  Lombaowski Member Username: Lombaowski Post Number: 32 Registered: 11-2004 |
Don't know how many people know but I just finished up my own family's history as it relates to Detroit and found it interesting. Mom's side: Grandfather arrived in Detroit from Lithuania via Cleveland in 1915 at the age of seven. Settled somewhere between Mack/Warren/Grand/Cadillac and they moved around that neighborhood a lot. Later lived on McDougal, near Forest, on the west side off Dexter somewhere, and on Bewick near Canfield. Grandmother was born in Detroit in 1917 but family arrived in 1915 from Poland. She grew up on Canfield near Pingree Park. Her youngest brother now 84 still lives on Crane in the same area. Grandparents first house on McDougal bought in 1935. Mom born in house. Family leaves for Saginaw in 1955 where my Mom and one of her sister's went to HS while oldest aunt attended SE. Grandma dies in Arizona, Grandpa moved back to Saginaw and dies there. Dad's side: Grandmother's family originally from Ontario via Italy in the mid 1800s and settled in Detroit in the early 1900s. Grandmother was 12th of 20 children and born in Alpena in 1921 but family lived in Detroit until about 1915. The only record of Detroit is that two of her siblings are buried in Mt Elliot cemetery. She assumes they lived somewhere in that area. She now lives in Livonia. Grandfather arrived in Oakland California at the age of 4 in 1926. Moved to Detroit after WWII after stops in Compton, Oakland, Alaska, and Montana. Lived on Sussex near Eaton. Dad attended Cooley High. Moved in the late 1968 after the riots to Westwood and Lyndon until he died. | ||
Ray1936 Member Username: Ray1936 Post Number: 1287 Registered: 01-2005 |
Maternal grandparents emigrated from Germany with their two young daughters (one my mother) in 1923. They bought a house at 12316 Avon in Greenfield Township. When Detroit incorporated that part of Greenfield, the name of Avon was changed to Sorrento. Alas, the house no longer exists.  He was a fine interior decorator, having learned his trade in Bavaria. His last employer for 15 years was the Lee-Plaza Hotel. He would shit if he saw it today. Paternal grandparents arrived in Detroit in 1927 from Chicago. He was transferred there by his employer, Eastman-Kodak. They rented the home at 1301 Virginia Park. When he was transferred to Kodak headquarters in Rochester, NY, my dad stayed behind and ultimately married my mother. Lucky for me. But both Grandma and Grandpa come from old line American families, and Grandma goes back to John Alden/Priscilla Mullins of the Mayflower. | ||
Harsensis Member Username: Harsensis Post Number: 208 Registered: 07-2005 |
My Grandfather's Grandparents were from Lenewee County, but my Great Grandfather moved to Superior Wis to find work as a lawyer. My Grandfather started working on the freighters when he was a teenager and insulted the cook while they were docked in Detroit. The cook chased him off of the ship and wouldn't let him back on, so that is how our family got here. Other branches always seemed to move here for work from Canada and Chicago. The group that came from Chicago owned a horse livery on the east side that burn around the turn of the century, all of the horses they managed to get out panicked and ran back into the fire. The same branch owned a gas station next to Joe Muers restaurant, their name was Muir which sounded the same but it was spelled different. I think the restaurant ended up buying the gas station and made their parking lot bigger. Any pics or maps of the gas station Mikem? I know when my Grandmother came to Detroit from Canada to Fargo ND to Chicago on to Detroit, to play piano in Detroit, she lived in the Hecker house on Woodward when it was a boarding house. | ||
Detroitplanner Member Username: Detroitplanner Post Number: 1158 Registered: 04-2006 |
Mom's side: Greatgrandparents came from Flint so grandpa could work at the building. They lived at Second and Peterboro. Grandma became an orphan and bounced around Flint for a while till she married Grandpa. Then they settled in Royal Oak, finally buying a house on 14th Street S of the boulevard. Dad's side: Greatgrandparents from Poland. Settled the ghetto at Livernois and JunctionYard. GreatGrandpa left Greatgrandma in poland and became a worthless drunk. Imagine his surprise when greatgrandma appeared at the corner bar one day with his kids in tow and a rolling pin!! I grew up by Herman Gradens and Cody High School. | ||
