Paul Phillips was a prominent African American community service leader and was the first African-American to hold elected office in Grand Rapids. The collection includes biographical information, copies of speech notes and testimony, writings,...
Ralph Baldwin was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan. During World War II, Ralph Baldwin was a senior physicist in the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, where he helped develop the radio proximity fuze, a crucial secret weapon of the war. The...
William Nicholson was the appointments secretary under President Gerald R. Ford from 1974 until 1977. The collection includes personal notes and calendars, White House briefings, travel information, political reports, election information, and...
The Jim Harrison collection documents the life and work of Michigan-born writer Jim Harrison from 1938 to the present. Harrison has published books in several genres throughout his career, including poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and children’s...
Russel Kirkhof was an inventor, mechanic, businessman in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The collection includes diaries, patents, personal correspondence, legal correspondence, business ledgers, and records of his philanthropy.
The GVSU Veterans History Project was established in 2006 to serve as a partner with the Library of Congress in its national effort to collect and preserve the stories of American veterans and other participants in, or witnesses to, the American...
Donald James Angus was born in Wisconsin and lived most of his life in Indianapolis, Indiana and Grand Haven, Michigan. He was self-educated and worked in the field of electrical engineering, specializing in electrical measuring and recording...
A. Robert Kleiner was a founding partner of the Kleiner, De Young, and Fayette law firm in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He served as a chairperson for the Michigan Democratic Party Committee on Apportionment. The A. Robert Kleiner collection documents...
The Arnold Ott collection documents the life and work of Michigan-born chemist and entrepreneur Arnold Ott from 1940-2008. He worked at Dow Chemical Company and the Upjohn Company where he authored 55 domestic and foreign patents before starting...
Sondra Mose-Ursery, community historian, founder of the Vandalia Underground Railroad Foundation, and former mayor of Vandalia, Michigan compiled this collection while researching the Underground Railroad in Cass County, Michigan. The collection...
Documents and correspondence related to the American Civil War and to the institution of slavery from 1804. A selection of documents from 10 states related to the ownership of slaves and abolition, 1805-1864; and correspondence and documents of the...
Elizabeth Cecil was a writer from Baltimore, Maryland and wrote under the pseudonym Clarence Conway. Her correspondence with acquaintances and publishers document her efforts to publish her work. Writings include short stories, plays, poems, songs,...
Gordon Olson, historian and researcher wrote a series of biographical essays for Grand Valley State College. Materials include taped and transcribed interviews, drafts of publications, copies of articles and personal and career related information...
Icie Macy Hoobler established the nutritional research program at the Merrill-Palmer Institute and the Children's Hospital of Michigan. She also served on the Board of Control at Grand Valley State College from 1960-1969. The collection includes...
Guy Vander Jagt served as a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Michigan from 1966 until 1992. Vander Jagt served as Chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee from 1975 until he left the House in 1992. The...
The Mathias J. Alten papers document the personal life and career of the West Michigan painter. The collection includes biographical information, business records, exhibit catalogs, and newspaper clippings collected by family members.
Cameron, Simon, 1799-1889; Stanton, Edwin M. (Edwin McMasters), 1814-1869; Boker, George H. (George Henry), 1823-1890; Holt, Joseph, 1807-1894; United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865; United States--Politics and government--19th century;...
Letter from former Secretary of War Simon Cameron requesting Stanton's assistance in helping to prove his innocence against charges of fraud via mutilation of treasury bills, in relation to the purchasing of arms.
Bennitt, John, 1830-1892; United States. Army. Michigan Infantry Regiment, 19th (1862-1865)--Surgeons; Surgeons—Michigan--Diaries; United States—History--Civil War, 1861-1865—Medical care; United States--Army--Corps, 20th—Medical care;...
This diary is the second of three kept by physician John Bennitt of Centreville, Michigan describing his experience as a Civil War surgeon for the 19th Michigan Infantry Regiment. The second volume (Feb. 9, 1864-Jan. 13, 1865) continues the account...
Inventory of property possibly drawn up as part of the settlement of the estate related to the Jeffries Plantation. Inventory lists eighty slaves by first name arranged by families. Information regarding their ages, years of birth or death, and in...
