Downtown Detroit in Wayne County, Michigan — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
Paradise Valley
Photographed By J.T. Lambrou, May 3, 2021
1. Paradise Valley Marker
Side 1
Inscription.
Paradise Valley. . As Detroit’s manufacturing base boomed during two world wars (1917-18 and 1941-45), large numbers of African Americans moved here to work in the factories. Detroit’s African American population increased from 5,000 in 1910 to 300,000 by 1950. Throughout this period segregationist policies restricted where blacks could live, own businesses, and spend their free time. During the 1930s a commercial center emerged in the area roughly bounded by Adams, Brush, Alexandrine, and Hastings(replaced by I-75). Known as “Paradise Valley,” it had black-owned medical offices and retail shops as well as swank restaurants and hotels. Some nightclubs, called “black and tans,” were frequented by blacks and whites alike. African Americans owned and operated all of the businesses in the valley.
Formerly the intersection of Adams Avenue and St. Antoine Street, this site was once part of Paradise Valley, Detroit’s African American business and entertainment district. From the 1930s into the 1950s Paradise Valley bustled around the clock. Nightspots like 606 Horseshoe Lounge, Club Plantation, and Club 666 featured entertainers such as Duke Ellington, Dinah Washington, the Ink Spots, and Sarah Vaughan. Blacks who performed elsewhere in Michigan were excluded from white hotels and stayed in the valley. Beginning in the 1940s, urban renewal projects, the construction of freeways, and new development devastated African American neighborhoods, including Paradise Valley. The valley’s last three structures, located along St. Antoine Street, were demolished in 2001.
As Detroit’s manufacturing base boomed during two world wars (1917-18 and 1941-45), large numbers of African Americans moved here to work in the factories. Detroit’s African American population increased from 5,000 in 1910 to 300,000 by 1950. Throughout this period segregationist policies restricted where blacks could live, own businesses, and spend their free time. During the 1930s a commercial center emerged in the area roughly bounded by Adams, Brush, Alexandrine, and Hastings(replaced by I-75). Known as “Paradise Valley,” it had black-owned medical offices and retail shops as well as swank restaurants and hotels. Some nightclubs, called “black and tans,” were frequented by blacks and whites alike. African Americans owned and operated all of the businesses in the valley.
Formerly the intersection of Adams Avenue and St. Antoine Street, this site was once part of Paradise Valley, Detroit’s African American business and entertainment district. From the 1930s into the 1950s Paradise Valley bustled around the clock. Nightspots like 606 Horseshoe Lounge, Club Plantation, and Club 666 featured entertainers such as Duke Ellington, Dinah Washington, the Ink Spots, and Sarah Vaughan. Blacks who performed elsewhere in Michigan were excluded from white hotels and stayed in the valley. Beginning in the 1940s, urban renewal projects, the
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construction of freeways, and new development devastated African American neighborhoods, including Paradise Valley. The valley’s last three structures, located along St. Antoine Street, were demolished in 2001.
Erected 2003 by Michigan Historical Commission - Michigan Historical Center. (Marker Number S0680.)
Location. 42° 20.387′ N, 83° 2.616′ W. Marker is in Detroit, Michigan, in Wayne County. It is in Downtown Detroit. Marker is on St Antoine, 0.1 miles north of Beacon Street, on the right when traveling north. Marker is just south of the Ford Field Parking Deck. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1902 St Antoine, Detroit MI 48226, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Marker location across from club and suite entrance of Ford Field, home of the Detroit Lions.
Credits. This page was last revised on February 12, 2023. It was originally submitted on June 3, 2021, by J.T. Lambrou of New Boston, Michigan. This page has been viewed 666 times since then and 99 times this year. Photos:1, 2, 3. submitted on June 3, 2021, by J.T. Lambrou of New Boston, Michigan. • Mark Hilton was the editor who published this page.