Here is my Uncle Henry Cleage with his adoring mother, Pearl. Henry was born March 22, 1916, the third of my grandparents 7 children. He always told us his nickname was “Happy”. He looks pretty happy here. Henry grew up to be an attorney, a printer, an editor, a writer, a farmer and a philosopher. Not in that particular order. He lived until 1996, when he died from cancer.
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mother’s and children and other exciting subjects. –>
I found this photograph in my Graham album. I have no idea who it is. I don’t know who’s sister it is. I know it isn’t my grandmother Fannie’s sister because I would recognize them. I don’t think it’s my grandfather Mershell’s sister because as far as I know she was a servant with several children by 1918. I looked for information about nursing schools for African Americans Kansas City, MO. in 1918 and turned up nothing, but Zann, a friend of mine, found several short pieces and some photos of the General Hospital for Negroes in Kansas. The uniforms the nurses are wearing look like the same uniforms. So, here is my mystery nurse for this weeks Sepia Saturday.
I can’t make most of this out very well, but here is what I make of it “Made in K.C. Mo. but just found a duplicate and had this developed – 10-10-1918. Over……….your….F. A dm………Normal Ala.”
To read more click Along the color line.
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For Part 2 of “I look the same now.” click here.
I was born in Springfield, Massachusetts and lived there until I was almost 5. We moved in April of 1951 when my father got a church in Detroit, Michigan. Here we are on moving day, my sister and I, with two little girls I knew then but I don’t remember their names. I have a photo of the oldest girl, my sister and myself, standing on the parsonage porch. I also have a memory of the oldest girl pouring milk in my dinner, which I wasn’t going to eat anyway, but still… we were sitting at the little table in our room eating. My mother said if I’d eaten it in a timely fashion it wouldn’t have happened. No sympathy there. I remember another time when this little girl hit me and my mother told me if I didn’t hit her back, my mother was going to hit me. I hit her back. Don’t remember that she ever hit me again.
 Me, sisters I cannot remember the names of, my sister Pearl |
I saw them one more time, after we moved to Detroit. In the winter of 1967 my father returned to Springfield to preach for the Men’s Club. I went with him. We also went to New York on this trip where I bought my first pair of bell bottom jeans. My grandmother was so disappointed that I didn’t get a nice dress. But that isn’t this story. I remember the living quarters in the parsonage seemed so small on this trip. Nobody was living in them at the time. I’m sure the next minister got the congregation to move him back into separate quarters. We stayed with the family of these two girls. I was 20 so they were probably 20 and 18. The oldest one was going to a party. Well, actually she wasn’t going to the party, she was going to meet her boyfriend there and they were going elsewhere. Her father had forbidden her to see this boy. I was never a big party person and I sure didn’t want to be left at a strange party with a bunch of strangers. Needless to say, I didn’t go. The adults tried to persuade me that it would be “fun”. Ha. I didn’t give away her plan but I didn’t go. Wish I could remember her name, I’d look her up on facebook and see what she remembers about any of this.
I’m bringing this one back for Sepia Saturday this week because the theme has a car from about the same time period, give or take a year or two. I think my grandmother is wearing the same type hat as the woman who is looking at the car. A later photograph of the same car has “Lexington” written across the back. You can see that one here The Lexington.
My Aunt Gladys sends word by her daughter that “It was a Lincoln, could fit all nine plus a dog or two, the second row faced the back and the back row faced the front. she’s not sure where the photo was taken. It is big ain’t it! must be the precursor to the limo! She doesn’t think it’s Bell Isle, and it’s not Athens(TN). She thinks it might be the Meadows, that’s the only place with the trees and all the grass. Barbara looks like a miniature flapper!
In 2009 Alan Burnett and Kate Mortensen founded Sepia Saturday. This week we celebrate it’s 100th week of existence. I contributed my first post to Sepia Saturday #48 on November 7, 2010. Since then I have usually been a “themer” and enjoy coming up with something from my family photograph collection related to whatever theme Alan comes up with each week. I also enjoy seeing what others come up with. I have chosen to celebrate the occasion by posting 100 photographs of my father, who would have been 100 years old this year.
