Emancipation Proclamation Video
In this YouTube video, Clements Library curator Clayton Lewis and Professor Martha Jones of the U-M Law School discuss their current exhibit, "Proclaiming Emancipation." This exhibit is now on display at the Hatcher Graduate Library in Room 100. See our current exhibits page for more information.
Today in History: War of 1812 Victories at Sea
Post by Brian Dunnigan, Associate Director and Curator of MapsMany Americans remember the War of 1812 as a naval conflict in which, as Canadian historian C.P. Stacey put it, "the pride of the Mistress of the Seas was humbled by what an imprudent Englishman had called 'a few fir-built frigates manned by a handful of bastards and outlaws.'" There were few enough. The United States entered the War of 1812 with a navy of only 14 frigates and sloops-of-war with which to oppose the 1,000 warships of...
Brownbag Lecture by Matt Dziennik: “With a Liberal Hand: Intra-continental Refugees and Foundations of Revolutionary Sovereignty, 1774-1786,” November 8, 2012
The William L. Clements LibraryBrown Bag Lecture SeriespresentsMatthew DziennikEarhart Fellow"With a Liberal Hand: Intra-continental Refugees and Foundations of Revolutionary Sovereignty, 1774-1786" Noon - 1:00 p.m.Thursday, November 8, 2012Great Hall, Clements LibraryMatthew Dziennik will discuss his work on the treatment of refugee populations by state and national governments during the Revolutionary War. Challenging the idea that the Loyalists constituted the only...
Staff Favorite: Domestic Fiction
JJ Jacobson has been Curator of American Culinary History at the Clements since 2009. She has many favorites from the Janice Bluestein Longone Culinary Archive, including cookbooks, domestic manuals, etiquette manuals, and menus. Her current favorite is Ten Dollars Enough by Catherine Owen, published in 1887. Catherine Owen was the pen name of Helen Alice Matthews Nitsch, who dispensed household advice through cookbooks, magazine articles, and serialized novels in the late 19th century. We...
Current Exhibits: The Geometry of War and Proclaiming Emancipation
Main Room of the Clements Library:The Geometry of War: Fortification Plans from 18th Century AmericaOctober 15, 2012 - February 15, 2013The 18th century was a time of intensive military activity in Europe and in the Americas. Much of this centered on fortified towns or positions. The period from the 1680s to the French Revolution has been called the “classic century of military engineering,” a time when earlier forms of artillery fortifications were perfected and frequently tested in...
Today in History: Battle of Queenston Heights Bicentennial
Post by Brian Dunnigan, Associate Director and Curator of MapsOctober 13 marks the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Queenston Heights. This significant action of the War of 1812, fought some six miles downstream from Niagara Falls, was precipitated by an invasion of Upper Canada (Ontario) U.S. regulars and New York militia under the overall command of Major General Stephen Van Rensselaer. Queenston was the first major land battle of the War of 1812 and the second invasion to be turned back...
In the News: “Benjamin West’s Paintings Celebrate an Empire” and “UMMA Exhibit Examines When the British Ruled America”
Two articles this week in the University Record highlight Clements Library materials currently on display at the U-M Museum of Art. In "Benjamin West's Paintings Celebrate an Empire," Carole McNamara of the Museum of Art writes about the exhibit which features the Clements Library's iconic "Death of General Wolfe" painting. Kevin Brown's article "UMMA Exhibit Examines when the British Ruled America" describes the exhibit curated by Brian Dunnigan and Clayton Lewis of the Clements Library. On...
Upcoming Lecture: Kate Silbert, “The Archivist Behind the Curtain: Tips for Researchers Approaching the Archive,” October 18, 2012
The Archivist Behind the CurtainTips for Researchers Approaching the ArchivePresented by Kate SilbertUniversity of Michigan Graduate Studentin History & Women's StudiesThursday, October 18, 20124:00 p.m.Ever felt lost in archival papers? Been stumped by a finding aid? Felt like you and archivists just don't speak the same language?Kate Silbert will discuss practical tips on developing research strategies and decoding finding aid lingo. Based on lessons one historian learned behind the...
Online Exhibit: The War of 1812: A Bicentennial Exhibition
The Clements Library is pleased to offer a new online exhibit, The War of 1812: A Bicentennial Exhibition, curated by Brian Leigh Dunnigan, Associate Director and Curator of Maps. This exhibit was originally on display from February 27 to June 1, 2012, in the Great Room of the Clements Library.The War of 1812 has sometimes been called a forgotten conflict, one that resolved none of the issues that brought it about. This second confrontation between the United States and Great Britain...
In the News: “UMMA’s Spectacular ‘General Wolfe’ Exhibit the Don’t-Miss Art Event This Year”
John Carlos Cantu of AnnArbor.com writes in a recent art review that the Clements Library's "Death of General Wolfe" painting by Benjamin West is "the single most significant public artwork in Washtenaw County, and among the most significant artworks in our state." This work of art, which usually hangs in the Great Room of the Clements Library, is now the centerpiece of an exhibit at the University of Michigan Museum of Art: "Benjamin West: General Wolfe and the Art of Empire."For more...