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Transcriptions (copies) of oral history projects created by Central Michigan university faculty and students mostly of Central Michigan University (CMU) faculty, staff, students, and alumni, documenting their diverse experiences at Central Michigan University, in Mount Pleasant.

Transcriptions (copies) of oral history projects created by Central Michigan university faculty and students mostly of Central Michigan University (CMU) faculty, staff, students, and alumni, documenting their diverse experiences at Central Michigan University, in Mount Pleasant. One oral history is of a Michigan Native American woman discussing her memories of her family members who were forced to attend the Mount Pleasant Indian School, her experiences of the school's impact on her family and the tribe, and memories of one family member who graduated from eighth grade at a Michigan Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) camp. Currently, all of these transcriptions CLOSED to researchers unless permission is granted by Professor Jay Martin. The collection is ongoing.

This collection consists of personal information and correspondence of Daisy Bazzett, 1933-1936, 1937, 1938, and undated.

This collection consists of personal information and correspondence of Daisy Bazzett, 1933-1936, 1937, 1938, and undated, 1.75 Cubic Feet (in 4 boxes). The collection is organized by date and each folder alphabetically.

Bazzett, Correspondence: The majority of the collection consists of letters sent from Daisy to Ellis Bazzett while she attended CSTC 1932-1936. Her letters begin in the fall of 1933, and detail her daily life at CSTC in the 1930s. Materials include: letters, postcards, and newspaper clippings. Topics covered include information about life at CSTC, such as the dorms, classes, and social life. Daisy made frequent mention of dances and social events organized by the literary societies which she invited Ellis to, and to different things that she and her roommate Helen did, such as buying a radio, or typing up papers for girls in the dorm on a typewriter. These letters also document the growing seriousness of the relationship between Daisy and Ellis, even discussion of marriage as she approached graduation. Daisy was a very engaging writer and her humor really shines through in her letters to Ellis. Some collection highlights include a letter dated January 10th, 1935, which has an illustration with the inscription “dropping you a line.” Letters such as one dated May 21st, 1935 describe the more difficult aspects of being active on campus, as Daisy writes “Its hell being President of a club of catty women.” Later letters reveal more about Daisy’s relationship with Ellis. On October 1st, 1935 she sent Ellis a letter where she had copied Elizabeth Barret Browning’s Sonnet 43 from 1850, which begins “How do I love thee…” In March of 1936, Daisy sent Ellis a kiss through the mail, her red lipstick staining the letter. Also significant is information relating to graduation, including an invitation to graduation activities that lasted from June 5th through the 22nd.

Miscellaneous Materials: This portion of the collection mostly includes correspondence received by Daisy or Ellis, sent by Ellis, photographs, or auxiliary collections material. Materials include: biographical material from Daisy titled “Notes from my Nineties,” a series of photographs, correspondence to Ellis, as well as Miscellaneous letters and notes to Ellis. Completing the collection are notes on the correspondence from Timothy Bazzett, Daisy and Ellis’ son. Topics mentioned include: Daisy’s life on the Whalen farm in Oakley, her life at Central, and anecdotes about her life with Ellis; Ellis’ work correspondence, and letters that he and others wrote to Daisy. The photographs include a photograph of Ellis, photographs of Daisy and Helen with other friends on campus, and photographs from the wedding of Daisy’s brother, Clarence, in which Daisy and Ellis also appear “Notes from My Nineties” by Daisy Bazzett was copyrighted in 2008 by Rathole Books.

Processing Note: During processing .25 cubic feet of peripheral materials and envelopes were removed from the collection. Acidic materials were photocopied and the originals were withdrawn from the collection.

The collection consists mainly of materials, photographs, notes and statistics, essays, and memorabilia, such as identity cards, pins, a towel, a blazer, and a baseball, mostly generated by his career as a sportscaster.

