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Author Event | Barbara Barton and "Manoomin : the Story of Wild Rice in Michigan"
Manoomin: The Story of Wild Rice in Michigan is the first book of its kind to bring forward the rich tradition of wild rice in Michigan, and its importance to the Anishinaabek people who live here. The book received the 2018 Michigan History Award and 2019 Michigan Notable Book Award.
Join author Barbara Barton as she follows the threads that connect the history, culture, biology, economics, and spirituality of this sacred plant. Learn about the vast wild rice beds that once existed in Michigan, why many disappeared, and the efforts of tribal and nontribal people working to return and protect Manoomin across the landscape.
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Author Event | Guardians of Detroit
Due to a fortunate confluence of water, geography and entrepreneurial vision, Detroit at the end of the 19th century was poised to experience unprecedented growth. Even before the Ford Motor Company was established in 1903, Detroit was a major industrial center and transportation hub. All this commercial activity and prosperity led to a building boom of incredible proportions at a time when the most popular architectural styles were Beaux Arts, Gothic Revival, Classical Revival, and Art Deco. Each of these styles typically required extensive ornamentation and because of this, Detroit became a treasure trove of architectural sculpture.
Jeff Morrison’s new book Guardians of Detroit: Architectural Sculpture in the Motor City documents these incredible features in a city that began as a small frontier fort and quickly grew to become a major metropolis and industrial titan. Jeff shares more than 100 spectacular close-up pictures of architectural sculpture from throughout the city of Detroit. You also learn about the symbolism behind the ornamentation and hear some of the untold stories of the artists, artisans, and architects involved in its creation, all drawn from the book.
Jeff Morrison is a historian and photographer who has been taking pictures since his parents gave him his first camera at age nine. He has a bachelor’s degree in history and art from Eastern Michigan University and over thirty years’ experience as a graphic artist. Jeff lives in Oxford, Michigan, with his lovely wife, Susie, and their wonder dog, Manfred.
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Archivist Bill McNitt on President Gerald R. Ford
Join us as archivist and President Gerald R. Ford specialist Bill McNitt discusses Ford and his legacy.
In 1965, U. S. Representative Gerald R. Ford began donating his papers to the Bentley Historical Library. After President Richard Nixon appointed Congressman Ford as Vice President in 1973, the Library created a new staff position to arrange, rehouse, and describe the Ford Congressional Papers and selected Bill to fill it. When President Ford left the White House in 1977, Bill (and the Congressional Papers) moved to the Ford Presidential Papers Project, a precursor of the Ford Presidential Library. He spent much of his career there processing the extensive records of the Ford presidency, while also assisting researchers in using the collections, managing a major database indexing the holdings, and helping to launch a digitization project to make key documents available online.
Bill McNitt is a retired archivist whose career at the University of Michigan’s Bentley Historical Library and then the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library of the National Archives and Records Administration spanned more than 40 years. He grew up in western Michigan and was quite familiar with the career of Gerald R. Ford from a very young age as the family lived in Ford’s congressional district and Bill’s father James had attended junior high school and high school with Ford. Bill majored in history as an undergraduate at the University of Michigan and began working as a student employee of the Michigan Historical Collections (now housed in the Bentley Historical Library) in 1969. He then earned master’s degrees from the University in both history and library science.
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Legacies Project Oral History: Former U.S. Congressman John Dingell
John Dingell Jr. (D) served in the U.S. House of Representatives as part of the Michigan delegation from 1955-2015. His 60 years in office make him the longest serving member in the history of the House. A long-time member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, including 16 years as Chairman, Dingell was an advocate for environmental issues and a supporter of the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, and the Environmental Protection Agency. Dingell was also the longest serving Dean of the House of Representatives. He passed away on February 7, 2019.
John Dingell was interviewed by students from Skyline High School in Ann Arbor in 2015-2016 as part of the Legacies Project.
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Nerd Nite #58 - Startup Ecosystems: What Michigan Needs
When you hear the word startup, what do you think about? Do you think tech? Retail? Duo Security? Regardless of what you envision, we know one thing for sure: startups are what drive economic growth and development. This talk goes over what Michigan needs to continue growth as a startup ecosystem.
About Leann – Director of Content, Argonomo; Founder, ASHE Media; Host of the Impact Michigan and Generation [I] podcasts. Passionate about entrepreneurship, digital media, and building the Michigan startup ecosystem. Follow him @leann_abad.
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Joy In Tigertown
The 1968 World Series remains one of the most iconic in major league history. Featuring Bob Gibson in MVP form, Al Kaline, and Mickey Lolich, it was baseball at its best.
Former Detroit Tigers pitcher Mickey Lolich and journalist Tom Gage discuss this historic series as well as their book "Joy in Tigertown: A Determined Team, a Resilient City, and our Magical Run to the 1968 World Series."
Told with the vibrant first-hand perspective of Lolich himself and the expertise of award-winning Detroit journalist Tom Gage, this is the remarkable saga of that 1968 season which culminated in Tigers glory.
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Author Event | Herb Boyd discusses Black Detroit: A People's History of Self-Determination
Author Herb Boyd visits the Library to discuss his award-winning book, Black Detroit: A People's History of Self-Determination, a 2018 Michigan Notable Book.
Black Detroit looks at the evolving culture, politics, economics, and spiritual life of Detroit–a blend of memoir, love letter, history, and clear-eyed reportage that explores the city’s past, present, and future and its significance to the African-American legacy and the nation’s fabric. It brings into focus the major figures who have defined and shaped Detroit, including William Lambert, the great abolitionist; Berry Gordy, the founder of Motown Records; Coleman Young, the city’s first black mayor; diva songstress Aretha Franklin; Malcolm X; and Ralph Bunche, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize.
Herb Boyd is an award-winning author and journalist who has taught African American History since 1969 when he was a founding member of the Black Studies Department at Detroit’s Wayne State University. He currently teaches African American History and Culture at the City College of New York in Harlem where he lives.
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A2Energy Power Hour
This fun and informative event explains how your house can be made more energy efficient and whether solar power might be an option.
Presenters include:
-MI Saves: to explain their contractor network and financing options.
-DTE
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Studebaker, Packard, Nash, and Hudson
Automotive writer Russell Doré discusses the origins of four major automobile companies of the 20th Century.
Learn how the Studebaker Brothers, the Packard Brothers, Charlie Nash, and Joseph L. Hudson grew their companies and what lead to their ultimate disappearance from the industry. Find out the interesting interactions between these leaders and other major automotive entrepreneurs.
Russell Doré has presented programs on Henry Ford, Walter Chrysler, and Billy Durant, founder of General Motors. He is a member of the MotorCities National Heritage Area, the Henry Ford Heritage Association, and the Northville Historical Society.
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5000 Ways You Know You're From Detroit
Martin Bandyke, morning drive host at Ann Arbor's 107one, hosted this event with Walkerville Publishing's Elaine Weeks and Chris Edwards. Weeks and Edwards showed images and shared stories from 5000 Ways You Know You're From Detroit: Detroit's Baby Boomer Years, their new coffee table book that shows the highs and lows Detroit has weathered in decades past.