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The Alternative Press was a literary and artistic small press started in Detroit in 1969 by Ken and Ann Mikolowski. The press initially focused on publishing the work of Detroit artists and later became international in scope. The collection documents the press's management and publication processes, including those for its acclaimed subscription mailings, which contained poetry, bookmarks, bumper stickers, drawings, paintings, collages, and postcards.

The Alternative Press Records held by the University of Michigan Special Collections Library is the founders' full set of press records up until 1996. It contains items such as correspondence from poets, artists, and friends, manuscripts of poems and other writings, sketches, Christmas cards, event announcements, the press' printed products, subscription renewal requests and more. Records from all three operating locations of the press are included, although the records from business done from Grindstone City predominate.

The Alternative Press Records is divided into ten series: Artists and Poets: Correspondence, Writings and Ephemera; Business Records; Ephemera; Events and Organizations; Original Postcards; Printed Materials; Printing Process; Small Presses; 1996 accretion; and 2018 accretion. Records sorted by individual or organization (primarily Artists and Poets and Small Presses) are arranged in alphabetical order. Other series and subseries (primarily those containing correspondence, business records, artwork/writings, and event announcements) are arranged in chronological order to preserve evidence of the creative process and organizational decisionmaking.

Bi-weekly newspaper based in Highland Park, Michigan reflecting the view of the "International Socialists." Consists primarily of marked up editorial copy and some miscellaneous administrative files.

The collection consists almost exclusively of marked-up editorial copy. The material in box 3 was organized for the most part by issue number, and this organization has been maintained. The material in boxes 1 and 2, however, arrived at the library without any prior separation into issue numbers. It appears that the articles in boxes 1 and 2 are essentially in chronological order, and this material has been separated by issue number where possible, but it must be stressed that this separation may be not be completely accurate.

With a very few exceptions, most of the articles in this collection appear to have been published in Workers' Power. Researchers are advised to start with the published newspaper; the Alternative Press Index may also be helpful.

In addition to the marked-up copy, there are nine folders of miscellaneous material, including items regarding finances, form letters giving general information about the newspaper, marked-up galleys, and lists of articles for various issues.