Detroit (Mich.)—Cultural affairs

Michigan Dance Archives: Detroit-Windsor Dance Academy Records

aergas — Fri, 06 Oct 2023 12:29:03 -0400

This collection includes the administrative, teaching, performance, and fundraising records of the Detroit-Windsor Dance Academy (DWDA) from 1986 to 2020. DWDA is a non-profit dance school established in Detroit in 1984 by Debra White-Hunt and Bruce Hunt. In addition to offering a wide variety of dance classes for children and adults, DWDA sponsors and participates in many community activities locally and nationally. Materials in this collection include class schedules, student and instructor training information, performance programs and booklets, PR and publicity clippings, audition notes, annual reports, photographs, and correspondence. There are many documents from the DWDA annual dance concerts and the "Crystal Ball" annual fundraisers. One box of audio-visual materials (videotapes, DVDs, CDs) has been placed in the Reuther Library AV Department.

Detroit Symphony Orchestra: Administrative Office Papers

aergas — Wed, 09 Nov 2022 10:16:33 -0500

This is a collection of materials from the administrative and executive offices of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra from 1982 to 1995. Series 1 contains files generated during the tenure of Deborah Borda, DSO Executive Director, and Oleg Lobanov, DSO President, as well as from Michael A. Smith, DSO Vice President and General Manager. The collection includes administrative documents, correspondence, clippings and meeting minutes. Series 2 contains documents and reports from the 1988 Ad Hoc Task Force Committee that dealt with restructuring, development and fiscal issues. Series 3 contains documents regarding composer grants and assistant conductors.

Detroit Symphony Orchestra: Albert Steger Collection

aergas — Tue, 25 Oct 2022 12:29:51 -0400

This collection consists of programs from various concerts of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra from 1929 to 1931. Albert P. Steger (1915-2011) was a professional musician associated with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra from 1951 to 1982.

Detroit Symphony Orchestra: Anne Mischakoff Heiles Papers

aergas — Tue, 14 Jun 2022 09:33:39 -0400

This collection, part of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra Records, includes research material collected by Anne Mischakoff Heiles, possibly for a book about the history of the DSO. It includes interviews, articles and clippings, notes and a draft manuscript. Four audiocassettes of interviews have been transferred to the Reuther Library AV Department.

Detroit Symphony Orchestra: Composers Records

aergas — Tue, 21 Jun 2022 12:17:19 -0400

This collection, part of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra Records, is made up of files with information about individual composers whose music was played by the DSO, mostly in the 1990s and early 2000s. The information was used for program notes and promotional materials. Folders include documents such as biographical information, clippings, photographs and negatives.

Detroit Symphony Orchestra: General Photos Collection II

aergas — Wed, 04 Jan 2023 11:34:17 -0500

This collection contains visual images--photographs, slides, negatives and computer disks--of a variety of Detroit Symphony Orchestra events from the late 1970s to 2004, including concerts at Meadow Brook and Greenfield Village, tours to Japan and Europe, and various celebrations. They include conductors, musicians and concertgoers.

Detroit Symphony Orchestra: Karl Krueger Papers

aergas — Tue, 01 Nov 2022 12:44:42 -0400

Karl Krueger was an American musician and conductor who served as music director of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra in the 1940s. He had a notable career with various orchestras and was a guest artist in the U.S., Europe and South America throughout his career from the 1920s through the 1960s. This collection consists primarily of clippings and DSO programs from Krueger's tenure with the DSO in the 1940s, including 2 large scrapbooks of clippings. There are also manuscripts of several articles and part of a book written by Krueger.

Detroit Symphony Orchestra: Laré Wardrop Papers

aergas — Wed, 29 Jun 2022 10:19:42 -0400

These papers, part of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra Records, are materials collected by musician and photographer Laré Wardrop (1909-1979). Wardrop joined the DSO as an oboist in 1938. He retired in 1965, having also served as English hornist. These papers include DSO articles and concert programs, from the late 1940s to the 1970s, and many of Wardrop's photographs of symphony musicians, conductors and events over the years. There are programs and itineraries from DSO tours, as well as several of Wardrop's music scores for oboe. Two boxes containing Wardrop's slides and negatives have been transferred to the Reuther Library AV Department.

