Collections: mss

From 1987 through early 1988, Daniel and Joyce Stokes published Into the Night, “a newsletter for freedom for political prisoners held in the United States.” Based in Brooklyn, N.Y., this simply-produced publication offered updates and commentary on Americans imprisoned for politically-motivated acts. Reflecting both the legacy of 1960s radicalism and the resurgent activism associated with U.S. imperialism in Central America, Into the Night offered news on the Ohio 7 sedition trial, the MOVE organization, and the fate of Plowshares war resisters.

The Stokes collection contains correspondence from subscribers and supporters of Into the Night, fleshing out their political philosophy and the conditions of imprisonment. Drawn from groups including the MOVE organization, the United Freedom Front, Black Liberation Army, and Plowshares, the correspondents include Ramona Africa, Alberto Aranda, Philip Berrigan, Marilyn Buck, Carl Kabat, Ray Luc Levasseur, Ruchell Cinque Magee, and Carol Manning. The collection also includes copies of other radical publications and a complete run of Into the Night itself.

A native of Barnstable County, Mass., John Stone was born on July 18, 1809, and spent the entirety of his brief life in the town of North Dennis. A general storekeeper and merchant who dealt in lumber and building materials, Stone married Elizabeth Downes on Dec. 8, 1832, only to see her die barely a year later. He married a second time to Isabella Nickerson Thomas (ca.1838?), with whom he had one son, John M. Stone, in 1839. Just 34 when he passed, John Stone died on May 18, 1843.

This volume is comprised of a number of miscellaneous accounts kept by Stone, and because there are no page numbers, the exact nature of the book is difficult to discern, however these include inventories of goods (apparently at Stone’s store) and some records of expenditures.

A Quaker worship group was established in Storrs, Conn., in 1956, under the care of Hartford Monthly Meeting. It was granted status as a monthly meeting in 1963 as part of Connecticut Valley Quarter.

This small collection contains minutes from the business meetings of Storrs Monthly Meeting, 1980-1993 (with some gaps), and a membership directory, 1994.

Club that met weekly or bi-weekly in Storrsville, Massachusetts, to debate questions of local, national, and international interest including religion, abolition and slavery, human nature, penal reform, the lure of the West, intemperance, and war and peace. Single minutebook includes two versions of the constitution, proposed and debated questions, the teams, the outcome, and notations of any additional activities that took place during the formal meetings.

Temporarily stored offsite; contact SCUA to request materials from this collection.

Born in Oklahoma in 1941, Ellen Story served as the Associate Executive Director of the Family Council of Western Massachusetts for nearly 20 years before deciding to run for a seat in the Massachusetts House of Representatives in a 1992 special election. While in office, she was an advocate for a variety of women’s and social issues ranging from pay equity for women and transgender rights to health services. After 24 years representing the 3rd Hampshire District, Story announced she would not seek another term in 2016.

The bulk of the collection consists of background research and publications related to various issues that went before the Massachusetts state legislature. Also included are reports, administrative and office files, and constituent files.

Established by Laurie Block and John Crowley in 1989, Straight Ahead Pictures is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to developing innovative multimedia presentations about topics in American history and culture. Working in film, video, radio, and print, Straight Ahead Pictures has often focused on the cultural history of the body, and especially the meaning of fitness, disability, health, and related concepts. They are the sponsor of the Disability History Museum, a virtual resource containing primary documents, educational materials, and exhibits.

The film and video that comprises the bulk of the Straight Ahead Pictures collection was collected, used, and produced by the company in its productions. The collection also contains several linear feet of research materials, publications, and ephemera including newsletters and publications from disability rights organizations, historical ephemera, and magazines centered on the concepts of fitness and health.

Operator of a sawmill and gristmill in Southampton, Massachusetts, later an owner of tenements and other real estate in Westfield, Massachusetts. Includes lists of gristmill and sawmill products, the method and form of payment (cash, barter for goods, or services such as sawing or hauling), real estate records, and miscellaneous personal records (school, clothing, board, and travel expenses for his niece and nephew; accounts for the care and funeral of his father-in-law and the dispensation of his estate; a Strong family genealogy; town of Westfield agreements and expenses; a list of U.S. bonds that Strong bought; and money lent and borrowed, among others).

Children and nurse in isolation ward in hospital. ca.1915

45 4×6 and 5×7 glass plate negatives of photos of buildings, homes, farms, animals, nature scenes in and around the Worcester, MA area. Locations include a children’s isolation ward, Jersey Stock Farm, Bordon Robertson’s farm, cold storage building, Bordon Robertson’s house, Baldwin Apple Blossoms Charlie Fosters (Corrs Reservoir), Oakdale Brook, Otis Davis house, Oakdale in West Boylston, Hadley Furniture Company Building in downtown Worcester, MA, and the Fogg Library in South Weymouth, MA.

The photos were discovered by the parents of Stuart Barlow in 1960 upon the acquisition of their home outside of Worcester. The photographer’s are unknown.

Founded in 1975 by Pir Vilayat Inayat Khan, The Abode of the Message is the headquarters for members of the Sufi Order International. Sitting on 430 acres, formerly the site of a Shaker Village in New Lebanon, New York, the Abode was settled by 75 adults and 20 children coming from all over the United States. The Sufi Order initiates spent the first several months preparing for the arrival of winter, a task that required much effort since buildings were in need of repair, there was no central heating system or updated electrical wiring, and few bathrooms. Within a year, the community prospered with the establishment of woodworking, stained glass, and sewing shops, a bakery, and a small school. Today, the community is smaller in number, but their mission remains the same: to collectively embody spiritual awakening.
The collection consists chiefly of publications produced by the Abode, including two newsletters Connections and The Messenger dating from the 1970s to the present. Also represented are other Sufi Order publications, such as Heart & Wing and Mureed’s Newsletter.

Cover of Avatar volume 1, number 4

Suzanne Petrucci (neé Karson / AKA Suzanne Beardsley) was the Distribution Secretary for the Boston underground newspaper, Avatar, which was published out of the Fort Hill Commune in Roxbury and led by Mel Lyman, the controversial folk musician, spiritual leader, and writer. The initial run of Avatar ran from 1967-1968 and published 24 issues until a split developed amongst the staff. The Avatar offices moved from Fort Hill to Rutland Street in the South End. A 25th issue was published and partially distributed before the remaining copies were stolen by the Fort Hill contingent. Shortly after this incident, an Avatar board member, David Wilson, of the music publication Broadside, and Charles Giuliano, a writer for the paper, resumed publication during the summer of 1968. Eventually, Lyman resumed publication of a new American Avatar which ran through 1969. A New York edition also ran simultaneously in 1968 and 1969. Petrucci donated a complete run of volume one of the newspaper in 2023.

The collection consists of an entire run of volume 1 of Avatar, consisting of issues 1-24 and the “lost” issue 25. Also included are a selection of issues from volume 2 as well as issues from the New York edition. Issues of the Los Angeles Free Press and Rolling Stone that contain stories about Mel Lyman and the Fort Hill Commune are also included.