Collections : [Central Michigan University Clarke Historical Library]

The collection consists mostly of letters from Post to/from his family and friends during World War II, photographs, and biographical materials.

The collection is organized alphabetically by topic: Biographical Materials, Letters (in chronological order), Miscellaneous, and Photographs.

The collection consists mainly of letters. There are 68 letters handwritten by Albert Post to his children, wife, in-laws, and other relatives, dating from April 1944 through March 1945. Four of his letters, dated June 24, August 29, and September 5 and 11, 1944, were censored by officials. Most of them were written on onion skin paper. Another nine letters from family members and friends are also included, as is Albert’s telegram to Leila of June 15, 1944. All of the letters are in excellent physical condition. After the Box and Folder Listing, researchers will find a detailed Collection Inventory detailing the contents of each letter, as well as the author, addressee, dates, etc. to facilitate use of the collection. The letters are organized in chronological order.

The rest of the collection consists of one folder each of Biographical Materials (Albert’s birth certificate, business card, the letter Leila received from the Secretary of the U.S. Navy declaring Albert officially dead in 1946, information about the U.S.S. Halligan and its crew, and other materials,), 1916-2005 (Scattered). Photographs in the collection are of Albert Post either alone or with his immediate family. There is also a photograph of Albert and Leila with her parents, Maria and Milton Williams, and a formal studio group portrait of Leila and the children. All of the photographs are dated or from 1944 to 1945. A few Miscellaneous Materials in the collection, a newspaper clipping, undated, of Art Jackson, a famous hunter, which Albert carried in his pocket until he went to war, and Albert’s train ticket stub to California [1944].

Albert’s letters were saved by Leila. In the 1960s, she distributed some of the letters to her children, notably those letters written just to Darrel to him and letters with interesting parts about Sharron Lei to her. When Leila’s house burned in 1981, the family thought all the letters still in the home had been destroyed. However, after Leila died in 1999, Sharron Lei found a cache of letters in a two-pound chocolate box in the garage, with the pearl ring Albert bought for his wife, as described in his letter of August 21, 1944.

Sharron Lei was so young when Albert died that she has no memory of him. She only knows him from stories family members told and his letters. Her research at the National Archives concerning Albert and the history of the U.S.S. Halligan, provided her family with Albert’s official death date for the first time.

Sharron Lei and Darrel donated letters in their possession, which are extremely precious to them, as well as some of their family photographs and biographical materials to the Clarke in December 2005. This is all that they have of their Father. Additional materials from the National Archives were provided by Sharron Lei and their Father’s favorite newspaper clipping on Art Jackson by Darrel.

Many of Albert’s letters survived time, moves to various homes, and a fire. Those that survived are in excellent physical condition and provide an in-depth, personal biography of their author. Albert was an articulate writer and wrote in a legible, cursive hand, occasionally being creative in his spelling. His letters are highly emotional, sad, lonely, and full of loving concern for his family. It is obvious that he adored his family. His loneliness and despair when mail was not delivered for sometimes up to two months at a time, is palpable and painful to the reader.

Today, World War II veteran are viewed as the greatest of the great, as super heroes, and perhaps at times the younger generations may think they were devoid of human frailties. These letters plainly document Albert’s very human pain and, indeed, agony he endured when physically separated from his family. He missed watching his children grow up, and his longed both physically and emotionally, for his beloved wife. Albert’s letters are also full of his hopes, dreams, future plans, and concerns for his wife and children, particularly Darrel, and his in-laws. Albert repeatedly wrote how he cried when he read and received letters and sometimes got so emotional he had to stop reading and go for a walk or into an empty part of the ship to compose himself. He also wrote that other proud shipmates got together after receiving letters to brag about their children and show off pictures of their beloved wives and children. Albert wrote mostly about his family, but there are many references to life in Gladwin, farming, hunting, fishing, relatives, and neighbors. He missed home cooking, particularly pies and cakes, hated naval chow beans, and longed for mail and photographs from his family, whom he thought about constantly, even in his sleep.

Besides his duties aboard ship and writing letters, Albert spent time developing his artistic side. He wrote a poem “Phantasma, found between two letters dated August 29, 1944, to his wife about his physical and emotional longing of a man for his wife when separated by war, clearly based on his feelings for Leila. He also sketched quite a bit from magazines. At the top of his letter dated March 1, 1945, Albert sketched an outline of a mother holding a baby from a magazine, and filled it in with his interpretation of how he thought Leila looked holding Sharron Lei.