The collection includes papers, photographs, and artifacts, which are organized by format, size, title, and chronologically. Except for some of his photographs, Baby Book, obituaries, and a student paper, all of the other materials in the collection were generated by his career. Among these are correspondence, photographs, awards, essays, play-by-play statistics and notes, broadcast related notes and statistics. Artifacts in the collection include: pins and identity cards, a plaque, a baseball, a towel, and a blazer. Particularly unusual to other manuscript collections are his oversized Basketball Broadcast Boards, 1992-1994, and undated, and Football Broadcast Boards, 1980-1996, and undated. These contain a wealth of information about the player’s personal and professional lives and dreams, and other broadcast related notes and essays, demonstrating his vast accumulation and knowledge of the athletes and sports. A 2016 addition includes a CD of a video essay on baseball written by Dick to celebrate his 60 years as a sportscaster. The video includes black and white and color footage of various players and games over decades. He wrote it. The video was created by Fox Sports San Diego. The video was created by Fox Sports San Diego (MP4 format).

The Elizabeth Anspach Papers, 1914, 1994, and undated, consist of biographical materials, photographs, postcards, diplomas, report cards, honorary speeches, and newspaper clippings (copies).

The Elizabeth Anspach Papers, 1914, 1994, and undated, consist of biographical materials, photographs, postcards, diplomas, report cards, honorary speeches, and newspaper clippings (copies). The topically grouped material is arranged alphabetically. A large portion of the photographs consist of family, baby, vacation, and retirement photos. Many of the diplomas are from Elizabeth’s time at Detroit Teaching College, Cornell, and Harvard, which is in Latin. The newspaper clippings range from her father’s obituary to retirement clippings honoring Elizabeth’s life and career. The award speech and lecture pamphlets all highlight the various achievements and awards that Elizabeth received. The newspaper clippings and award papers all commend Elizabeth for her contributions to education, children, and various organizations throughout the public health field. There are no materials specific to George Wheeler in the collection. The only item in the collection specific to Charles L. Anspach is their wedding invitation.

The photograph albums and scrapbooks document several periods of Elizabeth’s life and family, as well as contain a wedding invitation to Elizabeth and George Wheeler’s wedding. The scrapbooks also contain various items documenting Elizabeth’s life between her retirement and her death in 2003. The oversized folder contains her diplomas, as well as her 1946 Harvard class photograph.

Processing Note: During processing, 10 cubic feet of three-dimensional objects were transferred to the CMU museum. A box of photograph frames and one oversized folder of duplicates and out-of-scope materials, as well as acidic clippings (copies were retained in the collection in the Clarke) were returned to the donor as per the donor form.

The Eva M. Langworthy Dutcher collection, 1908, 2018, and undated, consisted originally of both two-dimensional and three-dimensional pieces focused on her teaching career throughout Michigan.

The Eva Dutcher collection, 1908, 2018, and undated, consisted originally of both two-dimensional and three-dimensional pieces focused on her teaching career throughout Michigan. The two dimensional pieces in the Dutcher collection comprise personal letters, commencement materials, biographical materials, yearbook photographs, family photographs, personal notes and examples. The materials are arranged in alphabetical order. A great amount of the collections photographs consist of class photographs in which Eva Dutcher was a student, specifically the Chippewa pages from Central Michigan Normal School (1921), later Central Michigan College of Education (1950-1951), now Central Michigan University (CMU). A considerable portion of the collection is detailed drawings from 1920 to 1923, and class notes which express Eva Dutcher’s creativity. The collection includes seven wooden, created and used for teaching purposes by Eva Dutcher.

Throughout the years of 1920-1923, Eva Langworthy’s creativity was constantly recognized from her class notes. Langworthy’s creativity with manual arts was so precise that every example had exact length to width measurements. The examples constructed by Langworthy are very diverse as they differed from class subject and involve plant structure, sewing or knitting clothes, and animal anatomy. Langworthy’s CMU classes which are documented in her notes include:

-Memory Gems (ethics class) contains sixty-two inspirational and educational life quotes, August 2, 1921. -Sewing class, taught by Miss Hand. Contains detailed drawings of various sewing patterns, authentic sewing materials and list of cost of materials. June 26, 1923. -Botany (biology class) taught by Mrs. Ferris and Miss Balkey. Contains thorough drawings of plant structure. June 27 -August 1, 1923. - Nature study class, taught by Miss Woldt. Contains a nature study researched by Langworthy April 1 -June 17, 1920. -Agriculture, taught by M.A. Cobb. Contains pictures and examples of animals and tools used in agriculture. April 14th-July 29, 1920. -Elements of Music (music class) taught by Miss Craw. Contains many drawing of detailed music notes and symbols. February 12, 1921. -Manual Arts, contains Langworthy’s most descriptive and creative drawings. Winter, 1921.

