Collections : [University of Michigan Special Collections Research Center]

The Correspondence series consists of handwritten letters betweeen Bloor and her family, and correspondence between Bloor and her colleagues.

The majority of the family letters are to/from her children. Her letters, written during her travels, provide information about individuals and events associated with her work. Most of the family letters include the month and day written, but not the year. As a result, the letters are arranged in random order.

Bloor's correspondence with colleagues and organizations are arranged chronologically. Included are letters from various Socialist societies, state and local government offices, newspapers, and labor unions, such as the New York State Committee Socialist Party, United Cloth and Cap Makers, Tailors' Union. In addition, there are handwritten letters from other activists involved in socialist and labor causes (e.g., letter from Joseph W. Sharts, counsel for Eugene V. Debs in his trial at Cleveland, Ohio; Theodore H. Lunde, officer of the Peace Council in Chicago).

Letters of note:

1. "Max" (possibly Max Eastman, January 18, 1918)
2. Eugene V. Debs (copies, September 20, 1918)
3. Theodore Debs (brother of Eugene V. Debs, June 18, 1919)
4. Ernest Untermann (socialist author, translator, newspaper editor, February 1, 1920)
5. Elizabeth Gurley Flynn (labor leader, activist, and feminist, April 11,1920)
6. Earl Browder (political activist, January 3, 1921)

The Correspondence series (1.8 linear feet, 1979-1999) consists of incoming and outgoing correspondence and is arranged in three subseries: General, Individual, and Topical. Belin attached his responses to the incoming letter and filed them either in chronological order or according to organization, individual, or topic. Correspondence that Belin filed by organization is found in the Organizations series. There are significant, unexplained, gaps in the chronology of all the correspondence files, suggesting that some correspondence has been lost. All typescripts that Belin included in the correspondence files have been removed to the Manuscripts, Typescripts, and Notes series along with the accompanying letters.

Individual correspondents in this series are individuals who are not affiliated with organizations represented in the Organizations series. Of interest are Abraham Foxman, national director of the Anti-Defamation League and Sol Linowitz, statesman and ambassador to the Organization for American States. ("Abraham Foxman," Marquis Who's Who on the Web. Viewed through the University of Michigan Library Electronic Resources, July 19, 2005. "Sol Myron Linowitz," Marquis Who's Who on the Web. Viewed through the University of Michigan Library Electronic Resources, July 19, 2005.)

Belin also filed some correspondence by subject, especially when the topic was controversial or required action. This series includes letters about homosexuality and Jewish law, Jewish demographics, rabbinical education concerning outreach, and rabbinical positions on intermarriage and patrilinear descent. There are also the letters he sent to Israeli leaders Shimon Perez and Yitzhak Rabin urging the broadening of the Law of Return through the Equal Rights for All Jews (ERAJ) legislation. The files also include the correspondence between Belin and other influential American Jews concerning the letters he sent to Perez and Rabin. Other sets of correspondence concern the rise of Neo-Nazis and his interest in strengthening a Jewish Republican political block.

The Correspondence series consists of letters to and from De Cleyre to friends, family and publishers. The series also contains correspondence between De Cleyre’s friends and family concerning De Cleyre. Harriet de Claire, Voltairine’s mother, is the most common correspondent.

Consists of letters from family, friends, and colleagues from the 1970s through 2008. Also included is a section of letters that focus on Glendinning's books.

The Correspondence series is the largest part of the collection. It consists primarily of letters sent to Mrachnyi by his anarchist comrades, although it also includes several letters written by Mrachnyi.