This collection is wonderful for documenting the individual in war, a Michigan man who served in World War II while he loved and missed his family. It is also excellent for documenting the sometimes difficult and lonely lives that women and families endured while the men went to war and the necessary role that letters and photographs played in helping soldiers and sailors endure the stresses and strains of war.

The collection includes the following series: Kurt P. Oppermann and family papers; Oppermann Fur Company records; collected materials on historic preservation, miscellaneous, Saginaw, Michigan history, and collected papers of others including Bude Volusin, Mabel C. (Scott) de Fere, Marion C. Weir, and Frank Selzer.

The collection is divided into the following series: Papers of Kurt P. Oppermann and his family, the Oppermann Fur Company Records. Materials Kurt largely collected include: Historic Preservation Materials, Miscellaneous Materials, Saginaw Michigan, Materials, and the Papers of Other Saginawians, including: Bude Volusin; Mabel C. (Scott) De Fere; Marion C. Weir; and Frank Selzer.

The collection provides detailed, personal information about Kurt and his family who were pivotal in the fur and newspaper business, as well as in the musical and social life of Saginaw in the late 19th and early 20th century. His interest in history prompted him to collect photographs, blueprints, and other information on Saginaw history, families, and buildings. This is a valuable collection to study family letters and relationships, Germans in Saginaw, Saginaw history, Saginaw buildings, and the fur business in the late 19th and early 20th century.

The Papers of Kurt P. Oppermann are divided into the following subseries: Biographical Materials (.5 cubic ft. in 1 box), including obituaries, funeral cards, published histories on the family, and Kurt’s Account Book, 1939-1941; his Diaries, 1920, 1926, 1936, 1946, and 1970; high school class notes, 1911-1912, and a Seemann and Peters stock certificate, 1946.

Photographic Materials (2 cubic ft. in 4 boxes), includes a wide variety of photographic materials with images of the extended Oppermann, Nerretes, and Peters families and their friends from the 19th century through 1973. Twentieth century reproductions of 18th and 19th century images of Oppermann ancestors are also included. The subseries include an ambrotype, cartes-de-visite, daguerreotypes, glass-plate negatives, various types of film negatives, positive prints, tin types, and both photographic and negative albums. Many of these photographic materials are partially identified. Images show family members in formal poses, in the family yard at 130 N. 6th Street, Saginaw, on fishing trips, at Kurt’s Arrowhead Farm, various trips Kurt took throughout Michigan and Germany from the 1930s through the 1960s, the interior and exterior of the Oppermann family mansion, and Dr. and Mrs. Karl Kangler richly dressed in Arabic costumes for a costume party. The 19th century Cartes-de-visite Album contains images of Oppermann, Nerretes, and Peters family members. Some of the photographs were taken by the Goodridge Bros. and by Armstrong and Rudd’s Gallery. A photograph album, late nineteenth century, is also included with the volumes at the end of the collection.

Personal Correspondence to Oppermann Family Members (approximately 3.25 cubic ft. in 7 boxes) is the next series. The Oppermanns wrote extensively over decades to each other. They loved each other very much and wrote fairly long, detailed letters covering a wide variety of family news such as illnesses, deaths, weddings, homework, bumps and bruises, as well as religious, social, musical, and fur business news.

All correspondence within each subseries in this collection is in chronological order.

Kurt’s letters to his family are divided into: Letters to One or Both Parent and/or Siblings, 1914-1934, and undated (approximately 1 cubic ft. in 1 box); Letters to Friends and Family, 1914-1916, 1918, 1926, 1929 (1 folder); and letters to Letto (Lydia), 1929-1930 (2 additional folders).

Letters to Kurt from his parents are next and include: Letters from both of his parents, 1917; Letters from his Fathers, 1912-1930 (Scattered) and undated (2 folders); and from his Mother, 1914-1935 (approximately 1 cubic ft. in 1 box). Letters between Kurt’s Mother, Nettie (Peters) Oppermann, and her family and friends before her marriage, 1887-1890, and between Nettie and her new husband, Gustav Oppermann, and her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Charles H. Peters, Sr., and her siblings, 1891-1894 (4 folders) are next. These letters are particularly affectionate and tender, proving that her family embraced Gustav into their family and that they loved each other very much.

