Over the years, Alpena and Northeast Michigan have been blessed with great historians.

People like Fred Trelfa, Bob Haltiner, and Pat Labadie quickly come to mind.

Another historian who worked tirelessly to document and record the history of the region — primarily through photographs — is Bob Kujawa, who recently donated his collection to the Special Collections Department at the Alpena County George N. Fletcher Public Library.

At 95, Kujawa has been witness to many of the items found in his collection. But, even if he wasn’t a witness to an event, he worked hard to obtain information and photographs from it to add to his collection. He is a historian extraordinaire who values the preservation of history, and, thus, his recent decision to share his collection with the library.

The library has a treasure trove of historical collections it has amassed over the years — including all of The Alpena News’ archived stories and photographs — that are available for public research. By adding Kujawa’s collection to what already is there, it greatly adds to the story of the region.

If it was just Kujawa’s exhaustive photograph collection of one-room schoolhouses of the region — which would be extensive just in and of itself. But the collection is much broader than just that. From the history of the lumbering era to the snow queens of Winter Carnival, Kujawa has it all covered.

Kujawa knew that I, like him, enjoyed the history of the region. Often during my years as publisher in Alpena, he would stop by my office with one of his binders in tow to show me some photographs or tell me a story. Often, those visits were timed around a news story that had just appeared in the newspaper.

While Paul Harvey might have been the radio commentator forever linked to “and now, the rest of the story,” Kujawa was the local version of Harvey.

Don La Barre, special collections librarian, is grateful for being entrusted to safeguard the collection from this point forward.

“It’s a really great collection that accentuates what we already have,” he said in a story about the donation last week.

And, for a person who appreciates the history of the region, such a gift is especially noteworthy.

Let’s be honest. At 95, Kujawa isn’t getting any younger, and that collection could have ended up just about anywhere, including being parceled out photograph by photograph on some online bidding site.

But Kujawa wanted that history preserved, and, by leaving it to solid stewards like the library, it ensures his collection and legacy will continue on forever.

When I first learned of Kujawa’s generosity, I was thrilled. Knowing what was in his collection, I knew it would be a tremendous addition to the historical archives of the region.

History is far too important in any community to be forgotten or overlooked. Thanks to people like Kujawa, that history will be preserved long into the future for generations yet to be born.

Bill Speer recently retired as the publisher and editor of The News. He can be reached at bspeer@thealpenanews.com.