LIVING HISTORY First Quarter 2012 January-March

Saving Our PhotographsA new project is underway at the museum to

digitally archive and preserve our photograph

collection. A large percentage of our collection

exists in its original (paper) format only; this

requires the photos to be handled whenever

research is conducted or the photos are scanned

for creating a new public program. Additional

handling exposes the photographs to the danger of

deterioration, damage or loss.

Additionally, providing more public access to

photo collections has become an increasing

priority in the museum community, especially

through the Internet.

To address these concerns, we will be scanning our

photo collection and creating a permanent digital

photo library.

Continued on page 2

Arc of Justice: Race, Religion and

Intolerance in 1920s Clawson In 2010 The Great Michigan Read focused on the

book Arc of Justice: A Saga of Race, Civil Rights, and

Murder in the Jazz Age, by Kevin Boyle. The story of

an African American physician whose family was

terrorized when they moved into a white Detroit

neighborhood in 1925, Boyle’s book tells a

compelling story in a moving and sensitive manner,

and highlights the issues of race, immigration and

intolerance that swept the country after World War I.

These issues were not confined to large cities like

Detroit, St. Louis or Chicago; racial tension and

intolerance was prevalent even in Clawson. Extreme

groups such as the KKK, the Black Legion,

Communists and anti-communists all increased

enormously after World War I, drawing much

membership and support from the suburbs.

Restrictions on property ownership were put in place,

and intimidation and violence were practiced against

undesirable groups.

Join me Monday, January 9th, 6:00p.m., at the Blair

Memorial Library for a discussion of Arc of Justice:

Race, Religion and Intolerance in 1920s Clawson. I

will address issues that helped create a climate of

segregation and intolerance, the Red Summer of

1919, the growth of restrictive groups and laws, and

seek to understand how this legacy lingers even

today.

Inside This Issue

3 Where are the Facts? Student visits Bits and Scraps – the Bungalow in Hindsight

4 From the Archives – KKK battles Communism Museum hours and information; policies;

6 Clawson Family File- Russel & Kathleen Harrison 7 Old House Update – Unique homes around town

8 Upcoming events Home tour –Thank you donors

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Photographs, from page 1

At the same time, we will be creating a second digital

library consisting of jpegs that can be used for on-

line exhibits, including Flickr or Photobucket. Other

museums, including Henry Ford, have started using

this system, and find it economical and easy to use.

The ability for off-site patrons to search

photographs actually encourages visits and other

contact with the physical museum by allowing them

a “sneak-peek” at the museum’s collection. It has

even generated a demand for copies of photographs

which can be purchased by the public.

To facilitate this project, a generous donation from

the Clawson Garden Club is being utilized to

purchase a large flatbed scanner and external hard

drives for backing up the archive.

We have completed a needs-assessment and begun

testing our proposed archiving procedure; we hope

to begin the project by the end of January, and

expect it to take about a year to complete.

The Clawson historical Museum’s photograph

collection has grown to over 5,000 photographs.

They are among our most prized items, and we are

pleased to be able to further protect them for the

future.

If you would like information on protecting your

family photographs, please go to our website at

www.clawsonhistoricalsociety.org and click on the

“photo care guide” on the right panel. Or contact

the museum for a printed copy.

Photographs capture a moment in time and remind us of people and places long past.

Catherine Kurz and Margaret Tisch crossing the street near the intersection of

14 mile and Main Street, about1927. Caruthers Gas Station is in the

background. It is currently the site of Pizza Hut Restaurant.

Not so very long ago…This was the scene on Main Street. Mildred Baker (Parady) and Jean Mathewson about 1910. Note the DUR waiting station in the background.

Where are all the FACTS? Second graders from Schalm Elementary and Fifth graders from Guardian Angels each visited the museum last fall. About 125 students explored the history of our community and learned how people lived in Clawson 90 years ago. Students always have interesting questions as they find a way to relate the past to their own lives. Typical queries include “do you live here?” “Is the food real?” “If they didn’t have electricity, how did they play video games?” One second grade student asked a question that was entirely new to me. Looking around the living room, he asked, “if this is a museum, where are all the historical facts?” Great question! I suppose he was expecting printed boards with pictures and lots of things to read. I explained to him that the “facts” are all around us: the artifacts tell the story. Furniture, paintings, clothing, tools and toys all contribute to our understanding of the past and provide a picture of how people lived. Seeing and handling a “real” piece of the past prompts questions and discussion as students attempt to discover their own connection to the past. Students sing along to the player piano with Bree Boettner School field trips have declined in recent years, probably due to time and budget constraints, which is unfortunate. Students are so used to sitting in front of a computer or television screen the experience is no longer novel. A hands-on interaction with historical “facts” can’t be compared to the flat experience of a computer screen.

