Through papers, photographs, scrapbooks, yearbooks, letters, and more, the Bentley is continually adding to its vast holdings. New items are added quarterly.
Some recent accessions from the past six months are listed below, with the exception of University of Michigan record groups.
To search for specific materials in the Bentley, please use the U-M Library Search catalog.
For more information on donating your materials to the Bentley Historical Library, please see our Donate Your Archives page.
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Amos A. Moore papers, 1862-1865 (with gaps)
0.2 linear feet
Served in Company K of the 21st Michigan Infantry Volunteers during the Civil War. Diaries, military papers, and biographical information.
Finding aid
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Beyster Land Company records, 1881-2010 (majority within 1881-1954)
3 linear feet (in four boxes)
This collection primarily includes the Beyster Land Company records and the John Beyster & Sons Company records. Both companies were primarily active in the late 1800s to the mid-1900s. The Beyster Land Company was responsible for developing manufacturing and industry properties in the Detroit, Michigan area. The John Beyster & Sons Company was a business for lumber, lath, shingles, and box manufacturing. Record types include correspondence, tax documents, architectural plans, and business ledgers. The collection also includes a small number of materials related to the Beyster family, such as a family tree, photographs, and estate papers.
Finding aid
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Charles G. Palmer papers, 1897, 1929-1930
0.3 linear feet
A civil engineer for the Austin Company in Cleveland, Ohio, who worked in the Soviet Union in 1929. Photographs and a journal documenting Palmer’s work on an auto plant construction site near Nizhnii Novgorod. Also, an Alaska travel journal dated 1897.
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Ramon S. Regan papers, 1953-2014 (with gaps)
3 linear feet
Ramon S. Regan was a Detroit, Mich. lawyer. He was an active member of the Barton-McFarlane Neighborhood Association, which is a historically Black neighborhood in Detroit, Michigan. The majority of the materials are related to the Barton-McFarlane Neighborhood Association, of which Regan was a member of the Executive Board. The collection also includes a photograph of the Civilian Conservation Corps (U.S.). Company 661 (Luzerne, Mich.); the connection between Ramon S. Regan and the Civilian Conservation Corps is unknown.
Finding aid
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Wayne County Library System (Mich.) records, 1920-2015 (majority within 1920-1996)
8 linear feet and 1 oversize box
The Wayne County Library System records consist of the records of the library board, an extensive collection of community records, and materials related to the establishment and operations of the Braille and Talking Book library (formerly the Wayne County Regional Library for the Blind).
Finding aid
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Richard Ross collection, 1969-2021 (majority within 1969-1974)
0.4 linear feet
The Richard Ross collection brings together correspondence, research, reports, and proposals for the Junior Year in Africa/Africa Exchange Program and Master’s programs in Black History, originated by Dr. Richard H. Ross, Sr. during his time as a student at the University of Michigan, and as Director of Research for the Center of Afroamerican and African Studies (CAAS), recognized as the Department of Afroamerican and African Studies (DAAS) in 2011. These materials document some of the early history of CAAS, including efforts to keep the center running when faced with termination in 1973.
Finding aid
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Lesbian Moms’ Network records, 2000-2011 (with gaps)
0.6 linear feet
Network of lesbian parents and their children in the Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti, Mich. area. The collection includes organizational bylaws, Board meeting minutes, newsletters, and photographs. Some materials relate to the Coalition for Adoption Rights Equality, Inc. and the 2004 Conference on Rainbow Families.
Finding aid
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Richard E. Smith papers, 1969-2022
0.75 linear feet, 1 oversize box
Dr. Richard E. Smith is a Black University of Michigan alum, a member of the Epsilon chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha, a historically Black fraternity, and an obstetrician-gynecologist (OB-GYN) who worked to enhance prenatal care for teenage and young mothers. He was also involved in efforts to commemorate the role that Detroit and its institutions played in the Underground Railroad. Includes award information, biographical and genealogical material, correspondence, publications, a scrapbook, and topical files.
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Robert A. Martin papers, 1963-2007 and undated
0.5 linear feet (in 2 boxes)
University of Michigan Professor Emeritus of English whose area of expertise included Arthur Miller. Topical files containing correspondence, clippings, notes, and publications associated with various American figures. Also included are 14 sound recordings consisting of lectures delivered by and about, as well as interviews with, Miller.
Finding aid
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David Brophy papers, 1982-2019 and undated
4.5 linear feet (in 5 boxes)
David J. Brophy was a University of Michigan professor of finance at the Stephen M. Ross School of Business. He was also director of the university’s Center for Venture Capital and Private Equity Finance as well as founder and director of the Growth Capital Symposium, later known as the Michigan Growth Capital Symposium and the Midwest Growth Capital Symposium (both MGCS). This collection documents the various Growth Capital symposia and primarily consists of brochures, conference information books, correspondence, notes, pamphlets, and promotional materials. Also included are audiovisual materials that document the Growth Capital symposia, lectures, National Association of Small Business Investment Companies (NASBIC) events, and the University of Texas at Austin’s Moot Corp Competition.
