African American Heritage
 

Historical Timeline

1847-1900 *

Lansing’s African American heritage is as old as the city itself. Lansing’s first Black resident,  James Little was a freed enslaved person from New York and settled a small farm in nearby Eaton County in 1847.  Some 20 years later he moved closer to Lansing and was extremely active in his church and other community activities and became a beloved citizen. He died March 10, 1884. “His funeral was held in the A. M. E church, and perhaps no funeral in the city was attended by a larger number of representative people. The sermon was preached by Rev. W H. Thompson, of the Central M. E church, of which he was a member.” 

Lansing’s black population increased slowly during the remainder of the nineteenth century. Many Black settlers came from other northern states and from the upper south. Some were Canadians descended from escaped enslaved people. Others came from elsewhere in Michigan, with the majority of those hailing from Cass County (Freed enslaved communities had been established there before the Civil War.)

1900-1929

As more families came, a clear African American community began to develop in Lansing. By 1900, most Black residents lived on the city’s west side, close to where the Oldsmobile plant would one day stand. They tended to be more educated and skilled than Blacks in large urban areas. Sixty percent of Lansing’s African Americans were homeowners, and a few owned businesses. Discrimination did force most to seek jobs in the service industry, however, and many worked as waiters, cooks and domestic servants.

A large-scale migration of African Americans from the Deep South to the North began around 1915. Blacks moved to Lansing in greater numbers than ever, while whites began to more actively enforce segregated housing.

1929-1970

Segregation became even more pronounced during the Great Depression. With a growing African American population and fewer housing opportunities, Lansing’s main Black neighborhood (still located by the Oldsmobile plant) became increasingly crowded. Housing shortages during and after World War II exacerbated the situation.

In the 1960s, the city began practicing urban renewal. Interstate 496 was constructed through the heart of the city, bisecting the main black neighborhood. The project claimed 890 dwellings, many of which were occupied by African Americans. An Oldsmobile expansion project and two urban renewal projects around the Capitol destroyed even more housing.

1970-Today

The urban renewal projects ended by 1970. That year, about eleven thousand Blacks lived in Lansing. By the year 2000, that number had grown to twenty-six thousand. The number continues to grow, as Lansing itself becomes more modern and diverse.

Sites of Interest

Historical Markers

First Churches 

20 Lansing Trailblazers ** 

Stuart Dunnings Jr. 

Stuart Dunnings Jr. was Lansing’s first Black lawyer. He opened a law practice in 1950. Dunnings served as president of the local NAACP and was a champion for civil rights issues. One of his first cases involved Black students from Detroit playing in a basketball tournament. The students were denied hotel rooms in Lansing. Dunnings won the case against the hotel, but got a judgment of only 21 cents. In an interview with the LSJ in 2006, Dunnings recalled, “The judge said I proved they were discriminated against, but I couldn’t prove damages.” Dunnings died in 2010.

Raymond Riddle

Raymond Riddle was Lansing’s first Black police officer. He was hired in 1950. Riddle eventually left the police department to become a brick mason, partly because bricklaying paid more. Riddle was a brick mason and foreman for 20 years, became a state building inspector in 1977 and retired in 1994 as an assistant chief with the Michigan Department of Labor’s Bureau of Construction Codes. 

William Harrison

William Harrison wanted to design roads and bridges in the mid-1930s but was turned down by the president of Tennessee State University despite his impeccable academic record. He was told, “you won’t be able to get a job because no one is going to hire a Negro engineer.” Harrison switched to medicine, completed medical school in 1944 at Howard University, came to Lansing and opened a practice in 1946, becoming the city’s first Black doctor. He died in 1997.

Olivia Letts

Olivia Letts was the first Black female teacher to be hired in Lansing --- in 1951. Ten years later, she was named the city’s first Black principal at a new and predominantly white Post Oak Elementary, which had three Black students. Letts also was among the district’s first Black administrators. In 2016, she was inducted into the Michigan Women’s Hall of Fame. Letts died in 2020.

Rudolph "Rudy" Wilson"

Rudolph “Rudy” Wilson was the first Black chemist and salaried employee hired by Oldsmobile, in 1955. He negotiated continuously over the years to ensure that the company followed equitable hiring practices. He retired in 1987. Wilson served as branch president of the local NAACP from 1977 to 1986. He was appointed in 1987 to serve on the Ingham Intermediate School District board. He died in 2015.

