Eighty years ago this month as WWII came to an end Lansing area manufacturers were scrambling to return to normalcy and production of civilian goods including automobiles.

Michael Rodriguez, author of R.E. Olds and Industrial Lansing (Arcadia, 2004), and the producer of the film R.E. Olds and the First Auto City (Films on Demand, 2019) will present a program on WWII manufacturing in Lansing, 6:30 p.m., Thursday, September 11 at the Rogers Carrier House, 528 N. Capitol on the campus of Lansing Community College. At 6:00 p.m. an election of HSGL Trustees and Officers will be held.

Rodruguez, who is also a Librarian at MSU, is the curator of an exhibit on WWII manufacturing that will open at the RE Olds Transportation Museum in 2025.

His presentation is a preview of that exhibit and topics include the amount of production in terms of government contracts, subcontracting, the role of women, “E” awards from the government and  labor/management relations, the unexpected “heroes” of production, housing issues, transportation, the questioning of capitalism, and reconversion to civilian production.

The event is free and open to the public and sponsored by the MSU Federal Credit Union.

The Historical Society of Greater Lansing is hosting a program on American Indian Boarding Schools 10:30 a.m., Saturday, July 19 at the Rogers Carrier Home on the campus of Lansing Community College, 528 N. Capitol, Lansing.

Noted Native American lecturer and indigenous artist Dr. Suzanne Cross will shine light on the history of the American Indian Boarding School program in the United States with a focus on the Mt. Pleasant Indian School and Holy Childhood School in Harbor Springs. Cross is a descendant of a family that was incarcerated at the Mt. Pleasant School.

Michigan had three federally funded Indian Boarding Schools; one in Mt. Pleasant which opened in 1892 and closed in 1932.  Another, Holy Childhood, located in Harbor Springs and administered by an order of Catholic Nuns operated for more than 100 years. The other, The Old St. Joseph Orphanage and School in Baraga was in operation from 1880 until the 1950s.

The intent of Schools was to train Native Children to fit into the white culture, but the schools were a brutal experience for the children who were often snatched from their homes.

Dr. Suzanne Cross has taught at MSU, Central Michigan University, Arizona State University, and The Saginaw Chippewa Tribal College.  During her career she has held membership in the CSWE Board of Directors, Native American Indian Task Force, and received the Mit Joyner Gerontology Award from the National Association of Baccalaureate Social Work Program Directors for her work with American Indian Elders. She served on the NASW Health & Aging Committee and published an article, "U.S. Indian Industrial Boarding Schools:  Trauma Impact on American Indian/Alaskan Native Elders and Their Families. 

During her tenure at MSU, she organized faculty, staff, students, and Native American communities to develop the Michigan Indian Day Event, (now in its 29th year). Since her retirement, she has continued with research topics and lectures on the U.S. Indian Boarding School Historical Trauma, Heart Disease, and The Value of Healing. 

Additionally, she continues her creation of Native American beadwork, shawl, and skirt-making with shows in 11 States, Canada, and invited to show two shawls in Venus, Italy.

Join the HSGL for a historical walking tour of Seymour Avenue in Downtown Lansing. The tour will begin at St. Mary’s Cathedral at 219 Seymour Ave. and proceed north for several blocks and feature a number of historic structures, including the former St. Mary’s Convent. Further information to come.

Just in time for those long drives to the Upper Peninsula, the Historical Society of Greater Lansing is hosting a showing of "Our Bridge at 50," a video which shows the planning, construction, and opening of the Mackinac Bridge. The film, which was first previewed in 2007, will be shown Thursday, June 19, at 6:30 p.m., at the Rogers-Carrier House, 528 N. Capitol Ave on the campus of Lansing Community College. Roberts Wilks, one of the producers and videographers on the project, will be on site to answer questions. The event and parking is free both on the street and nearby LCC lots.  

