Thomas Gage Descendant Deborah Gage visits Clements Library
The Thomas Gage papers, which have been housed at the Clements Library since William L. Clements himself purchased and donated them in 1937, give unique insight into the Revolutionary War from the British perspective. However, they also greatly inform the reader about everyday life in the colonies prior to the revolution. It is this aspect of the Gage story that Deborah Gage, a descendant of General Gage, focused on during A Conflict of Emotions: Thomas and Margaret Gage and the American Revolution on Wednesday, April 2, 2025.
New Manuscripts Finding Aids, February 2025
From the diary of a member of the Midland Baseball Club of Oxford to the papers of British Consul-General James Colquhoun, the Manuscripts Department has made a wide variety of collections available for research this month.
New Manuscripts Finding Aids, December 2024
The Manuscripts Department has been hard at work making historic hand-written materials available for research. Check out sixteen new finding aids published this past December!
![[Transcriptions]: Trading Pumpkins for Medical Care in 1850s New Hampshire](https://clements.umich.edu/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/20241030_125224-1080x675.jpg)
[Transcriptions]: Trading Pumpkins for Medical Care in 1850s New Hampshire
One of the many professions represented in the wealth of account books at the Clements Library is that of the country doctor. Here, for example, is a page from the ledger of Dr. Josiah Morse of Stewartstown, New Hampshire, whose patient network extended well beyond the boundaries of his hometown. The following transcribed excerpt shows interactions between John Lamphier of Canaan, Vermont, and Dr. Morse.
An Accidental Trailblazer: the Marion E. Grusky Rucker Collection
Lee Rucker Keiser writes about her mother, Marion E. Grusky Rucker, a World War II veteran, teacher, and beloved family member. Read about Marion’s service in the U.S. Navy, teaching abroad, and Lee’s decision to donate her mother’s papers to the William L. Clements Library.
![[Transcriptions]: Grimké and Weld Women Vote in Hyde Park, Massachusetts, March 7, 1870](https://clements.umich.edu/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/sarah-cropped.jpg)
[Transcriptions]: Grimké and Weld Women Vote in Hyde Park, Massachusetts, March 7, 1870
Sarah Grimké Weld was 25 years old when she wrote the following letter to William Hamilton. She, along with her mother Angelina Weld and aunt Sarah M. Grimké marched with around 50 other women to vote in local elections at Hyde Park on March 7, 1870. In this letter to her friend and future husband, she explained the significance and purpose of the vote, commented on her dentist’s affection for her (which she rejected), and updated him on her work at the Woman’s Journal.
![[Transcriptions]: A Clerk’s Harrowing Account of the 1880 U.S. Election, Madison County, Florida](https://clements.umich.edu/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/20241030_162448-1080x675.jpg)
[Transcriptions]: A Clerk’s Harrowing Account of the 1880 U.S. Election, Madison County, Florida
Read a letter written by John P. Varnum, a 26-year-old who tried to establish a political and legal career in Florida in the 1870s. During the 1880 U.S. election, Varnum collected and counted ballots in Madison County, Florida. In this harrowing letter to his wife Josephine, Varnum described crowds of African American men protecting him against violence, and coordinated efforts to suppress Black votes through deception, fraudulent voting, and attempted murder. He wrote about calls for recounts and ballots printed on different types of paper to allow blindfolded men to favor one party over the other for discarding.
New Manuscript Finding Aids: Summer 2024
Explore these 25 new finding aids published in the summer of 2024. The collection continues to grow in exciting ways, ranging from a visually rich archive of an inventor advertising and selling his wares to the case notes kept by a woman advocating for the care of children in Washington, D.C. Should anything prove relevant to your interests, don’t hesitate to plan a research visit or contact us to learn more.