Events & Workshops
Our events focus on highlighting the many ways you might dig into the archives.
Friday, July 24, 2026
Walking Tour: Creating Michigan: Key Moments in U-M’s Early History
- 6:00 – 7:30 pm
- Meet at the Angell Hall steps facing State Street
- In-Person
Explore the first 70 years of U-M history, from the University’s Native American land accession and its origins in Detroit in 1817 to its move to Ann Arbor and emergence as a research university after 1837.
Friday, July 31, 2026
Walking Tour: Paths of Protest: Stories of Campus Activism at the University of Michigan
- 6:00 – 7:30 pm
- Michigan League entrance on Ingalls Mall (facing the fountain)
- In-Person
U-M has long been home to activism, and this walking tour will visit historically significant locations where you will learn about protests on campus.
Wednesday, August 12, 2026
August Behind-the-Scenes Tour of the Bentley Library
- 5:30 – 6:30 pm
- Bentley Historical Library
- In-Person
Get an insider’s view of the incredible historical materials at the Bentley.
Wednesday, September 16, 2026
September Behind-the-Scenes Tour of the Bentley Library
- 5:30 – 6:30 pm
- Bentley Historical Library
- In-Person
Get an insider’s view of the incredible historical materials at the Bentley.
Past Events
Wednesday, July 8, 2026
July Behind-the-Scenes Tour of the Bentley Library
- 5:30 – 6:30 pm
- Bentley Historical Library
- In-Person
Thursday, May 21, 2026
The Lost Campus: The University of Michigan’s Vanished but not Forgotten Spaces
- 6:00 – 8:00 pm
- Judy & Stanley Frankel Detroit Observatory
- In-Person & Virtual
Thursday, April 2, 2026
Archiving the World: The Bentley Library and U-M’s International Aspirations
- 6:00 – 8:00 pm
- Judy & Stanley Frankel Detroit Observatory
- In-Person
Thursday, March 19, 2026
Go, Blue: A History of Michigan Athletics and International Travel
- 6:00 – 7:30 pm
- Judy & Stanley Frankel Detroit Observatory
- In-Person
Thursday, February 19, 2026
A Place for Politics, Protest, & Performance: Exploring the Hidden Histories of Hill Auditorium
- 6:00 – 7:30 pm
- Judy & Stanley Frankel Detroit Observatory
- In-Person
Thursday, December 11, 2025
The Children’s Psychiatric Hospital at the University of Michigan, 1955 – 1990
- 6:00 – 7:30 pm
- Judy & Stanley Frankel Detroit Observatory
- In-Person
Thursday, October 16, 2025
The Edmund Fitzgerald Investigations
- 6:00 – 7:30 pm
- Judy & Stanley Frankel Detroit Observatory
- In-Person
Thursday, September 25, 2025
Saturday Morning Physics: Thirty Years of Engaging, Educating, and Entertaining the Public
- 6:00 – 7:30 pm
- Judy & Stanley Frankel Detroit Observatory
- In-Person
Thursday, May 15, 2025
Unboxing the Unexpected: The Notable and the Infamous in U-M’s archives
- 7:00 – 9:00 pm
- Judy & Stanley Frankel Detroit Observatory
- In-Person
Thursday, April 10, 2025
The 1817 Project: U-M’s Origins, Indigenous Lands, and Institutional (In)Action
- 7:00 – 9:00 pm
- Judy & Stanley Frankel Detroit Observatory
- In-Person
Exhibits
Explore history through these exhibits, both in person and online.
In-Person Exhibit
Watcher of the Sky Exhibit
Built in 1854, the Detroit Observatory is now a museum, part of the Bentley Historical Library. Its latest exhibit, Watcher of the Sky: Making and Remaking the Detroit Observatory, explores explore the life of this historic observatory, 170 years in the making.
Digital Exhibit
A New Universe of Research
In the late 1800s, new technologies revolutionized astronomy. But U-M missed out – that is, until William Hussey returned to campus. Learn about the ways in which the University of Michigan returned to the forefront of astronomical research.
Digital Exhibit
Willis Ward: More Than the Game
Willis Ward is indelibly identified with the 1934 University of Michigan vs. Georgia Tech football game in Ann Arbor, during which he was infamously benched for being Black. This exhibit goes beyond the game into his rich life and legacy.
Digital Exhibit
As to the Woman Question: The Admission of Women to the University of Michigan
One hundred and fifty years ago, Madelon Stockwell became the first woman to attend the University of Michigan, but she did not arrive at this achievement in isolation. These are the stories of the pioneering women who proved they belonged at U-M too.
Digital Exhibit
Constructing Gender: The Origins of Michigan’s Union and League
Gender differences are literally built into the architecture of the Michigan Union and League buildings. This digital exhibit explores the ways the in which the University envisioned separate zones of campus for men and women in the early twentieth century.