Thank You and An Old East Side Photo

Instead of adding on to the previous thread I started about getting R.L. Polk 1928 Detroit City Directory back online [[it is, but not from selfish old UofM), I decided to post this new thread, to make sure you all could see it.

I finally found where myAttachment 26506 aunt was born and could tell her as a belated 75th birthday present: 2556 Concord, just south of Charlevoix. This photo from my family's album dated 1946 makes sense, now. My grandparents bought their first house at 3058 Baldwin [[a duplex, with her cousin & husband buying the upstairs at 3062) that year. Here is my grandmother taking a final walk down Concord before moving, with my mother off to the side looking on. Our family had been through a lot in that rent house, but most of the events were very happy. It's a photo about moving on, I suppose.

I just thought some of you, especially you east siders, would like to see a worn old photo of an intact Islandview, with all the four-squares existing and beautiful.

Thanks again, my fellow DetroitYes-ers. I'm really happy tonight.

Houses are such a part of our lives -- even if they were rentals. Great find, Kathy, and thank you for sharing!

Your most welcome, Ray. I know there are some others of the old neighborhood [[Concord & Charlevoix) and new [[Baldwin & Goethe) around. I wanted to post them long ago, but Ma asked that I wait until she passed. Now she has so, I'll scan them when I get a chance for all of you. The east side was so beautiful once...if you only knew!

Back in the days of respect for the property of others, rent homes were standard operating procedure for thousands of people who came to Detroit for jobs. As a rule, they were left in better condition by the renters for the next person to come along. I noticed all the "R"s on the 1940 Census forms in the neighborhood that confirmed what had been told to me through the years. That means "renters", "O" meant owners, FYI.

Indeed, my grandparents were in their 40s before they bought their first house; my mother was just out of her teens and had been raised in rent houses. My grandparents would have been mortified to see some of the way renters treat homes today. I just don't understand....I wasn't raised like that!

During the war, we lived in a rented upper flat in Dearborn in the shadow of Fordson High School. Dad took care of that place as if it was his own. I remember the fit he had when the coal delivery guy left a mess in the driveway, and he was out there cleaning it up on no time.

Different world, different time. Sigh.

Uh.....post script.....I'm sure y'all know what war I was referring to. :)

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Originally Posted by Ray1936

Uh.....post script.....I'm sure y'all know what war I was referring to. :)

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Civil.

I mean your posts, not the war, of course.

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Originally Posted by Ray1936

Uh.....post script.....I'm sure y'all know what war I was referring to. :)

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"The Big One, WW-II"

St Clair half a block south of E. Warren about 1923-24. From the late 1940s, I remember the street as tree-lined. This must have been when the houses were new. My aunt [[1919-1999)

Attachment 26508

My dad grew up one block north of E. Warren at 5096 St. Clair. He was born in 1923 and lived there until 1951. As a child, I remember maple trees all down the street in the easement
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Here's a shot of my great uncle Walt on his wedding day in the mid-40's. I presume the shot is on Nottingham [[he lived at 5283 and his bride at 5305). Using streetview, I can't quite figure the angle or confirm the street, but there are some houses missing today that were there on his big day.

Attachment 26524

Attachment 26533

I lived on Nottingham [[10681) 1941-1954. Pic shown is current from Google Earth.

Oh, my gosh everybody! Thank you so much for sharing all you wonderful photos! I'm having fun looking at them. Dad used to say West Siders called us "river rats". He used say "thank you"! Do you have any objection to being called that?

Here's one I found, from my dad's collection. All it has on the back is 1944. Anyone know where this might be? It's most likely east side...and since it's dad, it could be Hamtramck or Poletown. Bonus question for you gearheads [[love you, BTW) can you ID the cars in the photo? East side,West Side, Downriver, no matter: keep those photos coming.

Of course, Ray. It's the one that saved the world; the one we won!

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Originally Posted by kathy2trips

Oh, my gosh everybody! Thank you so much for sharing all you wonderful photos! I'm having fun looking at them. Dad used to say West Siders called us "river rats". He used say "thank you"! Do you have any objection to being called that?

Here's one I found, from my dad's collection. All it has on the back is 1944. Anyone know where this might be? It's most likely east side...and since it's dad, it could be Hamtramck or Poletown. Bonus question for you gearheads [[love you, BTW) can you ID the cars in the photo? East side,West Side, Downriver, no matter: keep those photos coming.

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The one in the back is a Pontiac. The one in the front looks like a three wheeler and probably an import. Wow, it is a long time since a "body shop" was called a "bump shop".

Thank you, Hermod! Didn't realize about the verbage...that's cool. Guess inde garages were pretty versatile, huh? Some very talented employees there!

The TW in the phone number stands for Twinbrook, which puts in on the Eastside, I think Hamtramck and north and east of it, and the 2700 number address would be somewhat east of Chene, or a bit west of Jos Campau, if further north.

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Originally Posted by Hornwrecker

The TW in the phone number stands for Twinbrook, which puts in on the Eastside, I think Hamtramck and north and east of it, and the 2700 number address would be somewhat east of Chene, or a bit west of Jos Campau, if further north.

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Good clue spotting, Hornwrecker! Certainly that was Dad's neck of the woods!

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Originally Posted by kathy2trips

Thank you, Hermod! Didn't realize about the verbage...that's cool. Guess inde garages were pretty versatile, huh? Some very talented employees there!

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The fellow across the street from us was named Bud Parker and owned Parker's Garage over on Harper. Some nights he drove a wrecker home which always excited us kids. His garage also sponsored a "hot rod roadster" and later and old model stock which he used to run in the races at Motor City Speedway on 8 Mile. For a long time, Jack Konley was his driver, then he used Iggy Katona for a while.. Some time in the fifties, he opened a rental n=banquet hall on harper called Embassy Hall. Does anybody remember them?

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Originally Posted by Hermod

I lived on Nottingham [[10681) 1941-1954. Pic shown is current from Google Earth.

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Looks like it's a block south of where my grandmother lived in the late '70s and '80s.