Letters to and from Kurt and his siblings are next and in general are quite affectionate and full of news of jobs, family members, and the health and accomplishments of their children and grandchildren. The only negatives in the letters occur in the late 1930s over concerns the siblings had that Art was ruining the family fur business and what Kurt should do to save it. Clearly Kurt was believed by his siblings to be the only one with a chance of saving the business, the family reputation, and Art. A description of the letters of the Oppermann siblings is as follows:

Letters of Arthur “Art” P. Oppermann and his wife, Hulda with Kurt, 1910-1927 (Scattered), and undated, and a letter Art sent to the editor of the Saturday Evening Post rebutting insults about Germans and American neutrality, 1915. The letters between Art and Kurt end in 1927. Before 1927 many of the letters talk about family news and the fur business. After 1927, their relationship deteriorated. This was in part due to the other siblings’ widely held view that Art had ruined the family fur business and Art’s bitterness towards Kurt as a result of Kurt’s actions to try to save the business. (5 folders).

Letters with Eugene “Gene” P. Oppermann and his wife, Stella, 1916-1942 (Scattered, 1 folder). Gene and Kurt were quite close and lived together in the old Oppermann family home from 1936 until Gene married. In his letters, Gene encouraged Kurt by November 16, 1936 to push Art onto “the right track” to avoid the disgrace and destitution of the family and for Kurt to impose a system on the business to get it going. He supported Kurt in staying in the family home because he was the only single sibling and had been shunted for years between Saginaw and New York on family business. The letters document a positive, close brotherly relationship between Kurt and Gene.

Letters with Helen “Letto” (Oppermann) Edgerly, 1916-1964, and 1974, and undated (5 folders). She maintained a pleasant relationship with Kurt all her life although they were often physically separated by thousands of miles after 1925.

Letters with Paul “Barney” P. Oppermann, 1916-1975 (Scattered), and undated. (4 folders) These letters like the ones between Kurt and Pat are affectionate, but not unusual.

Letter with Peters “Pat” Oppermann, 1916-1974 or 1975 (Scattered, 1 folder). Like the letters between Barney, these letters are affectionate, but not unusual.

Letters with Robert “Bob” P. Oppermann, and his wife, Stella, 1916-1974. (Scattered, 5 folders). Included here are weekly reports to Bob from Kurt from January through March 1937 that mention the strikes and shutdown automobile plants and the effect of that and the generally poor economy on the Oppermann business. In March 1937 Bob mentioned Kurt’s 18 acres and Kurt mentioned how he needed the good air there.

The subseries concludes with Personal Correspondence [with] Extended Oppermann Family Members. This includes Kurt’s aunts, uncles, cousins, and a niece, 1916-1961. Most of this correspondence consists mainly of family news, with some holiday or birthday greetings. Some of the correspondence with his cousin, Helmut Oppermann, in Germany is in German and some is about family genealogy.

Political Correspondence consists of one folder each of correspondence with Charles “Charlie” Koehler, a Saginaw City Councilman and friend of Kurt’s, 1947-1960; a letter from Kurt to Adolph (surname unknown) protesting his being treated as a city employee, 1942, in regards to being in or helping to organized an orchestra; and correspondence with Stephen J. Roth, the Attorney General of Michigan, 1949-1950.

General Correspondence between Kurt and his friends covers a wide variety of general family and personal news. Like all the correspondence in this collection, it is filed chronologically. It is divided in two sections. First, correspondence with Kurt’s friends with whom he had regular but sporadic correspondence, perhaps one or two letters a year for a decade or so (approximately 1.75 cubic ft. in 4 boxes). The correspondence is fairly regular, 1909-1942, and particularly good during World War I. It is more scattered, 1943-1974, and undated. Some of his good friends that he had extensive correspondence with during the 1920 and 1930s include: Dick Townsend, Jo Polak, Van George, Ben Bartlett, Hazel McMullen, Helen and Jane Runyon, Kate Wolf, Marguerite Geoffrey, Lucile Whitman, George Long, J.W. “Wes” Harrison, Howard “Howdy” Ewen, and Mabel (Scott) de Fere.

Kurt’s brother, Barney, with whom Kurt was very close, also knew and was friends with most of Kurt’s friends of this period. Harriet, Dorothy and Lucile, possibly nurses or patients are sometimes referred to as “the three maidens”. Many of these friends also spent time recovering from illness at Castle Point, and many of them knew each other.

