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Collection

Agnes Inglis Papers, 1909-1952

13 Linear Feet — 13 linear feet and 3 scrapbooks

Anarchist, social worker, friend of J. A. Labadie, and first curator of the Labadie Collection. Comprise administrative files of the Labadie Collection which she combined and intermingled with personal correspondence, memoirs, and research notes.

The Agnes Inglis Papers are comprised of a variety of materials including her correspondence, research notes, writings, scrapbooks, and her work at the Labadie Collection. The bulk of these papers range from 1924 to 1952, the years during which she served as curator of the Labadie Collection.

These papers hold significance in several respects. First, Agnes Inglis held an important place within the radical movement (anarchism, communism, socialism, etc.) in Southeastern Michigan during the first half of the 20th century, and was particularly active in the anti-conscription campaigns and the subsequent deportation of radicals surrounding the first World War. Her connections within this movement were extensive, and her papers reflect insider knowledge of the events, activities and especially of the individuals of the Left during her lifetime. Also, these papers essentially document the Labadie Collection itself. Because she was the initial and sole curator for the Collection for its first three decades in the University of Michigan libraries, her papers hold extensive information on the Collection's history. Finally, Inglis was an extremely historically minded individual and saw great value in documenting the facts and her impressions of the many people, organizations and events she came to know.

The Agnes Inglis Papers are separated into three series: Corresponsence, with Individual and Corporate subseries; Writings, with Autobiographical, Creative and Theoretical and Notes and Research subseries; and Scrapbooks.

It should also be noted here that during her time as curator of the Labadie Collection, Inglis constructed a card catalog filled with references and biographical and historical notes on the individuals, groups and events of the radical movement. Labadie staff should be consulted if one wishes to view this catalog.

Collection

Agnes Inglis Papers, 1909-1952

13 Linear Feet — 13 linear feet and 3 scrapbooks

Anarchist, social worker, friend of J. A. Labadie, and first curator of the Labadie Collection. Comprise administrative files of the Labadie Collection which she combined and intermingled with personal correspondence, memoirs, and research notes.

The Agnes Inglis Papers are comprised of a variety of materials including her correspondence, research notes, writings, scrapbooks, and her work at the Labadie Collection. The bulk of these papers range from 1924 to 1952, the years during which she served as curator of the Labadie Collection.

These papers hold significance in several respects. First, Agnes Inglis held an important place within the radical movement (anarchism, communism, socialism, etc.) in Southeastern Michigan during the first half of the 20th century, and was particularly active in the anti-conscription campaigns and the subsequent deportation of radicals surrounding the first World War. Her connections within this movement were extensive, and her papers reflect insider knowledge of the events, activities and especially of the individuals of the Left during her lifetime. Also, these papers essentially document the Labadie Collection itself. Because she was the initial and sole curator for the Collection for its first three decades in the University of Michigan libraries, her papers hold extensive information on the Collection's history. Finally, Inglis was an extremely historically minded individual and saw great value in documenting the facts and her impressions of the many people, organizations and events she came to know.

The Agnes Inglis Papers are separated into three series: Corresponsence, with Individual and Corporate subseries; Writings, with Autobiographical, Creative and Theoretical and Notes and Research subseries; and Scrapbooks.

It should also be noted here that during her time as curator of the Labadie Collection, Inglis constructed a card catalog filled with references and biographical and historical notes on the individuals, groups and events of the radical movement. Labadie staff should be consulted if one wishes to view this catalog.

Collection

Ardis Press Records, 1811-2002 (majority within 1970-1989)

55 Linear Feet — 45 records center boxes, 1 Hollinger box, 4 oversized boxes, 1 oversized folder.

Ardis Press was an independent publishing house in Ann Arbor founded by Carl and Ellendea Proffer in 1971 that was dedicated to the printing of Russian literature. The publishing house was known both for their English translations of previously untranslated works, as well as Russian printings of 20th Century Russian and Soviet authors. Additionally, they would print the works of contemporary Russian authors as well as anthologies and literary criticisms. Ardis operated from 1971-2002 when it was sold to Overlook Press. The majority of the materials in this collection are from the 1970s-1990s. Noteworthy pieces of this collection include the Russian anthology Metropol, the Russian Literature Triquarterly, and correspondence and manuscripts from a variety of Russian authors, including: Lev Kopelev, Vladimir Nabokov, Osip Mandelstam, Marina Tsvetaeva, Joseph Brodsky, and Sasha Sokolov.

