Heritage/Tradition
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The fraternity war
In the 1850s, students and professors went toe to toe over the advent of Greek-letter societies at Michigan, ‘a monster power which lays its hand upon every college faculty in our country.’
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See half a century of U-M football
College football fans now can view 420 Michigan games played between 1930-86. Originally recorded as team film, the Bentley Library annotated the silent footage to showcase specific action, including halftime shows.
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Bentley’s COVID-19 collection offers varied look at the pandemic
Student films. Journal entries. Tributes to hospital workers. The Bentley Historical Library’s COVID-19 collection provides a poignant glimpse of the pandemic’s impact on the U-M community. Contributions are welcome.
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‘No laughing matter’
Nearly 100 years before the 2020 coronavirus pandemic would unleash a wave of anti-Asian bias, a smaller but similar prejudice rippled across the U-M campus. It started with the 19th annual production of the Michigan Union Opera’s musical comedy, ‘Tickled to Death.’
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The fake news about James Neel
Upon his death in 2000, this pioneer in human genetics was lauded as one of U-M’s greatest scientists. But a post-mortem assault on his honor provides a cautionary tale of what can happen when ideas become weapons and an appetite for outrage overcomes the search for truth.
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The assassin’s widow
In the surreal days after the 1963 assassination of JFK, one Ann Arbor churchgoer sought to redeem the tragedy through a controversial – and secret – move. She invited Marina Oswald to U-M.
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Mysteries at Michigan
Before COVID-19, the college campus could be described as America’s ‘last idyll.’ Perhaps that is why so many mystery writers over time have set their tales of terror at a fictionalized University of Michigan.
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‘Of splendid ability’
In 1880, the parallel lives of a misguided scientist and U-M’s first Black female student revealed a contrast of white and Black, privilege and struggle, and more than anything words and actions.
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The strategic suffragist
When meeting with political adversaries, she made lace to appear ‘completely domestic.’ But Lucia V. Grimes, BA 1902/MA 1906, was a canny organizer who pioneered a legislative ‘pressure system’ that propelled ratification of the 19th Amendment. She even enlisted her daughter in the movement (above).