The second section is General Correspondence of friends with whom Kurt extensively corresponded over long periods, on specific topics of research, and with whom he exchanged multiple letters monthly (1 cubic ft. in 2 boxes.) Kurt was friends with all the women, but they were mostly just penpals. His correspondents include: Catherine Ditzler, 1916-1934 (the correspondence ends after she married in June 16, 1934); Dr. W. W. Florer, 1950-1954, and undated, with whom Kurt discussed historic settlement near and in Saginaw; William D. Fueher, 1953, re: German Language in public schools and German communities in Michigan; Jenny Heyne, 1914-1925; Dr. Carl Ibershoff, 1919-1951 (Scattered) and undated (some materials in German); Mollie Jensen, a friend of Kurt’s ex-girlfriend, Christine, who wrote to Kurt through a third friend to avoid scenes with her jealous husband, Norman, whom she finally divorced in 1929, 1927-1934, and undated (2 folders); Myron E. Leppy, 1926-1930; Rita Moloney, 1930-1932, 1939; and Sinfonia Fraternity at the University of Michigan, 1915-1931 (Scattered). Also there is correspondence with Dorothy Miller, 1921-1922, 1925, and undated. Dorothy’s letters indicate that she was Kurt’s girlfriend, but this may have been a long-distance emotional relationship only.

The second largest series in the collection is that of the Oppermann Fur Company Business Records. The records are divided by format into loose papers and smaller volumes that fit into the boxes, and then oversized volumes.

The papers, 1915-1937 and undated (4.5 cubic ft. in 9 boxes) are filed alphabetically by the type of material, and then chronologically. A wide variety of financial records is represented here, including accounts, a ledger, inventories, job receipt books (documenting customers and work they wanted done or items created), mailing lists, lists of prospective customers, publications, sales records, tax receipts, and work notes, among others. It is clear that Kurt examined these records in his effort to try to save the business and that he inherited them when the business closed.

A great strength of this series is the Business Correspondence, 1918-1925. It is divided first in to Business Correspondence with Companies, and then with Customers. Kurt kept the records in roughly alphabetical and chronological order for 1920, 1921, and 1919-1925. The companies include suppliers of furs, leather, beadwork, embroidery silk, buttons, tanning and curing supplies, as well as stationery, food, tools, and office supplies. Companies with whom they conducted extensive or specialized business, such as women’s clothing, and Charles F. Wagner, a fur merchant with Wagner, Jodie and Co., 1919-1924, and with G. Gaudig and Blum Corp., 1923-1925, are filed separately. Many of the fur related businesses had beautiful stationery with various animals and furs, as well as images of their establishments. Filed with some of the correspondence are catalog books, fliers, business cards, and swatches of material.

Sixteen Oversized Volumes of business records, 1888-1934 (approximately 5 cubic ft.), document both the Saginaw and Flint Oppermann fur stores. The volumes are physically located at the end of the collection. The volumes include an Account Receivable Book, Day Books, a HUGE, very heavy Scrapbook of advertising and fur business information on the Oppermanns, A. J. Jaeckel and Company, and other fur companies mainly in New York City, Job Receipt Books, and Ledgers, two of which are indexed, and two others which include inventories of the Flint Store. Many of the advertisements in the Scrapbook are from various Saginaw newspapers.

A third series in the collection is Historic Preservation Materials (.5 cubic ft. in 1 box). This consists of materials Kurt accumulated or generated to create public interest and organizations, including the Heritage Foundation Association, the Saginaw Historical Building Foundation, and the Saginaw Historical Heritage Committee, all of which Kurt helped found, to save old Saginaw buildings, 1949-1962. Among the buildings of interest to him and his friends were the Webber House, which is extensively documented here, the Saginaw Civic Center, the Old Saginaw Auditorium, and the Arthur P. Hill High School. Unfortunately for Kurt, many people in Saginaw had little money or interest at the time to save the buildings which were destroyed. Also documented here are the efforts of white people in historic areas of Saginaw to prevent their property from being purchased by African Americans in the early 1960s. This effort is documented in the Johnson-Lapeer-Janes Neighborhood folders. At first Kurt created an advertising draft that was blatantly racist to get supporters. The draft was amended after advice from a friend of Kurt’s who was on the city commission.

The Miscellaneous series (.5 cubic ft. in 1 box) includes mostly Kurt’s correspondence with various people, including his apartment manager, letters to the editor of the Saginaw News, 1936-1957 (Scattered) on a variety of topics, and a collection of lovely, undated greeting cards, as well as one folder of Kurt’s miscellaneous poetry, 1911-1973, and undated.

The Saginaw, Michigan, Materials (1 cubic ft. in 2 boxes) consists of advertising fliers on auctions, 1960-1965; and meeting minutes and attachments of various Saginaw committees and boards, including the Christian Business Men’s Committee; the Saginaw Board of Appeals on Zoning, 1955-1960 and 1968; Saginaw City Council, 1953-1959 (Scattered); and information on Saginaw Schools and the Saginaw Sewer Construction Progress Reports, December 1955-February 1959.