James Riley

James Riley, a World War II veteran, and his wife, Deresa, founded the Riley Funeral Home in 1957. It is the oldest Black-owned business in Lansing. They operated the Riley Funeral Home until their retirement in 1993. Riley died in 2016.

A. Gregory Eaton

A. Gregory Eaton became Michigan’s first Black lobbyist in the mid-1960s. He joined Karoub Associates in 1968 and is counsel to the firm. Eaton has owned several businesses and is the president and owner of Gregory’s Soul Food Restaurant. He also is a former executive assistant and legislative counsel for the Michigan Automobile Dealers Association.

Joel Ferguson

In 1967, Joel Ferguson (pictured right) became the first African American elected to the Lansing City Council and the youngest person, as well. He was also the first African American to serve on the Ingham County Board of Supervisors. He is co-founder of F & S Development Company, and the developer of multi-family residential complexes throughout Michigan. He was a co-founder of Lansing television station WFSL-TV (Channel 47) and the founder of Lansing’s WLAJ-TV (Channel 53) television station. He is owner and developer of many office buildings in the Lansing area and one of the original organizers of Capitol National Bank. Ferguson was first elected to the MSU Board of Trustees in 1986 and has been re-elected three times. He now serves as vice-chairman.

Hortense Canady

​Hortense Canady was the first black person elected to the Lansing school board in 1968. She was one of five board members recalled in 1972 for advocating a school desegregation plan. Canady went on to become the first executive director of the Lansing Community College Foundation. She was a founding member of Les Meres et Debutante and the Lansing Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Chapter Inc. Canady was inducted into the Michigan Women’s Historical Center  & Hall of Fame in 2002. She died in 2010. 

Grady Porter

Grady Porter became the first black person elected to the Ingham County Board of Commissioners in 1968, having been encouraged by family and friends to run for political office. Grady served on the commission for 24 years, retiring from politics in 1992. In 1992 the Ingham County building at 313 W. Kalamazoo was named the Grady J. Porter Building. Porter died in 2007. 

Blanche Martin

Blanche Martin took the oath of office as the first black member of the Michigan State University Board of Trustees on Jan. 6, 1969. Martin, a Class of 1959 graduate, served two consecutive terms on the board. A former football star at MSU, he was named to the All-American academic first team (1957-58) and was awarded the Ross Trophy for outstanding academic and athletic achievements (1959). He earned a doctorate in dental surgery from the University of Detroit in 1967 and established his dental practice in East Lansing. 

Clifton Wharton Jr

In January 1970, Clifton Wharton Jr. (pictured right) began his eight-year presidency at Michigan State University. Wharton was the first black president of a major U.S. university. Major contributions during his tenure included the establishment of the Presidential Commission on Admissions and Student Body Composition to study future enrollment policies, the Presidential Fellows Program, and the start of the process that ultimately lead to the construction of a new performing arts center, later named the Wharton Center for Performing Arts in honor of Wharton and his wife Dolores.

Dr. Alexa Canady

Dr. Alexa Canady was the first black female neurosurgeon in the United States. Canady was chief of neurosurgery at the Children’s Hospital of Michigan from 1987 until her retirement in 2001. In 1989, she was inducted into the Michigan Women’s Hall of Fame. Born in Lansing, Canady is the daughter of the late Hortense Canady and the late Clinton Canady Jr. 

Sam Hopkins

Sam Hopkins became Lansing Fire Department’s first black fire chief in 1988. He hired in as a firefighter in 1965 at No. 1 Fire Station, then located at Shiawassee Street and Grand Avenue. He also was the first black engineer, lieutenant, and captain. Hopkins retired from LFD in 1994. He became the first black fire chief in Ann Arbor in 2005 and was there until 2009. Roger Roberts was the first black firefighter hired by the Lansing Fire Department. He served from July 8, 1962 to Feb. 17, 1973.

Able Sykes Jr. 

Able Sykes Jr. was the second president – and first black president – of Lansing Community College. He held the position from 1990 until he retired in 1999. Sykes was the first black person to serve as chairman of the Association of Community Colleges board of directors. The college’s Able B. Sykes J. Technology and Learning Center is name in his honor.