Dougw Member Username: Dougw Post Number: 1640 Registered: 11-2003 |
My wife & I moved to the city 5 years ago. None of our ancestors ever lived in the city. My parents lived in Dearborn for a few years in the early 60's before I was born, then Bay City. | ||
Kathleen Member Username: Kathleen Post Number: 2154 Registered: 10-2003 |
Mom's side: One set of great-great-grandparents came from Germany in the early 1850s. The other originated in Ireland, lived in Hamilton, Ontario for a generation, before moving on to Detroit in the mid-1880s. Great-grandfather was a tailor, working at English Woolen Mills in the Ferguson Bldg. on Woodward just south of John R. Grandfather lived on Hastings St. between Monroe and Lafayette. In 1916, the family moved east a couple streets east of Waterworks Park. My grandmother grew up in Indianapolis and moved to Detroit when she married my grandfather. Dad's side: My paternal grandmother's ancestry goes back to Cadillac's arrival in Detroit with such family names as Beaubien, St. Aubin, Chene, and Campau, among others. The earliest family baptism I found was 1704 at Ste. Anne's. Eventually the families settled in Monroe and in "South" Detroit. There's a gap of some 150 years without any direct ancestors living in Detroit until the early 1900s when they arrived from Canada. On the paternal line, they arrived from St. Louis around 1912 to work for Packard. In the early 1930s, they were living a block from Navin Field. | ||
Detroitej72 Member Username: Detroitej72 Post Number: 505 Registered: 05-2006 |
Mom's side, Grandparent came over from Poland at the turn of the 20TH Century. Grandpa grew up in Hamtramck on Dorthy Street and worked for Chrysler at Lynch Road Assembly. Grandma grew up in Detroit where my Great -Granfather owned a feed business but moved to a farm in the country after he lost it during the depression. The wild country was Harper and Crooker in Harrison Twp, and the house is still standing. When they were married, the lived on Winfield Street, (where my mom was born) at Harper and Van Dyke until 1970. The house has since been torn down. Dad's side, Grandpa was born in Posen MI. His parents came from Poland. Moved to Detroit after he was discharged from the army after WWII to marry my grandma. They were pen- pals while Grandpa was fighting in Europe. Grandma's parents came over from Germany and lived on Knodell at Harper and Van Dyke. My grandma was born in this house as well as my father and the family sold it in 1968 after they moved to Sterling Hgts. It still stands to this day. When my parents got married, they bought a house at 7 Mile and Gratiot on Novara, where I was born. | ||
Craig Member Username: Craig Post Number: 140 Registered: 02-2007 |
My father's family came to Detroit in 1910 from Austrian Ukraine (Hallichnia) via Ellis Island and settled in the enclave at Michigan and Martin. By the time I came along the next generations had moved north and west, but we'd still go back to visit. When I landed "my girl" we took a flat in East Dearborn and she, coming from West Dearborn, was apprehensive. But living among the FOBs and 1st-generations felt like home to me, even though ethnically we were not "them." Mom's people were persecuted for religion and washed up in Pennsylvania with the Anabaptists in 1780s. | ||
Al_t_publican Member Username: Al_t_publican Post Number: 184 Registered: 06-2004 |
I bought a brick for the riverwalk in Hart Plaza to commemorate my family's arrival in Detroit. If you look at the names on the bricks you may see Treska 1907 and Slameka 1927. You know how so many people are so quick to brag on their ethnic group? Well, I've never heard anyone ever say, "I'm proud to be of Austro-Hungarian ancestry." That's where three of my grandparents came from but they were niether Austrian or Hungarian, but rather Bohemian and Moravian. | ||
Craggy Member Username: Craggy Post Number: 247 Registered: 10-2003 |
My Dad's side...My Grandpa WALKED to Detroit from Luckey, Ohio in 1928. My Mom's side...My Great Grandfather moved to Wyandotte from Bulgaria in 1920. | ||
Jjaba Member Username: Jjaba Post Number: 5125 Registered: 11-2003 |
