Twice each year, the Bentley Historical Library produces Collections, a magazine dedicated to showcasing the very best of the Bentley. We welcome you to browse the full publication through our PDF reader or click through individual stories below. If you are interested in subscribing, please email [email protected].
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Presidential Preservation
Spring 2026Director Alexis Antracoli shines a spotlight on the papers of University of Michigan presidents who have shaped the institution and beyond, preserved at the Bentley Historical Library.
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Vote of Confidence
Spring 2026Senator Philip Hart of Michigan was the Senate floor manager for the Voting Rights Act in 1965. His papers at the Bentley reveal the vital role he played during this volatile and consequential year.
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Rescued from the Rubble
Spring 2026In the 1970s, rumors swirled that U-M was going to raze its historic Detroit Observatory. Margaret and Nicholas Steneck worked to help save it, devoting decades to preserving U-M’s past.
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Door After Door
Spring 2026As the first woman known to have earned a bachelor’s degree in architecture at U-M, Bertha Whitman’s career was an uphill battle that helped pave the way for future woman architects.
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Michigan’s Wartime Japanese
Spring 2026A new database lists the Japanese Americans who were incarcerated during World War II, then recruited to U-M to work. One researcher explores U-M’s role and the legacy of this labor.
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Basketball Breakthrough
Spring 2026Archived photos help tell the story of Phyllis Wheatley Waters, the first Black student to play basketball at U-M and earn a letter from the Women’s Athletic Association.
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Staying On Track
Spring 2026How electric trolleys paved the way for interurban travel between Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti, and beyond, until the popular mode of travel was eventually derailed.
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