Dr. Eva Evans

Dr. Eva Evans has been a leader in education since 1965. She served in a number of administrative positions in the Lansing School District, from director of elementary education to being the first female deputy superintendent of Lansing public schools. Presently she is chair of the Lansing Community College Foundation. In 2006, Evans was inducted into the Michigan Women’s Hall of Fame. She died in 2020.

Paula Cunningham

Paula Cunningham started her career with Lansing Community College in 1981 as an associate professor. She rose to become the school’s first female president in 2000. In 2006, Cunningham became the first female president and CEO of Capitol National Bank. Cunningham was also the first African American woman to chair the board of the Lansing Regional Chamber of Commerce. Cunningham was inducted into the Michigan Women’s Hall of Fame in 2013. 

James Bibbs

James Bibbs is the longest tenured track and field coach in Michigan State University’s program history. In 1968 he became the first black coach at MSU and in 1975 he became the first black head track coach in the Big Ten. During Bibbs’ career, his student-athletes won 52 Big Ten titles, earned All-America honors 26 times, claimed three NCAA titles and set two world records. Bibbs retired as head coach in 1995.

Claude Thomas

Claude Thomas was the first black Ingham County Assistant Prosecutor, one of Lansing’s first black police officers, and Lansing’s first black District Court Judge. He was also the first black student and graduate of Cooley Law School. He died in 2008.

Judge John "Jack" Davis 

​Lansing District Judge John “Jack” Davis was a judge for almost nine years. Before that, he was a trial attorney with the U.S. Dept. of Justice, then went into private practice in 1985, where he successfully litigated school, housing and employment discrimination cases before U.S. District courts, the U.S. Court of Appeals and the U.S. Supreme Court. He died in 1995.

​

**From Lansing State Journal

Earvin "Magic" Johnson

We would be remiss if we did not include Earvin “Magic” Johnson in this list as a local Lansing celebrity.  Johnson was born and raised in Lansing and after winning championships in high school (Everett) and college (Michigan State University) Johnson was selected first overall in the 1979 NBA draft by the Los Angeles Lakers. He won a championship and an NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award in his rookie season, and won four more championships with the Lakers during the 1980s. He played point guard for the Lakers for 13 seasons.

Dr. Robert L. Green

Robert L. Green’s presence as a community leader, policy maker, professor, and MSU’s first Black dean a was a galvanizing force that influenced the university’s efforts to attract and retain more diversity in students, faculty, and staff. He worked tirelessly to ensure that students obtained degrees that would prepare them for life after MSU. It was also Dr. Green’s change agent strategies and impact in public housing and education that resulted in Martin L. King Jr.’s request to have him serve as the Southern Christian Leadership Conference education director.
The East Lansing School Board unanimously voted in 2021 to re-name Pinecrest Elementary School to honor Dr. Robert L. Green, the first Black homeowner in East Lansing and civil rights activist. The Robert L. Green Commission, which was formed in 2021, was created to commemorate Green and his efforts to improve the East Lansing community for people of color in the 1960s.
In 1962, President Kennedy signed Executive Order 11063. This order, “prohibited discrimination on the basis of race in the sale, leasing, rental, or other disposition of properties and facilities owned or operated by the federal government or provided with federal funds. The goal of this order was to provide equal housing opportunities regardless of race or ethnicity. Green, who worked for Michigan State University as an associate professor of education, was denied his right to own a home and filed a complaint to the Federal Housing Administration.
In 1964, Green was able to purchase 207 Bessemaur Drive, where he would send his children to Pinecrest Elementary as the first to integrate into a previously segregated school.
Elaine Hardy, diversity, equity and inclusion administrator of East Lansing, also worked on the Robert L. Green Commission. Hardy has worked on the commission in an effort to not only rename the school, but to place a Michigan historic marker across from 207 Bessemer Drive, the house that Green purchased in 1964.

A mural honoring Dr. Robert L. Green, an East Lansing civil rights activist and faculty member, was painted by Michigan-based artist Ndubisi Okoye. Pictured on May 25, 2022.— Photo by Sheldon Krause | The State News

Black Owned Establishments

Paving the Way

The Historical Society of Greater Lansing has done extensive research into the aftermath of interstate 496 cutting through the middle of Lansing and uprooting a thriving, predominantly African American neighborhood in the name of progress. Keep up with their latest findings through the Paving The Way Project.