Ladies' Auxiliary Feather Party Raffle Ticket

From what I can deduce of scant second hand info floating about the internet, feather parties originated in the 1920s in the Eastside Detroit Polish community. This was at the peak of the city's immigrant influx when most churches were often teemed with parishioners and the Archdioses couldn't erect the next structure quick enough to meet the needs and demands of the new arrivals.

Since many were poor and culturally inhibited by the customs of their new country, which they earnestly tried to assimilate into, and often couldn't afford the lavish American holiday dinners, the churches held live turkey raffles to ease their burden, hence the "feather party" was born. Along with the king fowl they raffled off some ducks, geese, chickens, rabbits, and even small pigs as well. For an excellent blog post concerning the first feather party check out Creative Gene.

As for this party sponsored by the Huron River Post of the Ladies Auxiliary VFW, along with Philips Super Service, Kott Bros. Footwear and Real estate (nice combination!) and Belleville Recreation (bowling center owned by Ed and Les Elward), and held at the Sumpter Roller Rink in Belleville, Michigan, the bird of choice was a 1946 CHEVY!

Since I don't know butt-kiss about cars I'll guess that there was a standard car and probably a truck, station wagon, etc. Either way that's a brilliant looking gangster car but especially when you add a spotlight and seat covers to the beastly machine.

The skating rink itself: is kaput. It's not closed down but has been renovated into a modern skating facility and now goes under the name Rollers Skate Park. Since I loathed roller skating when I was younger and never went I can't really comment on it either way.

The four tickets that I have were found inside a book that was purchased many years ago.

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A Dudley Randall Poem in Milestone 2

I bought this Milestone 2 poetry Magazine at a Livonia estate sale this week. Milestone was the literary publication of Wayne (State) University and this second issue dates to 1949. While I don't recognize most of the names, Dudley Randall was both a nationally known poet and the librarian for the Wayne County General Hospital at Eloise via the Wayne County Library System. The poem featured is The Southern Road which was a revised version of the completed poem from 1948 that h as a handful or two of word differences between the two. I don't know if Randall edited the poem for later collected works editions or earlier but this link features it in its likely final form in 2009. Neither version particularly enchants me but the block print in the magazine is an added bonus.

A Cabinet Card of a Dead Man Lying in Repose From Wayne Photographer Susan Doolittle

The City of Wayne, Michigan was not a large village at the turn of the 20th century so it stands to reason that there wasn't a glut of photographers practicing their trade there. As such, the 3 cabinet cards and carte de visites that I own represents roughly a quarter of the early ones. Considering that the wives of Frank Hickok and William Corlett, first Village President of Wayne, took over after Frank's death in 1892 the list grows smaller beyond those two families. Had I snagged the Doolittle dead man cabinet card I'd be even that much more Wayne-rich in photographs. Speaking of Susan Doolittle, of whom I have learned very little about, it is interesting to note that Wayne had three women photographers in an era oft dominated by men in that very field. This photograph of a corpse is a startling example of her work.

Frederick Soop: Not An Equal Opportunity Restraunteer

Detroit Free Press , March 28, 1890 If you don't want to hear a racist tale of a suburban namesake then close your eyes now. As early as 1876 Frederick Soop had left his Belleville farm once again, having done a stint at the Hawkins House in Ypsilanti during the Civil War and the City Hotel in Detroit thereafter, and ventured off to Chatham, Ontario to run the Rutley Hotel , which was conducted as a Temperance House. Detroit Free Press , August 17, 1879 In 1879 he was searching for a good restaurant or small hotel to operate. Eventually he ended up on Washington Avenue near State Street running a dining hall which he ran until around 1890. Detroit Free Press , April 16, 1890 It was in 1888 when the aforementioned racial incident occurred at his dining establishment. It was then that William H. Haynes, a black doctor, sat down with his former classmate S. W. Barkwell for dinner. The men ordered but when the food was served none was placed before Mr. Haynes who, ironically, ha...

The Nankin Township Historical Society

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