Detroit Symphony Orchestra: Music Directors and Conductors Records

aergas — Mon, 01 Aug 2022 11:23:46 -0400

The records of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra (DSO) relate its administration, marketing, and public relations, as well as the orchestra's community outreach, cultural activities and influence of its music directors. This collection includes administrative documents, correspondence and images of the DSO's music directors, from the earliest years including William Yuncke and Ossip Gabrilowitsch, through the decades of the 1920s to the early part of the 21st century, including Aldo Ceccato, Antal Dorati, Sixten Ehrling, Gunther Herbig, Neeme Jarvi, Paul Paray and Leonard Slatkin. Also included are materials from individuals who served as associate, assistant and resident conductors beginning in 1960, including Leslie B. Dunner, Paul Freeman, Valter Poole and Thomas Wilkins. Three boxes of AV materials are in the Reuther Library AV Department.

Detroit Symphony Orchestra: Musicians and Staff

aergas — Mon, 17 Oct 2022 09:57:03 -0400

These Detroit Symphony Orchestra materials include files on DSO musicians and staff primarily from the 1980s to 2013, with some earlier documents from circa 1900 to the 1970s. Materials include press releases, clippings, resumés, articles and correspondence. The folders are arranged alphabetically by last name and divided into separate groups--musicians (Box 1) and staff (Box 2).

Detroit Symphony Orchestra: Operations Records

aergas — Tue, 15 Nov 2022 09:21:34 -0500

This collection contains materials from the Detroit Symphony Orchestra administrative offices, including documents, correspondence and reports relating to renovations of Orchestra Hall, the Artistic Advisory Committee and the Orchestra Committee from the 1980s and 1990s.

Detroit Symphony Orchestra: Public Relations Department Records

aergas — Wed, 14 Jun 2023 09:15:27 -0400

This collection comprises materials from various incarnations of the DSO Public Relations Department over the years, primarily from the 1970s to the early 2000s. Materials relate to DSO performances and tours, radio broadcasts, labor relations, affirmative action, education and outreach, special programs and events, and information on staff and musicians. There are internal departmental materials including meeting minutes, budgets and funding, marketing plans, press releases and press kits for various concerts, tours and events. Also included are DSO publications such as programs, newsletters and special publications. One box of audio-visual materials--negatives, slides, CDs--has been transferred to the Reuther Library AV Department.

Detroit Symphony Orchestra: Tiffany Stozicki Papers

aergas — Wed, 21 Sep 2022 11:17:46 -0400

This collection comprises material gathered by Tiffany Dziurman Stozicki during her employment as archivist at the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. It includes documents and correspondence, as well as clippings and concert programs, relating to the creation of the DSO archive, to DSO history and to DSO activities predominantly during Stozicki's tenure from 1998 to 2003.

Detroit Symphony Orchestra: William H. Murphy Papers

aergas — Wed, 14 Dec 2022 12:35:33 -0500

This collection contains documents, clippings, photographs and a scrapbook from William H. Murphy (1855-1929). Murphy was a successful businessman engaged in the lumber industry, insurance and other business ventures. He and his wife, Laura (Hayward) Murphy, were early donors to the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, and he served as the president of the Detroit Symphony Society from 1920 until his death in 1929. In 1924, they donated a Cassavant Brothers pipe organ to the DSO. Called the “Murphy Organ,” it was dedicated and played for the first time on March 17, 1924. Many of the documents in this collection relate to the organ donation and to memorials for William and Laura Murphy.

Detroit Symphony Orchestra: Women's Association and Volunteer Council Records

aergas — Wed, 14 Sep 2022 12:58:50 -0400

This collection contains materials from the DSO Volunteer Council, established in 1989, and its predecessor, the Women's Association of the DSO (WADSO), from the 1930s to 2011. Documents relate to the internal workings of the volunteer organization and its public activities. The purpose of WADSO and the Volunteer Council was "to promote and support the artistic excellence of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra and promote community involvement and pride in the orchestra through fundraising projects and through education and audience development." WADSO was established in 1928 with a small number of members and grew to over 1,000 by its 50th anniversary in 1978. A sub-organization was established in 1939, the Junior Women's Association, to attract younger members. From the beginning, the organization's leaders and members included many prominent women from Detroit and its surrounding communities. WADSO joined with several DSO support committees in 1989 to become The Volunteer Council. Over the decades, major fund raising for the DSO was accomplished through a wide variety of events, including opening- night galas, auctions, fashion shows, designer showhouses, Nutcracker luncheons and boutiques, and concerts presented in private homes. Materials in the collection include meeting minutes and documents of various boards, officers and committees; documents related to events; newsletters, clippings and publicity materials; correspondence and publications.