A few legal-size items, mainly legal items, are found in Box 30 due to their size. Items of particular interest include correspondence regarding Kurt’s tuberculosis claim, 1924-1969 (Scattered); legal papers of Kurt and other family members, 1936-1968; and Oppermann Fur Co. Advertisements, Sketches, and Fur Business related Materials, 1920-1939, and undated.

The last series in the collection is Papers of Other Saginawians. Mabel C. (Scott) De Fere’s papers came to Kurt after she died. Other papers, including those of the family of Bude Volusin Kurt either collected or people gave the papers to him knowing of his interest in Saginaw history. Included here are some letters of the family of Bude Volusin, a Saginaw architect and builder, 1853-1871 (some in German). The papers of Kurt’s longtime friend and Saginaw teacher Mabel C. (Scott) De Fere (April 10, 1899-March 15, 1968) include her Correspondence, Biographical Materials, Certificates, a Diploma, and Teaching Materials as well as numerous Photographs and other materials documenting her family and friends in Bergland, Michigan. Mabel married Tom De Fere by 1926. They divorced by June 4, 1936. One letter notes that Kurt and Mabel became engaged on January 5, 1939, but they apparently never married. Mabel loaned Kurt over $700 by 1942, at which time Kurt considered her co-owner of Kurt’s Arrowhead farm. The papers of Marion C. Weir consist mostly of his published and unpublished poetry and correspondence with Kurt, 1917-1959. His published poetry was published by the Oppermann Fur Company. Lastly, in the Oversized Volumes there is an account book of Frank Selzer, a Saginaw artist and probably a lithographer, 1930-1941, documenting companies, people and newspapers for which/whom he did artwork.

Due to size, a few items have been placed in Oversized Folders immediately before the Oversized Volumes. These include Folder #1, Webber House Blueprints (copies, 2), 1960; Oppermann Fur Co., Advertising, Sketches, etc., 1926, 1933-1934, and undated; and Certificates and a Diploma of Mabel C. (Scott) de Fere, 1914, 1916-1917, and 1936.

The collection, 1917, 2011 and undated, includes materials created by Hughes documenting his life and radio career, as well as material he collected on topics of interest to him, such as radio and aspects of Michigan history. Of particular note are materials documenting his correspondence and subsequent citations in newspaper articles about his SQL with Jonestown, Guyana.

The collection, 1917, 2011 and undated, includes materials created by Hughes documenting his life and radio career, as well as material he collected on topics of interest to him, such as radio and aspects of Michigan history. Of particular note are materials documenting his correspondence and subsequent citations in newspaper articles about his SQL with Jonestown, Guyana, in August-September 1978.

Materials documenting Hughes’ life include biographical materials (obituaries), his communication with Michigan radio stations, his funeral visitors book, honors, correspondence and some (not general tourism) materials of the Grand Hotel (Mackinac Island, Mich.), communications with his niece, Pat Potter, photographs, plaques, radio scripts, reports (his on cassette), and his World War II service medals and photograph. Oversized materials include biographical and legal materials, and honors (certificates).

Michigan historical materials include: general Michigan history materials, placemats, and postcards, a compilation of police badges, and photographs of Mount Pleasant Schools. The photographs include: Old Kinney School, second grade, 1917-1918, Miss Carey, teacher; Mount Pleasant High School, 6th grade, 1921-1922, Miss May O’Hara, teacher; and the Mount Pleasant High School Golf Team, 1950. Some of the people in these photographs are identified. Also included is his official letter donating centennial newspaper editions to the Clarke in 1975.

In August 1978 Hughes and some other radio enthusiasts were at the Isabella County Fair when they contacted Guyana and talked to a man named Wes in the medical unit of an agricultural project. Soon afterwards, Hughes received a postcard stamped Peoples Temple Agricultural/Medical Project noting "Thanks for the QSL. This is a very beautiful country. The people are very friendly to the USA. They are doing a great job and appreciate whatever encouragement offered. Best wishes to you and yours." Albert Touchette, Jonestown, Guyana, WB6 M1D/8R3. Tochette noted "letter follows."

