Jordan Anderson, an African-American who moved to Ohio when he was freed from slavery in 1864, is famous for his "Letter from a Freedman to His Old Master," addressed in response to a request from his former master that Jordan return to help restore the farm after the Civil War. The letter became an immediate media sensation with reprints in the New York Daily Tribune and other publications and has been described as a rare example of documented "slave humor" of the period - its deadpan style compared to the writing of Mark Twain.In the famous letter, Anderson asks his former master to prove his goodwill by paying the back wages he and his wife are owed for 52 years combined of slave labor and asks if his daughters will be safe and able to have an education, since Jordan would rather die "than have my girls brought to shame by the violence and wickedness of their young masters. He concludes with, "Say howdy to George Carter, and thank him for taking the pistol from you when you were shooting at me."Professor Roy E Finkenbine, Chair of History at Detroit Mercy College, is a specialist on slavery, abolition, and the Underground Railroad, and is writing a biography on Anderson and the famous letter. Join us on MLK Day as Dr. Finkenbine discusses his search for information about Anderson's fascinating life and the history of the famous letter. He will also share his personal experiences involving the heritage of race and slavery in America while on this research journey.Dr. Finkenbine co-edited the five-volume "Black Abolitionist Papers, 1830-1865" and "Witness for Freedom: African American Voices on Race, Slavery, and Emancipation." He recently completed a second edition of "Sources Of The African American Past" and was appointed to the Michigan Freedom Trail Commission. This event is held in conjunction with Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti Reads 2013. This year's Reads' theme is 'Understanding Race.'

Susan Whitall was one of a handful of women on staff at the brash, irreverent Creem magazine in the mid-1970s, the rock journal immortalized in Cameron Crowe's film "Almost Famous." In the late '70s she became one of the first women to edit a national rock magazine when she took over the top editor's job.She is the author of "Fever: Little Willie John: A Fast Life, Mysterious Death and the Birth of Soul" (Titan Books, June 2011), a biography of one of the greatest R&B singers to come out of Detroit, a favorite of Marvin Gaye, B.B. King and Aretha Franklin, best friends with Levi Stubbs and Jerry Butler."Women of Motown," numerous feature articles for magazines and newspapers, and liner notes for albums, including the booklet essay in the "Chrome Collection" Spinners box set.Since the 1980s Susan has been a feature writer for the Detroit News, writing about pop culture, music and radio, often returning to stories about the R&B and soul music that came out of the Motor City.

The Vietnam War was the longest war in US history and 2012 is the year of the United States National Commemoration of the 50th anniversary of America's first involvement in this conflict.Join a team of Vietnam vets as they reflect on this war and their experiences. The moderator for this panel will be Dale Throneberry, who heads up the Veteran's Radio Network, broadcasting on several stations throughout the mid-West and South as well as on the Internet. Dale completed his tour in Vietnam as a CW2 pilot with the 195th Assault Helicopter Company from December 1968 to December 1969. Panelists include: Laurence Baker, who served as a radiologist at a hospital based in Cu Chi; Charles Kettles, who received the Distinguished Service Cross as a Major (Artillery) in the U.S. Army and served as aircraft commander of a helicopter supporting infantry operations near Duc Pho; and Vance McCrumb, a dog handler with the U.S. Air Force whose dog was one of the first forty to be used in Vietnam.

In this lecture and slideshow, Detroit News reporter Michael H. Hodges discusses the functional and stylistic evolution of the train station over the 19th and early 20th centuries, and the range of styles architects employed to both tame and exalt rail transportation. With references to news accounts, literature and film, he will also examine the central role the train station once played as the nation's principal crossroads -- a much-used, much-loved public space that has no real analogue in American life today. Michael H. Hodges covers art and architecture for The Detroit News, where he's worked since 1991. His new coffee-table book, Michigan's Historic Railroad Stations photographs and profiles 31 depots (including Ann Arbor) across the state, from Detroit to Three Oaks to Iron Mountain).

Delve into Ann Arbor's fascinating history as AADL unveils a new digital local history archive (available at aadl.org after this event) featuring decades of news and photos tracing the rise and decline of Argus Cameras, a very important early manufacturer in Ann Arbor.This event will include an introduction to the Argus online archive; a discussion of the history of Argus and its place in the community by Bob Kelly; and post-presentation refreshments.Bob Kelly has been collecting and researching Argus for over 30 years and is one of the founding members of the Argus Collectors Group. Founded in the Depression, Argus Cameras employed, at its height, 1300 workers and occupied two city blocks on 4th Street. The first camera rolled off the assembly line in 1936. The Argus Model A camera was so popular, it sold 30,000 units by Montgomery Ward within the first week.Step back in time and learn more about this important early Ann Arbor business.