jjaba's father came to Chicago via Ellis Island in 1913 on the SS Pretoria out of Hamburg. They were from Ukraine. Our name came from either the ship bursar or a guard at Ellis Island. The family has multiple spellings depending on when they arrived Ellis Island. Father broke away from family to Rochester, NY and then to Detroit in 1928. He rented a room near E. Grand blvd. and Jefferson, then rented on Pingree near Linwood then married and rented on W. Grand Ave. near Dexter. In 1941, they bought a house on Northlawn and Schoolcraft. Mother was born in Chicago of Polish Jews, 1912. She lived there until dad married her and took her to Detroit. (He owned a car in 1934 and had a good job in envelope factory.) They met at a family reunion at South Haven, Michigan 1933 when she took a lake steamer over and dad drove there in his nice car. They met that way. jjaba, Westsider. | ||
Detroitej72 Member Username: Detroitej72 Post Number: 507 Registered: 05-2006 |
Father broke away from family to Rochester, NY and then to Detroit in 1928. He rented a room near E. Grand blvd. and Jefferson ______________________________ ___________________ Jjaba, that means that YOU have some east-side blood in you!!! | ||
Jjaba Member Username: Jjaba Post Number: 5127 Registered: 11-2003 |
Oh sure. jjaba's father lived over there and worked at 2460 E. Grand Blvd. for years. But dad separated family from work. In 40 yrs. of work for the company, mother was never invited until his envelope production lines stopped one day at Lunch, they gave him a tv, and he said goodbye. Most employees had never met her. Mother absolutely didn't know the Eastside, except when on Tuesday nights, we'd schlep all the way over to Belle Isle on surface streets to hear Leonard B. Smith and his Detroit Concert Band. That was like a foreign country over there with the water, the huge ships, and different people as audience. Growing up on the Westside, jjaba didn't know about the Detroit River very much. Only at Cass Tech. did jjaba ever even talk to an Eastsider. jjaba, Westside newsboy. | ||
Craig Member Username: Craig Post Number: 141 Registered: 02-2007 |
Hey Jjaba - the story about names sounds familiar. We kept ours, but then the consonant to vowel ratio in isn't so bad. Via EllisIsland.org I found the passenger manifest for the USS Cincinnati, and saw the names of my people and the 400-500 others, most with hardcore Uke names. For grins I Googled a bunch of those names - try to see where they are now, y'know. NONE of the names came up, none. I guess that everyone holding names with four straight consonants got some standard issue generic name.craig | ||
Mikeg Member Username: Mikeg Post Number: 757 Registered: 12-2005 |
Since my father's paternal great grandfather was not the oldest son in his family, he did not stand to inherit the family farm in Westphalia (Germany). Therefore, he decided to emigrate and he came to Detroit in 1849. After living for a short period in the German community on the lower east side of Detroit, he purchased 80 acres of land in Warren Township, Macomb County, Michigan. In 1853, his two younger brothers followed in his footsteps and made their way to Detroit. The older of the two decided to also farm and bought half of his brother's acreage. He was killed in a wagon collision at the intersection of St. Cyril and Harper on Jan. 31, 1870 while bringing a load of firewood to market. The younger of the two resided in the city and eventually became a grocer. His store was located at 413 Chene Street at the corner of Jay and he and his family resided upstairs. His son was a Detroit College graduate and was employed by the Detroit Water Board. He also served as the Secretary of the Detroit Board of Water Commissioners in the 1920's and you can still see his name on the brass plaque at the entrance to the Water Board building on Randolph Street. My father's maternal ancestors arrived in Detroit from Quebec in the 1700's. His maternal great-great grandfather was born in Port Royal, Quebec in 1752 and arrived in Detroit at about age 20 (their family had come to Quebec from Flanders around the year 1660). One of my dad's maternal great-great grandmothers was a Rivard who arrived in Detroit in the 1760's from her birthplace of Quebec - and whose ancestors had emigrated to the New World from France around 1650. My mother's paternal grandparents emigrated from Vienna, Austria to Delaware Township, Sanilac County, Michigan in about the year 1890. By 1914, they had moved to the Detroit area and the 1914 and 1916 Detroit directories show her father boarding at 309 23rd and 633 Baker, both very near the intersection of West Grand Blvd. and Vernor Highway. My mother's maternal great grandfather emigrated in around the year 1850 from Westphalia (Germany) to a farm he bought in Warren Township, MI. His birthplace was only about 10 miles from the birthplace of my father's paternal great grandfather. Their farms in Warren Twp. were only about 3 miles from each other and they both helped found St. Clement Parish in Center Line. Being a close-knit farming community and Parish, it is not suprising that two of their descendants would marry within one-hundred years of their arrivals in Warren Twp. | ||
