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The History series, 1948-1997 (1.75 linear ft.), is an excellent source for understanding the genesis of the Phoenix Project and its evolution. A broad range of collected material provides an in-depth look into the earliest years of the project. For example, detached scrapbook pages covering the years 1947-1948 capture in reports, correspondence, press releases, and clippings, the efforts of the War Memorial Committee to envision, develop, and crystallize plans for a living memorial. Letters sent in response to a solicitation from Phoenix officials elicited various memorializing models from known figures such as E.B. White, C.S. Lewis, John Hersey, and Lewis Mumford. A letter from alumnus and Book-of-the-Month publisher Fred Smith, who proposed the concept that ultimately led to the development of the Phoenix Project, is also preserved in these files.

The records include papers documenting the purpose and structure of the Committee of 100, organized to encourage key alumni to participate in the campaign, and files providing evidence of the project as precursor to the university's Development Council To Evaluate the Future is a portion of a 1997 committee report to the Office of the Vice President for Research regarding the future of the Ford Nuclear Reactor. The report recommended that the operation be continued until a decision to relicense or shut down is required in 2005. The series also includes background material, presentation papers tailored toward potential donors, reports, speeches, notes, press releases, radio scripts, and clippings.