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The American Indian Services (AIS) is a non-profit organization which administers Federal programs for Native American families in Southeast Michigan, predominantly in metropolitan Detroit. The collection primarily consists of photographs and newspaper clippings documenting events and projects put on by the organization. Records also include executive meeting minutes and records of legal actions taken by the AIS.

The American Indian Services (AIS) records primarily consist of board meeting minutes, legal documents, newspaper clippings, and photographs. While the collection contains material covering 1972 to 2016, the bulk of it documents the organization from 1994 to 2013. An Administrative folder contains new Board Member orientation packet as well as management reports. Four folders within the collection contain minutes from the AIS Board of Directors quarterly meeting from 1994 to 2016. The minutes discuss the various projects taken on by the organization as well as discussion of political events.

There are multiple folders covering legal action taken by the AIS protecting rights of Native Americans. Each folder covers a different lawsuit or legal action the AIS took part in. Folders include background, correspondence, drafts of legal records, and other documentation. The dates of these events range from the 1990s to the 2000s and cover disputes of how local, state, and national governments handle American Indian affairs. These include issues ranging from health care coverage to protection of local historical locations.

The collection contains numerous newspaper clippings collected by the organization. The articles span the years 2000 to 2008 and come from newspapers such as The Detroit News, The News-Herald, The Detroit Free Press, as well as local and more topical news sources in the area. Articles cover Native American related stories in Southeast Michigan and document the work of American Indian Services Executive Director Fay Givens. Folders with photographs from the 1990s and 2000s are grouped by event. One folder contains brochures and flyers from the organization advertising American Indian Services events.

Historian of American Indian history and literature, research associate at the Newberry Library, secretary of the Michigan Commission on Indian Affairs, and expert witness in legal cases involving Indian treaty rights. The collection contains correspondence, reports, clippings, and printed material concerning work of the Commission and status of Indians in Michigan; also depositions and other documents in the case of United States v. Michigan, landmark Indian fishing rights case.

The Helen Hornbeck Tanner papers are composed of ten series: Personal / Biographical; Correspondence; Articles and other writings; Research and Writing Projects; Conferences and symposia; Topical files; Michigan Commission on Indian Affairs; U.S. v. Michigan; Other Litigation; and Printed Material.

Richard L. Zurel is an archaeologist who has conducted research on Native Americans in Michigan. The Richard L. Zurel papers, 1914-2011, contain materials related to his work in the field of archaeology documenting Native American groups in Michigan, as well as materials related to his family history. The collection contains materials related to the Michigan Archaeological Society and the Aboriginal Research Club of Detroit.

The Richard L. Zurel papers, 1897-2011, contain research materials and photographs related to his archaeological work in Michigan, as well as printed materials and minutes of the Aboriginal Research Club of Detroit and of the Michigan Archaeological Society. Collection also contains Zurel family photographs depicting family members, as well as photographs and postcards depicting locations in the Upper Michigan Peninsula.

Historian and archivist at the University of Michigan, archivist of the United States, dean of the University of Michigan School of Information and Library Studies. Records, 1980-1985, detailing his activities as Archivist of the United States; documentation prepared by Warner in 1972 and submitted to the Indian Claims Commission relating primarily to Indian land claims in Michigan and Ohio; files detailing archival career interests, as director of the Michigan Historical Collections (now Bentley Historical Library) and as a member of the Society of American Archivists.

The Robert M. Warner Papers date from 1945 to 2007. These materials primarily highlight Warner's lengthy professional career, documenting his various teaching and administrative positions at the University of Michigan, his appointment as Archivist of the United States and the subsequent administration at the National Archives. Also documented is the appointment of his successor at the National Archives, his return to the University of Michigan as Dean of the School of Information and Library Science, and his activities on various boards and foundations after his retirement. Much of the records documenting his tenure as the director of the Michigan Historical Collections (now the Bentley Historical Library) can be found under the official Bentley Historical Library record group.

The Robert M. Warner collection has been divided into ten series: Biography; Correspondence; Indian Court Claims; National Archives; School of Information and Library Science and Dean of the Michigan Library Systems; Teaching Materials and Scholarly Research; Professional Activities, Speeches; Scrapbooks and Scrapbook Materials, and Audio-Visual Material.

Warren Petoskey is an Odawa and Lakotah elder. He is a writer, musician, dancer, and lectures on the history of American Indian boarding schools. The collection includes materials related to his professional and personal activities and interests, biographical and historical information, copies of genealogical records, as well as personal photographs and audio recordings.

The Warren Petoskey collection, 1873-2016, contains correspondence regarding presentations that Petoskey has held and his professional performance, copies of genealogy and family records, writings -- including his poetry, essays, and his published memoir, Dancing My Dream, --photographs of himself and family members, certificates for language learning and earned in the course of his work as an addictions counselor, and other materials that document Warren's life as an Odawa and Lakotah elder. The collection also includes an oral history interview audio recordings, the contents of an audio CD, Sacred Dream, with Native American music written and performed by Warren Petoskey, and an archived website for Petoskey's ministry, Dawnland Native Ministries.