Dean Albertson’s 384-level History classes at the University of Massachusetts Amherst conducted interviews with social activists of the 1960s and early 1970s, participants and observers in the Springfield, Massachusetts North End riots of 1975, and war and nuclear power resisters. The collection includes transcripts of 15 interviews conducted during the years 1975-1977, as well as the students’ papers, which put the transcripts into context. See also the Dean Albertson Papers (FS 109).

Founded in 1977, the Association for Gravestone Studies (AGS) is an international organization dedicated to furthering the study and preservation of gravestones. Based in Greenfield, Mass., the Association promotes the study of gravestones from historical and artistic perspectives. To raise public awareness about the significance of historic gravemarkers and the issues surrounding their preservation, the AGS sponsors conferences and workshops, publishes both a quarterly newsletter and annual journal, Markers, and has built an archive of collections documenting gravestones and the memorial industry.

The AGS Books Collection contains scarce, out of print, and rare printed works on cemeteries and graveyards, epitaphs and inscriptions, and gravemarkers, with an emphasis on North America. The collection is divided into two series: Series 1 (Monographs and Offprints) and Series 2 (Theses and Dissertations).

Joseph and Martha Bajgier at Bell Market, Chicopee, 1937

On March 13, 1903, Joseph Michael Bajgier was born in Odrzykon, Poland, the youngest of three sons in a farming family. Schooled only through the third grade, Joseph served as a young man in the First Air Division of the Polish Army before following his older brother in emigrating to the United States in 1927. Settling in Chicopee, Mass., with its large and active Polish community, Bajgier began work as a slaughterer of pigs for a meat processing company, but within a few years, he had saved enough money to purchase a small grocery store in Longmeadow. In about 1935, he returned to Chicopee, purchasing a grocery and deli, Bell Market, that his family ran for 36 years. Bajgier was deeply involved in the local Polish community as a member of the Polish National Alliance, the Holy Name Society of St. Stanislaus Parish, and an organization of Polish veterans in exile (Stowarzyszenie Polskich Kombatantow). He and his wife Martha (Misiaszek) had two sons, Casimir and Edward

The Bajgier collection documents the lives of a Polish family in Chicopee, Mass., from the time of immigration through the 1970s. The core of the collection surrounds the life of Joseph Bajgier, and includes a number of documents and a diary from the time of his emigration in 1927, a fascinating series of letters from relatives in Turaszowka, Poland before and after the Second World War, and several photographs of the family and their business in Chicopee.

YPSL logo

In the early 1960s, Tom Barton (b. 1935) emerged as a leader in the Left-wing of the Young People’s Socialist League, the national youth affiliate of the Socialist Party. Deeply committed to the civil rights and antiwar struggles and to revolutionary organizing, Barton operated in Philadelphia, Chicago, and New York and was a delegate and National Secretary at the 1964 convention in which tensions within YPSL led to its dissolution.

A small, but rich collection, the Barton Papers provide a glimpse into the career of a long-time Socialist and activist. From Barton’s entry into the Young People’s Socialist League in the latest 1950s through his work with the Wildcat group in the early 1970s, the collection contains outstanding content on the civil rights and antiwar movements and the strategies for radical organizing. The collection is particularly rich on two periods of Barton’s career — his time in the YPSL and Student Peace Union (1960-1964) and in the Wildcat group (1968-1971) — and particularly for the events surrounding the dissolution of YPSL in 1964, following a heated debate over whether to support Lyndon Johnson for president. The collection includes correspondence with other young radicals such as Martin Oppenheimer, Lyndon Henry, Juan McIver, and Joe Weiner.

The protistologist Lea Bleyman has conducted research into the genetics, mating systems, and life cycles of ciliates. A former student of Tracy Sonneborn, Bleyman has served as past Secretary and President (2001-2002) of the Society of Protozoologists, and spent many years on the faculty of the Department of Natural Sciences at Baruch College.

The Bleyman Papers contain lab and research notes, abstracts of talks and conference materials, along with some correspondence and annual progress reports from Baruch College. The earliest materials in the collection relate to her years as a student in Sonneborn’s lab.

Broadside 6

A significant African American poet of the generation of the 1960s, Dudley Randall was an even more significant publisher of emerging African American poets and writers. Publishing works by important writers from Gwendolyn Brooks to Haki Madhubuti, Alice Walker, Etheridge Knight, Audre Lorde, Amiri Baraka, Nikki Giovanni, and Sonia Sanchez, his Broadside Press in Detroit became an important contributor to the Black Arts Movement.

The Broadside Press Collection includes approximately 200 titles published by Randall’s press during its first decade of operation, the period of its most profound cultural influence. The printed works are divided into five series, Broadside poets (including chapbooks, books of poetry, and posters), anthologies, children’s books, the Broadside Critics Series (works of literary criticism by African American authors), and the Broadsides Series. . The collection also includes a selection of items used in promoting Broadside Press publications, including a broken run of the irregularly published Broadside News, press releases, catalogs, and fliers and advertising cards.

