The Michigan Union button, a tiny symbol of loyalty pinned to the lapel, once held tremendous power for alumni. One 1904 graduate traveled around the world to replace the button he lost in World War II.

In 1965, U-M professors took the lead in stirring national opposition to the war in Vietnam. Their example inspired a new form of campus protest nationwide.

On a sad day in November, U-M foresters felled the Diag’s decayed ‘Tappan Oak,’ so named by the Class of 1858. But thanks to a solitary student, that is not the end of the story.

Herb Elfring, BS ’50, is one of the few remaining survivors of Japan’s 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor. At age 99, the Army radar specialist remembers this ‘day that will live in infamy’ as though it happened yesterday.

No, it wasn’t designed as a fortress against student radicals. But it could have been, based on architect Alden Dow’s ‘Michigan Modern’ aesthetic. The administration’s homely headquarters has gained few admirers since opening in 1968; now it’s staring down the wrecking ball.

When Fielding Yost infamously benched Michigan’s best player during one football game in 1934, he set in motion a one-dimensional narrative about the athlete. Now a digital exhibit at the Bentley explores Willis Ward’s expansive and complicated legacy.

The true tale of George Koval, ‘the atomic spy in America who got away,’ makes for enthralling narrative nonfiction in the hands of a gifted writer. Learn how author/journalist Ann Hagedorn, MLIS ’75, transformed mountains of research about this ‘hero of the Russian Federation’ into a compelling page-turner.

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.’

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.