On April 24, 1965, at a carnival in a suburban Taylor Township shopping center parking lot, five children were riding in the “Flying Comet,” a mechanical “maypole” whose arms and attached buckets whirled in circles 10 to 12 feet above ground.
Suddenly, the arm holding the bucket collapsed and the children were dragged around the center pole until the operator shut off the motor. Two kids died and three were critically injured in the tragedy, which prompted the Legislature to enact a safety-inspection law for such rides.
Source: Mich-Again’s Day
Lawson J. Deming (April 23, 1913 – April 24, 2007) was a radio and TV character actor best known in Detroit, Cleveland, Washington, D.C. and parts of Canada as the Saturday afternoon television horror movie host “Sir Graves Ghastly.”
Sir Graves Ghastly began his hosting duties in 1966 on WJBK Channel 2 in Detroit. The show was Sir Graves Ghastly Presents and it ran on Saturday afternoons until April of 1983. He was very popular, especially with kids, probably due to the fact that his character did not appear scary and was actually more cartoonish.
The show featured many other characters as well, including his girlfriend Tilly Trollhouse and Glob, Sir Graves’ mouth filmed upside down. Most of these characters were played by Ghastly himself, Lawson J. Deming.
In all, Sir Graves Ghastly ran for 15 seasons in Detroit. Due to the show’s popularity (it was topping all other programs in its time slot other than live sporting events), WJBK added the occasional after-school or prime time Sir Graves special and, of course, several Halloween specials. The explosion of televised sports in the early 1980s, particularly college football, caused Sir Graves to go into hiatus after airing a show in November 1982. A management change during this time led to the program being “officially” cancelled in 1983 before any other shows were produced. As he did while his show was running, Deming continued to do speaking engagements and personal appearances well into the 1990s
For more information, see SirGravesGhastly.com
Detroit Horror Host Sir Graves Ghastly Show Intro
Sir Graves Ghastly Tibute Video
On April 10, 1872, journalist and newspaper editor J.Sterling Morton established Arbor Day in the state of Nebraska with hopes that it would spread across the country. This first Arbor Day challenged the people of Nebraska who were pioneers and missed the trees and forests of the east.
The challenge was to plant as many trees as they possibly could. The citizens of Nebraska answered the challenge by planting more than 1 million trees that first Arbor Day.
Arbor Day, a tree-planting holiday was recognized in Michigan for the first time on April 15, 1876, when it was designated by Gov. John Bagley, who requested that trees be planted in recognition of the nation’s centennial celebration.
Today Arbor Day is normally celebrated on the last Friday of April.
| Year | Arbor Day |
| 2020 | Friday, April 24 |
| 2021 | Friday, April 30 |
| 2022 | Friday, April 29 |
| 2023 | Friday, April 28 |
To learn more about the history of National Arbor Day visit the website at www.nationalarbordayfoundation.com.
Sources:
National Arbor Day entry from the National Day Calendar
MIRS Capitol Capsule, April 15, 2020
This lithograph from the Detroit Historical Society shows Phoenix Steam Fire Engine No. 3 as it appeared in Lincoln’s funeral procession in Detroit.
On the morning of April 15, 1865 President Abraham Lincoln died of a gunshot wound he suffered the night before while watching Our American Cousin at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C. Even by 19th-century standards, word spread quickly throughout the shocked nation, and Detroit deeply grieved the fallen 16th president. Mourners gathered in Campus Martius on April 16 and soon a memorial event with a funeral procession was planned for April 25.
A photograph of the firefighters of K.C. Barker Company No. 4 with a horse-drawn fire engine carrying a young girl with a harp, a flag, and a small portrait of Lincoln as it appeared in Lincoln’s funeral procession in Detroit.
In his 1890 book History of Detroit and Wayne County and Early Michigan, Silas Farmer described the solemn affair: “Everywhere stores and residences were draped in black, and loving, tender, and patriotic mottoes, displayed in many forms, relieved and enforced the somber hangings.”
When Lincoln’s body was transported from Washington, D.C., for burial in Springfield, Ill., the funeral train stopped in several cities, though Detroit was not among them. Still, the respect Michigan paid to Lincoln (the state lost nearly 15,000 lives in the Civil War) was undeniably heartfelt. That affection was mutual. At the outset of the Civil War, when Michigan sent more men to fight than he had expected, Lincoln remarked, “Thank God for Michigan.”
This article appears in the April 2015 issue of Hour Detroit
Opening Day is special. Every team and every player starts out with a clean slate. If your team wins that day, you secretly wonder: can we win ’em all? Is this the year? Hope truly springs eternal.
The Detroit Tigers played their first opener back on April 25, 1901, at the corner of Michigan and Trumbull at Bennett Park. That day they squared off in their first American League game against the Milwaukee Brewers, a team that moved to St. Louis the following year to play as the Browns.