Beginning in a treehouse in Leyden, Mass., during the summer of 1968, the Brotherhood of the Spirit (later the Renaissance Community) grew to become the largest commune in the eastern United States. Founded by Michael Metelica and six friends, and infused with the spiritual teachings of Elwood Babbitt, the commune relocated several times during its first half decade, setting down at different points in Heath, Charlemont, Warwick, Turners Falls, and Gill, Mass., as well as Guilford, Vt.

Produced at UMass Amherst, this video (digitized from a 16mm motion picture original) provides a largely laudatory glimpse of commune life during the boom years of the Brotherhood of the Spirit, probably around 1973. Sound quality in the video is highly uneven, often poor, particularly in the first two minutes.

Brotherhood of the Spirit, 1968-1973

	Michael Metelica at the treehouse: Leyden, Mass., 1968. (Ref. no. car1)
	The treehouse: Blueberry Hill, Leyden, 1968. (Ref. no. car2)
	The Treehouse Gang, Leyden 1968: (L – R) top: Dale Sluter, Chris Garland, Doug Edson, Jim Kolokowski, Eddie Evans, Brian Smith on shoulders, Jim Sullivan. Bottom: Wayne Duda, Gene Lewis (Cricket), Tom Howes. (Ref. no. car3)
	The Founding Mothers, 1969: Micky Shean (?) and baby, Heidi Bushell, Laurel Artus holding Leah Artus, Wendy Crowell. (Ref. no. car4)
	Meditation at Beth Hapgood’ s home at 88 Main St, Northfield, Mass. 1969. (Ref. no. car5)
	Elwood Babbitt, 1970. (Ref. no. car6) Photo by: Gary Cohen
	Heidi Bushell and Michael Metelica reading Lopsang Rampa, early source of spiritual inspiration. Leyden, 1968. (Ref. no. car7)
	Winter scene. Chris Garland, Michael Metelica, unidentified, Dale Sluter, Jim Kolokowski. Heath, 1969. (Ref. no. car8)
	Maple sugaring, Charlemont, Mass. 1969. Gene (Cricket) Lewis, Eddie, Michael. (Ref. no. car9)
	Maple sugaring, Charlemont, 1969. Various visitors and members. (Ref. no. car10)
	Heath, Mass. 1969,. Far left, Nate Tilton and Steve Wolfson. Band is early forerunner to in Flesh. (Ref. no. car11)
	Warwick, Mass. Summer of 1970, photo from Greenfield Recorder newspaper in foreground is Susan Meyer and Jeff Lister. (Ref. no. car12)
	Warwick group shot, summer 1970. Publication unknown. (Ref. no. car13)
	“LOOK” magazine photo. Taken July 1970, published December 1970. (Ref. no. car14)
	Spiritual Graffiti, Warwick main house, 1970-71. Such spontaneously inspired writingswere common during the Warwick era. (Ref. no. car15)
	Concert at St. James Church, Greenfield, Mass. 1970. Robert Hincks and Michael Metelica. This church was one of the few local ones that was welcoming to the Brotherhood and hosted many events and weddings during this period. (Ref. no. car16)
	Members listening to Spirit in Flesh rehearse at Warwick Studio. Note looks of ecstasy on individual faces. Top; Vicki Locatelli, unidentified, Steve Abrahamson, John Pollard, unidentified. Middle; Jacquie Metelica, Mark Alvin, Brian McCue. Bottom; Jackie Odess, Annette Laufe. (Ref. no. car17) Photo by: Gary Cohen
	Summer invasion of visitors, sometimes several hundred a day. Summer of 1970, Warwick. Garden between house and future Dorm. (Ref. no. car18)
	the “PM Tent”. Warwick, summer 1970. This huge plastic tent housed “Prospective Members” who went through a two-week trial period before begin voted on for membership. The PM tent was also notorious for forbidden (and frequent) amorous activity between members and PM’s. (Ref. no. car19)
	Temporary Encampment, Guilford, VT. Summer 1970. Overwhelmed by visitors, long-term members set up a temporary retreat in the wilds of Guilford, near the Johnson’s Pasture commune. (Ref. no. car20)
	Wedding at Warwick, July 1970, Michael playing guitar with Donna Braden (R). (Ref. no. car21)
	“Commune Gothic” Summer 1970. Heidi Bushell and Mike McCarty. (Ref. no. car22)
	The Logging Crew, Winter 1970-71. Carol and Eddie Evans, Mitch Sieser, Greg Fitzgerald, Nate Tilton in back. Crew leader, Geoff, “Gurf” Nuckols in front. (Ref. no. car23)
	Warwick Kitchen, 1972. Meg, “Nutmeg” Rich stirring dinner, probably brown rice, squash or mashed potatoes. (Ref. no. car24)
	Breakfast in Warwick 1971. Mark Alvin (foreground) shares a moment with Rita Raymond. Deborah Starobin looks on. (Ref. no. car25)