All materials presented in the Dutcher collection are relevant to researchers seeking CMU student and teaching history primary sources.

Processing Note: The collection contains two flags that are undated, and were transferred to the CMU Museum. Seven wooden educational toys created by Eva when a CMNS student formed drawings in her Manual Arts were transferred to the CMU Museum. Twelve items were separately cataloged. A small number of duplicates, newspaper clippings, and reference materials were returned to the donor as per the donor agreement.

Collection consists mostly of diaries, papers, and financial accounts of Mrs. Robinson, some papers of Mr. Robinson and their sons, and family photographs and correspondence, mostly about family concerns.

The collection includes mostly diaries, papers, and financial accounts of Mrs. Robinson, some papers of Mr. Robinson and their sons, family photographs, and family correspondence, mostly about family concerns.

The papers consists mostly of papers of Harriet M. Huebel, and some materials of other family members. Papers include notes, scrapbook, diary of Frances Huebel. Nursing diplomas, correspondence, paperwork, diary of Harriet M. Huebel, many photographs, mostly from World War I, nursing notes, tests, nurse's hat and pins, biographical materials, and retirement papers. Family holiday cards, correspondence, and diplomas of Harriet, Frances, and Harry Hubel [surname spelled with one e] are also included.

The collection consists mostly of Harriett’s papers, notes, photographs, postcards, a diary, nurse hat and pins, diplomas, and biographical materials. Harriett’s materials document her career in nursing, including her training and work at Peterson Hospital and Private Hospital in Ann Arbor, Michigan, service in France, 1918-1919, as a Reserve nurse for the U.S Army Nurse Corps, and her later work as a member of Detroit’s Visiting Nurses Association.

Photographs of Harriett; Photographs taken in France, and Photographs of the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) nurses on board the SS. Missouri, and perhaps another ship, sailing to or from France also document Harriett’s career. Photographs document family, friends, hospitals, nurses, doctors, patients, pets, views of France, etc.

Most of the correspondence is to or from Harriett and her nursing peers or sisters. Some of her nursing peers and regular correspondents were Elba Lila Morse and Maybelle Johnson.

Harriett also had two gentlemen admirers who wrote to her, Provost Ray W. Cooper and Harold E. Provost.

Oversized materials include degree certificates for Harriett, 1915, and Harry E. Hubel, 1931 and 1944. All materials are Harriett’s unless otherwise noted.

Harriett’s sisters, Anna, Ida, and Frances are documented in the correspondence and photographs. Frances is also documented in a diary, scrapbook, and cooking class notes.

Correspondence from John and Ingrid Hepler to Jett and Shelley Whitehead, 1978-1993 (Scattered), and undated.