Bits and Scraps Hindsight isn’t always a helpful perspective. Except for the past years of our own lives, the study of history is conducted from a position greatly removed from the perspective of those who actually lived through it. Volumes have been written on the subject, and reading contemporary histories of important events is often enlightening and surprising even to the long-time student of history. For example, a revolutionary innovation or invention that becomes commonplace quickly loses its novelty, and future generations are unable to recognize the impact, or even shock, that such innovation produced when they were introduced. This applies to important inventions like electric lighting (how dark it used to be at night!), reforms in clothing styles (blue jeans, anyone?), short hair for women or any number of completely ordinary parts of American life that were a scandalous novelty at the time. Take, or instance, the bungalow house. Hundreds or even thousands of these low, broad little homes can be found in every community, sometimes sitting side by side with post-war minimal traditionals, ranches, ramblers, tri-levels and even Victorian-era farmhouses. The eclectic nature of many neighborhoods is so common to the casual observer that it is rarely commented on. It is difficult to appreciate that the bungalow-style home was an innovative design that not only broke from the old Victorian tradition in its appearance, but also in its suggestion of a complete change in lifestyle for its occupants.

Continued on page 5

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Clawson Historical Museum Purposes and Policies

The Clawson Historical Museum is owned by the City of Clawson It is governed by a Historical Commission of five members appointed by the Clawson City Council. It is managed by a curator appointed by the City Manager. Its operating budget is funded through the City of Clawson and augmented by generous donations from the Clawson Historical Society.

Museum Purpose: The Clawson Historical Museum exists to collect, preserve and encourage the use of documents, photographs and artifacts related to the early history of Clawson, from its settlement in 1823 to the present, focusing especially on the decade of the 1920s, when Clawson Incorporated as a Home Rule Village.

Collections: Historical records include those related to area public and civic organizations, as well as personal oral histories of residents, property abstracts, school and business records and thousands of photographs documenting Clawson’s buildings, homes, streets, and the changes they have undergone through the decades. Also included in the collection are maps, almanacs, and contemporary published materials such as newspapers, books, magazines and periodicals that reflect the culture of the 1920s.

These materials are available to the public for research on genealogy, property history, environmental investigations and other personal interests. Student research is especially encouraged.

C L A W S O N H I S T O R I C A L M U S E U M

41 FISHER COURT

MAILING ADDRESS: 425 N. MAIN STREET, CLAWSON MI

48017

PHONE: 248-588-9169

FAX 248-588-+9169

EMAIL: HISTORICALMUSEUM@CITYOFCLAWSON.COM

MUSEUM OPEN WEDNESDAY AND SUNDAY, 1-4 P.M.,

EXCEPT HOLIDAYS. ADMISSION IS FREE

GROUP TOURS BY APPOINTMENT

PRESERVING THE PAST FOR THE FUTURE

VISIT US ON FACEBOOK

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F R O M T H E A R C H I V E S

2 INJURED AS REDS BATTLE KLANSMEN

Clawson, Mich., Jan 12 (1933)

Two men, believed by the police to be members of the Unemployed Council of Clawson, a Communist organization, were injured in a free-for-all fight, Wednesday night, in which 150 Klansmen and 50 Communists engaged. The fight was on Main Street, in front of the council’s headquarters.

A burning cross, planted across the street from the double-storeroom which houses the communistic organization, was the signal for the clash, the police were told. It was reported that the Communists charged the Klansmen in an effort to break down the cross.

Two Communists were reported to have been knocked down with blackjacks in the hands of Klansmen. They were carried away by friends and were not taken to hospitals in

this vicinity for treatment, officers said.

The fight between the two factions continued in the street and in a field nearby, according to Jim Gere, a special policeman.

The Unemployed Council meets each Wednesday night at 8p.m. At that hour the group of Klansmen appeared in the street, bearing a banner which read: “The Klan Rides. Communism will be Destroyed.” The attempt to destroy the cross followed the rush of Communists from their hall.

Officers were told that more than 100 cars, in which Klansmen had driven to Clawson, were parked along Main Street. The crowd had scattered before police reinforcements, called by witnesses, arrived.

