Oakland University Archives and Special Collections
OU.SC.BLACK
Table of Contents
- Summary Information
- Biographical note
- Scope and Contents
- Administrative Information
- Collection Inventory
- Correspondence
- Notes - Bates Scrapbook
- Lincoln - Neale
- Abduction Plots J.W. Booth
- Magazine Articles - Clippings - Photostats
- Booth - Lincoln
- News Clippings
- Typed Excerpts, Dearborn Independent, Affidavits
- Manuscript - "Henry Ford and the Corpse of J. Wilkes Booth" by Frederick Black
- Photographs
Summary Information
- Repository
- Oakland University Archives and Special Collections
- Title
- Frederick L. Black papers
- ID
- OU.SC.BLACK
- Date [inclusive]
- 1865-1923
- Extent
- 5.4 Linear feet 10 Hollinger boxes & 2 flat boxes.
- Language
- English
Preferred Citation
Item, folder title, box no., Frederick L. Black Papers, Oakland University Archives and Special Collections
Biographical note
Frederick L. Black was a close assistant to Henry Ford who asked him in 1920 to investigate the death of John Wilkes Booth. Henry Ford had just been contacted by Finis Bates, author of "The Escape and Suicide of John Wilkes Booth" (1900), with a stranger offer. Bates told Henry Ford he had the mummy of Booth in his home, and was willing to sell it to him. Ford was intrigued but not fooled. Fred Black's 2-year investigation led to the conclusion that the mummy was not the body of Booth, and that Booth had been killed during his capture in 1865. Black was also the editor of the Dearborn Independent and wrote an unpublished manuscript on his findings.
For more information see: Marie C Dye, “Fred L Black, In Memoriam,” New Center News, Nov. 22, 1971, p1
Scope and Contents
The Frederick L. Black papers contain the documents he collected during his 2-year investigation of the Booth story, including affidavits from witnesses, newspaper clippings, photos and more. The collection also includes Black's personal field notes and an unpublished manuscript narrating the result of his investigation.
Administrative Information
Publication Information
Oakland University Archives and Special Collections
Kresge Library100 Library Drive
Rochester, MI, 48309
Access and Use note
The Frederick L. Black papers are open for research.
Copyright
Copyright held by Oakland University.
Acquisition
The Frederick L. Black papers were acquired by William Springer, a collector of Lincolniana and friend of Mr. Black. Springer sold his entire collection, including the Black papers, to Oakland University in 1969.
Processing
Issues of the Dearnborn Independent have been separated from this collection and cataloged. Photographs and scrapbooks have also been separated.
Collection Inventory
Correspondence |
Box 1 |
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Black-Springer Transactions folder 1. |
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Fred Black Speech Manuscript folder 2. |
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Battey, George M. Jr. folder 3. |
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Barret, Oliver folder 4. |
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Miscellaneous I-III folders 5-7. |
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Oaleof, Joseph Benjamin folder 8. |
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Rainey, Geo. folder 9. |
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Rankin, Henry B. folder 10. |
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Reed, J.P. folder 11. |
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Reich, A.R. folder 12. |
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Ryan, W.H. folder 13. |
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Sanford, A.B. folder 14. |
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Seyffer, C.J. folder 15. |
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Stellwagen, S.A. folder 16. |
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Street, O.D. folder 17. |
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Sweet, Forrest H. folder 18. |
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Starr, John W. Jr. folder 19. |
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Tarbell, Ida M. folder 20. |
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Townsend, William H. folder 21. |
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Twiss, B.A. folder 22. |
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Tyner, Paul folder 23. |
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Vaughn, Edwin Bates folder 24. |
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Vicksburg Herald folder 25. |
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Walsmith, A.J. folder 26. |
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Warren, Louis A. |
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Wilson, Clarance T. folder 28. |
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Wilson, Francis folder 29. |
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Wilson, Roy J. folder 30. |
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Wolfe, J. Brandt folder 31. |
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Worley, S.J. folder 32. |
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Zachary, James W. folder 33. |
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Notes - Bates Scrapbook |
Box 2 |
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Notebooks I-V folders 1-5. |
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Notebook - "1" folder 6. |
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Notebook - "Blank" folder 7. |
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Notebook - "NY NHT Hartford" folder 8. |
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Bates Scrapbooks I-V folders 9-13. |
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Biographical Notes folder 14. |
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Pencil Notes folder 15. |
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Incomplete folder 16. |
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Lincoln - Neale |
Box 3 |
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| Folder | ||||
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The Pursuit folder 1. |
1 | |||
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Playbills folder 2. |
2 | |||
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John St. Helen as J. Wilkes Booth folder 3. |
3 | |||
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Maryland Independent - Franklin Robey's death Dec. 25, 1896 folder 4. |
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Hatred Toward Lincoln folder 5. |
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Lincoln's Premonitions of Death folder 6. |
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How Lincoln Met Death folder 7. |
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Memories of Civil War Days folder 8. |
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John Surrat folder 9. |
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Dr. Mudd folder 10. |
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End of the Rebellion folder 11. |
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Creech, F. Hunter folder 12. |
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Bobbs-Merrill Co. folder 13. |
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Collier's folder 14. |
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Connolly, J.W. folder 15. |
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Cooper, V.F. folder 16. |
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Doherty, Charles J.G. folder 17. |
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Doran, George H. - company folder 18. |
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Doubleday, Page & Co. folder 19. |
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Eisenschiml, Otto folder 20. |
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Ford Archives folder 21. |
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Harper & Brothers folder 22. |
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Houghton Mifflin Co. folder 23. |
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Kincaid, Robert H. folder 24. |
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Leibold, E.G. folder 25. |
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Lincoln, Waldo folder 26. |
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Malone, Thomas J. folder 27. |
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Manuscript - Eisenschiml folder 28. |
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Markham, Edwin folder 29. |
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McClinton, H.L. folder 30. |
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McCarthy, James R. folder 31. |
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McMurtie, Douglas C. folder 32. |
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Neale, A.W. folder 33. |
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Abduction Plots J.W. Booth |
Box 4 |
