Reuther Library archivists Dan Golodner and Troy Eller English, co-hosts and producers for the Tales from the Reuther Library podcast.

Reuther Library archivists Dan Golodner and Troy Eller English, co-hosts and producers for the Tales from the Reuther Library podcast.

We are so proud to announce the 100th episode of our podcast, Tales from the Reuther Library. Hosted by Reuther archivists Dan Golodner and Troy Eller English, each episode is a conversation with a history expert as unique as our one-of-a-kind archival collections.🎤🎧
reuther.wayne.edu/node/15454

circular button with three "Rosies" the Riveter with different skin tones, and text that reads "It ain't your daddy's union, it's ours" "Women's Committee" and "Oregon AFSCME." From the AFSCME collections at the Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University.

It ain't your daddy's union
#WomensHistoryMonth #WomensHistory #LaborHistory #LaborUnions @oregonafscme.bsky.social @oregonaflcio.bsky.social @afscme.bsky.social @reutherlibrary.bsky.social

Photo of a cat standing on two legs.

Photo of a cat lying down.

Say "meow" to this labor union cat, possibly owned by then @uaw.org President Walter P. Reuther. From the archives at the @reutherlibrary.bsky.social.

Remote operations will continue on Monday, January 26, 2026. We apologize for the inconvenience. Stay warm!

Children play on a frozen fountain on Belle Isle, January 1, 1931. Courtesy: Detroit News Collection (UAV002691)

Due to inclement weather, the Reuther Library building will be closed on January 23, 2026.

Please feel free to send your reference questions to reutherreference@wayne.edu, and an archivist will respond as soon as possible. Stay warm!

Did you know the Reuther Library holds the last known portraits of Jimmy Hoffa, who disappeared 50 years ago today? Learn more about the story in our latest blog post!
Read it here: reuther.wayne.edu/node/15419

Stop by and check out our latest case exhibit highlighting historic Michigan Labor Actions! The display will be on view outside of the Reading Room through July 3, 2025.
For more information: reuther.wayne.edu/node/15398

Today is the 50th anniversary of the Walter P. Reuther Library’s building! Learn more about the celebrations surrounding our opening in our latest blog post: reuther.wayne.edu/node/15395

Architectural model of the Reuther Library building.

Learn about the origins of our building in our latest blog post! reuther.wayne.edu/node/15392

Flyer for "More Than Just a Building: Celebrating 50 Years of Archives, Architecture, and Community," with a black and white image of the Reuther Library.

More Than Just a Building: Celebrating 50 Years of Archives, Architecture, and Community
Join us for a special event celebrating both the Reuther Library and Preservation Detroit, w/ a behind-the-scenes look at the archives.
May 22, 6-8 at the Reuther Library, RSVP: preservationdetroit.org/lectures

@reutherlibrary.bsky.social has the largest collection of labor union documents in the US. It is a unique resource for @waynestateclas.bsky.social students and I am glad to give my Econ 101 students the chance to thumb through them! Thank you, Marcia Black for your awesome outreach!

A collection of buttons. Three circular buttons across the top read "Who killed Karen Silkwood?" Below those are rectangular buttons which read "workers Memorial Day, AFSCME says safe jobs NOW, April 28, 1992 AFL-CIO" ; "Workers Memorial Day April 28, 1998 AFSCME" ; "Mourn for the Dead, Fight for the Living. Protect Workers Now!". A final circular button reads "Pass the Act for Better Childcare."

Today is Worker's Memorial Day, when we remember and mourn for the dead, and fight like hell for the living.... Buttons from the Susan Holleran collection at @reutherlibrary.bsky.social @afscme.bsky.social #WorkersMemorialDay #LaborUnions #LaborHistory

Sticker for May Day parade starting at Ferry and Russell in Detroit, with a drawing of a big tank labeled "Ford" firing multiple cannons at picketing workers. Printed by the United Front May Day Committee.

Sticker for 1932 Detroit #MayDay parade. Printed 5 years before the @uaw.org formed and in the aftermath of the Ford Hunger March massacre, it speaks to the violence autoworkers endured to unionize their industry. From the Joe Brown Papers at the @reutherlibrary.bsky.social.