“Our Bridge at 50” is a 40-minute film that was made in 2007 by the photo and video unit of the Michigan Department of Transportation.  It was produced at the request of the Mackinac Bridge Authority to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the opening to traffic of the Mackinac Bridge, which occurred on November 1, 1957. The video was shown to an audience in St. Ignace, during the 50th anniversary celebrations, which took place jointly in Mackinac City and St. Ignace on Saturday, July 28, 2007. The title of the video acknowledges the fact that most Michiganders feel that the Mackinac Bridge represents their state and their own sense of identity and that it is their bridge.

The video has hardly been seen since its original screening 18 year ago. Because of certain copyright restrictions, it cannot be uploaded to the internet but can only be shown to live audiences. It will be introduced by Bob Wilks, who worked for MDOT at the time and who video-graphed  and edited the video. “We were very lucky in many ways”, says Wilks. “We had an excellent team in the video unit in 2007. Dawn Garner wrote an imaginative, well-researched and beautifully-paced script. Bob Felt helped schedule interviews, which included interviews with several of the men who had actually worked on the bridge. You can feel their sense of pride and happiness as they look at the bridge. They seem hardly able to believe that they actually welded the girders, manipulated the cables and otherwise helped to build that magnificent structure.”  

“As an additional stroke of luck, in the year 2000, Mr. Larry Rubin, who had been the first Executive Secretary of the Mackinac Bridge Authority and who was a noted author of several books about the bridge, happened to visit our unit from his home in Mackinac City, looking for historic bridge photographs. I had never met him but knew who he was and asked him if, while he was in the building, he would be willing to sit for a video interview. At that time he was an enthusiastic, dynamic, 88-year-old gentleman who seemed delighted to recall his memories of how the bridge had come together. By the time the 50th anniversary rolled around, Mr. Rubin was 95-years-old and using a wheelchair for mobility. We reviewed the interview footage we had, and decided it was perfect for our needs and there was nothing to be gained by contacting him again for an interview in 2007.”

Although the video contains several references to the fact that the bridge is now 50-years-old, that inaccuracy does not seem to diminish the enjoyment of the video. It’s still our bridge at 68.  

Bio

Bob Wilks is a retired videographer and editor. He was born in Olivet, Michigan and during his high school years, every Friday or Saturday night you could find him at the State Theater in Olivet, enjoying one of the Hollywood movies that arrived at the theater weekly. He sometimes borrowed his mother’s silent 8mm movie camera and tried to imitate some of the scenes he had viewed, persuading his high school buddies to be actors. He decided he wanted to become a “filmmaker”.

Bob took film classes at Michigan State University and worked at the Instructional Media Center there as an assistant to the film editor, Gunter Pfaff, who was a great mentor, teacher and influence to Bob .

After graduating from MSU in 1967, he spent two years in the Peace Corps in the state of Madhya Pradesh, India, working with that state’s water-well drilling program (and recording some of his experiences on silent 8mm movie film).

Bob returned to Olivet in 1970 and had stayed in touch with Gunter Pfaff, who was by then working with the MSU College of Human Medicine’s Biomedical Communication Center. Gunter helped Bob get a job working with him in the unit.

Bob eventually decided that there was no such thing as a “filmmaker”. It was always a team of people with a variety of talents who made movies, and he was always happy to be a part of such a team.  

During his career,  Bob worked for WKZO TV in Kalamazoo, the Arthroscopy Video Journal/Comm Video Productions in Lansing, the Educational Institute Of The American Hotel and Motel Association in Lansing and the Michigan Department of Transportation, once again, in Lansing.

His years with MDOT coincided with three important anniversaries, and he was involved with making videos that celebrated each of these occasions. One of these milestones occurred when the Mackinac Bridge turned 50-years-old, and another when the International Bridge between Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan and Sault Ste. Marie, Canada also had a 50th anniversary. The Michigan Department of Transportation itself turned 100-years-old during his time there.

Bob has been married for 50 years to his wife, Charlotte, and the couple has two daughters, Molly Degle and Stephanie Leite, as well as a 9-year-old granddaughter, Moema Leite.