Correspondence from John and Ingrid Hepler to Jett and Shelley Whitehead, 1978-1993 (Scattered), and undated. The collection is organized chronologically. The collection documents their deepening friendship between themselves and their families and numerous interests they shared. Towards the end of Hepler’s life, as he became unable to read and write himself, his wife Ingrid wrote on his behalf to Jett and his wife, Shelly. Broadly, they discussed many topics in their letters. One major topic they discussed is writing. Mainly, Hepler and Whitehead discussed poetry, poets and authors, Wallace Stevens, Robert Frost (most frequently), and Shakespeare. They also discussed and critiqued their own writings and mailed each other written material that they found interesting (See July 1978 – May 1980, July 1980 – May 1981, July 1981 – May 1982, July 1982 – July 1983, August 1983 – March 1984, April – December 1984, January – June 1985, July 1985 – March 1986, January – August 1989, September – December 1989, February – May 1990, and June 1990 – June 1993, Hepler Writings, 1976, 1983 folders, and Jett Whitehead Poetry folder). Another major topic they often wrote about was their families. Throughout the collection, Hepler wrote about his children and grandchildren. When deaths in the extended families occur, condolences are sent and when someone is sick, well wishes are sent (See July 1980 – May 1981, July 1981 – May 1982, April – December 1984, January – June 1985, July 1985 – March 1986, April 1986 – November 1987, January – August 1989, September – December 1989, February – May 1990, and June 1990 – June 1993 folders). They also frequently wrote about everyday occurrences and sent each other good wishes. The relationship between the Hepler and Whitehead families strengthened over time. The Heplers sent the Whiteheads advice, encouragement, and considered them as part of their own family (See August 1978 – May 1980, July 1982 – July 1983, April – December 1984, July 1985 – March 1986, April 1986 – November 1987, September – December 1989, February – May 1990, and June 1990 – June 1993 folders). While health was discussed throughout the collection, it becomes a main topic when Hepler is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease towards the end of the collection. Ingrid informed the Whiteheads about John’s condition and carried on the correspondence for John when he could no longer read nor write. She also included her own feelings on the situation in her letters to the Whiteheads, noted that she missed the conversations she once had with her husband, and who he was before the disease as it sometimes made him abusive towards her (See June 1990 – June 1993 folder). In his letters, Hepler occasionally mentions CMU. He writes about other CMU professor like Daniel Weber (See July 1980 – May 1980 folder), Clarke Historical Library Reference Librarian and Faculty member Bill Miles (See July 1981 – May 1982 folder), and negative publicity that CMU received from the Detroit Free Press, regarding former Sigma Phi Epsilon president Paul Bonaccine, who was accused of sexually assaulting another student. The charges were reduced to attempted fourth degree criminal sexual conduct to which Bonaccine plead no contest. Sigma Phi Epsilon was stripped of its rights as a CMU Fraternity in 1984 for four years (CM Life, November 19, 1984, January 14, 1985, and See January – June 1985 and July 1985 – March 1986 folder).

The papers include notebooks (John) Irvin Muncy and his wife, Maude, used for courses at Central Normal School, later Central Michigan University (CMU), in the 1890s, photographs of them, friends, and professors at CMU, materials from two schools Irvin taught at, other Muncy notebooks, and a notebook on the Civil War by Lee Gibbs.

The collection is divided into Irvin’s papers and Maud’s papers, and is then arranged alphabetically and chronologically. It consists mostly of Maud and Irvin’s notebooks on various topics and courses they took at CMU during the 1890s. There is one folder with Biographical Materials, including photographs, of them with teachers, classmates, their graduation classes, fellow boarders, and of Irvin with two sets of school children he taught in Brimley (1899) and Matchett (circa 1899-1901) in Grand Traverse County, Michigan. Two essays Irvin wrote are also included. Unidentified Muncy materials and an undated Civil War notebook of Lee Gibbs complete the collection. Gibbs’ relationship, if any, to the Muncys is unknown.

This is an extended family collection collected by Ken "Casey" Carstens, documenting his Carstens, Raney, Bloch, and Wicke family members.

This is an extended family collection collected by Ken “Casey” Carstens, documenting his Carstens, Raney, Bloch, and Wicke family members. The collection is in original order, divided by series by the names of families, couples, or individuals and then by size, alphabetically, and chronologically. Materials in the collection include textual and photographic materials. Textual materials include letters and emails, vital records, family trees, reunion materials, information from Ancestery.com, and U.S. service members’ documents. Books in the collection include family Bibles with family history written into them, religious texts, family histories, and books documenting the history of non-Michigan areas and people related to the family’s history. Photographic materials include photographs, negatives, photograph albums, scrapbooks, and audio and video recordings in several formats. There are also drawings by family members, including children. Some of the materials are in German, which is noted in the folder labels.

Series in the collection include: Anna and William Carstens Scrapbooks; Calvin and Dottie Carstens Scrapbooks and Photograph Albums; Calvin Z. “Cal” Carstens papers; William John Carstens, Jr. papers; Ranney and Bloch families materials; William and Anna Carstens and their family papers: Anna Wicke Carstens papers; Ernestine Wick papers; Rev. Heinrich Wicke papers; Marie Wicke papers; and Elizabeth Vandevoord papers.

