Method of Learning Language," and discussions of Classical Greek culture.

In six of the sermons included in the collection, Pease made occasional reference to the horrors of slavery, often regardless of the sermon's topic, and he was an inveterate supporter of the Union cause. Slavery, he wrote, is the "cause of all our woe" (1861 May 26), and in his commencement sermon of June, 1863, he mentioned two classmates who had recently volunteered in the war, to their "everlasting honor." Elsewhere, he wrote that freedom is a slave's inalienable birth right (1863 January 4). Finally, in a 1861 sermon entitled, "The Claims of Vermont Upon her Citizens," Pease refers to William Henry Seward's speech before the U.S. Senate and Vermont's obligation to comply with volunteers.

The photographs associated with the collection include images of Calvin and Martha Pease, their five daughters, James Marsh (first President of the University of Vermont), and James Burrill Angell and son. Angell served as the president of the University of Vermont from 1866-1871, and thereafter of the University of Michigan. He was a close friend of Pease, although there is no other mention of him in this collection.

Professor of German at the University of Michigan and Columbia; mostly correspondence of Thomas with his family, professional colleagues, publisher, etc.; also some correspondence of his wife after his death; speeches, lecture notes, biographical sketches; papers include material on language studies at Michigan and Columbia, attitudes of academia toward Germans in World War I, accounts of European travels in 1877, 1896, and 1900; Civil War letter of Steven Thomas, Calvin's father.

The collection has been arranged into the following series: Biographical/personal material; Correspondence; Lectures and addresses; Journals/diary; Scrapbooks; Other family members papers; and Publications.

The collection includes Enders' research papers documenting the Ku Klux Klan, mostly the Michigan Klan. Papers include demographics, articles he wrote or published, articles (copies) from various sources, membership cards, photographic materials, and memorabilia.

The papers consists mostly of demographics and articles about the Michigan Klan, including chapters for Cal’s intended book; newspaper articles copied from microfilm and lists of the articles from Michigan and Klan newspapers; and membership information cards. The cards are disorganized and may contain census or local election information, marital status, type of employment, children, and address information. There is a nice variety of black and white and colored photographs and slides of Michigan Klan parades, meetings, a funeral, and the Chicora KKK quilt with members names embroidered on it. Also included are a sheeted figurine and Klan publications, including songbooks and copied articles about the Klan in Indiana and the U.S.

Most of the collection has been photocopied onto acid-free paper.

The collection is unique and valuable for the research of white supremacists in Michigan. It is particularly valuable for the study of average Michiganders, including men and women who joined the Klan up to 1924. There is substantial documentation of the activities of local Klans.

The problems leading to the failures of the 1924 attempt to elect a Detroit mayor and ban private schools are well documented, as are the financial problems and the high profile murders committed by Klan officials.

More Lewis D. Capen material may be found in the Ku Klux Klan (Mecosta County, Mich.) collection and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. Millbrook Level Lodge No. 219 (Millbrook, Mich.) organizational records.

This volume contains financial records, journal entries, planting lists, and other content related to a farmer and fur trader in the early 19th century.

This volume is comprised of financial records, journal entries, planting lists, and other content related to a farmer and fur trader in the early 19th century.

• Undated list of prices for animal skins, "Expences Coming to Pennsylvania," and "Expences at the quitting" (1 page)
• Chronological accounts (11 pages, February 1806-March 1806; September 1806-November 1806; and undated)
• Double-entry accounts (9 pages, February 1806-May 1806)

Several individuals, including Sidney Wells, Matthew Gibson, and Daniel Whipple, are represented in both chronological and double-entry records. Most entries pertain to skins from mink, muskrat, and martin, and to manual labor tasks such as cutting grubs, drawings logs, and rafting. Other accounts concern sundries, a knife, a watch, and "a Balance between Guns."

The volume contains 3 pages of notes and journal entries about the author's travels from Cambridge to towns in Pennsylvania (2 pages, February 1806-July 1806); and from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Lansingburgh, New York, via New Jersey and New York City (1 page, August 1806). His notes refer to travel by land and water.

Two pages concern crops planted at Cambridge in May 1808, including potatoes, beans, cabbage, corn, peas, beets, and oats. The volume also has an 8-page list of names and numbers; drawings of a compass rose and geometric shapes; signatures of James Peters and Lydia M. Peters; a very rough sketch of an "apple machine" (apparently for coring or peeling and apple) below which is written the name "George Washington"; and page of manuscript sheet music for the "Duke of Halstein's March."

This collection is made up of 5 letters that members of the United States Army wrote to Captain Cameron Mackenzie from September 17, 1943-October 27, 1943. The soldiers commented primarily on military life.

This collection is made up of 5 letters that members of the United States Army wrote to Captain Cameron Mackenzie From September 17, 1943-October 27, 1943. The soldiers commented primarily on military life. Mackenzie received 4 letters from men that he had served with in the 170th Field Artillery Battalion or other units, and received one letter from his uncle, Lieutenant Colonel George H. Davis. See the Detailed Box and Folder Listing for more information.