Explore collections from the Manuscripts and Graphics Divisions made available this month in our most recent blog post: myumi.ch/pV5m1

🚨 Don’t miss your chance! Applications for fellowships at the Clements Library are due this Thursday. 🚨 We’re known for our Revolutionary War collections, but did you know we offer fellowships supporting research in areas like Native American history, early American journalism, and band history?

How well do you know the Clements Library? 🤔 Test your knowledge! #ClementsTrivia #MichiganTrivia #UMTrivia #Trivia

Sarah Donovan spent months here at the Clements after being awarded the Jacob M. Price Fellowship, diving deep into our incredible early Americana collections and uncovering fascinating stories for her dissertation.

Merry Christmas Eve! 🖼️: Christmas eve : home scene--with presents / painted by J.L. Krimmel ; engraved by John Sartain, Philada. Based on John Lewis Krimmel's oil painting titled "Return from market." [ca. 1870]

As Hanukkah celebrations enter their final night, the Clements Library wishes all who are celebrating a happy holiday filled with peace and joy. Happy Hanukkah! 🕎

On #ThisDayInHistory in 1913, a crossword puzzle was published for the first time in the “New York World” newspaper. To celebrate, we created our very own “Clements Crossword” including Clements vocab relating to our history, our work, and our collections!

Tomorrow is the Winter Solstice! ❄️ Here is a nice reminder of the warmth we find in spring and summer, the changing leaves in fall, and the beautiful yet icy sights in winter. Stay warm everyone! 🧣 📷: David V. Tinder Collection of Michigan Photography, Real Photo Postcard Series

Two is always better than one! 👭 Happy #NationalTwinDay to all those who celebrate life side-by-side with their built-in best friend! 📷: ⁨Daguerreotype of two young women posing with song book. [1840s-50s].

On #ThisDayinHistory in 1773, tea was spilled…. Into the Boston Harbor. ☕ The Boston Tea Party was an early moment in the American Revolution against British rule, and is described by Hewes in “A Retrospect of the Boston Tea-Party” ca. 1784. #AmericanHistory

⏳ Just one month left! Applications for Clements Library fellowships are due one month from today. Apply by January 15, 2026 for consideration: myumi.ch/qVjr4 #Fellowships #FundedFellowships #ResearchFellowships #UniversityofMichigan #HistoryResearch #AmericanHistory #GoBlue

Today is #NationalHorseDay, a celebration of the impact these beautiful animals have had on American history and culture. 📷: David V. Tinder Collection of Michigan Photography, Real Photo Postcard Series

Graduate student book cataloger Naomi Yu has been churning out catalog records all semester, and these five publications caught her eye! Read on to learn about the adventurous Captain Jack, phrenology in the Clements collections, and famous American counterfeiters. 🔗 myumi.ch/JPyVq

The Battle of Great Bridge was 250 years ago today. This map—"A view of the Great Bridge near Norfolk in Virginia where the action happened between a detachment of the 14th Regt: & a body of the rebels"—is from the collection @clementslibrary.bsky.social #history #OTD #ushistory #booksky

It’s #NationalPastryDay everyone ! 🥐 The New Rumford Bread and Pastry Cook (1893) provides several recipes that includes Rumford Yeast Powder, which they called “the best and most economical baking powder in the world.” #Baking #CulinaryHistory

The Manuscripts Division has published one final batch of finding aids for 2025! As always, these collections are available for anyone to research! Read about these newly processed collections here: myumi.ch/QwAej

Time is running out to see the “For All Ages” exhibit in person! Visit any weekday from 12-4 pm now through December 23, or join us for a guided tour a week from today! Register now: myumi.ch/P3qz1

Happy #NationalWildlifeConservationDay 🐅🐒 Now known as the Seney National Wildlife Refuge , the US Wildlife Refuge in Germfask, Michigan is celebrating its 90th birthday later this month! 📷: David V. Tinder Collection of Michigan Photography, Real Photo Postcard Series (myumi.ch/E8k4g)

Happy #wrapped day! Here are some adoptable and adopted tunes that have been stuck in our heads lately. By supporting the Clements Library’s Adopt a Piece of History program, you help fund acquisitions, conservation, digitization, and other important initiatives.

HUGE thank you to everyone who made #GivingTuesday such a success! In just one day, we were able to raise over $19,000 from 63 donors! 💙💛 Your contributions will support conservation initiatives across the Clements collections. Stay tuned!

Today, 12/2, you can play a role in preserving the rare items that define our exceptional collections. Hear Conservator Julie Fremuth discuss the importance of conserving these pieces of Americana, and give today to support conserving collections at Clements: myumi.ch/15Jpd #GivingTuesday

#GivingTuesday is only one day away! Your gift tomorrow will support conservation efforts such as the rebinding, stabilization, and rehousing of fragile one-of-a-kind primary sources, making them available now and for future generations.

It’s #MaizeDay! 🌽: Example of early photo manipulation from the David V. Tinder Collection of Michigan Photography, Real Photo Postcard Series.

The early trivia game “World’s Educator” (W.S. Reed Toy Co. 1887) utilizes a spinning wheel to point players towards the answers to various questions. #Trivia

The Clements Library’s gorgeous architecture has been the subject of many pieces of University of Michigan memorabilia over the years. The building has been depicted in many illustrations, photographs, and, as described in our latest blog post, a plate, tile, and place mat!

Each card in the matching game of "Old Maid and Old Bachelor" (1892) features a comical cast of characters, including the pictured Miss Everlasting Piano Thumper, Mr. Greathead, and the titular “Old Maid.”

