The William Calhoun “Bill” Baggs Papers includes thirty-one boxes of correspondence, memoranda, clippings, photographs, diaries and other materials relating to the professional career of Baggs, a newspaper journalist, editor, and political commentator from the 1940s until his death in 1969. As a columnist and editor for the Miami Daily News, Baggs developed relationships with many prominent figures. The Baggs Papers, arranged in six series, totals thirteen cubic feet of materials. In addition to incoming correspondence, the files include hundreds of carbon copies of outgoing correspondence from Baggs to a variety of local, regional, state, national, and international politicians, journalists, and others.
Willard Hubbell was a South Florida architect and playwright. His collection contains several plays, clippings regarding and programs of the plays, architectural documents and correspondence, a blueprint titled "Cloth House No. 1," four issues of The American Eagle newspaper, a typescript titled "F. W. Munson - (Questionaire about Merritt Island)," a document titled "History of the Koreshan Unity" by A. H. Andrews, and other items.
This collection contains materials either created by or related to the University of Miami Student Publications Board. Materials include memos, minutes, training documents, newspapers, and policies and procedures manuals.
The Thomas G. Ennis collection contains 41 letters written to George Thompson from 1834 to 1838, largely concerned with business matters pertaining to iron forges; a 1929 Pennsylvania court record for John Kiner, sentenced for horse theft; a 1828 copy of appropriation for state penitentiary, Philadephia; several 19th century almanacs; and a number of 19th century newspapers, including one replica of the Saturday April 15, 1865 issue of the New York Herald, the day Abraham Lincoln's assassination was announced.
The Thomas de Valcourt and Michael Lerner collection contains materials concerning 19th century New England poets and authors, most prominently Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, but also Henry David Thoreau, Washington Irving, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Walt Whitman, and minor figures. Much of the materials - which predominantly consists of prints, photographs, clippings, photocopies, newspapers, periodicals, postcards, reprints, poetry, and other formats - concerns their famous New England homes and their families' homes, and other literary landmarks in the vicinity. Most of the materials date from the late 19th and early 20th century.
Also included are a scrapbook of clippings of poetry, a 1962 plaster cast bust of Henry David Thoreau by Melvina Hoffman, an 1864 ceramic bust of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow by M. Milmore, two paperweights with depictions of the Longfellow house, a brick noted as "being used by Thoreau when adding to the family house on Virginia Road in Concord," and one copper ashtray.
Contains ten issues of Mexican, Honduran, and Argentinian newspapers from the 19th century, and one cache of Mexican letters from the 19th century, including one signed by Porfirio Díaz, the President of Mexico from 1876 to 1880 and from 1884 to 1911.
The Spencer Family papers contains a number of personal items pertaining to various members of the Spencer family, in the form of books, clippings, journals, manuscripts, memorandums, news bulletins, newspapers, notebooks, pamphlets, periodicals, photographs, poetry, postcards, reports, and scrapbooks.
This collection currently contains several exhibit catalogs, mainly from the Sofía Ímber Contemporary Art Museum of Caracas (Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Caracas Sofía Ímber), DVDs featuring interviews with Sofía Ímber and covering famous Venezuelan and international artists, politicians, and writers, CD-Rs, a collection of fliers from local photography exhibitions in Coral Gables, newspaper clippings of articles either about or by Sofía Ímber or Guillermo Meneses, oversized exhibit posters, and digital correspondence and photographs stored in external hard-drives.
There will be further ongoing accruals to this collection.
Simón Daro Dawidowicz was a businessman and art collector who resided in Miami, Florida. A long-time resident of Colombia, Dawidowicz had a strong interest in Latin American liberator Simón Bolívar and his lasting influence on Latin America. Dawidowicz was a member of several Bolivarian societies, president of the Bolavarian Review, and founded the non-profit organization Darien Action Committee, which sought to promote the completion of the Panamerican Highway from Panama to Colombia. Dawidowicz had strong connections with several prominent Latin American artists including Leopoldo Richter and David Manzur. He was a curator as well as a collector of their and others' work, and donated a number of their pieces to museums and institutions including the University of Miami. A mural titled "Bolívar and Humboldt" by Leopoldo Richter was donated by Dawidowicz to the University, and currently stands in front of the Otto G. Richter Library.
The Simón Daro Dawidowicz Bolivarian collection contains items pertaining to all of the above pursuits and interests. Much of it is correspondence and official records, or newspapers clippings and photographs that document his activities. There are a number of audiocassettes and film reels, and a single videocassette as well.
Of particular interest are a bust of Simón Bolívar that Dawidowicz had commissioned as a gift for former President Lyndon Johnson, as well as a box containing photographs, photographic prints, brochures, periodicals, and other forms of material depicting the works of a number of Latin American artists. These include David Manzur, Leopoldo Richter, German Tessarolo, Marlene Hoffman, Enrique Grau, Edgar Silva, Armando Villegas, Patricia Tavera, Ràmon Carulla, and Miguel Rojas Niño. Some of these items are signed by the artists.