Materials have been divided into seven series. 1. Author/Name Files: This series includes correspondence, manuscripts, newspaper articles, contracts, and publishing materials for Russian authors and translators. Materials are arranged by author's last name.

2. Collected Works/Corporate Authors: This series includes correspondence, manuscripts, newspaper articles, and publishing materials from corporate authors or anthologies of works. Materials are arranged by corporate name or anthology name.

3. Business Records: This series includes materials related to the operation of Ardis Press. It will have three sub-series: Publicity, Company Information, and Author Personnel.The Publicity sub-series includes will have three further sub-series: Reviews, Articles/Exhibit Info, and Marketing/Advertising. Reviews are arranged by author's last name, and both Articles/Exhibit Info and Marketing are arranged by subject. The Company Information sub-series includes sales information and records about Ardis. It is arranged by subject. The Author Personnel series includes three further sub-series: Royalties, Contracts, and Rights. The Royalties series has correspondence, invoices, and documentation for author's royalty statements. It is arranged by author's last name. The Contracts series includes contracts and documentation between authors and Ardis and is arranged alphabetically. The Rights series has documentation, invoices and correspondence regarding copyright and use permissions. It is arranged by subject.

4. Media: This series includes photographs, negatives, slides, audio, and visual materials from Ardis and its employees, authors and their families, Russia and the Soviet Union, and various interviews. Materials are arranged into two sub-series: Photographs + Albums, and Video + Audio. Materials are arranged by media type.

5. Artwork: This series includes artwork from Russian artists, some used for book covers. Materials are arranged by artist last name.

6. Carl and Ellendea Proffer Personal Papers: This series includes documentation, correspondence, awards and programs related to Carl and Ellendea Proffer. Materials are arranged by subject.

7. Non-Ardis Materials: This series includes documents, booklets, and posters from Russian sources but that are not related to Ardis. Materials are arranged by subject.

Collection

David Cope Papers, 1907-2023 (majority within 1980s-2000s)

26.5 Linear Feet — 26 records center boxes and 1 oversize flat file

David Cope is a poet in the Objectivist tradition and the founder of Nada Press, a small press which publishes the literary magazine and other poetry. Cope, a University of Michigan graduate and lifelong Michigan resident, taught literature and writing at Grand Rapids Community College and Western Michigan University. The collection documents Cope's writing, editing, and to some extent teaching and other spheres of Cope's life, through correspondence, manuscripts, notes, printed material, photographs, and videotapes.

David Cope made his first donation of papers to the Special Collections Research Center in 1987. Since then he has continued to make frequent contributions. The David Cope Papers cover Cope's writing and correspondence from the 1970s to the present, as well as his editing and teaching activities. In addition to offering insight into Cope's work, the collection details some of the activities and thoughts of friends and fellow writers and poets; in particular, Allen Ginsberg, Jim Cohn, Antler, and Jeff Poniewaz. Not currently well-documented are the more personal aspects of Cope's life--especially his family life--except for those details made available through his writings and correspondence.

The David Cope Papers are divided into eight series: Correspondence and Name Files, Writings, Editing Materials, Teaching and Education Materials, Publicity Materials, Personal, Photographs, and Audio/Visual. A small selection of books from Cope's library have been removed from the collection and have been cataloged individually. They are shelved by call number in Special Collections and can be requested through the Library's catalog.

Collection

Ella Reeve Bloor Papers, 1912-1922

2.0 Linear Feet

Ella Reeve "Mother" Bloor (1862–1951) was an American activist dedicated to the labor movement, the Socialist Party, and numerous radical groups.