Celebrate the history of automobiles (and the 2012 Rolling Sculpture Car Show) when Joseph Jendza (Top Hat John) and Victoria Mobley (of the Society of Automotive Historians) discuss classic cars and popular culture. This event is also part of the day-long celebration of the DDA's opening of Library Lane (the parking structure next to the Library).Joseph Jendza or "Top Hat John," well-known local specialty automotive historian and enthusiast car collector will discuss the colorful history and many types of classic cars. If you want to know more about the classic car stored in your garage - this is an excellent program to attend!Joe has hosted hundreds of classic car shows and hosted and produced 200+ automotive cable television shows locally and nationally. He shares his love of the automobile through his specialty vehicle appraisal services, car show presentations, news columns and stories in local, national, and international publications. Victoria Mobley is the producer of local car shows, car cruise nights and is the Secretary/Treasurer of The Society of Automotive Historians/Leland Chapter. She will share her award winning presentation: Fashion and the Automobile, which highlights the many changes wrought on popular culture by the evolution of the car. She and her assistant will do the presentation in full costume!Do not miss this special event at the Library and the celebration of the 2012 Rolling Sculpture Car Show and opening of Library Lane.

Dr. Dieter Kuntz, historian at the Center for Advanced Holocaust Studies at the US Holocaust Memorial Museum, in Washington, DC, will discuss the theme of the traveling exhibition "Deadly Medicine: Creating the Master Race", which illustrates how Nazi leadership enlisted people in professions traditionally charged with healing and the public good to legitimize persecution, murder, and ultimately genocide. This event is co-sponsored by The Taubman Health Sciences Library and the UM Center for the History of Medicine.From 1933 to 1945, Nazi Germany carried out a campaign to "cleanse" German society of individuals viewed as biological threats to the nation's "health." Enlisting the help of physicians and medically trained geneticists, psychiatrists, and anthropologists, the Nazis developed racial health policies that began with the mass sterilization of "genetically diseased" persons and ended with the near annihilation of European Jewry.To relate this history, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum assembled objects, photographs, documents, and historic film footage from European and American collections and presents them in settings evoking medical and scientific environments. Deadly Medicine: Creating the Master Race inspires reflection on the continuing attraction of biological utopias that promote the possibility of human perfection. From the early twentieth-century international eugenics movements to present-day dreams of eliminating inherited disabilities through genetic manipulation, the issues remain timely. Dr. Dieter Kuntz, the speaker for this evening's event, received a Ph.D. in Modern European History from the University of Kansas, and has taught courses in European history and on Nazi Germany and the Holocaust at both the University of Kansas and the University of Iowa. His numerous publications include chapters in anthologies such as "The Holocaust Chronicle" (2000), "The Routledge History of the Holocaust" (2011), and the forthcoming "Jewish Resistance to the Nazis." At the Holocaust Museum since 1999, he has worked on a number of Museum exhibits and was instrumental in the development of the exhibit Deadly Medicine, and is editor of the resulting publication Deadly Medicine: Creating the Master Race (2004). He is currently in charge of the Museum's seminars for university faculty on Teaching about the Holocaust, and also directs the Campus Outreach Lecture Program.

The Ann Arbor Film Festival is celebrating its 50th year - and AADL is excited to unveil its new digital archive, chronicling the Festival's history. Join Donald Harrison, AAFF Executive Director, and other voices from the Festival's past as they share behind-the-scenes stories from the longest-running independent and experimental film festival in North America! This event features the premiere of AADL's digital archive of the Festival, which will provide online access to posters and program guides from the Festival's half century of film exhibition history. The evening will conclude with light refreshments and the opportunity to mingle with Film Fest fans. THE ANN ARBOR FILM FESTIVAL ARCHIVE @ AADLThis website will document the history of the Ann Arbor Film Fest and its 50 years of experimental cinema. Festival programs, photographs, promotional materials, and behind-the-scenes documents from the Festival's half-century history will be featured.Original interviews with festival organizers and participants from over the years and media coverage of the event including articles from the Ann Arbor News and Ann Arbor Sun will paint a portrait of the longest-running independent and experimental film festival in North America.Join us for a look in the past and an introduction to this valuable online collection!

In the first 18 months after Pearl Harbor, 350,000 people came to the city of Detroit to work in defense plants. The Willow Run Bomber Plant played a key role in what became known as the "Arsenal of Democracy" by producing 8,685 B-24 bombers before it closed in 1945.In this talk, Yankee Air Museum's Randy Hotton shares his extensive research on the Willow Run Bomber Plant. He is the Director of Flight Operations at the Yankee Air Museum as well as a Board Member and Committee Chair of the Long-Range Planning Committee.

On September 11, 2001, local resident John Titus lost his daughter Alicia, a flight attendant on United Airlines 175, when the plane crashed into the south tower of the World Trade Center.