Happy #NationalButterDay! 🧈 📷: From the David V. Tinder Collection of Michigan Photography, Real Photo Postcard Series.

As it's Sunday, I thought I'd share this print from ca. 1711 titled, "A nonconformist minister" by artist "Marcellus Larson. From the fascinating collections @clementslibrary.bsky.social. #history #art #booksky

When you acquire a rare atlas from 1570, and it's in rough shape, you call in the experts — the team in our Conservation Lab. Read about the first steps taken to repair Abraham Ortelius’s Theatrum Orbis Terrarum (Theater of the World). #MapMonday https://myumi.ch/y1ze8

“This is me with the old man We are coming to washington if he can steer it straight A nuff so get cofee redey now” 📷: David V. Tinder Collection of Michigan Photography, Real Photo Postcard Series (myumi.ch/E8k4g) #EarlyPhotography #Montages #Collaging

Spend a day with Clements Associate Curator of Manuscripts, Jayne Ptolemy! Want to learn more about Jayne’s path to the Clements and the work that she does here? Read the corresponding post on our blog, the Clements Chronicles: myumi.ch/w9eAk

An early trivia game, “Famous Paintings” (Cincinnati Game Co. 1897), involved players trying to collect sets of paintings or paintings of the same rank. Whoever collects the most cards by naming the paintings is declared the winner.

These early flashcards were used to educate children about geography both within and outside of the United States. Cards include information on longitude and latitude, relative location to other landmarks, capital towns, and population. #ChildrensBookWeek #AmericanHistory #ChildrensEducation

Dame Trot and Her Comical Cat (1851) illustrates a woman coming home to find her feline companion engaging in human-like activities. Each scenario is presented with a hand-colored wood engraving accompanying a short poem describing the behavior. #ChildrensBookWeek

“Metamorphosis, or a Transformation of Pictures with Poetical Explanations for the Amusement of Young Persons” (1807) is a unique and interactive children’s book, featuring folding pages that transform images and tell a story with religious and moral themes. #ChildrensBookWeek

Step by Step, or, Tidy’s Way to Freedom (1862) follows the story of a young enslaved girl named Tidy, and her mother, Annie. Through the hardships of slavery and all that she faces, Tidy is a symbol of hope throughout the story. #ChildrensBookWeek #AmericanHistory #AfricanAmericanHistory

Dolly at the Seaside ABC (1907) is a die cut children’s book illustrating a young girl on the beach with her beloved dolls. Accompanying each illustration is a short poem describing fun activities such as swimming, singing songs, and taking naps with its associated letter. #ChildrensBookWeek

From one of my fave archives, @clementslibrary.bsky.social: 11/21 tune in to their "Bookworm" series for "Native American Stories Reclaimed from the Archive," in recognition of #NativeAmericanHeritageMonth. Here below: one of their items from 1726. Click to register. #history #research #books

Today marks the start of Children’s Book Week! Follow along for a unique piece of historical children’s literature every day. The Cries of New-York (1830) illustrates peddlers roaming the streets trying to sell goods such as strawberries, milk, radishes, baked pears, and more in rhyming sequences.

Last night we had the pleasure of attending the premiere of “Sex Radical,” a docu-drama on early feminist and sex educator Ida Craddock. Not only did filmmaker Andy Kirshner conduct research at the Clements Library, but portions of the film were shot in our beautiful Norton Strange Townshend Room!

We are OBSESSED with all of your costumes from our Haunted Histories event last night! 🦇🎃 View more photos from the evening here: myumi.ch/2r2Z4

We have a special visitor at the Downtown Library today! Thanks, @davidzinn.bsky.social!

The first National Woman’s Rights Convention began on #ThisDayInHistory in 1850. Somewhere around 1,000 people attended this historic event in Worcester, Massachusetts, including those pictured here: Lucy Stone, Frederick Douglass, Sojourner Truth, and William Lloyd Garrison.

Just like today, historical board games aimed towards young children often combined education with activities that improve fine motor skills. In “The Magic Blackboard” (Circa 1900), notches on the tiles push down on a spring mechanism, revealing the name of the pictured animal.

The annual Ann Arbor Antiquarian Book Fair is only a week away! Tickets for this event are $5, but students get in free! Last year, Clements intern Milo Boatwright purchased “The Little Prince” as a gift for his mom. Stop by and see what treasures you can find!

Mrs. N.F. Mossell’s “The Work of the Afro-American Woman” (1894) is a collection of essays and poems recognizing the achievements of African American women. This book includes poems by women other than Mrs. Mossell, including the pictured “Afmerica” by Mrs. Mary Ash Lee. #BlackPoetryDay

We're ~hooked~ on your right to read. 🎣

“The Mansion of Happiness: An Instructive Moral and Entertaining Amusement” (Ives & Co. 1864), the first true board game in America, has players encounter virtues, vices, and other obstacles that help them move forward or away from the “Mansion of Happiness.”

Our newest exhibit, For All Ages, highlights familiar and unique toys and board games throughout American history. The exhibit was co-curated by Clements Curator of Maps & Graphics Sierra Laddusaw and Graphics Division Cataloger Jakob Dopp. Read about their experience here: myumi.ch/15kwy

The Clements Library is thrilled to welcome our new Head of Reader Services, Joshua Sulser! 📚 In this Q&A, we got a chance to learn more about his path to the Clements, his research interests, and his personal collections. Read the interview here: myumi.ch/G28wp