The Ella Reeve Bloor Papers consist of two linear feet of personal and professional correspondence, notebooks and pamphlets, clippings, publications, and printed ephemera.

The collection, divided into 4 series, documents her activities as suffragist, free speech advocate, and labor organizer.

The Correspondence series consists of manuscript letters betweeen Bloor and her family, and correspondence between Bloor and her colleagues.

The majority of the family letters are to/from her children. Her letters, written during her travels, provide information about individuals and events associated with her work. Most of the family letters include the month and day written, but not the year. As a result, the letters are arranged in non-specific order.

Bloor's correspondence with colleagues and organizations are arranged chronologically. Included are letters from various Socialist societies, state and local government offices, newspapers, and labor unions, such as the New York State Committee Socialist Party, United Cloth and Cap Makers, Tailors' Union. In addition, there are handwritten letters from other activists involved in socialist and labor causes (e.g., letter from Joseph W. Sharts, counsel for Eugene V. Debs in his trial at Cleveland, Ohio; Theodore H. Lunde, officer of the Peace Council in Chicago).

The Publications series includes several small booklets, articles, a journal, and a report on the professional achievements of Harold M. Ware.

Collection

Ethel Smyth Papers, 1910-1962 (majority within 1917-1942)

1 Linear Foot — 2 manuscript boxes

The Ethel Smyth Papers contain correspondence with members of the musical community and members of the women's suffrage movement, drafts of autobiographical work, performance programs and pamphlets, and extensive diaries by Smyth commenting on personal matters, national and regional politics, composition and performance, and the lives of her friends. Also contains two sketches of Smyth by an unknown artist and two books of research notes by Christopher Marie St. John for the definitive biography of Smyth.

The Ethel Smyth Papers are comprised of five series. The series, Manuscripts, Print, Research Notes, Artwork, and Diaries, are arranged in two boxes. The bulk of the Manuscripts series consists of outgoing correspondence dated from 1910 to 1937, primarily addressed to recipients who were involved in the music community of the time. Most of the outgoing correspondence is addressed to Professor Donald Tovey, a Scottish composer and conductor and one of Smyth's mentors. This correspondence consists of 16 letters spanning more than 14 years and addresses various musical topics. Also represented in the outgoing correspondence are letters to composer and conductor Gordon Bryan; to Philip Heseltine (a.k.a. Peter Warlock) a composer and founder of the music serial The Sackbut regarding an article she wrote for the publication; and letters to Lady Constance Lytton, who was a friend of Smyth's in the Women's Suffrage Movement. Correspondence also includes a letter to Scottish conductor and student of Donald Tovey, Dr. Mary Grierson, remarking on the glorious first performance of Smyth's work, The Prison in February of 1931. Other correspondence consists of a letter from Lindsay Venn to Ethel Davidson regarding the disposition of Smyth's papers after her death. Also included in the Manuscripts series is the typescript of Lyrics to Smyth's composition, The Prison, based on the writing of Henry Brewster, who was strongly connected to Smyth. Finally, there is a fragment of several bars of music from the Concerto for Violin, Horn and Orchestra penned and autographed by Smyth. A fragment of a composition by Smyth's contemporary, Frederic H. Cowen is on the verso of this item. The Writings sub-series is made up of drafts of two typescripts. The first contains the first three chapters of A Fresh Start, Smyth's last autobiographical work, which was probably begun in 1941 but was never published. The second contains three drafts of An Eightieth Birthday, a speech given on BBC radio in 1938. These are heavily corrected in Smyth's hand. Finally, there is a single holograph sheet entitled Notes on "Mass in D" which seems to be jottings for program notes. The Print series consists of a program from the 1921 Queen's Hall Symphony performance of Smyth's "Love Duet" from her opera, The Wreckers. It also includes a pamphlet containing the lyrics of March of the Women, a piece Smyth wrote in support of the Women's Suffrage Movement. There are three newspaper clippings which discuss Smyth as a conductor, especially at the Bournemouth Music Festival, held in April of 1924. The Research Notes series contain two books of notes taken by Christopher Marie St. John for the definitive biography of Smyth. Both contain research notes and possibly notes from interviews with Smyth and members of her circle. The second of the notebooks is entitled "Wood on her Conducting / Beecham on Criticism" and contain commentary from two of Smyth's close acquaintances, Henry Wood and Thomas Beecham. The Artwork series consists of two pencil sketches of stage sets for Smyth's opera, "The Prison." The artist of these sketches is unidentified. Perhaps the most significant portion of this collection is the Diaries. These six volumes are in fragile condition and begin in 1917, continuing almost uninterrupted through 1942. The diaries are heavily annotated by Smyth herself, and she obviously used them in writing her autobiographical works. The dated entries present an excellent description of Smyth's life and include commentary on composition and performance of her music; her literary works; her health (in particular, her failing hearing) and travels; her beloved old English sheep dogs; World Wars I and II; the political climate of Ireland in the early 20th century; British royalty; and the lives of her many friends, including Empress Eugénie, Edith Somerville, Lady Ponsonby, Maurice Baring, Betty Balfour and Virgina Woolf. Throughout the diaries, Smyth has pasted in newspaper clippings, photography, pamphlets and other memorabilia. It is possible that Volume VI, which consists of family photographs, poetry by Ethel and her sister Mary, and other notes, is written in a hand which is not Smyth's.

