The A. Curtis Wilgus Papers document the pioneering efforts by historian and author A. Curtis Wilgus (1898-1981) in the area of Latin American studies and the emergence of "Pan Americanism." The correspondence, writings, research files, photographs and other materials also document the evolution of a trend in higher education during the 1920's and the 1970's, an increase in global awareness reflected in the introduction of "area studies" programs at many universities.
The historical blueprints and the drawings of UM buildings are important components of the University Archives. The items in the collection are identified by building name, architect, location, types of materials, and date. Materials range in date from the earliest days of the University in the 1920s to current day materials.
The Theodore Spicer-Simson Collection contains the Spicer-Simson medallions as well as photographs, correspondence, typescripts and other related material.
The bulk of the collection consists of the Spicer-Simson medallions. These are portrait medallions cast in bronze of major world and literary figures from Spicer-Simson's lifetime. All of these were sculpted from life. Notable among these are David Fairchild, Padraic Colum, Henry Ford, Sir Ernest Rutherford, Sherwood Anderson, Theodore Dreiser, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and other important figures in addition to person friends and family members of Spicer-Simson.
The collection contains many other examples of Spicer-Simson medals in the form of medals, awards, and sculptings that Spicer-Simson created. Included in these are medals sculpted for the National Academy of Sciences, Princeton University, the Guggenheim Foundation, and the U.S. Congress. The collection also contains clay and plaster molds of medallions, including some small pieces of sculpture. In addition to all his sculpture and medallions, the collection contains examples of Spicer-Simson's other artwork in the form of sketches, drawings, and bookplates.
Spicer-Simson's autobiography, A Collector of Characters is held in the collection, along with the typescripts of the book. The collection's correspondence includes correspondence from Hervey Allen, Padraic Colum, H.L. Mencken, Eleanor Roosevelt, Sir Ernest Rutherford, and Marjory Stoneman Douglas. The photographs include mostly photographs of medallions and sculpture, including some not in the collection, but also contain many photos of Spicer-Simson's subjects, some of these mounted and autographed.
The Cuban Postcard Collection consists of postcards of Cuba and the Cuban exile experience produced from the turn of the 20th century to the present. It includes real photo, printed photo, and artist drawn postcards and provides views of many parts of the island as well as various aspects of Cuban communities in the United States and abroad. This collection is divided into six series in eight boxes, described below.
Gareth and Janet Dunleavy were historians of Irish literature and culture. The Gareth and Janet Dunleavy Collection was donated by Gareth and Janet Dunleavy in memory of Bernard Benstock, a colleague who served the University of Miami in many capacities.
The collection contains typescripts and articles by Gareth and Janet Dunleavy, as well as research materials for projects by both authors. Prominently featured are research materials on Mary Lavin, an Irish short story and novella writer who died in 1996. Of special interest among these research materials are copies of Lavin's working manuscripts, obtained by Professor Janet Dunleavy in the 1970s with the permission of Mary Lavin. Janet Dunleavy had planned a critical study of Lavin's work based on these materials, but had abandoned the idea. The collection also contains notes, letters, and other documents assembled during Gareth and Janet Dunleavy's preparation of their Douglas Hyde: A Maker of Modern Ireland (1991) and O'Connor Papers (1977).
The majority of the collection consists of official publications documenting a variety of facets of Perón's political career, including his involvement in the 1943-1946 military government, his first two presidential terms (1946-1955) and his third (1973-1974). Most of these official publications are reports on his policies and political activities, his own writings, or transcripts of speeches. Several of these record conjoined efforts by Perón and Eva, his well-known first wife, as well as with Chilean president Carlos Ibáñez Del Campo.
Also contained in the collection are pamphlets and other materials which treat Peronism (or Justicialism) and its critics; two series of satirical pro-Peronist periodicals called "Alpargatas Humorísticas" (6 issues) and "Descamisada" (31 issues); 8 postcards which depict aspects of Eva Perón's social work; two paper masks of Juan Domingo Perón and Eva Perón; two autographed photographs of Juan Domingo Perón and Eva Perón; and other ephemera.
Charles Deering was a collector of art and a friend to many notable artists including John Sargeant and Augustus St. Gaudens. Painting, scrulpture, prints, rugs and many other items combined to decorate and furnish the Deering Estate in Florida. He collected a wide range of artwork, and the Print Department of the Art Institute of Chicago received his fine collection.
