Hidden History of Detroit

Hidden History

by Amy Elliott Bragg

Discover the Motor City before the motor: a muddy port town full of grogshops, horse races, haphazard cemeteries and enterprising bootstrappers from all over the world. Meet the argumentative French fugitive who founded the city, the tobacco magnate who haunts his shuttered factory, the gambler prankster millionaire who built a monument to himself, the governor who brought his scholarly library with him on canoe expeditions and the historians who helped create the story of Detroit as we know it: one of the oldest, rowdiest and most enigmatic cities in the Midwest.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Cities

160 pages, Paperback

First published October 20, 2011

Reviews

[Diana Long · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this read. Entertaining and educational. It's clear the author spent a fair amount of time researching and the work speaks for itself. I was especially enjoying the biographies of people that made their mark on Detroit and their names are the names of the streets. I really recommend this work, not only to those that have a connection to Detroit or Michigan but those who enjoy a good history.

[Jonathan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Is this the long-awaited systematic biography of my beloved hometown that it deserves? Heck no. Is it essential reading for anybody who already knows the city inside and out? Heck yeah.

This collection of essays is a direct outgrowth of Elliott Bragg's superb Night Train to Detroit blog. It is in every way a collection of blog posts, in nature if not in fact. There has been some connective tissue woven in, and the anecdotes have been strung together into chapters by theme or by chronology, with scraps of original texts inserted as dividers/epigraphs.

So, the form is not quite what one might hope for. But the content is solid gold, and Elliott Bragg's authorial voice so winning, that this book is far more than the sum of its parts.

You see, I am a lifelong Detroiter. I've been interested in the city for all of my three and a half-ish decades, and have read and studied and taken tours and so on, and yet I knew only a few of these stories coming in. The author's research efforts and her outright love for her subjects have allowed her to accomplish the greatest feat of the historical writer.

That is, she has brought these titans of the early city back to life, allowed us to walk the muddly streets of old Detroit with them. She has turned them from street names into real personalities; not only in her imagination but in mine. When I walk Griswold I will think of a master of commerce collapsing into death; when I cross Hart Plaza I will imagine with a new vibrance the ambitious gleam in ol' Antoine's eye when he landed there 314 years ago.

This is not the book you need to read to be introduced to Detroit. But it is a book you need to read in order to really get to know my city. I'm immensely grateful that it exists.

[Erica · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good read about the first 200 years of Detroit, a pre-Motor City history that I think many of us has forgotten.
I liked the more informal, opinionated style of the writing as well as the inclusion of details on historical figures' personalities. Who knew Cadillac was such a shyster?
I wish it had been a bit more in depth because I would've liked to have learned more.
Either way, this book has me wanting to head into the city even more to gaze upon the various statues and landmarks that I now know so much more intimately.

[Stella Gatzke · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a crash-course in early Detroit history. The writing style is informal and excited; it’s clear from the first page that the author loves her work and is eager to share anecdotes from the city’s history that are not only educational, but immensely entertaining. This book made me laugh out loud on multiple occasions. This work showcases the heart and humor of a great city, and I plan to recommend it to everyone I know.

[Tom Schulte · Rating 4 out of 5]

In a slim volume, the author tells an entertaining story of Detroit's history, mostly in the 19th Century. The anecdotes and landmarks and economic changes (wealth in stoves, tobacco, and lumber before autos) paint an earthy picture of noisy taverns and muddy streets like a Monty Python vision of Detroit history. Framing this telling is the rise and reinternments of the Michigan "boy governor" Stevens T. Mason.

[Melissa Gors-Schafer · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very quick read; I finished it in less than an afternoon. The author is a very good writer - very approachable and conversational, and I quite enjoyed that aspect of it. I learned things about my beloved hometown of Detroit that I hadn’t known, and again - good author. Her writing style is what I think I enjoyed the most.

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick but interesting read about peoples names you read on street signs and buildings in Detroit. Augustus Woodward who named the street Woodward after himself and named Jefferson after his friend President Thomas Jefferson; Lewis Cass, Friend Palmer, Father Gabriel Richard, Henry Rowe Schoolcraft, James Vernors, Jeanne François Hamtramck and those I was not familiar with - Hazen Stuart Pingree and Jim Scott. It was funny to read that citizens have been complaining about the conditions of Detroit streets since the 1880s. It also includes events like St Anne’s Cathedral burning down and the cholera epidemic of 1834 that killed 1/7th of Detroit’s population.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good, quick read about Detroit's early history up until the mid-20th century. Many interesting facts about the movers and shakers who set the path for Detroit to become an iconic city in America. By extension it also gives some background on Michigan's history from early explorations and fur trading to becoming a territory followed by eventual statehood. I especially liked the stories of some of the statues representing influential figures who many today know nothing about. I only wish it had continued through the late 20th century and early 2000's with all the problems that have enveloped the city and the struggles to revive its great past. But then it wouldn't have been such a quick read...

[Debbie Townes · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. The author writes that she used to think Detroit history went like this: “French fur traders founded it, something something something, there was a fire at some point, then Henry Ford started making cars and then Detroit got really big! Something about prohibition and the Purple Gang, and then the riots in the ’60s, when white people left town and made the suburbs. And now today, it’s getting better, sort of, but there are still a lot of empty buildings. And a lot of suburbs.” I think that’s the history most Detroiters know as well. In a short and easy to read book, the author reintroduces us to many of the unique characters that make up our past. It was fun to see all the namesakes of our beloved streets and landmarks brought to life.