Collection

Finvola Drury papers, 1928-2019

10 Linear Feet

The Finvola Drury papers consist of correspondence, publications, writings, printed ephemera, photographs, and audiovisual materials created or collected by Finvola Drury, a poet, teacher, , and activist.

The Finvola Drury papers are organized into eight series: correspondence, publications, writings, professional, personal, photographs, clippings, and A/V materials.

The correspondence series is sorted alphabetically by surname or institution name, except in cases where the correspondent's full name was not included in the correspondence or a single letter was addressed to multiple recipients. The bulk of correspondence is between Finvola Drury and her son, George S. Drury, and his wife Kathy. Other notable correspondents include Flo Kennedy, Sohnya Sayres, Jim Cohn, and David Cope.

A note on names: Finvola's daughter, Finvola, is often referred to by her nickname "Finny," or sometimes "Finvola II," while Finvola herself uses the nickname "Fin."

The publications series is sorted between poetry and prose and arranged alphabetically by title. Also included are various ephemera with Drury's poetry or prose printed on them, as well as a published review of Drury's book, Burning the Snow.

The writings series contains four subseries: poetry drafts, prose drafts, notes, and notebooks and journals. Both the poetry and prose draft subseries include files created and named by Drury and/or the donor, denoted in the finding aid and folder titles as "poetry draft files" or "prose draft files." Loose/unsorted poetry and prose drafts were organized alphabetically by name by the processing archivist and placed into folders labeled "alphabetized poetry drafts," denoted in the finding aid like "poetry drafts, A-Z." The notes subseries consists of pages of Drury's handwritten notes about literature, writing, ideas for poems or prose, and other subjects of interest. The "subject notes" files were ordered and labeled by Drury and/or the donor. Other notes were loose and/or unsorted and brought together in processing. Finally, the notebooks and journals subseries comprises notebooks and journals Drury kept throughout her life, as well as a handful of notebooks that belonged to her daughter, Finvola.

The professional series is made up of materials from Drury's career, sorted primarily by institution, followed by announcements for Drury's poetry readings, a copy of Drury's resume, and the draft of a memoir a student wrote under Drury's tutelage.

The personal series consists of biographical sketches written about Drury, notes and records from Drury's undergraduate and graduate education, personal ephemera, and a book given to Drury by Detroit artists.

The photographs series is organized chronologically.

The clippings series consists of newspapers and clippings Drury kept in her files, as well as a handful of collages Drury and her friend, Kathy Rose, made from news clippings.

The A/V series contains two LP music records, three tapes, and three CDs.

