Gay, Lesbian, Bixexual and Transgender Collections: Individuals
The Yale Puppeteers: Harry Burnett,
Forman Brown and Roddy Brandon.
Dan Bessie collection, box 1.
Ames, Dewey.
- Dewey Ames papers, 1982-1998.
- 1 linear foot and 1 oversize folder.
Organizer and member of the Detroit Team (and later Team Great Lakes) which participated in the Gay Games.
Subject files, visual materials, posters, and ephemera relating to the organization and playing of the Gay Games; also photographs and a videotape.
Bashert, Lisa Marshall
- Lisa Marshall Bashert Papers, 1971-2004
- 5 linear ft.
Lesbian feminist witch from Ypsilanti, Michigan. She was involved in various causes and local organizations, especially relating to gay-lesbian activism in Michigan. She is a graduate of the University of Michigan and a life-partner of Beth Bashert.
The Bashert collection consists almost entirely of her journals which are a combination of diaries, musings and other personal reflections about such topics as her sexuality, her personal relationship, and her involvement in feminist, lesbian, and pagan organizations.
Restricted access
Bashert, Beth
- Beth Bashert Papers, 1988-2003
- 1 linear ft.
Local activist, identified with gay-lesbian issues in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Outspoken advocate for civil rights. As a campaign organizer, she has impacted local elections in Ypsilanti and other Michigan cities.
Organizational materials and topical files pertaining to her political and advocacy activities in Ypsilanti and at the state level.
Bessie, Dan
- Dan Bessie collection, 1910s-1990s
- 0.8 linear ft.and 1 oversize folder; Photographs: 0.1 linear ft.; Posters: 1 oversize folder.
Collected materials relating to his uncle Leo Burnett, an advertising executive, and to his uncle Harry Burnett, who with Forman Brown and Roddy Brandon were the three openly gay partners forming the Yale Puppeteers and who operated the Turnabout Theater in Hollywood.
Published material relating to Leo Burnett and his agency; diary with scattered entries of Forman Brown, 1985-1989; miscellanea regarding the Yale Puppeteers and the Turnabout Theater.
Photographs relating to the Yale Puppeteers and the Turnabout Theater; include photo of Albert Einstein holding a puppet with his likeness; also portrait of Forman G. Brown and snapshots of childhood activities, ca. 1907, of Harry and Leo Burnett family of Ann Arbor and Saint Johns, Mich.
Brown, Forman G.
- Forman G. Brown scrapbook, 1918-1920
- 1 scrapbook.
Student at the University of Michigan, later song-writer and one of the three Yale Puppeteers.
Scrapbook containing clippings, photographs, and other memorabilia relating to student life. Some clippings of the University of Michigan Puppeteers.
Cole, Sandra S., 1937-
- Sandra S. Cole papers, 1994-2007.
- 1.5 linear feet.
Sandra S. Cole, Ph.D., is a professor (retired) and sexologist. She founded the Comprehensive Gender Services Program at the University of Michigan Medical School in 1993, and was active in the effort to include gender identity in the University's non-discrimination policies.
Professional papers documenting her work providing transgender services and advocating for transgender rights at the University of Michigan and in Ann Arbor. Includes information relating to Cole's participation in efforts to change the University's non-discrimination policies and her work on the Ann Arbor City Ordinance Amendment of 1999. Also includes a 1997 annual report and policy and procedure information on the University's Comprehensive Gender Services Program.
Contemporary History Project (The New Left in Ann Arbor, Mich.)
- Contemporary History Project (The New Left in Ann Arbor, Mich.) transcripts of oral interviews, 1978-1979
- 1 linear ft.
- Restricted access.
Interviews with individuals involved with the political and social protests of the 1950s and 1960s, in Ann Arbor, Michigan; include discussion of civil rights demonstrations, draft resistance and other opposition to the Vietnam War, feminism and the equal rights movement, alternative lifestyles, gay rights, the drug culture, student rights, and the influence of rock and roll music.
Interviews discussing gay rights include the following:
Degrieck, Jerry (interview 44)
Oglesby, Beth (interview 19)
Raulet, Nail (interview 27)
Rubin, Gayle (interview 22)
Wechster, Nancy (interview 13)
Covey, Craig
- Craig Covey Papers, 1987-2001
- 0.3 linear ft.
Gay rights activist of Ferndale, Michigan.
Files relating to his involvement with AIDS prevention and gay rights; include minutes of the board and other materials of the Midwest AIDS Prevention Project, 1988-2001; files accumulated from his work with the Michigan Organization for Human Rights; and miscellanea relating to his campaign for Ferndale City Council in 1995.
James Dressel was a Republican member
of the Michigan House of Representatives
who sponsored gay rights legislation.
James Dressel Papers, box 1.
Dressel, James K.