Two family members of Dawidowicz, Miriam and Sylvia, were curators and donors of Latin American art as well, and several documents detailing their efforts are held within the collection.
Finally, the collection contains assorted personal photographs and several short stories written by Dawidowicz.
Dr. Robert M. Levine (1941-2003) was the Gabelli Senior Scholar in the Arts and Sciences, Director of Latin American Studies, and professor of history at the University of Miami. Throughout his career, Dr. Levine exhibited a strong interest in Brazilian cultural and political history, Jewish Diasporas in Latin America, Cuban history, and Latin American history in general. His papers, donated to the University of Miami, reflect all of these interests in the form of video cassettes, periodicals, clippings, photographs, photocopies, notebooks, microfilm, microfiche, articles, and other materials.
Included in the collection are photocopies of a collection of records from the Jewish community of Curaçao in the 18th century; production materials and photographs pertaining to Dr. Levine's "Hotel Cuba" documentary on the Jewish Diaspora in Cuba; a dozen reels of microfilms of Brazilian newspapers from the 1930s; notes, photographs, and documentation from Dr. Levine's research on the Vargas period in Brazil; and two large, hand-drawn maps indicating Jewish establishments in the major commercial district of Old Havana during the pre-1959 period.
Between August 1964 and December 1968, the Rand Corporation, under contract to the U.S. Department of Defense, conducted approximately 2,400 interviews with Vietnamese who were familiar with activities of the Viet Cong and the North Vietnamese Army. Reports of these interviews, totalizing approximately 62,000 pages, constitute a rich source of information about political and military upheaval in a developing country, Vietnamese rural life, the Viet Cong and the North Vietnamese armed forces and many related subjects. The documents describe conversations with prisoners captured by South Vietnamese or U.S. forces, defectors who voluntarily left the Viet Cong or the North Vietnamese Army as well as refugees from battle areas. Many of the reports have a poignant, human quality; nearly all are informative about conditions in Vietnam. In December 1971, action was initiated to make these interview reports available to the public. The decision to provide access to these documents entailed a scrupulous double reading of all the reports and blocking out of information that might enable identification of the respondents.
The University of Miami holds approximate 1,780 (48,000 pages) out of the 2,400 interviews conducted under this study.
Conceived in 1932 by the original Orange Bowl Committee, the Orange Bowl was created as a popular tourism attraction for the New Year's Festival in Miami that would attract national publicity and bring more businesses and money to South Florida. This venture proved successful as the Orange Bowl celebration grew in both size and popularity, becoming a national extravaganza with their lavish parades, annual football games, and beauty pageants, all in an effort to create the "world's greatest half-time spectacle."
The first football game ever put on by the committee was in 1932 between the University of Miami Hurricanes and Manhattan College from New York City in what was then called the Festival of Palms Bowl. In 1935, the festival was renamed as the Orange Bowl and started featuring college football teams to participate based on their national rankings rather than offering a guaranteed position, and it was recognized by the NCAA as the first "official" Orange Bowl. The Orange Bowl stadium was created in 1937 to accommodate the game as well as the Miami Dolphins home games and several Super Bowls up until it was demolished in 2008, but it gained a prolific reputation as a local attraction during its lifespan in south Florida.
The Orange Bowl Records contains documents, financial and administrative files, scrapbooks, photographs, ephemera, pamphlets, newsclippings, audiovisual material, and 3D objects pertaining to the Orange Bowl Committee and their archives.
Ofelia González was an actress performing in theatre, mostly in Havana's Palacio de Bellas Artes and New York's Repertorio Español. She also acted in film and TV. The materials document her acting career especially her portrayals of Bernarda in The House of Bernarda Alba in New York, Nurse in Romeo and Juliet in New York, Serafina in The Rose Tattoo in Havana, Medea in Medea in New York, Amanda in The Glass Menagerie in New York, Celestina in Celestina in New York, Clara in The Visit in New York and Mother in The Guns of Mother Carrar in Havana.
The bulk of the material consists of photographs from performances and newspaper clippings with reviews of performances. The papers also include correspondence and memorabilia.
“In his adopted home of South Florida he imaged a cuisine that would wed the raw and rustic powers of the diverse immigrant cultures that comprise the population there to the classic techniques of gastronomy that have survived the test of time and trends. The revolution for a new style of cooking was born and Norman christened it a 'New World Cuisine.'” - Norman Van Aken, Correspondence, 1993 December 2.
A 2016 MenuMasters Hall of Fame Inductee, noted restauranteur, and the first chef to use the term "fusion cuisine" in its modern definition, Norman Van Aken (1951- ) is a celebrity chef primarily known for his "New World" fusion cuisine. Drawing from the flavors and culinary traditions of Latin America, the Caribbean, North America, Asia, and Africa, his impact on the culinary arts has been internationally recognized since the start of his career. His culinary influences on Florida's own local cuisine and restaurant culture are still observable to this day, especially to those who dine nightly at his Orlando restaurant.