Anna and William Carstens Scrapbooks:

There are three volumes of scrapbooks, 1986-1992. Each volume contains family photographs primarily of their children Calvin, Robert, Aldor, William, Delores, Marjorie, and Edwin; of World War I and early twentieth century baseball, newspaper clippings, postcards, and other topics. Photographs are well documented and identified. Volume pages were removed from binders and foldered during archival processing.

Calvin and Dottie Carstens Scrapbooks and Photograph Albums

There are four volumes of scrapbooks and three volumes of photograph albums. The scrapbooks span 1920 to 1960. Each volume contains family photographs primarily of Cal and Dottie and their children Mike, Ken (Casey), and Diane, with newspaper clippings, postcards. The photograph albums span 1985-1986 and 1996-1999. These volumes contain family photographs in Michigan and Cal and Dottie’s travels in the U.S., to Washington University (where Ken earned his master’s and Ph.D.), the Grand Canyon, and the Pacific Northwest. Photographs in scrapbooks and albums are well identified and annotated by Ken Carstens and family. Volume pages were removed from binders and foldered during archival processing.

Calvin Z. “Cal” Carstens papers:

Many materials in this series relate to the history of Cal’s life and the family histories he created in the late 1990s, with related materials. This series includes four diaries, 1939-2016, with the exception of most of 1944. The diary entries are mostly daily, but become more scattered in later years, and describe Cal’s daily life. These diaries were later turned into a multi-volume family history about Cal and Dottie’s lives with many photographs from throughout their lives. Other compiled histories include one volume about Cal’s parents, a three-page history of Pinconning railroads, and a history of Jonathan “Zeno” Theodore Carstens’ life given to Cal by his children. Digital copies of some of these compiled histories are in Box 7. There are copies of news clippings about Cal’s fifteenth mission, the opening of Sportsmen’s Airfield, Cal rescuing ice fishermen from an ice float, photographs of Carstens veterans, a photograph of Cal Carstens, his siblings, and classmates at Rhodes School, and Al Hoffman, a Michigan pilot and good friend of Cal. The series also includes several other bibliographic materials for several people. These include a copy of Cal’s Baptismal record, two church records for Wilhelm Johann Carstens in German, Edwin “Jack” John Carstens’ obituary and a church bulletin from the funeral, and Michael “Mike” Robert Carstens’ obituary and a police report about his death. There is also correspondence to Cal and Dottie, including letters from the Carstens’ old family friends from Rhodes, giving recollections of the 1920s and 1930s to help Cal with his research and from a Norwegian friend who visited Pinconning in 1965, recalling her visit with the Carstens. This series also contains two CD audio recordings of conversations between Cal and his parents. There are also many family photographs, primarily 1980s-1990s. Additional photographs are on the VHS tape.

The 1989 VHS videotape of 1950-1989 Carstens family slides includes color slides of Dottie, Cal, Ken (Casey), and Mike from San Antonio, Texas, the base, planes, family activities, swimming, parades, hunting, fishing, canoeing, archery, caverns, parties, picnics, holidays, local events, and the birth of their sister, Diane, who is then documented in the rest of the slides. The rest of the slides are mostly in Pinconning with lots of snow scenes and winter activities, with extended family, family and local events, including church, Christmas, birthdays, First Communion, high school graduation, CMU Commencement and images inside CMU Museum, Ken’s archaeology presentation display, family trips to Mackinaw, Tahquamenon Falls, Niagara Falls, Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox, Hartwick Pines in Grayling, and Detroit Tigers games. The video ends with the boys’ dates, engagements, weddings, and grandbabies. Additionally, there is a 2-volume CD set recording of the VHS tape.

The June 2024 addition to the collection includes wedding CDs, Kenneth “Casey” Carstens’ sister, Diane, and his son, Jason. Diane’s CD is an audio recording and Jason’s CD is still photographs.