- James K. Dressel Papers, ca 1952-1992
- 0.2 linear ft., 1 outsize v. and 1 outsize folder.
Resident of Grand Haven and Holland, Mich.; U.S. Air Force pilot in Vietnam; Republican member of the Mich. House of Representatives, 1979-1984; advocate of civil rights protection for gays, sponsor of gay rights legislation.
Biographical and campaign material, scattered correspondence, and photographs relating to Dressel's career; also scrapbook compiled by Mary Lodge and R. Cole Bouck relating to his career.
Duty, Charles L.
- Charles L. Duty Papers, 1997-2000
- .75 linear ft.
Gay activist from Ypsilanti, Michigan, who helped lead the fight for Ypsilanti's anti-discrimination ordinance.
Correspondence and agenda and meeting minutes of Ypsilanti city council and other city agencies at which anti-discrimination ordinance was debated; newspaper clippings; and papers of Citizens for Community, a lesbian-gay-bisexual activist group.
Edwards, Billie Louise
- Billie Louise Edwards Papers, 1981-1993
- 1.5 linear ft.
Feminist, activist, lesbian, motorcyclist, co-parent, Metropolitan Community Church preacher, and clinical psychologist. Also co-director of the University of Michigan Lesbian-Gay Male Programs Office (LGMPO) from 1987 to 1993.
Educational materials and writings, training materials and correspondence from the LGMPO, audio cassettes from her ministry, and a photographic portrait.
Ellis, Ruth
- Ruth Ellis Papers, 1899-2000
- 3 linear ft. and 1 oversize folder.
African American lesbian.
Biographical information, awards and citations, articles and clippings about her. Portraits of Ellis and family members; photographs of family events, friends and acquaintances, and everyday activities; photograph of Ellis at printing press.
Foster, Mary Pat
- Mary Pat Foster collection, ca. 1990-2008.
- 0.2 linear feet.
Fennville, Mich., accountant and political investigator; transgender activist, active in the Chicago Gender Society and the Church of Human Kindness.
Videotape (VHS) and clippings relating to activities of the Chicago Gender Society and the Church of Human Kindness, educational groups for transgendered persons. Also preservation copy of Foster's website "West Michigan News Company," which reports on politics in Western Michigan, chiefly Allegan and Berrien Counties.
Haller, Douglas M.
- Douglas M. Haller papers, 1978-2011, bulk 1979-1982.
- 1 linear foot and 1 oversize folder.
Archivist and information officer active in various Gay/Lesbian organizations, notably the Association of Suburban People (ASP).
The collection related mainly to Haller's activities with ASP and includes membership materials, executive board minutes and agendas, reports of the information officer, files relating to ASP's political action committee, published material and scattered photographs.
Heaton, Paul C.
- Paul C. Heaton Papers, 1997-2001
- 1 linear ft.
Co-chair of the Ypsilanti Campaign for Equality and the Traverse City Campaign Against Discrimination, organizations fighting for gay rights in reference to human rights ordinances in their respective cities.
Correspondence, political documents, flyers and published articles documenting the efforts of these two organizations. Also general information about the campaigns in Ypsilanti and Traverse City.
Heler, Ann.
- Ann Heler papers, 1993-1998.
- 0.5 linear feet and 1 oversize item.
Member of the lesbian community in Ferndale, Mich.; member of Team Great Lakes, participants in the Gay Games.
Flyers and other mailings, letters, photographs, programs, videotapes, and ephemera relating to Team Great Lakes and the Gay Games.
Kamm, Greg, 1950-2008.
- Greg Kamm papers, 1963-2008.
- 7 linear feet and 1 oversize folder.
Member of SDS (Students for Democratic Society) at Western Michigan University and leader in two early Michigan Gay Rights groups, Kalamazoo Gay Liberation and the Gay Liberation Movement (in East Lansing): Worked as an English as a Second Language teacher in Lansing before serving in the Peace Corps and teaching English in Thailand, South Korea, and Saudi Arabia. Also worked for UNESCO in Laos, observed elections in South Africa and Mozambique, and traveled widely through Europe, Asia, and Africa.
Organizational materials (flyers, meeting minutes, and tracts) from SDS and Gay Rights groups, as well as clippings and underground publications; also photographs and personal journals documenting Kamm's student activism, his travels and teaching.
Restricted access.
Kavanaugh, John L.
- John L. Kavanaugh papers, 1970-2011, bulk 1990s-2000s.
- 4 linear feet (in 5 boxes).
John Kavanaugh is Detroit, Mich. resident and social activist. He has been active in GLBT movement since 1968, was member of Detroit's Gay Liberation Front, founding member and first lay head of Metropolitan Community Church of Detroit, Integrity, ONE, GLBT Caucus of the Episcopal Church, Detroit chapter of Black and White Men Together, and the Triangle Foundation of Detroit. Kavanaugh also has been active in public transit causes.