Oakland9 Member Username: Oakland9 Post Number: 1 Registered: 03-2007 |
"The family has multiple spellings depending on when they arrived Ellis Island." And what would that spelling be "jjaba"? :] | ||
Lilpup Member Username: Lilpup Post Number: 1964 Registered: 06-2004 |
My dad's parents came down separately from the Keweenaw in the late 1910s, landing in Highland Park. My grandmother was a bookkeeper for the gas company while three of her four siblings were bookkeepers/accountants for auto factories. My grandfather, a blacksmith for the mines up north before serving in WWI, got in at Ford's Highland Park plant. After weathering a layoff during the depression, he got back into Ford and finished his working years at the Rouge. They were married in Highland Park in 1922. My aunt was born there in 1924 but by 1927, when my dad was born, they had moved out to Pleasant Ridge, where they stayed the rest of their lives. My parents bought the house next door to theirs in 1958 or 1959 and still live there - they rent out my grandparent's house. My mom's ancestors were colonial New Englanders who gradually drifted west after the Civil War. Her parents were married in Elyria, OH and moved to southwest Detroit in the early 1930s to find work. This grandfather played violin in a WPA orchestra and eventually ended up a Teamster. My grandmother was a professional pianist and also gave lessons at home. Whenever they had to move (which was often because they never had money) the baby grand got dragged along. An uncle still has it. My mom remembers living on at least four different streets, the longest stay was on Palms, and walking across Clark Park to go to school. She graduated from Cass Tech in 1948. | ||
Steve Member Username: Steve Post Number: 70 Registered: 02-2006 |
Fascinating thread. My parents emigrated from Hungary to Brooklyn in 1948, moved to a farm near Schenectady about half a year later. In 1950 my brother visited some cousins in Detroit and came back telling my parents it was the promised land, and he was going. They followed. Lived first on Tuxedo, where I was born, then on Monterrey just off of Dexter, and then in Oak Park. | ||
Luckycar Member Username: Luckycar Post Number: 8 Registered: 02-2007 |
Steve,I was born on Tuxedo in 1957.Family moved to Greenfield between 7 Mile/Outer Drive.Then to Oak Park!Grandparents,Moms',met on the ship from Russia,Kiev.Dad's folks from Poland.Lived around Hastings,then became westsiders. | ||
Steve Member Username: Steve Post Number: 71 Registered: 02-2006 |
It is well known that great people are born on Tuxedo. | ||
Alexei289 Member Username: Alexei289 Post Number: 1266 Registered: 11-2004 |
My moms side: Settled in 1730 and was among the first settlers of Detroit when it was a French trading post. The Sprague family was one of the few welsh families that set up shop here when the region was predominently french settlers. According to our family bible (which was printed in 1804), it appears that many of the first spragues died young and most of the information is barely legible. However, as of 1804, Thomas Sprague apears several times (marriges, child births ect.) and from there our lineage is pretty solid. Somewhere about 1860 (I wish i had my family bible in front of me, my uncle has it), my great, great, grandmother married a man of the chippawa tribe, and the story goes he literally walked down gratiot ave with a tamohawk when he first settled into town, and he took the name of Sprague to replace his native name. They settled on the eastside, and not to long ago i was in that old photo store in frankenmuth, and sure as shit, i find a picture dated 1890, labled "Sprague House, Field Street". I looked more into it and found that house on field is where my great grandfather lived and my grandma was raised. She was