The @reutherlibrary.bsky.social's entire DRUM archival collection is digitized and available online! Look up the records here: archives.wayne.edu/repositories...

Photo of Alan Reuther speaking during an event at the Walter P. Reuther Library discussing his new book: "Roy Reuther and the UAW: Fighting for Workers and Civil Rights." March 27, 2025.

Photo of Alan Reuther, son of UAW pioneer Roy Reuther, and UAW President Shawn Fain during an event at the Walter P. Reuther Library discussing Alan's new book: "Roy Reuther and the UAW: Fighting for Workers and Civil Rights." March 27, 2025.

Photo of UAW Archivist Gavin Strassel speaking during an event at the Walter P. Reuther Library discussing Alan Reuther's new book: "Roy Reuther and the UAW: Fighting for Workers and Civil Rights." March 27, 2025.

Photo of UAW President Shawn Fain speaking during an event at the Walter P. Reuther Library discussing Alan Reuther's new book: "Roy Reuther and the UAW: Fighting for Workers and Civil Rights." March 27, 2025.

Thank you to everyone who came out to the @reutherlibrary.bsky.social on Thursday to celebrate Alan Reuther's new book: "Roy Reuther and the UAW: Fighting for Workers and Civil Rights." Alan is the son of Roy, one of the truly great leaders in our union's proud history.

@uawarchivist.bsky.social

Roy Reuther biography

Reuther and Fain

Shawn Fain

Alan Reuther

Great evening last night @reutherlibrary.bsky.social. Alan Reuther shared the story of his father, Roy, in anticipation of his new book. UAW President Shawn Fain made introductory remarks.

"Organized by the Detroit Council on Human Rights (DCHR), the June 23, 1963, Detroit Walk to Freedom was the largest civil rights demonstration in the nation’s history."

reuther.wayne.edu/node/7858

📸Walter P. Reuther Library

An empty slide carousel with a paper resting on top which reads: "FACING OUR FUTURE" Women + Aging - 79 images Not dated

When the archives hit a little too close to home....

@afscme.bsky.social Retirees Department records opening soon at the @reutherlibrary.bsky.social!

Archivists Gavin Strassel and Mary Wallace in the Reuther Library's walk-in freezer storage.

Archivist Mary Wallace in the Reuther Library's walk-in freezer storage.

Today, my coworker Mary Wallace retires after decades of service at the archives, where she's been a wealth of knowledge about audiovisual materials and media formats. You'll recognize her from the @uaw.org's video about the @reutherlibrary.bsky.social's film freezer.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=0jh4...

Front of tri-fold brochure has an image of a phoenix and reads "Your future has wings....Alaska State Employees Association." It rests on a folder labeled "Alaska ASEA/APEA Literature, 1988."

Hi! I'm the archivist for @afscme.bsky.social at @reutherlibrary.bsky.social and I'm new here. Follow me for public worker labor history trivia and fun organizing literature of years past.

Your future has wings!
Brochure, @asealocal52.bsky.social circa 1988.

Pic of a beaming Detroit Fed of Teachers prez Mary Ellen Riordan and Prez LBJ, Oct 16, 1964. From front page of the Nov 1964 Detroit Teacher in AFT Publications collection at the @reutherlibrary.bsky.social

Giant fiberglass head of Walter Reuther, worn at Detroit Thanksgiving Day parades.

Heads up for the Detroit Thanksgiving Day parade🦃: Did you know that in storage at Detroit Parade Company is a giant fiberglass Walter P. Reuther, iconic President of the UAW and namesake of the @reutherlibrary.bsky.social? Keep an eye out for him when the Big Head Corps go by at this year’s parade!

Scale model of an early design for the archives at Wayne State University.

Scale model of an early design for the archives at Wayne State University.

Photo of the Walter P. Reuther Library archives at Wayne State University, present day.

Scale model of an early design for the @reutherlibrary.bsky.social, plus of a photo of how the archives turned out. From the UAW President's Office: Walter P. Reuther Records here at the Reuther Library at Wayne State University.