William John Carstens, Jr. papers:

Materials in this series are mostly related to William John Carstens, Jr. and some to Ken and David Carstens. There are several handmade and printed school graduation bulletins from William’s middle and high schools. His World War II service is documented by a photograph album and honorable discharge card, several individual photographs, and many items in the oversized scrapbook. His Flight Record and Log Book are a record of his flight dates and locations as a private pilot and contains a photograph of a biplane. Materials documenting his time playing baseball as a pitcher in the NEML, include several photographs, a newspaper clipping, and many items in the scrapbook. In 1964, William was temporarily stranded on an ice float in Saginaw Bay. There are a few newspaper clippings about the event and it is retold in his Magline employee of the month article. There is a photograph of William’s son, David Carstens, while in military service. There is a newspaper clipping about Ken Carstens, nephew of William, and his involvement in the creation of an archaeology program at CMU. A letter from Casey [Ken Carstens] to Uncle Bill [William] from July 19, 1992, contains two stone projectile points.

Ranney and Bloch families materials:

This series contains materials related to the Ranney and Bloch families. Many of the materials were found and compiled by Ken Carstens, who was researching genealogy for his mother, Dorothy “Dottie” (Bloch) Carstens. Her mother was Maria (Ranney) Bloch. Some of the materials in this series are print offs from genealogical research websites such as Ancestry.com and Find A Grave.

For Dottie’s 90th birthday, Ken and his siblings gifted her a Ranney Family History. It covers 11 generations back to Thomas Ranney (1578-1650). The History contains an opening letter from Ken, a history of English Puritans and their relocation to North America, a chronology and genealogy of the Ranney line, a history of several American Revolutionary War battles (Bunker Hill, White Plains, and Saratoga) that a Ranney ancestor may have fought in, a history of the ship Oliver Cromwell on which Amos Ranney served as the assistant carpenter, a history of the 23rd Michigan Infantry in which William E. Ranney (Dottie’s grandfather) served, newspaper clippings about Clyde E. Ranney (Dottie's father) being in trouble for illegal gambling in 1940, and annotated family photographs, which may be copies from Cal’s compiled family history books.

Dottie Carstens material in the series are her high school yearbook, a copy of her diploma, a booklet from her fiftieth-year high school reunion, and materials related to her Daughters of the American Revolution application and membership. The Carstens had spent several years applying for membership for Dottie using Amos Ranney (Sr.) as her ancestral link to the war. A letter from Ken to Dottie showed excitement at the prospect of the application being accepted soon and noted that they were the first from Amos’ lineage to apply (in other words, Amos Ranney was new to the D.A.R.’s records). Ultimately, Dottie gained membership through her ancestor Moses Hawley. There are also family photographs of Dottie, Marie, Emil Bloch, and their families.

Marie (Ranney) Bloch materials include a letter from Arnie and Marion to Dottie and Cal about how Marie’s U.S. citizenship was obtained and the family’s connection to Germany and Kurland, a brief history of Marie written by Dottie, a CD and Cassette recordings of Marie playing the piano, her death certificate, obituary, and a funeral card. The CD recording can be accessed with Windows Media Player Legacy.

Bloch family genealogical materials are a copy of a ship manifest from the vessel Emil Bloch traveled to the United States on and a couple CDs containing Bloch family photographs and the emails they were sent with from Micheal Field to Cal and Ken Carstens. The files on these CDs are Outlook files and can be accessed with Outlook.

Ranney family genealogical materials include family print outs from the Find A Grave website about Thomas Ranney I, Thomas Ranney II, John Ranney I, and Amos Ranney (Jr.); a copy of the obituary for George E. Ranney who was a prominent doctor in Lansing, MI, three records from Ancestry.com about Nathaniel Ranney, records from Ancestry.com on Amos Ranney (Sr.) including basic genealogical information from family histories, birth records, and federal census data, several Revolutionary War service records of his involvement with Connecticut’s first battalion state regiment and the fifth company in the ninth Connecticut battalion, a death record for his wife listed as “Mrs. Ranney,” copies from Ancestry.com of correspondence between Charles Adams and The Bureau of Pensions concerning Amos’ war pension, and genealogical information about Andrew Ranney, the son of famous painter Willaim Ranney, from Ancestry.com and the 1880 federal census. The series also contains parts A and B of ‘Middletown Upper Houses’ by Charles Collard Adams which contains genealogical information on the Ranneys which was used by Ken during his research.

