Winter 2021

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  • When Every Box Is the Last Box

    Students and faculty from U-M’s History Department collaborated with the Bentley to find creative ways to produce a successful research project, even without physical access to archival materials.

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  • Lifting His Voice

    Willis C. Patterson’s newly donated papers at the Bentley document a tireless fight for African American music to take its rightful place in the vocal canon.

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  • Collecting During Covid-19

    How the Bentley Historical Library is archiving the Covid-19 pandemic in real-time.

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  • Bridge the Gap

    The plan to build a bridge across the Straits of Mackinac began in earnest in the 1880s. But it wasn’t until 1954 that construction began on the Mackinac Bridge. What happened in the interim?

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  • Total Eclipse of the Sun

    In the summer of 1878, U-M Professor James Watson headed west to observe a solar eclipse, confident he would find a new planet. Instead, he discovered the limitations of science in the late-1800s and the fine line separating fascination and folly.

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  • Filling in the Silences

    Incarcerated individuals are some of the last people to have their stories and experiences archived. The Bentley is working to change that by partnering with U-M researchers on a new initiative.

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  • An Arctic Escape

    With the world watching, two pilots went down over Greenland in 1928. Their rescue would hinge on William Hobbs, a professor-turned-adventurer leading U-M’s Greenland Expedition.

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