Collections : [Archives of Michigan]

This series documents the history of Covert and Van Buren County, Michigan and the activities of the Sarno – Hendricks family. Most of the photographs are not dated. These depict Covert student groups and clearly document the racially integrated makeup of the classrooms. Box 17 includes panoramic and rolled photographs of Covert school students for the years 1927-1935. Other photographs include portraits of unidentified individuals and depictions of Covert houses and Bale’s peach orchard. Photographs depicting Hendricks family members and the Van Buren County Historical Society Museum are filed within this series.

Most postcards depict scenes of Covert and other Southwest Michigan towns. There are street scenes, a photo of a Benton Harbor farmer’s market and images of individual buildings, including post offices, schools, hospitals, banks and stores.

Pearl Sarno served on the Covert Bicentennial Committee and her collection reflects 1976 Bicentennial events: outdoor movies, parades, Chautauquas, exhibits and school essay contests, among others. A related folder documents the Covert Library Historical marker, which was placed by the Michigan History Division (Michigan Department of State) in 1976.

Sarno was also active in the Van Buren County Historical Society. Historical Society materials (1965-1992) include a copy its constitution, meeting minutes, correspondence, membership lists, grant applications, newspaper clippings and news bulletins. The items provide information on local history and document Society activities: elections, building preservation and restoration projects, museum operations and events such as picnics and yard sales. The photographs depict Society buildings and exhibits.

The “Hendricks Family” file (1904-1905) contains family documents of Pearl Hendricks Sarno. These include postcards and other correspondence, a motor vehicle certificate, business cards, cradle roll certificates and floor plans for an unidentified building that appears to be a house or some other form of residence. Some photographs of individuals are not identified. The correspondence covers several topics, including deaths, family reunions and vacations.

The collection contains a couple unpublished Covert histories. An unknown author wrote one of these at an undetermined date. However, Pearl Sarno’s introduction to A Look at Covert’s Heritage (Pearl Sarno, Editor. Covert, Michigan: Covert Bicentennial Committee, 1976) references a 1952 unpublished history by Covert resident John R. Spelman. Spelman’s history would seem to be the unidentified one. The work discusses Covert businesses, Native Americans, railroads, early roads and some early residents. The second unpublished history is a copy of Anna-Lisa Cox’s 2002 thesis, submitted to the Graduate College of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Cox focuses on Covert’s history of racial integration. This research formed the basis of her 2006 book, A Stronger Kinship (New York: Little, Brown and Company).

The documentation includes seven highway maps and four plats. One of the highway maps is hand drawn on the back of a railroad bond and labeled “Highway Map of Deerfield Township,” (circa 1870s?). It provides some land ownership information. Three other highway maps depict a grid of the township. They are undated and also provide some land ownership information. Lastly, the series includes three highway maps dating from the last half the Twentieth Century, a photocopy of a land ownership plat (1873), a 1963 land ownership plat and two undated hand-drawn plats that show some land owner names, but are not complete.

Unbound cars identified as form number 31A, Michigan State Tax Commission, W.P.A. Project S-110. Describes land, buildings, fences, crops, wood and forest timber, means of communication, and head and light. Arranged alphabetically by name of township, then numerically by section number. No index. Not complete for all counties included.

Offers year of inventory; number of school district; legal description; code; name of village, township, and county wherein located; name and post office address of individual assessed; together with amount of acreage within certain classifications. Classifications are: "A" Agricultural; "B" Special Agricultural; "C" Swamp; "D" Commercial Orchard, Vineyards, and Berries; "E" Forest and Timber Area, Farm Woodlot and Cut-Over; and "Other" sugar bush, road, marsh, lake, waste, and recreational.