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Albert Cleage is Dead at 88; Led Black Nationalist Church
Published February 27, 2000
Bishop Albert B. Cleage, who after the urban riots of the 1960’s built his Detroit church, the Shrine of the Black Madonna, into an important center for black theology and political power, died on Feb. 20 in Calhoun Falls, S.C. He was 88.
Bishop Cleage died while visiting Beulah Land, his church’s new farm, where he planned to raise food for the needy and give city youths peaceful summer vacations.
The bishop, who changed his name in the early 1970’s to Jaramogi Abebe Agyeman, presided for more than three decades at the Shrine of the Black Madonna, originally a Congregational church. The change came in the late 1960’s.
There were other black secessionist churches but Bishop Cleage’s became one of the biggest and most influential emphasizing black interpretations but retaining some traditional Protestant teachings.
Bishop Cleage was also drawn to politics. in 1973, Black Slate Inc., his political organization, helped Coleman A. Young become the first black mayor of Detroit, and the bishop was important in the careers of United States Representative Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick, Democrat of Michigan; former United States Representative Barbara-Rose Collins; and blacks who ran for smaller offices.
“He taught me the importance of organizing,” Ms. Kilpatrick said, “and he created networks of political activists that continue to have a profound impact on Detroit’s political landscape.”
Bishop Cleage became a focus of national attention during the 1968 Detroit riot, when 43 people were killed, and in the turbulent years afterward. Splitting with both the white power structure and more moderate black leaders, he emphasized black separatism in economics, politics and religion.
“The basic problem facing black people is their powerlessness,” he said. “You can’t integrate power and powerlessness.”
Trying to counter what he saw as white domination of religion, Mr. Cleage espoused a gospel of black nationalism. He installed a larger-than-life painting of a black Madonna holding a black baby Jesus, radical for its time, and preached that Jesus was a black revolutionary whose identity as such had been obscured by whites.
“That was the beginning of a whole new religious iconography” said Menelik Kimathi, chief executive officer of the Shrine of the Black Madonna. Mr. Kimathi, who joined a shrine youth group 30 years ago, added, “I think his legacy will be that he founded black liberation theology, the idea that the church could be more relevant to the day-to-day concerns of the community.”
The Rev. Jim Holley, pastor of Little Rock Baptist Church in Detroit, said: “He brought a black consciousness to the church community like it never had been brought before. And it translated into politics.”
In 1968, Life magazine called Bishop Cleage one of “the men who are speaking to black America,” along with Jesse Jackson, Julian Bond, Eldridge Cleaver and Dick Gregory.
The bishop was national chairman of the Black Christian Nationalist Church, an umbrella organization for similar churches, and he wrote “The Black Messiah” (1969) and “Black Christian Nationalism”(1972).
Albert Cleage was born in Indianapolis on Jun 13, 1911. his physician father moved the family to Detroit, and in 1937 the son received a sociology degree from Wayne State University. He received a divinity degree from Oberlin College, then served churches in Lexington Ky.; San Francisco; and Springfield, Mass. In 1951, he became pastor of St. Mark’s Community Church in Detroit, and two years later he formed the Central United Church of Christ, which later became the shrine.
Though he had believed in integration — some of the churches he served were racially mixed — Bishop Cleage came to despair of the hope that whites would ever willingly help blacks advance. He also befriended Malcolm X, the Muslim leader, who had Michigan roots.
Bishop Cleage’s vision of a church reemphasized social service programs reached out to young people and marched for civil rights. He organized black-owned businesses like grocery stores and bookstores, and built hundreds of units of housing.
All this activity made him frightening to many whites.
“When we take over, don’t worry,” he once responded. “We’ll treat you like you treated us.”
He later founded other shrines, including major ones in Atlanta and Houston. Today, Mr. Kimathi said, the church has about 50,000 members nationally.
In the 1970’s, Bishop Cleage backed out of the national spotlight to concentrate more on church programs and working with young people. In the late 80’s and much of the 90’s, he lived in Houston, then returned to Detroit.
Bishop Cleage married Doris Graham in 1943; they divorced in 1955. His survivors include their two daughters, Pearl Cleage of Atlanta and Kristin Williams of Idlewild, Mich.; three sisters; a brother; six grandchildren, and one great-grandchild.