Collection

Fraye Arbeter Shtime (Freie Arbeiter Stimme) Papers, 1922-1940

.5 Linear Feet — 1 manuscript box

This collection consists of manuscripts of articles submitted to Fraye Arbeter Shtime, a Jewish Anarchist journal, during the 1920s and 30s.

The Fraye Arbeter Shtime papers consist of manuscripts submitted for publication during the editorships of Joseph Cohen (1923-32) and Mark Mrachnyi (1934-40).

Collection

Gabriel Miller-Clifford Odets Collection, 1931-2013

6.5 Linear Feet — 3 record center boxes, 3 manuscript boxes, and 2 oversize boxes

Books, correspondence, photos, contracts, manuscripts, magazines, and ephemera relating to the works of playwright and screenwriter Clifford Odets.

This collection is organized into eight series.

The Books Series consists of published stage plays and screenplays written by Odets, books belonging to or inscribed by Odets, biographical publications about Odets, novels that Odets adapted into screenplays, and stage plays written by other Group Theatre writers. The bulk of the Correspondence Series is Odets's letters to his friend Bill Kozlenko. Other letters sent by Odets to a variety of correspondents are also included.

The Contracts Series consists of contracts Odets signed with movie studios.

The Manuscripts Series consists of scripts, notes, and test scenes from Odets's various projects, including a scrapped film called Joseph. Also included are proofs of The Time Is Right: The 1940 Journal of Clifford Odets, published posthumously in 1988.

The Photographs Series includes portraits and photos of Odets, portraits of Odets's first wife Luise Rainer, and photos of film and stage productions of Odets's works.

The Magazines Series comprises magazines with articles or advertisements about Odets or his works or colleagues, organized chronologically.

The bulk of the Ephemera Series are playbills and lobby cards for Odets's plays and movies. Also included are one sheets, small flyers, pressbooks, and tickets. Two of the pamphlets feature Odets's writing, while the pamphlet by Margaret Brenman-Gibson is an analysis of Odets and his work.

The A/V Series consists of two LPs: a recording of the original Broadway cast of the Golden Boy musical adaptation and a recording of Odets in conversation with Herman Harvey.

Collection

Greg Calvert Papers, 1920-2000 (majority within 1960-1992)

2 Linear Feet — 4 manuscript boxes

The Greg Calvert Papers (1920-2000) consist of personal journals, unpublished writings, and correspondence by the former Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) National Secretary. Other materials include photographs, family documents, a manuscript copy of Calvert's book Democracy from the Heart. The unpublished writings consist of poems, manuscripts, and essays.

The Greg Calvert Papers consist of photographs, family documents, personal journals, correspondence, drawings, a manuscript copy of Calvert's book Democracy from the Heart, and unpublished material such as manuscripts, essays, and poetry. The materials are arranged in seven series: Calvert Family Papers, Unpublished Manuscripts, Personal Journals, Correspondence, Unpublished Essays, Unpublished Poems, and Democracy from the Heart Manuscript.

The personal journals include Calvert's writings at various points in time and locales in his life. The manuscripts, essays, and poems consist of typewritten, xeroxed, and handwritten copies. Correspondence includes letters, postcards, and some photographs to and from various friends throughout Calvert's life.

The essays included in the "Various essays and writings" folder are marked as the following on the included inventory: "Neocapitalism and the New Left," "Is Freedom Academic?," "The Ruling Class and the Elections," "The Other Side," "The End of the Run," Gay Freedom Week speech, "The Ordering of Days," "The Violence We Do to Ourselves," "Gimme Shelter," "United States Violence in the World of the 1980s," "Communitarian Democracy," A Model Democratic Community," "The Political Animal and Environmental Ethics," "The Challenge of Democratic Idealism," untitled essays on Carl Davidson, Paul Goodman, and human growth.

The cassette tapes consist of recorded notes and drafts for "The Hotel of the Two Worlds," interviews for the "After the War" oral history and manuscript, an interview with Greg's father, Clyde Calvert, and other various topics.