born in 1921. When i was a little kid she took me around there and was sad to realize that it was one of the few houses torn down in the Eastern Grand BLVD area. My fathers side Immigrated from Belgium in 1906, and origionally moved to gladwin Michigan. There my grandmother met my grandfather, also a Belgian immigrant, and married when my grandmother was 14, and moved to Detroit to find work during the 1920s auto boom. My grandfather held a job at Uniroyal during the depression and was actually too old to be drafted into WWII. My grandmother still lives in Detroit on Radnor and recently turned 98. She has worn out 4 pace makers and still cooks most of her own meals, and reads the paper everyday. Shes also a diehard tigers fan  . | ||
Club_boss Member Username: Club_boss Post Number: 5 Registered: 12-2006 |
On my mother’s side, her dad came to Detroit in 1914 from Mexico. Her mom’s history is shrouded in secrecy. On my father’s side, his dad arrived in Detroit in 1912 from “Arabia.” His wife was polish but I don’t have detailed information as to how and when her parents arrived in America. In 1930 they lived on East Milwaukee Street. It was fairly easy to trace my family history (I found the 1930 Census loaded with tidbits of info.) back to the point when they arrived in America; I found it a daunting task prior to that point. (Message edited by club boss on April 01, 2007) | ||
Ray1936 Member Username: Ray1936 Post Number: 1288 Registered: 01-2005 |
Great thread. A tip of the hat to the contributors so far! One word of warning....thinking about this stuff can get you hooked on genealogy, as am I. It's totally addictive and will dominate your spare time!! Warning!! Warning!! | ||
Waxx Member Username: Waxx Post Number: 103 Registered: 09-2006 |
My grandfather [who is of Native American descent] came to Detroit in the late 40's after serving in WWII, he's from Lancaster, SC. My grandmother hails from Jonestown, Ohio she came to Detroit as a teenager and attended Miller High (now Middle) School. They were married in July 1949-they're still together-58 years and counting! My father came to Detroit from Montgomery, Alabama in 1970 to work for Chrysler-he's retired now. My mother in a native of Detroit. She attended Chandler Elementary School, Joy Middle School, and Finney High School. They married in 1973-they're divorced but still friends thankfully-they are the proud parents of yours truly. And I am a 12-year veteran of DPS. | ||
Jimaz Member Username: Jimaz Post Number: 1804 Registered: 12-2005 |
I have a geneology documented back 18 generations. The earliest Detroit-born ancestor was only my father but the earliest Michigan-born ancestors were born in 1803 in Barry County, 6 generations back. The most recent overseas birth documented was from generation 10 in 1666 in England. The oldest birth date is 1430 in England. There's a lot of Scottish and German in the mix too. I'd bet if we listed surnames we'd discover we're all related! HA! | ||
Lombaowski Member Username: Lombaowski Post Number: 34 Registered: 11-2004 |
Some really interesting contributions in here. When I saw someone's family came in 1730 I realized that I don't know much about my family prior to 1900. I have met some distant cousins in Italy but they have a slightly different line. I've been to Poland but could not find either side but I didn't look that hard. Might be a good summer trip this year (I live about 250 miles from the Polish border). | ||
Danny Member Username: Danny Post Number: 5720 Registered: 02-2004 |
In my mom's side. My Grandparents come from Mobile Alabama to settle in Detroit at the Del-ray section at the SW side in the mid 1940s along with 2 of her children. Five more of her children were in Del-ray in a 2 family wood frame flat on the corner of Dragoon and W. Jefferson St. Then they move to Brush Park near Paradise Valley until parts of it wore torn down in the 1950s. Then they move to North Corktown area near Myrtle st. ( Now MLK Blvd.) Then My Grandmother brought a 3 bedroom wood frame colonial in Stoepel St. West of Livernois in the West Side from 1958 to 1993. In my dad's side. My Grandparents moved to Detroit in the early 1940s from Alabama. My dad was born at Joseph Compeau St. between E. Fort St. and Kercheval St. at the victorian wood frame 3 bdrm. bungalow. My Grandmother divorsed her husband and remarried then, my Grandmother died whem my dad was 10 years old and his father left Detroit to find work. So my dad went to stay with his aunt in the west side and then to his older sister before to went to the army to serve in Vietnam for three years. after he came back from the Army he married my mother and move to Lawton St. at the Martin Park sub-division in Detroit NW side from 1975 to 1985. | ||