Royal Oak Tribune, 1933

KLAN BURNS CROSS ON NORTH WOODWARD Ferndale, Mich, March 24. – Traffic on Woodward Avenue, for a short distance north of the Eight Mile road, was tied up Thursday night while several hundred motorists watched a cross burn to the ground. It had been placed in the parkway and soaked with oil. The cross, Police Chief C.J. Barnett said, was about seven feet high. Nearby was a placard declaring “The Klan rides; communism will be destroyed.” It was signed by the Ku Klux Klan. Police found no trace of the men who planted the cross. They fled after applying the torch.

Royal Oak Tribune, 1933

Bits and Scraps – Bungalows in hindsight, from page 3 Greatly generalized, the home before World War I tended to be a large house, with two or three floors, no central heating, (only fireplaces or stoves,) possibly without electricity or plumbing. Burning coal or wood created a constant supply of dust and grit. Cooking was likely done over a wood or coal stove, and the sheer difficulty of housework required that every woman who could afford it hired help at least for the most arduous tasks, such as laundry, spring cleaning or canning. After about 1910, a gradual change was seen in home design. Perhaps influenced by the Arts and Crafts movement, and a desire for simpler living, the bungalow house design began to emerge. Opposed to the verticality of the Victorian-era house, the bungalow was a low-profile, broad structure, typically only one or 1 ½ stories, and was meant to be built close to the ground. A compact design with smaller rooms, it offered many windows for ventilation. It frequently featured a central heating plant and, increasingly after 1917, indoor plumbing. The new house not only looked different; it suggested that people would live differently within it. Gone were the heavy damask draperies and dark heavy carpets of the previous era; advertisements stressed the healthful benefits of light and air offered by the numerous, airy windows, dressed with light glass curtains, and polished floors of wood and linoleum with tidy area rugs. A compact, efficient kitchen was the highlight of an exemplary plan for the ease of the housewife; ad-men knew that women had a large voice in the choice of their new home, and kitchens were important to them. Unlike the Sears Modern Homes from 1913, which seemed to be struggling with transitional styles, unsure of what the public demanded, by 1917 Aladdin and other companies had plunged fully into the new bungalow concept. While they continued to offer Foursquares and other traditional styles, the Aladdin “Built in a Day” house catalog offered the very latest in home plans. The modern features of a bungalow home were touted in the ads: airy, healthful, convenient, practical, economical, comfortable and sanitary.

Appealing to the housewife, it was suggested the home would make housekeeping a pleasure. “In this (The Raymond) as in all Aladdin houses, the designer has kept prominently in mind the thought of modern arrangements, which in Aladdins is only another way of saying, “doing one’s work with the least possible effort.” …What housewife would not be delighted with the plan of the Raymond? ” Bungalows do not seem particularly modern or innovative today, in this post-McMansion era. The humble bungalow houses that remain are nestled happily among various other homes, still occupied by families, willingly enduring the updates necessary to accommodate our version of “modern” living. It is easy to miss the fact that once they were the new and improved kids on the block.

Aladdin’s Raymond, 1917, showing the exterior of the home, floor plan, and suggestions for furnishing each room. Although compact at only 660 sq ft, it included space for a piano in the living room. The $585.20 price included a 5% discount for paying cash.

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Clawson Family File Russel and Kathleen (Cadger) Harrison The following is excerpted from an oral history provided by Mr. Harrison in 1979 and supplemented with newspaper articles from the museum archives. Russel Harrison was born in Indiana in 1901. The family moved to Clawson in 1914, originally living on Broadacre. Russel and his sister Frances attended Log Cabin School. It was then a one-room schoolhouse. He found it quite a novelty after moving from Detroit. There were only three students in the 8th grade class, and the three of them, including Bruce Mancour and Alpha Mattimore, had to go to Pontiac to take their exams. In high school he played baseball and boxed. The baseball teams were made of local kids, including some from Birmingham, Detroit and Royal Oak. They played in a field behind the old High School, where the current High School is now. In the 1920s, roads needed to be cleared through the woods, where the City Park is now, to develop the subdivisions. Baker, Phillips and Elmwood were all wooded. Russel and his step dad and another man cleared the wood, dynamited the roots out, and sold the cord wood. That was their payment from the village. Russel recalled working with the Clawson Fire Department in its early years, as well as the struggles of the Depression years, when he lost his job at Ford. He felt like he needed to find a new job about every week, and was typically hired by cities in jobs such as trimming trees or putting in skating rinks. Payment was in the form of scrip, which could be spent like money at the stores. Even utility bills could be paid in scrip. He eventually returned to Ford, working 44 years before his retirement in 1964. He had started at the Highland Park plant working on the Model T, traveling by Interurban, and later, by bus. He recalled the “bus wars” as he put it, when there were different bus companies and jitneys all vying for passengers, sometimes running opposing busses off the road to take their passengers.