Society of Women Engineers Detroit Section Records

teller — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 11:59:31 -0400

The Society of Women Engineers was founded in 1950 to encourage young women to pursue engineering and to support women engineers throughout their careers. The Detroit Section of the Society of Women Engineers was chartered June 30, 1952. SWE Detroit is one of the Society's oldest sections and is also among its largest, largely due to the prominence of the automotive and manufacturing industries in southeastern Michigan. The Society of Women Engineers Detroit Section Records include section bylaws, correspondence, meeting minutes, membership files, section newsletters, news clippings, publications about women in engineering, photographs, and scrapbooks.

Collections Spotlight: “Out of the House: Detroit Women’s Organizations in the 20th Century”

teller — Tue, 21 Apr 2015 10:20:24 -0400

Two archivists from the Reuther presented talks at the Historical Society of Michigan's 57th annual Local History Conference in March. The joint session, entitled “Out of the House: Detroit Women’s Organizations in the 20th Century” was presented by Troy Eller English, the Society of Women Engineers Archivist, and Aimee Ergas, the Reuther's collections archivist for Jewish Detroit. Kathy Schmeling of the Reuther Library was the moderator. read more »

Detroit Metro Times Publisher Ron Williams Donates to Walter P. Reuther Library

srafferty — Tue, 13 Jun 2023 13:27:54 -0400

Wayne State University’s Walter P. Reuther Library is pleased to announce the acquisition of the Ron Williams collection, which comprise the first 16 years of the Detroit Metro Times, and the commencement of the publication’s digitization for research in partnership with the Detroit Metro Times and Euclid Media. read more »

Digital Collection Announcement: Detroit Metro Times (1980-1995)

pneirink — Fri, 30 Jan 2026 12:35:22 -0500

The Walter P. Reuther Library and the Wayne State University Library System are pleased to announce a recently launched digital collection. Taken from a series of the presently unprocessed Ron Williams Papers, this online resource spans back issues of the Detroit Metro Times from its inception in October 1980 through late September 1995.

Please enjoy this resource on our Digital Collections platform, which is available now at this web address: https://wayne.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/metrotimes read more »

Event Announcement: “This Is My Town: The Concert Poster Art of Detroit, 1970s-2000s”

Public Relations Team — Thu, 21 May 2015 15:50:03 -0400

On May 22nd, 2015, the Detroit Sound Conservancy, a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving the musical sounds and stories of Detroit, will hold its second annual conference at the main branch of the Detroit Public Library. The Michigan Sound Conference will explore the ways that the Mitten State, and the Motor City in particular, have led the world in shaping the contemporary sonic landscape. As a part of the conference, the Walter P. Reuther Library of Labor and Urban Affairs will host the one-day exhibit "This Is My Town: The Concert Poster Art of Detroit, 1970s-2000s." This exhibit presents a selection of posters advertising musical, dramatic, and visual arts events in Detroit from the 1970s to the 200s, drawn from the papers of David Clements. read more »

Exhibit Announcement: Belle Isle State Park Photos on Display

eclemens — Mon, 29 Aug 2016 09:05:22 -0400

Belle Isle became Michigan’s 102nd State Park in 2014 through a lease agreement made with the City of Detroit. In honor of this occasion, the Reuther Library presents an exhibition of images that show the important role the park has played in the lives of Detroit’s residents. The exhibition will run from August 2016 to December 2016. read more »

Gallery Announcement: Images from the Jerome P. Cavanagh Photographs

eclemens — Mon, 10 Sep 2018 10:57:53 -0400

The Walter P. Reuther Library is pleased to announce our latest image gallery: Selections from the Jerome P. Cavanagh Photographs.

Jerome P. Cavanagh (1928-1979) was mayor of the city of Detroit from 1962 until 1970. Born in Detroit on June 16, 1928, Cavanagh was read more »

HistoryPin Tour: Detroit's Chinese Community

eclemens — Fri, 26 May 2017 19:58:42 -0400

Many people are surprised to learn that Detroit once had two Chinatowns, both built by a resilient community that thrived in the city for nearly 100 years. As Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month draws to a close, we invite you to visit our latest HistoryPin tour: a look back on Detroit's Chinese Community. read more »

The Jewish Community Archives at the Reuther Library: Additions and Revisions

aergas — Mon, 09 Nov 2015 10:33:53 -0500

The Leonard N. Simons Jewish Community Archives document the rich and varied history of the Detroit Jewish community. In 1991, the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit placed the bulk of its archival holdings in the Reuther Library. The collection dates back to the beginning of the United Jewish Charities in 1899. Through the years, the Jewish Community Archives (JCA) at the Reuther Library has expanded to include more than two million documents chronicling the growth and development of the Federation and its member agencies and Jewish communal agencies.