As soon as I saw this weeks prompt for Sepia Saturday, I thought of this photograph. I decided to revisit an old post from Henry’s journal, written during several months of 1936, where he mentions playing the bass at a club.
January 11
Awoke to find that I had lost 2 dollars very depressed. Wrote on theme. Played tonight at Quinn’s Lone Pine with Duke Conte, played bass, terrible night. Fingers sore. Noticed how good-looking Lene is… Ought to throw a line – Police stopped us at about 1:00AM. No permit to play until two. I was glad. Very animal acting bunch in River Rouge. Most of them seem friendly though.
January 12
Played matinee dance at Elks rest with Heckes, Toddy and Bill – Dracee’s band came in and sat in awhile (no trouble) Kenneth was there. Too tired and sleepy to study history. Get up early tomorrow (no English) Toddy is going downtown to get some books is supposed to get me ‘American Tragedy” and ‘Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations”
January 13
Haliver Greene died this morning -spinal meningitis. Didn’t get up early to study History, however there was no class – lecture tomorrow so I won’t slide, tonight. Toddy bought back two books about lives of Educators (putrid!!) only 25 cents a piece though – awfully windy out today-not so cold thought – like March. I would like to have been in the country, wrapped up good, walking into the wind at the Meadows, down the road towards the sand pile or over the hill to the creek – zest, spice, life, health, clear eye, firm step and all that sort of thing.
January 14
Cold out this morning although it became somewhat spring like after school. Went to show after school. Another big fight this morning, I think they think I skip classes because I am sleepy, nonsense. Bought ‘Bartlett’s Quotations” $1.53. Seems worthwhile. Read one of dictator books – Good – tonight as I was going to the store the weather brought memories of spring. Roller-skating in street, if not roller skating then walking. Everybody walking and friendly. The crowd at Krueger’s and the tent. Perhaps riding through Belle isle – water, boats.
To read more of Henry’s journal go to Henry Cleage’s Journal – 1936 and Henry’s Diary Part 2 – 1936 with photos from the Black Album. For a followup with more information about the band go to Follow up on Henry’s Diary.
My grandmother, Pearl Doris Reed, was born in Lebanon, Kentucky in 1886. She the youngest of the seven children of Anna Allen Reed. Pearl’s father was Buford Averitt, a white physician. By 1888 Pearl’s oldest brother, George, had moved to Indianapolis Indiana to work at Van Camps cannery. The rest of the family soon followed.
Workers at Annis Furs in Downtown Detroit. Taken in the 1920’s. My great grandmother, Jennie Virginia Allen Turner is in the second row, far left. Her daughter Alice is next to her. Skip the next woman and her daughter Daisy is there, 4th from the left. The three of them got jobs at Annis Furs soon after moving to Detroit from Montgomery, Alabama in 1922. I remember a little teddy bear Daisy made for my younger cousin Marilyn Elkins out of scraps of real fur. To read more about my Great Grandmother Turner, click Jennie Virginia Allen Turner.
Above is a photograph from the Burton collection at the Detroit Public Library. The Annis Fur Company is in the corner building. Although this was taken in 1917 I think the area looked pretty much the same 7 years later. To see a photograph of the Woodward Ave in 1910 click at Shorpy. You can see Annis Fur Post and Grinell Bros Pianos on the left, looking down the crowded street, past the Eureka Vacuum sign.
For more photos of crowds of women and other fascinating subjects, click Sepia Saturday.
Today I have posted a page from a small photo album that featured a page for each member of my father’s family, plus some family friends. The contact size photos were not very carefully pasted in and are not identified or dated. Judging by the ages of the people, I think they were taken about 1938. Which makes my father, Albert B. Cleage Jr (Also known as “Toddy” to family and friends), 27. The theme this week is a man sleeping while posing for a photograph.
To see another page from the album, click Grandmother Pearl Reed Cleage
To see Sleeping (and other) Sepia Saturday offerings, click HERE.
As I was transcribing my grandmother Fannie Turner Graham’s records of her children’s births and deaths, I began to wonder about the lives of Dr. Ames and Dr. Turner (no relation) who attended these events. As I read about their lives in various online sources I also learned about Detroit race relations, some of which I knew but I had not put them together with the lives of my family and those they knew. I also realized some tie-ins with my paternal Cleage side of the family. They all get mixed up in this post.