This collection serves as a meaningful look into his career as a chef and culinary expert, and his personal life as a man with a deep interest in his family's past and present. The Norman Van Aken papers include documents, correspondence, photographs, manuscript drafts, menus, ephemera, recipes, and more, which showcase the personal life and professional career of one of South Florida's most celebrated chefs. Researchers with an interest in gastronomy, the history of South Florida's restaurant and food culture during the 1990s-2000s, or interpersonal relationships between celebrity chefs, may find this collection useful in their studies.
The Nicaragua collection documents the Nicaraguan diaspora living in Miami during the 1980s and the political and social conditions in Nicaragua from the 1979 Sandinista revolution onward until their loss of power in 1990.
Many of the materials falling into the latter category are from the United States in origin, such as anti-Soviet propaganda endorsing the anti-Sandinista "Contra" Freedom Fighters, pamphlets that describe the Sandinista government and Central America in general from an American perspective, and periodicals and reports about Nicaragua written to an American audience. The materials that document the Nicaraguan diaspora are mostly fliers, menus, calendars, brochures, and other genres that were from local Nicaraguan businesses, restaurants, clubs, and other organizations. Some of the materials transcend these two categories, as many that concern the political conditions are addressed to or produced by Nicaraguan exiles.
A large part of the collection consists of photocopies of news articles.
Writers that are especially represented by the collection include Ruben Dario, Esteban Duque-Estrada, and Luis Mejia Gonzalez. Associations and organizations that are especially represented include Alanzia Revolucionaria Democrática (ARDE), American Defense Foundation, American Defense Lobby. Asociación Nicaragüenses en el Exilio, Asociación Nicaragüense pro Derechos Humanos, Bloque Opositor del Sur (B.O.S.), Council for Interamerican Security, Fundación Ruben Dario, Nicaraguan American Solidarity (NICAS), Nicaraguan Freedom Fighters, Partido Conservador de Nicaragua, Partido Socialcristiano de Nicaragua en el Exilio, Resistencia Nicaragüense, and Unidad Nicaragüense Opositora (UNO). Materials from some of these were grouped together in a series titled "Associations."
Also of notice are brochures advertising tourism to Nicaragua during the Sandinista regime, and memorabilia such as a handmade Nicaraguan crest, Nicaraguan paper money from the Sandinista era, and a pin that says "If you like Cuba you'll love Nicaragua."
The Ethel E. Murrell Papers document the activities of the National Woman's Party (NWP) under her leadership from 1952-53. The files include correspondence, newsletters and other materials with other women's organizations including the General Federation of Women's Clubs, the World Woman's Party, the American Woman's Foundation, and the American Woman's Council. The papers document the cooperative efforts of these groups in working for the passage of the Equal Rights Amendment, including articles written from 1938 to 1953 publicizing the Amendment.
Charters, minutes, speeches, press releases, resolutions, and correspondence dated 1946-53 detail Murrell's efforts as a lawyer, writer and political organizer. The files also highlight NWP attempts to promote its agenda. The papers are significant as a record of activity during the 1940's and 1950's, years considered by many as a period of decline between the two larger feminist movements of the early twentieth century and the 1960's. The records also include references to cold war anticommunism. One letter of resignation, for example, dated June 17, 1953 expressed a sentiment characteristic of several members: "...I wondered...if the 'pinkos' had not taken over. I certainly do not want to be connected with any organization that does not stand for good Americanism."
The Michael L. Carlebach photography collection consists primarily of black and white photographic prints taken and personally hand developed by Professor Michael L. Carlebach. In general, the images are thematically grouped around journalistic pieces published in newspapers, or artistic topics such as portraits and landscapes. The collection also includes pieces shown in various exhibits as well as photographs made for special assignments like the George McGovern 1972 presidential campaign and the exclusive insider’s look at the Krome Avenue Detention Center for refugees in South Florida. Another highlight of the collection includes photographs dealing with the medical profession, especially children in hospital settings. In addition to photographing using 35mm black and white film, Carlebach shot color slides, vividly portraying the flora and fauna of the Everglades, historic structures such as Vizcaya Museum and Gardens, and news stories dealing with the environment. The entire collection consists of over 5,000 silver prints, color slides, and publications. Currently over 2,000 items are digitized and made available online.
This collection contains news clippings, periodicals, reports, memos, correspondence, minutes, notes, research, and transcriptions pertaining to the Miami Snowplow Company.
Marsha Matson is a council member of the city of Palmetto Bay and a former professor of the University of Miami who retired after teaching American government, local government, and public administration for 22 years. This collection consists of reports, correspondence, audio-visual materials, newsclippings, financial records and other documents pertaining to district and municipal zoning in Miami-Dade County and the incorporation of Doral.