Sketches of house and general land area are included. Building description includes type; year built or remodeled; dimensions in linear and cubic feet; condition and type of foundation, exterior roof, floor and utilities. Remarks may refer to stanchions and fixtures. Buildings of lesser importance such as cribs, poultry houses, garages, fruit storage and the like are described by brief narrative. Farm fences are described by kind and condition of fence posts. The "Woodlot and Forest Timber Tally" offers type, board feet, cord, stem cut, and density. V

This series includes service records of the various parts of the Michigan Military Establishment spanning from 1838 to 1920. They are divided into five subseries: Descriptive Records, Service Records, Officer Records, Enlistment Records, and Health Records. Note that these records not only document Michigan soldier's involvement in American conflicts such as the Civil War, Spanish-American War, and World War I, but also include service during times of peace as well.

Some of the earliest items document Allen’s high school years at Western State High School. This charter school was operated by Western State Normal School. Western State Normal School later became Western Michigan University, and the high school was renamed University High School. Western State High School materials include several folders of course notes and essays, grouped by pertinent course name, a 1930 student handbook and directory, a 1931 yearbook, a 1932 commencement program and a list of students from Allen’s graduating class of 1932. Some correspondence documents Allen’s search for an institution of higher learning. For at least one summer of his high school years, Allen attended the National High School Orchestra and Band Camp in Interlochen, Michigan. The Interlochen documentation includes correspondence with parents, camp report card, and publications.

In the 1930s, Allen attended Amherst College, Kalamazoo College and then Columbia Law School. Many of his activities for these years are documented in correspondence files. A separate Kalamazoo College file includes course transcripts, report cards, a brochure on the college, a brochure on the Sigma Rho Sigma fraternity (of which Allen was a member), a Sigma Rho Sigma dance card, a Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity membership card, a 1934 commencement program, a 1936 commencement invitation and lyrics of homecoming songs.

Allen’s World War II experiences are documented mainly through correspondence. Allen family members constitute most of the correspondents. In the letters, Allen provides detailed accounts of his wartime service. He describes his experiences in domestic army camps and in the European Theatre of Operations. He is often unable to provide specific information (such as his exact whereabouts or troop movements) due to wartime censorship. However, he does often comment at length on his general surroundings and his encounters with European civilians and other military personnel. He sometimes muses at length on the war’s progress and/or speculates on future events. During the war, Allen served as an assistant Judge Advocate to the Third Army’s 94th Division. He sometimes comments on his job duties, but usually not at length. Allen ran for a Kalamazoo city commissioner seat in 1945, when he was still stationed in Europe. Some contemporary materials allude to this situation.

Allen served as Kalamazoo mayor in the years 1951-1959. This series includes letters of congratulations on his 1951 election victory. A folder labeled “Mayor of Kalamazoo” includes a copy of Allen’s 1951 inaugural address, an undated “Statement Concerning City Plan for Township Sewage,” a 1955 paper entitled “The Problem of the Medically Indigent in Kalamazoo,” some statistics on the 1951 Kalamazoo city election, a schedule for the 1959 Kalamazoo Mall dedication and a letter (written in French) from the mayor of Ville de Chateaubriant, France.

From 1961 to 1973, Allen served as a Michigan constitutional convention (or “Con Con”) delegate, then as State Controller, State Budget Director and a legal advisor in Governor William G. Milliken’s administration (1969-1981). This series contains few documents from this period. Con Con materials include an immediate (1962) retrospective article by Allen, a convention handbook copy that contains Allen’s handwritten notes and some reunion and retrospective materials from later years. Files on “State Controller” and “State Budget Director” consist mainly of speeches and essays, with some financial information and a position description also included. The general correspondence files for these years document some of Allen’s personal activities

In 1973, Governor William Milliken appointed Allen to the Court of Appeals. His term began in 1974, and he remained in the Court of Appeals until his retirement in 1987. A Court of Appeals correspondence file contains letters on several topics. These include personnel matters, financial matters, professional conferences and speeches. In some letters, Allen discusses court cases and legal issues with fellow legal professionals and scholars. Other files in this series document Allen’s 1980 reelection campaign and 1983-1984 discussions on court redistricting legislation. The file labeled “Reports and Meeting Minutes” contains statistics on filings and dispositions.