The follow-up letter, on Peoples Temple letterhead, dated September 11, 1978, was sent to Hughes by Richard D. Tropp, Staff Assistant. In the letter, Tropp hoped the QSL was received. He enclosed some brochures (no longer with the collection, which Hughes photocopied) and hoped they provide good reading. Tropp noted their founder was the Rev. Jim Jones. Tropp thanked Hughes for his interest in their work and noted amateur radio operators had saved lives there and contributed to their success. Tropp closed by wishing Hughes good luck.

On November 18, 1978, 918 people including 304 children under the age of eighteen, died in or near Jonestown. Jones' staff killed U.S. Congressman Leo J. Ryan, three news people and a disenchanted member of the Temple who had sought, with others, to leave with the help of the Ryan. Then, Jones and over 900 of his followers killed themselves.

After the mass suicide/murder, Hughes realized the significance of his connection and was interviewed for an article published in the Morning Sun, November 21, 1978. The story was picked up by the Associated Press on November 20th and CMLife on December 4th. Copies of the articles are in the collection.

For more information and primary and secondary sources about the tragic event, the aftermath, see Alternative Considerations of Jonestown and Peoples Temple, a website compiled by San Diego State University at http://jonestown.sdsu.edu/ According to the site, Tropp, a teacher age 36, and his sister, and Albert, age 24, who was in charge of the radio room, Albert's mother, siblings and part of his maternal extended family all died at Jonestown.

Processing Note: During processing 2.5 cubic feet of material was withdrawn including duplicates, mass produced and out-of-state or out-of-scope radio station materials and publications. A lot of this material was correspondence noting someone had turned in and communicated with or information about non-Michigan radio stations. Duplicates of the Mount Pleasant High School yearbooks were donated to Mount Pleasant High School. Five items were separately cataloged.

Miscellaneous vertical file material for Central Michigan University Career Services.

The Organizational records, 1960-2006 include Annual Reports, Job Listings, Newsletters, and miscellaneous. The main publication of Career Services is the Job Listings, 1986-2002. The last paper issue of the Job Listing was distributed in June 2002. Later issues are available only in electronic format. The newsletters in the collection have had various names. Currently, in 2004, the newsletter is Career View, and is available in an e-version. The newsletter is ongoing. The collection is organized alphabetically and chronologically. It was originally part of the Clarke Historical Library’s CMU Vertical Files, and, as such, is incomplete.

The collection consists of Osborn's personal work and research correspondence, notes, and data, proposals, photographs, reports, and published articles related to his work on the Coleman Meteorite, Hubble Space Telescope and at the National Underground Research Observatory (NURO) at Lowell Observatory, Flagstaff (Ariz.), teaching materials, and biographical information.

The collection is divided into three series: Osborn Papers; CMU Materials; and CMU Physics Department Materials.

The Osborn Papers, 1965-2012, and undated, (2 cubic ft.) consist mainly of his personal work and research correspondence, notes, and data, published articles, teaching materials, and biographical information. Included here are his research proposals, reports, notes, articles, photographs and other related materials on the Coleman Meteorite, and his research projects at both the Hubble Space Telescope and at NURO. Also in this series are his correspondence with Dr. Francisco Fuenmayor and Dr. Antonio Luis Cardenas, both of the Universidad de Los Andes in Merida, Venezuela, 2000-2001 and 1970-1976, respectively, and his correspondence with Juan Jose Claria, 1979-1979. Osborn worked with Claria at the Venezuelan National Observatory, 1973-1976. Claria later became the Director of the National Astronomical Observatory in Cordoba, Argentina. The Claria correspondence is in Spanish.

The CMU Materials, 1959, 2006, (approximately 1 cubic ft.) consists mainly of memos, meeting minutes, reports, and other materials of a substantial nature documenting changes in policy, procedure or interests at CMU that Osborn received while working at CMU. Of note here is the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools Report and Assessment, 2000.

The CMU. Physics Department Materials, 1968-2006 (approximately 3.5 cubic ft.), consist mainly of various departmental and other meeting minutes, 1972-2006. Included here are student manuals and study guides for CMU astronomy and physics classes, mainly taught by Osborn, 1976-2005 (Scattered). All of the manuals and guides are by Osborn unless otherwise noted. They include sample class presentation notes, quizzes, study guides, and exams. There are also a few materials he received or helped generate, such as the Off-Campus Observatory Proposal and Study, 1968-1976, Colloquia and Seminar Notes, 1980-2006, and various Department Program Reviews, 1981-1998 (Scattered), and Proposals. A few miscellaneous departmental materials complete the collection.

