Series 01: Personal Papers (COLL300)

The ‘Personal Papers --- 1829–1995’ series contains certificates, personal and academic papers, essays, notes, speeches, maps, treatises, records, poems, news clippings, articles, constitutions, event programs, photographs, a genealogy, an autobiography, a biography, beekeeping rules, an attendance record, and a passenger list. It covers much of the Van Raalte family’s personal history, from their lives in the Netherlands to traveling to the United States; from becoming American citizens, to the upbringing of Van Raalte’s students and children. Yet there are also extensive articles detailing the Dutch colony in Michigan and Reformed Church history, especially in relation to the Afscheiding movement.