Past Stories

Sandwiched between Michigan’s Upper and Lower Peninsulas is a legendary hotel with more than 130 years of memorable moments.

The Austin McCoy collection reveals the origins of the Being Black at Michigan (#BBUM) movement and tells a story of activism and social justice that is still ongoing.

Collections at the Bentley reveal how Michigan went from overwhelming natural abundance to an environmental wasteland — and how some unlikely people helped bring it back.

Why are "those people" so sensitive about their history and identity? It’s a question that is based on a historical myth, namely the belief that group integration into mainstream American society has been, and still is, easy.

Abdeen Jabara helped defend the man who assassinated Bobby Kennedy in 1968. Here, he discusses his newly opened papers at the Bentley and more about the context of the case.

In an upcoming fall symposium, the Bentley will explore how evidence from the past impacts today.

Gary D. Krenz, formerly the Executive Director of the University of Michigan Bicentennial Office, has been appointed Director for Post-Bicentennial Planning at the Bentley Historical Library. Here, he talks about what he hopes to achieve in this new role.

Ross J. Wilhelm was an esteemed professor of business economics at the University of Michigan. So why, then, does his collection at the Bentley Historical Library contain folders full of strange symbols and ciphers, complex drawings and codes, and references to an obscure 16th century text?

Among the 20,000 American Indians who fought for the Union and the Confederacy during the Civil War, a single company from Michigan was made up almost entirely of indigenous men. A researcher used Bentley archives to trace their history and share the story of the Anishinaabeg of Company K.

When three members of the White Panther Party were accused of setting off bombs across Southeast Michigan, their case hinged on a crucial detail: Evidence was acquired through wiretapping without a warrant. The case made it all the way to the Supreme Court and, today, collections at the Bentley document the details of this historic ruling.