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Fall 2014

This inaugural issue details the early-1900s battle to keep the skies clear above the Detroit Observatory at the University of Michigan. You can also read about Michigan’s “Polar Bear” soldiers who fought in Russia during WWII, and see the incredible archived photos of Jay Cassidy from the early 1960s.

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Selected Stories

A selection of stories of this issue. Please download PDF to read all content.

The Battle for the Heavens

by Robert Havey

In 1912, a proposed coal power plant just down the street from the Detroit Observatory pitted the University's astronomy faculty against the energy needs of a growing campus. Bentley letters reveal a showdown.

The Long View

by Katie Vloet

As a student and Michigan Daily photographer, Jay Cassidy captured the turbulent, defiant, electric period of the late 1960s. Now a Hollywood film editor, Cassidy recently gave 5,000 of his photos to the Bentley.

Michigan’s Polar Bears

by Lara Zielin

The Great War was over, the armistice signed. But for one group of soldiers, the battles continued when they were sent to the far eastern front, to the frozen climes of Northern Russia.

Framing the Future

by Nancy Bartlett

At 89 years old, famed architect Gunnar Birkerts shows no signs of retiring. His collections at the Bentley showcase his architectural thought processes, leading to the recent opening of his National Library of Latvia.

Slide Over Here

by Melissa Hernández-Durán

Before Power Point presentations or Flickr, the best way for a group to see a single image was through lantern slides. The Bentley has hundreds of these slides in its collections, providing a new old way to see U-M.

Hair-Razing Memories

by Melissa Hernández-Durán

In 1903, campus hazing rituals included students shearing each other's heads before the annual Freshman Banquet. A scrapbook at the Bentley documents the hair-removing adventures with actual locks.

Brigham, Metcalf, and Osler

A trio of exhibits at the University of Michigan Museum of art has put a bright spotlight on the Bentley's modern architectural archives of three famous architects.