Processing Notes: Over the years, many of Osborn’s Physics Dept. donations were filed into the Clarke’s CMU Vertical Files for the Physics Dept. With his last donation, all the Physics Dept. files he had donated in the last ten years were merged with his papers. A number of CMU. Faculty Association newsletters, the Courier, were merged into the existing CMU. Faculty Association collection and two OMB reports were merged into the CMU. Miscellaneous Financial Collection. Duplicate materials, mainly minutes, were recycled.

The collection consists mainly of meeting minutes, interoffice memos, letters, and position papers on various topics of interest to the university, and a folder of biographical information.

The collection consists mainly of meeting minutes of several committees or councils on which Hageman served; interoffice memos, letters, and position papers on various topics of interest to the university, including Core Values, the Indigenous Working Group, and Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE) Program; and a 2001-2002 Annual Report of Facilities Management and supporting documentation. Also included is a folder of biographical information.

Processing Notes: During processing, a large number of CMU publications (.5 cubic ft.) was removed from the collection and interfiled into the CMU vertical files.

This collection includes images, newspaper clippings and articles, financial records, reports, pamphlets, recognition materials, letters, and newsletters.

This is an addition to the American National Red Cross Isabella County Chapter (Mich.) Organizational Records collection. This collection includes images, newspaper clippings and articles, financial records, reports, pamphlets, recognition materials, letters, and newsletters. Of particular interest are: materials related to the Mount Pleasant Indian School, a poem about soldiers who fought in the Iraq War, and Hurricane Hugo relief efforts. Except for one legal-size folder, everything else in the collection is letter-size.

Processing Note: Approximately .25 cubic foot of materials was withdrawn from the collection during processing, including national publications, general Michigan materials, duplicates, and originals which were acidic or damaged. Photocopies of acidic or damaged materials were added to the collection. Some objects were transferred to the CMU Museum, including: a framed display of Red Cross pins, three miniature Red Cross vehicles, a nursing uniform with top, pants, and hat, two metal first aid boxes with supplies within them, and a few national publications.

The organizational records include: an organizational history, bylaws, meeting minutes with attachments, staff and volunteer lists, magazine clippings (copies), photographs, and related materials.

The Organizational Records, 1970-2018, and undated, include: financial reports, grant information, organizational history, one lease agreement, list of staff and volunteers, meeting minutes (agendas and reports), newspaper clippings (copies), photographs, and one oversized scrapbook. The majority of the collections consist of both meeting minutes and financial reports. The collection is organized by alphabetically and chronologically. Although the ICDC was founded in 1969, the organizational records donated to the Clarke begin in the year 1970.

A copy of William Theunissen’s book Isabella Child Development Center, a history of the Center is separately cataloged in the Clarke.

Processing Note: One cubic foot of duplicate materials and acidic materials, were removed from the collection during processing. Copies of the acidic materials were retained within the collection.

The collection documents the center's history with reports, newspaper clippings, photographic materials, and VHS videos.

The collection is organized by format into the following series: papers, mostly newspaper clippings (1 cubic ft.), photographic materials, mostly of exhibits (.5 cubic ft.), and VHS videos on a wide variety of topics (2 cubic ft.). Each series is then organized alphabetically and chronologically.

The papers consist mostly of newspaper clippings (copies), 1980s-2010, and undated as well as programmatic materials, minority equality reports, copies or original artwork, and the Center’s webpage (copies), 2011.

Photographic materials consists mostly of colored photographs as well as some negatives and contact prints, mostly documenting Center art exhibits or KCP (King / Chavez / Parks) Days or Workshops at CMU for minority students, 1993, 2008, and undated.

The VHS videos, 1987, 2006, and undated, document visiting speakers, panel discussions, soup and substance and breakfast discussions, and other events covering a wide variety of multicultural topics including Native Americans, Disabilities Act, Affirmative Action, African Americans, Ojibwa traditions, feminism, Speak, Speak Out, diversity, etc. A few are user copies of CMU media productions, CMU Minute and Editor’s Notepad. Native American topics are particularly well documented. There are also six videos covering parts 7-24 of Dealing with Diversity, 1993.

The Addition to the collection, 1981-2010, and undated, 2.75 cubic ft. (in 6 boxes) consists of the same formats and information as the original collection. Boxes 1-3 are alphabetical subject files with photographs. Boxes 4-5 are of special interest as they include correspondence, reports, and other materials relating to the Chippewa nickname used by CMU. Box 6 includes several videos and a cassette tape.