The Tigers have had some exciting home openers in their history.
But the first one may have been the best of them all.
The Detroit Tigers were one of the flagship members of the brand-new American League. The team played at rickety wooden Bennett Park, at the corner of Michigan and Trumbull.
The roster was sprinkled with names like Pop Dillon, Doc Casey, Ducky Holmes, Sport McAllister, and Davey Crockett. It also featured three guys named Kid (Kid Gleason, Kid Elberfeld, and Kid Nance). The manager was 33-year-old “Gentleman George” Stallings.
The opener was originally scheduled for the 24th, but heavy rain caused a postponement until the next day. The weatherman eventually cooperated, and a bright, sunny afternoon made it a perfect day for a ballgame, despite the still-soggy infield.
Opening Day was a special event even back then, as a parade that included both the Tigers and the visiting Milwaukee Brewers made its way up Michigan Avenue, before finally ending at the ballpark. (The Brewers, by the way, played only one season in the Cream City, before they relocated to St. Louis and changed their name to the Browns. They moved to Baltimore in 1954 and became the Orioles.)
A total of 10,023 Tiger fans came out for the event (actually they were called “cranks” back then). Pregame festivities included the Brewers marching onto the field, followed closely by the home team, which sported bright red woolen coats. The grandstand crowd cheered, and the Tigers showed their appreciation by doffing their caps.
Civic luminaries gave the usual boring speeches that nobody really wanted to listen to. Stallings, along with James Burns, co-owners of the Tigers, were presented with an oversized silver cup. The City Council President threw out the first pitch. Finally, the Tigers sprinted onto the field, the band played “There’ll be a Hot Time in the Old Town Tonight,” and the game was ready to begin.
So really, things haven’t changed all that much on Opening Day in Detroit. It is an afternoon of pomp and circumstance, to be sure, but mostly it is a day to welcome back that old friend, baseball, after a long winter of hibernation.
On that afternoon in 1901, Tiger fans saw the comeback to end all comebacks.
Down 13-4 heading into the last of the ninth, Detroit scored ten runs to win its first American League game, 14-13.
One newspaper account the next day called it, “The most magnificent batting rally ever seen.”
Today, we call it a walk-off win. So some things do change.
The victory sparked the Tigers, who went on to win their next four games, by such scores as 13-9 and 12-11 (And I thought they called it the Deadball Era?).
But by season’s end, Detroit had to settle for a record of 74-61, good for third place behind the Boston Americans and A.L. champion Chicago White Sox.
Today, Opening Day in Detroit has taken on a whole new meaning. It is as much a day for calling in sick to work and joining a party downtown, as it is for going to a ballgame. Bars and restaurants around Comerica Park are standing-room-only with revelers who don’t even have a ticket.
That’s a good thing. It means that people in this town care a lot about the Tigers.
So just like cranks at the turn of the 20th century cheered on Kid Gleason, Kid Elberfeld, and Kid Nance, today’s Tiger fans can yell and scream for Victor Martinez and J.D. Martinez.
And hope and pray for a thrilling ninth-inning comeback.
Sources :
Dan Holmes, “These players started the most opening day games for the Detroit Tigers“, Detroit Athletic Company, April 5, 2016.
Scott Ferkovich, “In their first game in the American League, Detroit thrilled their fans on Opening Day“, Michigan Athletic Company, April 4, 2015.
On April 25, 1907, occupants of the women’s annex at the Soldiers’ home in Grand Rapids were compelled to take a bath once a week, but some occupants objected to the commandant’s stand for cleanliness.
Those who didn’t bathe at least once a week risked not having meals at their home or eat at the restaurant near the home. Residents also objected to a nurse attendant being at the bath with them.
One 75-year-old woman spent each Sunday and Monday in the city to avoid that bath and change of underwear.
Source: The Detroit Free Press
Esther Gordy Edwards (April 25, 1920 – August 24, 2011) was a staff member and associate of her younger brother Berry Gordy’s Motown label during the 1960s. Edwards created the Motown Museum, Hitsville U.S.A., by preserving the label’s Detroit studio. She also served as President of the Motown Museum and has been called the “Mother of Motown”.
Everyone knows of the legendary Berry Gordy Jr., but not all know of his business-savvy sister, Esther Gordy Edwards. She was the woman behind the man, who just happened to be her younger brother. During Motown’s “hayday” Gordy Edwards served as a company executive, managing artists such as: Stevie Wonder, Smokey Robinson, Marvin Gaye and the Supremes.
Her legacy was that she understood the value of high standards and legacy. Her brother, Berry Gordy released in a statement upon her death, “She preserved Motown memorabilia before it was memorabilia, collecting our history long before we knew we were making it.” For those of you who don’t know, Esther Gordy Edwards turned the Motown offices/Hitsville USA into the Motown Historical Museum.