On Thursday, August 27, 7:00 p.m., in honor of the Sesquicentennial of the Lansing Woman’s Club, a walking tour will be held of important sites in downtown Lansing with connections to pioneering women in the city. It will cover the gamut from authors to elected officials. The tour will be led by Valerie Marvin, State Capitol Historian, and will leave from the original Lansing Women’s Club Building at 118 W. Ottawa.

On Tuesday, August 13 at 6:30 p.m. a walking tour of N. Capitol Ave will start at the Rogers Carrier House at 528 N. Capitol and will include stops at the Bohnet Home and the Mauer Foster Home, both residences of Lansing auto pioneers. The tour will conclude with a tour of the interior of the Herrmann House on the campus of lansing Community College led by LCC President Steve Robinson.

On Wednesday, August 7 at 6 p.m., tour the “origin stories” exhibit at the Library of Michigan, Lake Erie Room and meet some amazing Lansing residents. The exhibit features inspirational biographies in print and video of nearly 50 former and current Lansing area residents like Lucile Belen, William and Vellmerie Turner, Martha Dixon, The Sheik, batman Charles Zmuda, and Geneva Wiskemann. The “origin stories” exhibit is underwritten in part by the Michigan Humanities.

Join the Historical Society of Greater Lansing in a return to Old Town for a historical walking tour for the first time in many years. HSGL trustee Harrison Leffel-Jones will guide attendees on a tour of some of the architectural and business history in the area. The tour will be held on Saturday, June 29, at 10:00 a.m. beginning at the corner of North Washington and E. Cesar E. Chavez Avenues in Old Town, 100 E. Cesar E. Chavez Ave. 

On Thursday, June 27, 6:30 p.m., at the Library of Michigan, Lake Erie Room, a program on family photo identification and preservation will be given. Presented by Michigan State Capitol Photo Archivist and HSGL board member Jacob McCormick.

On Thursday, June 20, 6:30 p.m., at the Library of Michigan, Lake Erie Room, librarian and author Christine Byron and Sophia Brewer, Serials and Collection Development Librarian, Grand Rapids Community College, will present a program on “Senator” Joe Ford and Emma Ford. Joe was the Keeper of the Senate Cloak Room at the State Capitol for decades. Ford emerged from Slavery to become an important administrator from 1881-1937 in Lansing. Emma was equally involved in her communities, owning a restaurant on Mackinac Island.

On Saturday, June 8, 10:00 a.m., at the Library of Michigan, 2nd Floor, Adam Oster, librarian at the Library of Michigan, will present the Family History Research and Tour at the Library of Michigan.

Learn the basics of researching your family's history through the collections of the Library of Michigan. Join us as we review the Library’s wide range of material that can help you uncover your Michigan roots. Discover online resources available with a Library of Michigan Library Card and enhance your search strategies for navigating both print and digital records. A tour of the collections will follow the presentation.

The Ingham County Historical Commission recently published a book on Ingham County Rural One Room Schools, which features all sixteen townships in the county, including Lansing. ICHC secretary and editor of the book, Audrey Z. Martini, will present on the book, project, and discuss county one room schools with a special angle on Lansing’s rural and independent districts. The program will be held on Saturday, June 1, 1:00 p.m., at the Library of Michigan, Lake Erie Room.

On Thursday, May 16, 6:30 p.m., the HSGL will present The Bath School Disaster: America’s First School Terrorism Attack, Revisited. The program will be held at the Library of Michigan, Lake Erie Room, with lecturer George B. Robson, son of the young man who was the 1927 Senior Class President and Valedictorian and a young woman, a sophomore at Bath School - both survivors of the tragedy.

On Saturday, May 11, 2:00 p.m., at the Library of Michigan, Lake Erie Room, Mitch Lutzke, president of the Williamston Depot Museum, will discuss his new book and relate the story of Kathlene Frances Fowler of Williamston, who, during the Harding Administration, was one of the most important women in public service in Washington D.C. She would later become social secretary to First Lady Harding and work in numerous positions in Washington D.C.

The HSGL again welcomes archivists from the Michigan State University Archives and Historical Collections for a historical walking tour on MSU’s campus, this time featuring West Campus. More information to come.