The July 2019 Addition includes Box 12 (.5 cu.ft.), 10 VHS color videotapes, 1984-1993: The Legal (Pre-Employment) Interview, 1984, an acted interview with illegal questions, copyright 1984 by CMU Office of Affirmative Action, 5 minutes 58 seconds. Handicappers Rights, 1988, Marshall Rose and the Mount Pleasant Committee on the Handicapped lead a small, inaugural discussion on accessibility, dignity and quality of life in an unidentified CMU class room, 1.5 hours. Cultural Diversity at CMU, [1988] which includes discussion of the CMU mascot, speakers Pres. Jakubauskas, Dr. Nancy Belck, Dr. Rebecca Torres-Riviera, Dr. Ulana Klymyshyn, produced by CMU Library Instructional Resources, 6 minutes 49 seconds. Sexual Issues in the University, 1989, Marshall Rose, the CMU Affirmative Action officer, leads a panel discussion of Dr. Megan Goodwin, Dr. Angela Haddad, and Dr. James Jones on the topic, 1 hour, 3 minutes, 29 seconds. Marshall Rose on Whites in Black History, 1989, a very informative, thoughtful, presentation, about 1 hour, tape is in very bad shape. Have We Finally Arrived at Educational Equity Forum, 1990, includes Dr. Rita Kissen Dr. Robert Levy, Dr. Barbara Kirk discussing race, ethnicity, how to train teachers, 1 hour 6 minutes 36 seconds, this video is in very bad shape. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Freedom March and Commemorative Program, 1991, march of CMU students and staff from Foust to Warriner, 2 banners of note-Eta Sigma Gamma supports the dream and Barnes Hall Taking the dream into the 90s, two unidentified African American male speakers and Leticia Gary (?) in front of Warriner, 11 minutes, 29 seconds. Affirmative Action Annual Think Take, Tape 1, 1991, sponsored by Kappa Alpha Psi by two African American poets, Dr. Kenneth Zakee, and Askia M. Toure, and a presentation by Miss Lefisa (sp?) in the Theatre on the Side, 2 hours 3 minutes 36 seconds. Affirmative Action Annual Think Take, Tape 2, 1991, continues Tape 1, 24 minutes, 25 seconds. Dr. Lloyd Elm, Lincoln Address, 1993, Onadago Tribe member and Native American educator presentation in UC at unidentified conference, 37 minutes, 4 seconds.

Due to shelving issues, the Addition boxes are shelved separately from the main collection.

Dr. Albrecht’s Musical Compositions, 1954, 2018, and undated, and her 2020 obituary, 3.5 cubic feet (in 3 boxes, 1 Oversized, flat box) include a wide variety of many of her original musical compositions, scores, and parts.

Dr. Albrecht’s Musical Compositions, 1954, 2018, and undated, and her 2020 obituary, 3.5 cubic feet (in 3 boxes, 1 Oversized, flat box) include a wide variety of many of her original musical compositions, scores, and parts. These are mostly sacred music, in various formats, in English, Latin, German, and Russian. The collection is organized by series, alphabetically by title, and by size. The series are based mostly on a list of her works compiled by Steven Egler and Mary Stewart Kiesgan, her friends and faculty at CMU’s School of Music, and include: Original Choral Works with Organ; Voice and Piano / Harpsichord / Instruments; Hymn Arrangements and Concertatos; Works for Instruments / Instruments and/or Voice and Organ / Piano; Works for Solo Organ; Works for Solo Piano; Works for Orchestra; Transcriptions to Orchestra and Other Media; Descants and Choral Verses. Another series, not in the list, but which was in one of the original oversized folders in which the collection was delivered to the Clarke, is Instrumental Parts. Two other series added by the Archivist are: Unidentified Pieces, all of which are undated, and Music by Other Composers, with various dates. The formats include handwritten pencil or pen on paper, onion skin, ditto copies, and generic computer or Sibellius copies. A few pieces in the collection are incomplete or lack some of the instrumental parts that should be present. Copies were made of items with significant damage and only the copies were retained in the collection.

Processing Note: Numerous pieces were taped in various places and some consisted of stanzas which were generously taped onto larger pieces of paper for playing ease, resulting in much acidification. These were photocopied to prolong their life and only the copies retained. There were also several cases of oversized onion skin copies with extensive rectangular holes, barely attached to each other by peripheral onionskin strips of borders. To prevent further damage and loss of the material, these onionskins were also copied and only the copies were retained in the collection. Ditto copies, mostly pre-1980 versions smell due to their chemical composition, but deterioration is minimal. During processing .5 cubic foot of duplicates and copied acidic or onionskins were withdrawn and returned to the donor as per the donor request.