[Austin Edmister · Rating 5 out of 5]

A delightful series of stories, characters, and insights from Detroit’s early history. Bragg combines a casual and witty style of storytelling with deep and detailed research. I highly recommend if you’re getting to know Michigan or just interested in historical characters with a lot of personality.

[Paula Harrington · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's been decades since I learned some of the history of Detroit, my hometown. Junior high history class was not the place to be told of the juicer sides of the City's earlier times. Just names, dates, glossed over details. This book was a joy to read! The author reveals the more human side of the influential and the eccentric. Detroit is known for its grit and industriousness. From the very beginning in 1701, cycle after cycle of near-collapse and reinvention, Detroit reemerges stronger.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

I know (knew) very little about Detroit history. Having moved around as a kid due to my father's service in the USN, I missed the majority of the Michigan history lessons my friends and coworkers were all afforded. This was a quick and interesting read that makes me want to dive deeper into Detroit's history and visit the statutes of those who made their mark on the city.

[Steve Hanley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Usually these slim local history books are little more than a bunch of interesting photos with informational captions. Hidden History of Detroit is MUCH more than that. I was surprised throughout to learn some of the quirkier bits of Detroit’s history. The writing was fresh, funny, and held my interest throughout. Would recommend.

[Marcy Heller · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting tidbits of Detroiters

A disjointed and quirky history of Detroiters— readers will recognize many of the named characters as current street names, or almost- forgotten sculptures dotting our town.

[JAN-MICHAEL HESSENAUER · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it!

Extremely interesting and accessible book !Great read for anyone interested in the untold history of Detroit! I'll be following the authors blog and hope for more books soon!

[Christine · Rating 1 out of 5]

Very dissatisfied

Not sure what this book is supposed to be about. I flipped to through it looking for something interesting to catch my eye... Nothing. Back to the library...

[Gary Sharpe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hidden History of Detroit

Hidden History of Detroit is a lively narrative about the city by the strait. However, stopping at 1955, I found it somewhat incomplete.

[Jann Grimes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short but interesting

I enjoyed the book and although short it holds some interesting history of Detroit. Makes me want to see some of the things mentioned in it.

[La Tonya Sellers · Rating 3 out of 5]

Required read

Mainly covers the 19th century of Europeans culture in Detroit. A book of research, so it was informative. Some portions are laughable.

[Bradley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I live in the metro Detroit area and thought I knew most of the legendary Detroit stories but Amy Elliott Bragg taught me a few things.

[scott barlow · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very enjoyable!

Excellent research and fun to read! Lots of info not ordinarily found. Makes me want to travel back to my birthplace however I only lived there for two days .

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars. I’d love to read more!

[Donna Agnelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a wonderful gem of a book about my hometown Detroit. I know everyone reading it may not give it as high of a rating but for me it was dead on. Loved, loved reading about the people behind the names I grew up with. Who would have thought that the little Polish community of Hamtramck I grew up next to was named after a Frenchman! A beautiful glimpse at my hometown complete with the hope and view that it will once again rise up against the odds. If you are a Detroiter this is a must read book. Gosh I'm so glad I discovered it. Plan on buying my sister who still lives in Detroit a copy - I know she will love it too!

[Dan · Rating 2 out of 5]

This slim volume tells tales from the early days of Detroit -- long before the automobile came to define the city. Elliott Bragg's writing is conversational and readable with an almost gossipy tone; this is definitely not a scholarly history. Still, the stories often feel like an outline, with important parts of the narrative glossed over, and the legitimacy of some of Elliott Bragg's interjections is questionable. If you're interested in early Detroit, this is a decent collection of anecdotes, but those with the stomach for a more academic style would be more satisfied looking elsewhere.

[Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amy Elliott Bragg's voice shines through proudly in her very readable conversational "history" of Detroit. Her tales weave a tapestry of vice, mud, inept and corrupt government, bars and babes that remind us of Detroit's French origins, Civil War legacies and schemes for development that never saw the light of day. Many of us who think we know Detroit "well" will appreciate Bragg's familiarity and genuine affection for her characters and her city. Lots of sources and recommended reading. This will make you want to visit Detroit...Thanks Amy

[Bonnie Walker · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a cool book. I found this while at Greenfield Village a few weeks back and I have really enjoyed this. I don't know if someone who is not from this area would get as much out of this as my fellow Detroiters would but I personally found it really interesting and learned a lot of things about our city that I did not know about before. For my friends out there who enjoy books about history, I recommend this one.

[Debbi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'd rather give this 3.5 stars. It got more interesting as I got into it. The beginning was a little too history (like in school) for me. I liked learning about Detroit politics, the characters and the problems of the city early on though. I'd definitely recommend this book.

[Jamie Murphy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book--I already was familiar w/ the author from her blog (nighttraintodetroit.com). Her writing is so much more entertaining & amusing than most history writing. I also love Detroit history, so it was a perfect combination.

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

Striking a careful balance between being pedantic and entertaining, this book was a joy to read. The author did an excellent job of humanizing stodgy, old historical figures and relating their stories. Fantastic book for anyone who is interested in Detroit.

[Jeffrey · Rating 2 out of 5]

In an effort to crank out one last book in 2012, I read Hidden History of Detroit. It should remain hidden, as its not that well written, and it largely ignores 200 of Detroit's 300+ years of history.