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Multiplicity of Books, A folder 1. |
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Booth, Edwin - "Where is my honor now?" folder 2. |
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Booth Relatives, The folder 3. |
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Mad Booths, The folder 4. |
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Book Photostats folder 5. |
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John Wilkes Booth folder 6. |
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John Y. Beall folder 7. |
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F.L. Bates and "The Mummy of J.W. Booth" folder 8. |
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April 14th. folder 9. |
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Autopsy and Burial folder 10. |
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Abduction Plots folder 11. |
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BookPhotostates - Impeachment folder 12. |
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Book - Excerpts folder 13. |
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Magazine Articles - Clippings - Photostats |
Box 5-6 |
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Century Magazine - I & II folders 1-2 |
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New Yorker folder 3. |
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New Voice folder 4. |
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North American Review folder 5. |
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Overland Monthly folder 6. |
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ERA Magazine folder 7. |
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Granite Monthly folder 8. |
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Harper's Weekly folder 9. |
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Harper's Monthly folder 10. |
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Indiana Magazine of History folder 11. |
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Liberty Magazine folder 12. |
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Literary Digest folder 13. |
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Magazine of History folder 14. |
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McClure's Magazine folder 15. |
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Saturday Evening Post folder 16. |
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Scribners folder 17. |
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Startling Detective Adventures folder 18. |
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Time folder 19. |
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Unidentified folder 20. |
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Week by Week folder 21. |
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Incomplete folder 22. |
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Miscellaneous folder 23. |
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| Box | ||||
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Charm Magazine folder 1. |
6 | |||
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Collier's folder 2. |
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Cosmopolitan folder 3. |
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Mentor Magazine, The folder 4. |
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American Historical Review folder 5. |
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American Legion folder 6. |
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American Magazine folder 7. |
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Atlantic Monthly folder 8. |
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Booth's Escape Route folder 9. |
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Confederate Spy, A folder 10. |
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Lincoln Threats - Photostats folder 11. |
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Trial Illustrations - Photostats folder 12. |
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Washington in Lincoln's Time - Photostats folder 13. |
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Newspaper Original - Photostats - Misc. clippings - Vols. I-VI folders 14-19. |
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Booth - Lincoln |
Box 7 |
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Indentification, The folder 1. |
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At the Garrett Barn folder 2. |
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Flight, The folder 3. |
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David E. George as J.W. Booth folder 4. |
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Lincoln's Carelessness folder 5. |
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Conspiracy, The folder 6. |
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Capture, The - original photostats - vol. I-II folders 7-8. |
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Capture, The - positive photostats - vol. III-IV folders 9-10. |
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Fate of the Conspirators folder 11. |
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Boston Corbett folder 12. |
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Ford's Theatre folder 13. |
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Gospel Spreads, The folder 14. |
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U.S. Grant folder 15. |
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Johnson and the Assassination folder 16. |
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Wilson D. Kenzie folder 17. |
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Copies of Letters folder 18. |
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Lincoln - general folder 19. |
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News Clippings |
Box 8 |
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1920-1930 folder 1. |
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1930-- folder 2. |
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Unidentified folder 3. |
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Detroit newspapers folder 4. |
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Clippings up to 1880 folder 6. |
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Original photostats - N.Y. Daily Tribune - vol. I-II 1865 folders 6-7. |
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1890-1900 folder 8. |
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1880-1890 folder 9. |
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1910-1920 folder 10. |
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1900-1910 folder 11. |
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Typed Excerpts, Dearborn Independent, Affidavits |
Box 9 |
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Lincoln - Booth Affidavits & Letters Binder |
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Affidavits - negative photostats folder 1. |
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Lincoln Scrapbook - typed folder 2. |
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Magazine Excerpts - typed folder 3. |
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Book Excerpts - typed (a) folder 4. |
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Dearborn Independent - mixed extra copies folder 5. |
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Affidavits - original folder 6. |
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Affidavits - positive photostats folder 7. |
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Magazine Excerpts - typed folder 8. |
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Affidavits - typed copies folder 9. |
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Dearborn Independent - originals folder 10. |
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Newspaper Excerpts - typed folder 11. |
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Dearborn Independent - original photostats folder 12. |
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Dearborn Independent - positive photostats folder 13. |
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Book Excerpts - typed (b) folder 14. |
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Manuscript - "Henry Ford and the Corpse of J. Wilkes Booth" by Frederick BlackScope and Contents noteChapters 1-22 of typed manuscript. |
Box 10 |
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Photographs |
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| Box | ||||
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Lincoln Assasination Scope and Contents noteLoose leaf scrapbook format of photographs and captions. |
11 | |||
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Booth Escape Route Scope and Contents noteBlack and white prints, 3 1/4" x 4 3/4", numbered 1-94. |
12 | |||
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