Recently, some new collections have been added and some revisions have been made to finding aids. read more »

(UP002885_039) Correspondence Publishing Company, speaker series, 1959-1960

eclemens — Mon, 25 Apr 2022 11:25:55 -0400

Handbill outlining Correspondence Publishing Company's monthly speaker series, held at 7737 Mack Avenue, Detroit.

Lectures highlighted:

"A Visit with some characters from Shakespeare. A talk with readings," December 18, 1959. Speaker unidentified.

"China Today," January 15, 1960. Speaker: Grace Lee Boggs.

"The Civil War after 100 Years," February 19, 1960. Speaker: Martin Glaberman.

Metro Times cover, 13th anniversary issue, October 1993.

srafferty — Tue, 13 Jun 2023 14:06:31 -0400

Metro Times cover, Motor City Music Awards, April 12, 1992.

srafferty — Tue, 13 Jun 2023 14:12:17 -0400

(32349) Labor Day, Parades, Firestone, Young, Detroit, 1989

eclemens — Thu, 04 Sep 2014 14:54:40 -0400

Bernie Firestone, Michigan State AFL-CIO President Frank Garrison and Detroit Mayor Coleman Young march in Detroit’s annual Labor Day Parade. Firestone was the parade’s Grand Marshall that year, as ACTWU celebrated 75 years of progress.

(72730) Labor Day, Parade, Detroit, 1941

eclemens — Mon, 01 Sep 2014 11:31:10 -0400

Children dress in patriotic garb during Detroit's 1941 Labor Day Parade.

(DN7918_1) Ethnic Communities, Chinese, Celebrations, 1942

eclemens — Fri, 19 May 2017 09:37:03 -0400

Chinese New Year Celebrations erupt in front of the On Leong Building, located at 1341 Third Avenue in Detroit's first Chinatown. At center, Chung's Chop Suey is in view.

Caption on accompanying article reads: "A Dragon of Victory Routs Evil Spirits. Chinatown feeds him $2000 in war relief."

Heard It On the News: Preserving 20th Century Detroit History Through Local Newscasts

teller — Tue, 15 Nov 2022 16:15:01 -0500

Reuther Library audiovisual archivist Mary Wallace discusses the Library’s WWJ / WDIV Film, Video, and Teleprompter Scripts collection, which captures seven decades of news, current events, politics, and community life as reported by the Detroit news station from the 1920s through 1990s. read more »

Podcast: "She Never Gave Up on This City:" Remembering Firebrand Detroit City Councilwoman Maryann Mahaffey

teller — Mon, 11 Feb 2019 10:36:35 -0500

Labor and Urban Affairs archivist Shae Rafferty shares how Maryann Mahaffey's college summer job as recreation director at the Poston Japanese internment camp in Arizona in 1945 strengthened her resolve to fight against discrimination and help those in need later in her career in social work. read more »

Podcast: The First Noel (Night): How the Public Found Its Detroit Adventure in Noel Night, The City's Festive Cultural Open House

teller — Mon, 19 Nov 2018 09:46:54 -0500

Outreach archivist Meghan Courtney traces the evolution of Detroit Adventure, a coalition of cultural organizations founded in 1958 to promote cultural conversations and experiences in metropolitan Detroit. In 1973 the organization debuted Noel Night, a free holiday open house in Detroit's cultural center. read more »

[Podcast] Detroit Remains: Using Historical Archeology to Connect Detroit’s Past to Its Present

teller — Thu, 19 May 2022 09:30:11 -0400

Dr. Krysta Ryzewski explains how historical archaeology digs at famous Detroit locales – including the Little Harry speakeasy, the Blue Bird Inn, and the Grande Ballroom – have clarified how underrepresented communities of Detroit experienced and responded to the Great Migration, changing economic forces, and a shifting political and social landscape in the 20th century. read more »

[Podcast] Detroit vs. Everybody: Exploring Race, Place, and Black Superheroes in DC Comics

teller — Mon, 06 Jun 2022 13:46:00 -0400

Dr. Vincent Haddad explains that while Detroit has often served as the inspiration for crime-ridden settings in comics, DC Comics rose above those stereotypes with black superheroes Amazing-Man in the 1980s series All-Star Squadron and the Cyborg solo series in the 2010s. He describes how those two series represented Detroit and issues of race, policing, and culture in a more historically-informed and nuanced manner. read more »

[Podcast] Uncovering Detroit Sound: Sippie Wallace and Son House in the Folklore Archives

teller — Thu, 02 Jan 2020 11:27:45 -0500

Archivist Bart Bealmear explains how he rediscovered recordings of famed African American blues musicians Sippie Wallace and Son House buried in the Reuther Library's Folklore Archives. read more »