Correspondence, records of organizations, conference materials; writings by Kavanaugh and by others; publications of organizations and Kavanaugh's self-published periodicals; and news clippings. Also included 1 audiocassette and a CD-ROM, and some photographs; and oversize materials.
Kolb, Chris
- Chris Kolb Papers, 1997-2006
- 1 linear ft.
Democratic State Representative for the Michigan House of Representatives representing the 53rd district (Ann Arbor and Pittsfield Township), from January 2001 to January 2007.
Legislative files mainly relating to gay issues, including gay marriage and hate crime legislation.
Newland, Harold Michael, 1942-
- Harold M. Newland diaries, 1969-2008.
- 5 volumes and 1 folder (in 1 box)
Detroit attorney, graduate of the University of Michigan, resident of Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Diaries describing his life in Ann Arbor with mention of activities with his life partner and with other friends and acquaintances.
Russell, Kathleen
- Kathleen Russell Papers, 1997-2006
- 0.75 linear ft.
Member of the faculty at Eastern Michigan University; active member of the Ypsilanti Campaign for Equality, an organization formed in support of a non- discrimination ordinance.
Files relating to the Ypsilanti Campaign for Equality and to her work with the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender community at Eastern Michigan University; also CD-ROM of the EMU Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgendered Resource Center web site; videotapes relating to the non-discrimination ordinance.
Serra, Rudy
- Rudy Serra Papers, 1983-1984 and 1991-2002
- 1 linear ft.
Ferndale, Michigan attorney, later judge with the 36th District Court in Detroit.
Files pertaining to his involvement in the revision of Ferndale city ordinances to include a person's sexual orientation for civil rights protection; files relating to a Ypsilanti, Michigan ballot proposal that would have nullified previously enacted city ordinances protecting civil rights of gays and lesbians, 2002; also videotape (VHS) of Serra's presentation at a council meeting.
Sivil, Daniel R.
- Daniel R. Sivil Papers, 1940-1993
- 0.5 linear ft.
Active in the gay and lesbian civil rights and advocacy movement of the 1980s. Founding member of the Michigan Organization for Human Rights and president of the Association of Suburban People, a gay-lesbian organization devoted to social and political activity.
Files relating to organizational and advocacy efforts; correspondence with Henry Messer and other activists; and photographs.
Toy, James W.
- James W. Toy Papers, 1963-2007 (bulk 1971-1994).
- 24.3 linear feet (in 26 boxes) and 1 oversize folder.
Activist on behalf of gay-lesbian rights, founder and co-head of the Human Sexuality Office of the University of Michigan.
The James Toy collection consists of materials created and/or collected over a three decade period, mainly from 1971 to 1994. It is a combination of the personal papers of Toy and the records of the university office (originally named Human Sexuality Office, later Lesbian-Gay Male Programs Office, and now Lesbian-Gay Male-Bisexual Programs Office) in which Toy was employed for twenty-five years.
The Toy Papers have been arranged into three series: Lesbian-Gay Male-Bisexual Programs Office, Topical Files, and Correspondence. The Lesbian-Gay Male-Bisexual Programs Office series consists of records generated by Toy (with some records of the lesbian advocate) in his capacity as gay male advocate within the Human Sexuality Office (and successor units) of the University of Michigan.
These records relate to the administration of the office, its programs, and its relationship with the larger university community. Of special note are those files pertaining to the effort to revise the U-M Regental Bylaw 14.06 and thus provide protection against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, the work of the U-M Task Force on Sexual Orientation, and the drafting of the two policy statements on discrimination and discriminatory harassment (for students, and for faculty and staff).
The Topical Files series consists mainly of subject files, collected or created by Toy, and relating to his involvement or mentoring of other gay organizations. Organizations represented with significant amounts of material include the Gay Hotline, the Gay Liberation Front, the Gay Community Services, LaGROC, and the Michigan Organization for Human Rights.
Other portions of this series pertain to Toy's numerous committee and training responsibilities within the Episcopal Diocese of Michigan and on the general topic of the attitude of the various religious denominations to the topic of homosexuality and the inclusion of gays into church life.Personal papers.
Photographs of gay pride and other gay rights demonstrations in Ann Arbor, Michigan; also informal photos of Toy.
Tsang, Daniel
- Daniel Tsang papers, 1970-1978
- 2 linear ft.
Student at the University of Michigan, member of the Graduate Employees Organization (GEO). Supporter of gay rights and gay life at the University of Michigan.
Topical files, printed material, and flyers largely concerning the organization and strike of the GEO in 1975; also papers relating to affirmative action and problems of homosexual University students, including the movement to include sexual preference in the non discrimination clauses of the GEO contract.