“We used to laugh at Mrs. Edwards because everywhere we went on those tours, she saved everything. She saved all the pictures, all the placards,” Robinson told the Detroit Free Press in 2005. “But what a wonderful thing she did. Because of her we have that museum, we have that place where people can go and see that history.”
While working as an executive at Motown, she helped artists manage their money, arranged for tutors, and directed the company’s international operations. Apparently she also negotiated a contract with future royalties, when her brother Berry asked for the $800 loan from his family to start Motown Records, a scene included in Motown the Musical..
Sources :
Esther Gordy Edwards wikipedia entry
Tatiana Grant, Women’s History Month : Esther Gordy Edwards, Detroit News Blog, March 18, 2015.
Picture taken from Michigan Historical Review Facebook Page, June 1, 2017
Clements Joseph Sohn (December 7, 1910 – April 25, 1937) was an American airshow dare-devil in the 1930s from Fowler, Michigan, USA. He perfected a way of gliding through the air with a home-made wingsuit. He had himself dropped from an airplane at a height of approximately 6000 meters, and would glide down until he was only 300 to 250 meters from the ground, at which point he would open his parachute for the final descent.
He made the wings from zephyr cloth mounted on steel tubes, forming a large web under each arm which was clasped to his hips. A feature of the wings was a device to prevent them from opening out too far and ripping his arms from their sockets. A loose cloth formed another web between his legs, which acted like a bird’s tail. His large goggles gave him an appearance which led to his becoming known as “The Batman” or “The Batwing Jumper”.
Clem was badly injured during the opening ceremony of Gatwick Aerodrome, in London, England, when his primary parachute tangled in his wings. He broke and mangled his shoulder on landing, after opening his emergency parachute at an altitude of only 60 meters and crashing into a taxi.
Sohn’s career came to an end on April 25, 1937, in Vincennes, France. Before taking off, Clem had remarked, “I feel as safe as you would in your grandmother’s kitchen”. But during his descent on that day, his parachute did not open. A crowd of 100,000 watched him frantically tug on the ripcord of his emergency chute, but that failed too, and Sohn, 26 years old, plunged to his death.
Sources:
“Daring Bird-Man Soars at 10,000 ft. on Homemade Wings”. Modern Mechanix. May 1935
Rachel Greco, “‘Batwing man’: A tale of a true Michigan daredevil“, Lansing State Journal, July 29, 2017 (appeared in July 30, 2017 print edition)
Carrie Hagan, “The Bat Men Before Batman“, The Atlantic, June 4, 2014.
Katie Cook, “‘Michigan Batman’s’ suit lands at MI Historical Museum“, WKAR, November 11, 2015.
For more information, request Michael Abrams. Birdmen, Batmen, and Skyflyers: Wingsuits and the Pioneers Who Flew in Them, Fell in Them, and Perfected Them. New York: Harmony Books, 2006. pp. 41–52, through interlibrary loan.
On April 25, 1959, Life chronicles the move of Mariners’ Church to make room room for the Detroit Civic Center.
It’s dwarfed by the towering RenCen hovering over it, but Mariners’ Church of Detroit on East Jefferson is a giant in its own right.
What other church can boast of escaping demolition, being moved 900 feet, and appearing in Life magazine? It also provided refuge for slaves on their way to freedom in Canada, won a landmark case against the Episcopal Diocese of Michigan, and gained fame in a hit 1976 song The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.
Mariners’ Church, built in 1849, still conducts an annual Blessing of the Fleet in March and holds a Great Lakes Memorial Service each November to honor those who died on the Great Lakes, as well as those who perished in the armed forces.
For the full article, see George Bulanda, “Mariners’ Church of Detroit : The downtown house of worship acknowledges the 35th anniversary of the sinking of the ‘Edmund Fitzgerald’”, Hour Detroit, November 2010.
On April 25, 1959, the St. Lawrence Seaway first opened. This 400 mile water rout connected Michigan with the Atlantic ocean.
On the plus side, this made shipping Michigan manufacturing goods abroad much easier. For example, the Detroit Marine Terminals reported an estimated 65% increase in foreign business during the first full month that the St. Lawrence Seaway was open, compared with the previous May. The Free Press called it the “answer to a centuries-old dream for a sea route into the heartland of America.”
On the negative side, it also allowed the introduction of foreign species such as Zebra Mussels into the Great Lakes.
Sources :
Michigan Historical Calendar, courtesy of the Clarke Historical Library at Central Michigan University.
Zlati Meyer, “Seaway opens, boosts business along lakes”, Detroit Free Press, April 22, 2012.
Pandora’s locks : the opening of the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway / Jeff Alexander. East Lansing, Mich. : Michigan State University Press, c2009.