Russel spoke about the KKK is Clawson, and his involvement with the group; he ultimately left because he felt they were too interested in taking the law into their own hands. He was also a member of the Trelum Mason’s lodge. Kathleen Cadger Harrison was born in 1900 in Detroit. She was active in the Clawson Women’s Club, the Ladies Aid Society, the Baptist Church, and the Oddfellows, and was always working to assist those in need. The Harrisons were married in 1923 in Royal Oak. They had one son, Fred, who became a minister at Bethany Baptist Church. They celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in 1973. Fred and his wife, Lawna Scott Dyer, recently celebrated their own 50th wedding anniversary. Kathleen passed away in 1982; Russel two years later in October 1984. At that time they had three grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren. The wedding gowns worn by both Mrs. Harrisons are part of the museum’s collection; photographs of each can be viewed on the website at www.clawsonhistoricalsociety.org

Old House Update This newsletter has devoted a lot of space to kit houses around town, but they are not the only buildings with interesting features. One unique bungalow home is at 76 Jefferson. A modest, two bedroom home, it was constructed with poured concrete walls.

During the ‘teens and 20s, Clarence Workman built several houses along Lincoln Avenue. Advertisements in newspapers lured families from Detroit to visit the new Clawson subdivisions. One such family was the James Cox family, who took a ride on the Interurban one Sunday afternoon. After viewing a new house built by Workman, which Mrs. Cox deemed too small, they put down a $50 deposit on an unfinished house at 442 Lincoln. The house features a stucco and shingle exterior with decorative half-timbering, and a broad porch. The Cox family moved into the home in 1916.

LIVING HISTORY 7

76 Jefferson, about 1935

House under construction by Clarence Workman on Lincoln. The original address was 470.

Another interesting home is found on North Main Street. It was originally built by Dr. Fred Reid for his mother, and was later purchased by the Kucera family. The home is still owned an occupied by Greg Kucera, whose father, Greg, added the artistic brick and stonework.

The Cox family home at 442 Lincoln

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Coming Events for 2012 With our Downtown Ghost Walk a great success last fall, we have begun planning another historic tour for 2012. This year, we hope to feature a walking tour of some of our suburban areas that will focus on Sears and Montgomery Ward homes. We anticipate that some of homeowners may even be willing to allow a glimpse into the interiors, which likely retain some of their original features, including built-ins, unique trim and fireplaces. Phillips and Baker streets, in particular, seem to feature a large number of kit homes, especially from Sears. At least three homes on that street appear to be the Puritan model; a Hathaway and a few other unidentified models are also present. Recent research into our archives has suggested that John Mooney, second husband of Mary Baker Phillips Mooney, was the one who built those houses as the land was platted and subdivided beginning in 1916. Throughout the 1920s, records indicate lots being sold, some of which are likely vacant lots, but most are unquestionably “improved” lots with a house. Whether Mr. or Mrs. Mooney had a particular appreciation for the Sears homes is unknown, but the fact that so many of them are gathered in such a compact neighborhood is intriguing. A few other areas are also being considered; as we are still in the planning stages, stay alert for more information in the coming months. We tentatively plan to hold the tour in early September. Later in the year, we will be contacting homeowners to invite them to participate by opening their homes during the tour. We will several volunteers, as well. If you are a homeowner or a volunteer and would like more information, please contact the museum.

Sears Puritan, from the 1930 catalog.

Thank you donors Thank you to the Clawson Garden Club for their donation of funds to support of photograph archiving project. We have purchased a scanner and other equipment to assist with the project. Thank you! Thank you to Darrel and Joann Middlewood for their cash donation. Thank you to Eunice Bradley-Fox for the donation of three lovely dolls that belonged to her mother Florence Kaiser Brown.

To whomever left the Detective Stories magazine

from 1950 on the porch, please contact me so I

can acknowledge your donation. The story on the

James family was very interesting.

One of three German dolls recently donated from the estate of Florence Kaiser Brown, along with the wire stroller.

Clawson Historical Museum VISIT US SOON!