The Martha Cook Building records (circa 1913-2016) document the activities of those involved with the Martha Cook Building and include blueprints; chronological files; clippings; correspondence; financial records; minutes; reports; scrapbooks; subject files; and visual materials, such as negatives, photographs, and photograph albums.
Significant people and groups featured in this collection include William. W. Cook; various House Directors, such as Sarah Rowe, G.J. Diekema, Olive Chernow, Josette Allen, and Rosalie Moore; the building's Board of Governors and House Board; and Martha Cook Building students and alumnae. Other notable topics include the construction, furnishing and remodeling of the Martha Cook Building; various scholarships; and activities, such as various anniversary events and the Messiah Dinner.
The Martha Cook Building opened in the fall of 1915 as the second all-women's dormitory on the University of Michigan campus. It was a gift of Mr. William Wilson Cook, a lawyer-philanthropist from New York City who was born and raised in Hillsdale, Michigan. He graduated from the University of Michigan with A.B. and L.L.B. degrees before going on to work in Toledo and then New York City. He became a prominent lawyer and later wrote several books. The last years of Mr. Cook's life were spent studying, reading, writing, and supervising his building projects at the university, including the Martha Cook Building and the Law Quadrangle.
William Cook named the dormitory after his mother, Martha Wolford Cook. As her husband was often away, Martha Cook had the primary responsibility of raising their nine children, William being the third oldest. Mr. Cook was obviously inspired by his mother. The home he built for female students in her memory was intended to provide a unique atmosphere in which "the charm and grace and principles of cultured American womanhood" (Macklin and Chamberlain The Martha Cook Building, p. 4) would be developed. He felt that intellect was important, but he valued character and womanly grace above it.
The building itself was said to be the finest of its type in the nation at the time it was built. Various styles are represented throughout the building, ranging from the Gothic exterior to interiors from Early Renaissance and Tudor Gothic to furnishings from Jacobean and later periods. In one room hangs a life-size portrait of Martha Wolford Cook, which was intended "to portray an epoch in which the mother was queen in her home, respected for the simplicity of her manners and the greatness of her virtues" (ibid., 6). Furniture and accessories include Chinese pottery, sixteenth century Italian sofas, Jacobean chairs, oak tables, a replica of the Venus de Milo carved in Italy from Carrara marble, and a specially-designed Steinway piano inlaid with Circassian walnut. A statue of Portia stands over the front door.
Originally, residency in MCB was offered to senior women only. Eventually, other upperclassmen, graduate students, and freshmen were allowed to live there as well. Because there was often a lengthy waiting list, applicants were assigned points, in part based on their year in school and their grades, and were required to provide a biographical sketch of themselves. The point totals and sketches were used to determine who filled any vacancies that occurred. Over the years a number of Martha Cook Building traditions have developed, including a special dinner for new women in the fall, Friday afternoon tea, a "Messiah Dinner" near Christmas, the Christmas Breakfast, and a Senior Dinner.
Much of the historical sketch above was taken from The Martha Cook Building, by Wystan Stevens, 1976, and The Martha Cook Building, by Elaine Macklin and Tenney Chamberlain, 1970. Copies of both publications may be found in Box 8, under Histories.
Several scrapbooks--including Esther Kennedy's scrapbook, Scrapbook (1929-1946), and Scrapbook (1947-1961)--were treated by Conservation staff due to high acid, crumbling papers, and loose content. Additionally, the original material in the "Constitution minutes and other material" file underwent preservation photocopying due to the presence of mold/mildew.
In preparing digital material for long-term preservation and access, the Bentley Historical Library adheres to professional best practices and standards to ensure that content will retain its authenticity and integrity. For more information on procedures for the ingest and processing of digital materials, please see Bentley Historical Library Digital Processing Note. Access to digital material may be provided either as a direct link to an individual file or as a downloadable package of files bundled in a zip file.
Arranged in 12 series: 1. Papers. 2. Board of Governor's files. 3. Correspondence. 4. Administrative records. 5. Reports. 6. Activity files. 7. Visual materials. 8. Chronological files. 9. Minutes of the House Board. 10. Topical files. 11. Scrapbooks. 12. Martha Cook Alumnae Association (MCAA).
The Martha Cook Building records arrived in multiple accessions. The records of the first accession spanned the years 1913 to 1972 and were arranged in the order in which they were received. They covered a broad spectrum of subjects and include substantive records in the Board of Governors, William W. Cook, and the building itself. The first accession contains the following series: Board of Governors Files, Correspondence, Papers, Administrative Records, Reports, Activity Files, and Visual Materials. Records received in the 1993 accession span the years 1915 to 1990 but are primarily from 1973 to 1979 when Olive Chernow was director of the building. Records from the 2017 accession were largely incorporated into the arrangement structure established by previous processing archivists.
