by Sam Huck | Aug 12, 2026 | Collections, Giving, Graphics, Manuscripts
Clements Board Member Dr. Margaret (Peggy) Harrington’s introductory experience with the Clements was during her undergraduate years at the University of Michigan. She’d walked by the building and admired its beauty, but didn’t enter until she took a geography class that brought her inside the library. Years later, as a U-M Alum and someone who knew of the Clements’ vast Americana collection, she felt compelled to donate rare materials to the Clements collections.
by Clements Library | Aug 5, 2026 | Acquisitions, Collections, Library Work, Manuscripts
Many manuscripts collections have been processed and made available for research, ranging from a Broadway Theaters scrapbook depicting a “School of Educated Dogs” to the papers of WWII veteran Robert S. Simpson, who helped establish a typhus hospital at the liberated Allach concentration camp. As always, all are welcome to visit the Clements to research these materials in person.
by Kelsey Turgeon | Jul 28, 2026 | Collections, Library Work, Manuscripts
Photographed wearing a fur coat and posing alongside three dogs, I first came across Florence in the Clements Library Image Bank. Alongside her fur coat ensemble, two more digitized photographs served as an introduction to Mrs. Romaine. These images captured her time on the stage and later in her mid to late forties, leaving us to wonder who was she in between all of those years? And who was she?
by Sam Huck | Jul 24, 2026 | Acquisitions, Collections, Manuscripts, News
The William L. Clements Library recently acquired an extraordinary archive of 192 original sermons written between 1765 and 1780 by Rev. Joseph Bowman. Held in a private collection, the existence of the papers were previously unknown. The 2,000 page hand-written collection forms a significant corpus of religious writing that coincides with the final years of the First Great Awakening and continues through the American Revolution.
by Clements Library | Jul 14, 2026 | Acquisitions, Collections, Library Work, Manuscripts
The Clements Library is thrilled to make another large batch of manuscript collections available for research. Included in this batch are colorful sample checks, documents penned by poet James Whitcomb Riley, and a fan diary recording celebrations of the 4th of July over the years!
by Kelsey Turgeon | Jul 7, 2026 | Collections, Day In The Life, Library Work, Manuscripts
Welcome to the 6th edition of a Day in the Life at the Clements Library! Read on to spend a day with Diana Baxter, a recent graduate of the University of Michigan’s School of Information.
by Clements Library | Jun 17, 2026 | Acquisitions, Books, Clements Library Associates, Collections, Events, Giving, Graphics, Manuscripts, Maps
Last month, we hosted a “What’s In Your Attic?” open house-style events where members of our community brought their own paper treasures (letters, journals, photographs, prints, books, and maps) for discussion with Clements Curators and guest Americana collectors. A handful of our guests generously chose to donate materials to the Clements Library at this event, here are a few of those newly donated acquisitions!
by Clements Library | Jun 11, 2026 | Acquisitions, Collections, Library Work, Manuscripts
As always, the Manuscripts Division has been diligently processing unique collections to make them available for research. All are welcome to research at the Clements Library, so request an appointment if any of these collections are calling your name!
by Isaac Burgdorf | May 21, 2026 | Collections, Exhibits, Graphics, Manuscripts
Additional and related resources for “Up, Up, and Away: A History of Ballooning in America.”