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John D. Dingell, Jr. papers, 1922-2017, (majority of material found within 1955-2014)
511 linear feet (in 511 boxes), 136.4 GB (online), 2 oversize items (framed)
John Dingell, Jr. was a Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Michigan and longest-serving member in congressional history, 1955-2015. Dingell was the son of John Dingell, Sr. (Democratic congressman from Michigan’s 15th district, 1933-1955), and husband of Debbie Dingell, who succeeded him as Representative of Michigan’s 12th district in 2015. The collection documents John Dingell, Jr.’s election campaigns and his 59-year tenure in Congress. Records include legislative files, correspondence, speeches, scrapbooks, press clippings, photographs, and audiovisual materials.
Finding aid
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Avery Hopwood and Jule Hopwood Prizes (University of Michigan) winning manuscripts, 1898, 1931-2019
119 linear feet (in 120 boxes containing approximately 1,338 bound volumes and a card index)
Winning manuscripts of the University of Michigan’s Avery Hopwood and Jule Hopwood Prizes, a creative writing scholarship program at the University of Michigan. The manuscripts, dated 1931-2019, are bound in volumes according to the corresponding competition category, and accompanied by an author index.
Finding aid
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Robert A. Martin papers, 1963-2007, undated
0.5 linear feet (in 2 boxes)
The University of Michigan Professor Emeritus of English whose area of expertise included Arthur Miller. Topical files containing correspondence, clippings, notes, and publications associated with various American figures. Also included are 14 sound recordings consisting of lectures delivered by and about, as well as interviews with, Miller.
Finding aid
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Harold R. Johnson papers, 1957-2011 (majority of material found within 1969-1995)
0.9 linear feet, 1 volume
Dean Emeritus of the School of Social Work, Professor Emeritus of Social Work, and Professor Emeritus of Health Behavior and Health Education. Dr. Harold R. Johnson was also one of the first Black Deans at the University of Michigan. Includes correspondence, reports, and topical files related to Johnson’s academic and professional career.
Finding aid
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Stanley G. Fontanna scrapbook, 1913-1919
1 volume
Scrapbook, 1913-1919, of Stanley G. Fontanna, documenting his time as University of Michigan student and track and field athlete, 1913-1917; and his service in the U.S. Army, 1918-1919.
Finding aid
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William J. Johnson papers, 1953-2015 and undated
23.6 linear feet (in 25 boxes), additional 4 oversize boxes, and 306.94 MB (online)
Landscape architect, University of Michigan Professor Emeritus of Landscape Architecture, and Dean Emeritus of the School of Natural Resources. The collection includes correspondence, notes, photographic material, project files, publications, reports, reference and research files, teaching materials, and topical files.
Finding aid
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June Manning Thomas papers, 1951-2021 (majority of material found within 1990-2010)
2.5 linear feet, 2 oversize boxes, 1.38 GB (online)
Dr. June Manning Thomas is a Black University of Michigan alum (Ph.D. 1977) and the Mary Frances Berry Distinguished University Professor Emerita of Urban Planning, and the Centennial Professor Emerita of Urban and Regional Planning. The collection includes biographical and teaching material, interview notes and related material, papers, presentations, publications, reports, and topical files.
Finding aid
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Chris Rizik papers, 2000-2015
34.7 MB (online)
Chris Rizik is a Michigan-based venture capitalist and former attorney. The collection includes legal documents, strategic planning notes, and presentation materials outlining the formation, strategies, and dissolution of the Ann Arbor, MI-based venture capital fund Ardesta, LLC. The collection’s focus is Ardesta’s interest in microsystem development.
Finding aid
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Ian Bund papers, 1969-2019.
11.4 linear feet
Venture capital professional who was involved with numerous, often Michigan-based, venture capital limited partnerships, companies, and corporations, including Doan Associates, Innovation Capital, the Michigan Investment Fund L.P. (MIF), MBW Venture Partners Limited Partnership (MBW), and the Plymouth and White Pines families of funds. The collection includes correspondence, financial records, presentations, reports, speaking and teaching material, and topical files.
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John Spencer Curtis papers, 1899-1967
0.33 linear feet, 2 oversize volumes, 1 artifact
Scrapbooks include clippings, photographs of the University of Michigan football players and games and other sports, dance cards, programs and other material for musical and theatrical performances, fraternity events, and other campus activities; material related to Marthae “Mattie’ Gibson, from Pueblo Colorado high school and the University of Colorado; also includes miscellaneous papers related to Curtis’ later business career and work with the University of Michigan Alumni Association.
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