Preview Mode Links will not work in preview mode

Welcome to the Detroit History Podcast. We’ll mine this city’s history, telling the story through this town’s cultural, social, political, musical and automotive heritage. Our chosen tool is the podcast.

During the second season we’ll be dealing with topics as varied as Henry Ford’s anti-Semitism; Detroit’s 1943 riot, which killed 34 people; the National Football League Champion Detroit Lions of 1957; and a history of one of this country’s last great newspaper saloons, the Anchor Bar. 

For Android users, listen on Spotify or our website: detroithistorypodcast.com

Aug 3, 2020

Some look at Detroit today and wonder how the abandoned buildings got here. What happened between The Arsenal of Democracy and now? How did a city of nearly 2 million people dwindle down to around 650,000? There are people that blame the 1967 rebellion for the urban decay the city has seen, others blame longtime mayor...


Jul 27, 2020

Burlesque legend Lottie Graves-Claiborne wowed 'em on several continents, sharing the stage with numerous worldwide stars. But throughout her celebrated 90 years, Lottie insisted on highlighting the art of the tease. This week's Detroit History Podcast focuses on a long life well-lived, and how Lottie the Body's...


Jul 20, 2020

A historic cafe has morphed its way through generations of change, and still ... still ... there is the feather bowling. Feather bowling? Yes, feather bowling. One man, born in Detroit, found an important piece of his identity playing this unusual game of his forebears on the court at the Cadieux Cafe and he is an...


Jul 13, 2020

In 1952, famed historian David Maraniss's father, Elliott Maraniss, was fired by the Detroit Times, the city's Hearst daily newspaper. This happened on the very day congressional witch hunters showed up in the newsroom with a subpoena demanding he testify before the House Un-American Activities Committee. The family's...


Jul 6, 2020

Benny Evangelista found Detroit's near East Side fertile territory for dispensing pay-as-you-go insights into the lives of his working-class clientele. He was known in the neighborhood as a "divine prophet," which is how the banner headline of the Detroit Free Press described him after his decapitated body and the...