Detroitnerd Member Username: Detroitnerd Post Number: 782 Registered: 07-2004 |
On dad's side, along Canton, Helen, Townsend and Field, between 1903 and 1914. Grandma was born in Montreal and her family moved here in 03. Grandpa was from Harbor Springs and came to work at U.S. Rubber. | ||
Jjaba Member Username: Jjaba Post Number: 5130 Registered: 11-2003 |
Oakland9, jjaba is impressed that you notice him on you first post. Welcome to Forum. jjaba is an invention of jjaba. It is not related to jjaba family history. It means "Joel Jason Adam Barbara Arnold." This is 3 sons, wife and husband. jjaba, the writer, is one of those. jjaba's real name is Aryea ben Yitzkok but that's a whole discussion you probably ain't interested in. jjaba, Westside Bar Mitzvah Bukkor. | ||
Pam Member Username: Pam Post Number: 1272 Registered: 11-2005 |
My Mom's father's side came from Poland around the turn of the century and first lived near St. Albertus. Mom's mom's side were Germans with a long history in Wisconsin and came in the 1920s. They lived near Wayne State I believe. Dad's dad side were some sort of Anglo-Irish blend and came from Ohio to Wyandotte, not sure when. Dad's Mom's side came from Serbia to Akron, Ohio and then to Detroit in the 1920s. I think they lived on Russell St. at some point. Both sides ended up near Pershing High. Mom graduated from Pershing, Dad from Cass Tech. (and later Wayne and U of D dental.) Only one of my siblings was born in Detroit. The rest of us were born in various places when my Dad was in the Army. (Message edited by Pam on April 01, 2007) | ||
Jimaz Member Username: Jimaz Post Number: 1805 Registered: 12-2005 |
Ray1936, you are so correct! I've discovered that my great, great, great, great, great grandfather was the Jacob Andros, Sr. mentioned here. Apparently, in 1757 during the French and Indian War, they were very much interested in drinking Cherry "Rhum," Punch and "Sider." Some of this text is very difficult to read: quote: | ||
Thejesus Member Username: Thejesus Post Number: 814 Registered: 06-2006 |
Not sure where they first settled/lived, but I know that my great grandfather on my mother's side came over from Sicily and opened a tailor's shop downtown somewhere around the turn of the century... | ||
Mackinaw Member Username: Mackinaw Post Number: 2635 Registered: 02-2005 |
One grandfather moved from CA to Detroit in the 20s, working in the booming downtown retail sales market (Hudson's), and living on E. Grand once he was settled in. The other half of my family all came here from Pennsylvania between 1910-20, preferring to work in manufacturing rather than mining. They all ended up near the university district on the west side. This part of the family stayed in the city until the 90s, so my mother grew up there. The other part of the family moved to the inner ring in the 50s. | ||
Ghetto_butterfly Member Username: Ghetto_butterfly Post Number: 684 Registered: 09-2004 |
My son and I are first generation Detroiters. We moved to the Detroit area from Belgium in 1993, he was 10, I was 33. Then moved into the city in 2001, have been living in a beautiful 1920's Art Deco apartment building on E. Jefferson ever since. Son, now 23, moved to LA last year for work reasons but misses Detroit with all of his heart and comes back frequently. I miss him too. And I miss Europe. Mom's side: Germany (Sauerland), then married my dad in 1959 and moved to Belgium in 1963, my brother and I were born in Cologne, Germany where my dad studied architecture. Dad passed away in 1992. Her dad was German, her mom was from Siebenbürgen, a then German-speaking part of Romania in the Carpatians (?). Dad's side: his dad born and raised in Belgium, near the border to Germany and Holland, where me and my siblings grew up too. He died in WWII. His mom was from Leipzig, Germany, which was in so-called DDR (socialist eastern Germany) after WWII until 1990. My brother and his family now live in France, sister and mom still live in my hometown area in Belgium, although brother and mom have moved around quite a bit over the years. |
