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Members of the Cavanagh family have resided in Yale, St. Clair County, Michigan since 1857. The collection was accumulated by Martha Cavanagh Cameron and consists of original and copied materials of various Cavanagh and Johnston family members.

The Cavanagh family papers have been arranged into an alphabetical series. The files have been arranged by name of family member with a few exceptions for general family and Yale related files. Of special note are the diaries of George Cavanagh, who was proprietor of the Princess movie theater in Yale, Michigan beginning in 1915.

Professor of engineering at the University of Michigan. Photos of Johnston's personal and family life in Wyoming and Michigan, including student activities at the University of Michigan; photos of his work on water projects in the West and in Egypt; and photos of Camp Davis, the summer engineering camp of the University of Michigan in Cheboygan Co., Michigan..

The Johnston collection spans the years of 1888-1928. The bulk of the collection is comprised of photographic prints, mainly cyanotypes, and glass plate negatives. Scattered papers are also present and include biographical material and topical files relating to Johnston's personal, religious, and professional activities. The collection has been arranged into five series, which include: Personal and Family Photographs, Work Photographs, Camp Davis Photographs, Glass negatives, and Biographical Materials.

Family papers include miscellaneous materials of Abbie, Ben, Faith, and Russell Johnston.

The Family Papers include miscellaneous materials of various Johnston family members. Family members well represented in the collection include: Abbie Johnston, Ben Johnston, Faith Johnston, and Russell Johnston. Abbie Johnston was the daughter of H. D. (Hugh Day) Johnston, who was the eldest brother of John Yates Johnston. Russell Johnston was the grandson of H. D. through his son, Ben.

Of particular interest in the collection is Faith Johnston’s Reminiscences of Central, 1944, which describes Central Normal School’s professors, including Professor Larzelere, Miss Woldt, Dr. Rowe, Mr. Grawn, and Mr. Warriner, as well as the burning of the Administration building, known as Old Main, on December 7, 1925. Also of interest is her My Golden School Days, 1919-1922, which is a scrapbook (copy) of her days at Mount Pleasant High School.

Faith also wrote several books, copies of which may be found in the Clarke Historical Library, including Anchor Post, which details the lives of Faith and John Y. Johnston. (This information is from the collection.)

An Addition, added in 2013, includes a thank you note to Mae K. Woldt of the CMU Department of Biology from C.C. McDermid, with five black and white, some tinted, photographs of his garden, a letter to Faith from K.M. Fox, in Vienna, including Italian postcards, 1930; and six cards of lovely dried, pressed flower arrangements from Jerusalem, undated.

Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, family. Correspondence, photographs, and other papers of John Johnston, fur trader, son John McDouall Johnston, Indian interpreter for Henry R. Schoolcraft, and other family members; including letters containing impressions of Indian life and historical materials concerning Indian grammar and folklore, and the history of the Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, region. Includes letter, Jan. 24, 1822, from John Johnston to Lewis Cass discussing Indian affairs.

The Johnston family papers contains approximately seven inches of correspondence, writings, clippings, and photographs. The collection falls into three series: Johnston family papers, Collected historical and Indian materials, and Photographs.