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Clarke Historical Library

E-Newsletter June 2018

Summer Speaker Series

The Clarke Speaker Series continues through the summer semester with two featured speakers. Both presentations will be on the campus of Central Michigan University, in the Park Library Auditorium, beginning at 6:30 p.m. A reception will follow both talks in the Clarke Historical Library. The events are free and open to the public.

On July 10, Heather Shumaker will discuss her book Saving Arcadia, a 2018 Michigan Notable Book selection. It's the story of a determined townspeople and how far they went to save beloved land and endangered species from a large corporation. The long struggle to preserve the area began before the author was born, and her work tells the story of people crossing cultural barriers to learn to help one another in an effort to win back the six-thousand-acre landscape that had been taken over by Consumers Power.

Today the Arcadia Dunes, located in Benzie and Manistee Counties, are the Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy?s (GTRLC) largest preserve. The site includes over 15 miles of trails to explore dunes, forests and many other landscapes. The preserve provides a wide range of recreation opportunities and experiences from hiking?to birding to mountain biking.

On July 17, Maureen Dunphy will be sharing stories from her travel narrative, Great Lake Island Escapes, a 2017 Michigan Notable Book selection. More than 30,000 islands dot the Great Lakes and provide some of the best ways to enjoy the region. While the vast majority of these islands can only be reached by private boat or plane, a number of islands - each with its own character and often harboring more than a bit of intrigue in its history - can be reached by taking a ferry ride or crossing a bridge. In her book, Maureen Dunphy writes about over 30 of the Great Lakes Basin islands accessible by bridge or ferry and introduces more than 50 additional islands that are definitely worth a boat ride.





Archivist Appointed to State Board

Governor Rick Snyder has appointed the Clarke Historical Library?s archivist, Associate Professor Marian Matyn to the seven member State Historical Records Advisory Board. The board is part of the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. It's the central advisory board for historical records planning. It also coordinates National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC) funded projects in the state. NHPRC is affiliated with the National Archives, which maintains historical records for the federal government. The Library?s Board of Governors and staff congratulates Marian on this important appointment and distinct honor.

MSHRAB works with the Michigan Archival Association to match archivists with small historical repositories which need collection assessment and project prioritization, and offers mini-grants with its Save Michigan History program to help preserve and make archival records accessible to the public. See MSHRAB for more information.



Clarke Student Employees Receive Scholarships

The Clarke Historical Library congratulates two of our student employees. Autumn Pinkley and Lilah Haines have been awarded scholarships from the University Libraries? Scholarship Committee. The two awardees submitted essays as part of the scholarship process.

The University Libraries has two scholarship opportunities for library student employees. The Library Student Employee Scholarship was established in 2010 and the Helen Holz Rooney Endowed Award began in 2013. Both scholarships were established to support academic expenses of exemplary CMU Libraries? student employees. The Clarke Staff is very proud of Autumn and Lilah for receiving these well-deserved awards. We think they are definitely exemplary!



Important New Acquisition

George Catlin's Lithograph "O-Jib-be-Ways" The Clarke Historical Library recently acquired a copy of George Catlin?s lithograph, ?O-Jib-be-Ways,? a late addition to his American Indian Portfolio. The acquisition was made possible by the Alice C. Webb Memorial Endowment and is fully discussed in a Clarke blog posting. The print dates to circa 1875 when a secondary publisher issued a reprint of Catlin's original American Indian Portfolio (published in 1844). The reprint also included six new images done at the time of the original, but not published then. They included ?O-Jib-be-Ways.?



Clarke Sponsors Research Award at Michigan History Day

Each year the Historical Society of Michigan holds Michigan History Day, a research project competition for school students. Students who win at the state level move on to compete at National History Day in College Park, MD. The Clarke sponsors a special award for the best use of newspapers as an important source of information in documenting history. After selecting a historical topic that relates to the annual theme, students conduct extensive research by using libraries, archives, museums, and oral history interviews. They analyze and interpret their findings, draw conclusions about their topics? significance in history, and create final projects in one of five categories: paper, exhibit, documentary, website or performance. The topics of newspaper resources award winners this year were politician Boss Tweed (the paper included use of editorial cartoons) well as "Henry Johnson: The Harlem Hellfighter's Struggle for Equality in World War I." Congratulations to the winners and participants!



Civil War Generals on Display in Reading Room

Through the generosity of former CMU Trustee John Kulhavi, the Clarke Historical Library has been given nine framed collections of historical documents. The pieces feature the autographs of Abraham Lincoln, as well as many of the generals who led the Union and Confederate armies during the Civil War. Among the most interesting is the one featuring Edward G. Beckwith, best remembered as the man responsible for the Pacific Railroad Survey of 1853-1857, which recommended the route for the First Transcontinental Railroad. Read more about Beckwith in the Clarke blog posting "Abraham Lincoln and his Generals." Check the Clarke Reading Room for panels currently on display.



Library Hours

During the summer, the Clarke Historical Library is open Monday ? Friday from 9-5.