On April 3, 1920 Mary V(irginia) Graham was born at home with Dr. Ames attending. My mother, Doris Graham Cleage did not remember him fondly. “It was a very difficult delivery, labor was several days long. The doctor, whose name was Ames, was a big time black society doctor, who poured too much ether on the gauze over Mother’s face when the time for delivery came. Mother’s face was so badly burned that everyone, including the doctor, thought she would be terribly scared over at least half of it. But she worked with it and prayed over it and all traces of it went away. Mary V’s foot was turned inward. I don’t know if this was the fault of the doctor or not, but she wore a brace for years.”
Dr. James Ames came to Detroit in 1894 after graduating from Straight University in New Orleans and Howard University Medical School in Washington D.C. He was elected to the Michigan State House of Representatives from Wayne County’s 1st district for a two year term, 1901-1902.
In 1900 the total population of Detroit was about 285,704. When my paternal grandparents, Albert B. and Pearl Cleage, moved their family to Detroit in 1915 the black population was about 7,000. By the time my maternal grandfather, Mershell C. Graham, arrived in 1917 the black population had soared to over 30,000.
Black doctors were routinely denied admitting privileges at white hospitals. This meant their patients had to be admitted to the hospital by a white doctor. They were sometimes also denied the right to treat their patients once they were admitted. Often hospitals had segregated wards and once they were full, black patients had to find another hospital. In 1918, 30 black doctors came together and founded Dunbar Hospital. Dr. Ames was Medical Director and Dr. Alexander Turner was Chief of Surgery. My grandfather Dr. Albert B. Cleage was one of the doctors. Dr. Ames is first row second from left in the photo of the Dunbar staff above. My grandfather is first row, last one to the far right.
Fannie Graham’s second child, Mershell C. Graham Jr, was born June 10, 1921 at Dunbar Hospital with Dr. Turner in attendance. In that same year, membership in the Ku Klux Klan in Detroit totaled 3,000. The third child, my mother, Doris J. Graham, was born February 12, 1923 at Women’s Hospital with Dr. Turner attending. By that time membership in the KKK in Detroit was 22,000. In November of that year between 25,000 and 50,000 Klan members attended a rally in Dearborn township, which is contiguous with Detroit’s west side.
By 1925 Detroit’s total population was growing faster than any other Metropolitan area in the United States, the black population was over 82,000. Housing segregation was widespread, although there were neighborhoods such as the East Side neighborhood where the Grahams lived that black and white lived together without friction. Perhaps the area wasn’t posh enough to invite trouble. Maybe the large number of immigrants accounts for it. Unfortunately that was not the story citywide as people began to try and move out of the designated black areas into the other neighborhoods. Families moving into homes they had purchased were met by violent mobs that numbered from the hundreds into the thousands. This happened in 1925 during April, June, twice in July and in September.
While writing this I realized that in 1925, my father, Albert B. Cleage Junior, was 14 and attending Northwestern High school with the children of the families that forced Dr. Turner out of his home. The elementary schools for both communities fed into Northwestern High School, which my father and his siblings attended. No wonder my grandmother Pearl Cleage is famous for going up to the school and fighting segregated seating and other inequalities practiced at the time. Ironically, in the ’60s when my sister and I were living on Oregon Street, several blocks from where Dr. Turner tried to move in, and attending Northwestern High School, the community was 99 percent black.
On November 1, 1927 Mershell C. Graham Jr was killed when he was hit by a truck on the way back to school after lunch. He was taken to St. Joseph Mercy Hospital, a Catholic Hospital on Detroit’s East side. Dr. Turner was there with him when he died.
On September 9, 1928 Howard Alexander Graham was born at Woman’s Hospital with Dr. Alexander Turner attending. By 1930 Detroit’s population was 1,568,662. On March 4, 1932, Howard Graham died. I know that his first name was that of Fannie’s father. I wonder if his middle name, Alexander was for Dr. Alexander Turner.
Some links you might find interesting:
Part 1 – Births, Deaths, Doctors and Detroit – Grandmother Fannie’s Notes
The Sweet Trials: An Account
Click For other Sepia Saturday Posts