Five books about the artworks of famous painter William Ranney (1813-1857) and a CD of Lisa playing Christmas Carols on a piano in 1983 and 1985 complete this series. The CD can be accessed using Windows Media Player Legacy.

William and Anna Carstens and their family papers:

This series contains materials related to William and Anna Carstens and their family. Biographical information about them comes from their funeral cards, William’s obituary, Anna’s written recollections of her youth from birth to young adulthood, and a 1914 postcard she wrote to her mother in German. There are newspaper clippings about William and Anna’s 50th wedding anniversary and William’s bowling association. There are several photographs of the pair, William’s General Store, his World War I medals, his baseball team, and Anna’s childhood home. There is a genealogy of their family, compiled by their grandson Ken Carstens, with materials he gathered in creating it. Among these materials are: a plat map of William’s father’s 80-acre farm, genealogical information about William and Anna’s son, Jonathan “Zeno” Carstens, family history forms that relatives mailed to Ken, a letter to Ken from a German researcher about the Carstens family’s history in Germany, a family tree and several photographs of the Bloch family that were emailed to Ken’s mother from her cousin, a Wicke family tree, Fred Rohr’s obituary, family wedding invitations and baby announcements, newspaper articles about William’s brother Otto and William’s grandson Mike, and family photographs with people in them identified. There is also correspondence to Ken from relatives about family history and creating a bench memorial for William and Anna Carstens in Pinconning.

Anna Wicke Carstens papers:

This series documents Anna Wicke Carstens and her husband, William (Bill) Carstens Sr. Photographs of Anna, William, Marie Ranna, Grandfather William with Grandmother Ida, daughter Ida, and the old Rhodes schoolhouse are included. Personal correspondence to Anna are written in German. Additional correspondence concerns a park bench memorial for both Anna and William Carstens in their native town of Pinconning, planned by their grandson, Ken Carstens. Anna’s obituary and memorial guestbook, William Carsten’s obituary, and selected pages from Bentley Township Centennial 1892-1992 about the Carstens family home, Carstens store, Rhodes schoolhouse, and registered Carsten voters in the 1892-1919 period complete the series. A CD of the full Bentley Township Centennial 1892-1992 is in Box 7.

Ernestine Wick papers:

This series contains the drawings and poetry collections of Ernestine Wicke, her Im Kreise der Kinder book, and writings. Also included are Wicke family, Merle family, and Keller family photographs and a marriage license for Gustav Keller and Anna Martha Wicke Keller.

Rev. Heinrich Wicke papers:

This series documents the Reverend and his family via Bibles, journals, letters, poems, and assorted writings. Materials that are in German are so noted on the folders. The series is organized alphabetically and chronologically. The books, Die Bibel and Die heilige Schrift, both contain family history. His Writings and Muses was translated from the original German into an English booklet by his great-grandson Ken Carstens, as a gift to Ken’s father, Cal Carstens. A CD of Wicke/Merle family history provides more insight into the family. Some of the Bible Passages booklet pages are covered in tape and very acidic.

Marie Wicke papers:

Materials in this series mainly relate to Marie Wicke, with some folders documenting her daughters, Elizabeth and Ernestine, as well as more general family information. This series includes Marie’s Obituary and Memorial Guestbook, a Carsten’s family Forget-Me-Not book (in German, and a German Hymn book given to the family by a friend. The majority of her papers are in the form of letters written in German by her brother, Fritz Merle. Also included in this series are other Wicke family letters, photographs, books, obituaries, memory cards, and memory books.

Elizabeth Vandevoord papers:

This series contains Elizabeth (Wicke) Vandevoord’s correspondence with her mother, other scattered correspondence, a photograph, handwritten prayers, obituaries, memory cards, and a family photograph.

Processing Notes:

During processing approximately 3 cubic feet of peripheral and miscellaneous material, duplicate photographs, and objects were withdrawn from the collection and transferred to the CMU Museum. Nine titles were separately cataloged. Books which related to non-Michigan family history were retained within the boxes of the collection.